Alfa Romeo 164 to upset luxury market?

Press, 9 October 1987, Page 24

Alfa Romeo 164 to upset luxury market?

Provided Alfa Romeo has finally got it all together and has established a good reliability factor, the balance in New Zealand's world of high-class luxury performance cars is about to be upset by the new Alfa Romeo 164 saloon range. As I found out in Milan towards the end of September, Alfa, the legendary Italian car-maker with a motor racing tradition behind it dating back almost to the turn of the century, has at last produced a luxury saloon that has not lost a scrap of the traditional sporting pedigree. The Alfa 164 should reach New Zealand some time next year and when it does it's going to cause Mercedes Benz, 8.M.W., Audi and Jaguar connections some aggro and stimulate them to sit up and take notice. This is a car that, unlike the Alfa 90 and 75, is going to hit the establishment below the belt and very hard. At this juncture no one really knows how much an Alfa 164 3.0 6V will actually cost in this country, but, as sure as God made a small apple, it will be less expensive than any other European car in this particular engine and size bracket As a matter of fact, I’d expect this particular car, which I understand Moller Alfa, the national distributor, intends to make its flagship, will sell for around $BO,OOO, or somewhat less. Although there were no 1 automatic transmission versions available at the Milan press launch, the New Zealand specification cars will be automatics and equipped with air conditioning and all the other options so beloved by affluent New Zealanders. The 164 V 6 is a 128 kW at 5600 rpm saloon, claimed to be capable of more than 230km/h. This is a car that will capture conquest sales for the Italian marque. It is extremely flexible developing its maximum torque of 245 Nm at 3000 rpm and, needless to say, the 60deg vee engine is very, very smooth. The other car I sampled was the 164 T Spark. This is an in-line four-

cylinder with two spark plugs per cylinder. It develops 107 kW at 5800 rpm and its maximum torque of 186 Nm at 4000 rpm. In the case of the T Spark, the torque curve is very flat, 157 Nm being developed at 2000 rpm and 178 Nm coming up at 3000 rpm. The T Spark is very much in the Alfa tradition and I’ve no doubt that it will gladden the hearts of Alfa devotees who will regard it as a suitable replacement for the Alfa 75. It is also a quick car, having a claimed maximum speed of more than 210 km/h. Apart from the engines, four in all — a 126 kW 1995 cu cm turbocharged diesel and an 84kW 2500 cu cm turbocharged petrol engine — these cars have just about everything in common, including disc brakes all round, power-assisted rack and pinion steering, all-inde-pendent suspension and, in the petrol-powered cars, Bosch petrol Injection. The bodyshell, designed by Pininfarina, is a fourdoor, three-box type that was created with the aid of the latest technical and scientific computer techniques and with extensive use of computer-aided design.

The body is of distinctly sporting character, but does not sacrifice roominess or practicality. It is strictly functional, being devoid of purely decorative frills and, in effect, is a modem interpretation of traditional Alfa Romeo

styling features. The car has a drag coefficient of 0.30, an exceptionally good figure for a saloon of this type, and it has been achieved by incorporating semiflush windows and semirecessed door handles, bonded windscreen and back light and the smooth shape that is characterised by the complete absence of any protrusions. In this regard, it appears that the only factor disturbing the aerodynamic efficiency of the body concerns the electrically adjustable, doormounted rear vision mirrors. A certain amount of wind noise stems from these when travelling at anything much over 160 km/h. Otherwise this is a very quiet car in every i respect. ! The Alfa 164 has been furnished by Italians with very good taste. Upholstery and trim fabrics are of subdued tonings. Basically the Interior is plain, with most of the Interest centred on the front compartment and Instrument panel. Special attention has been devoted to the driver. There is easy access to ajl controls and an unobstructed view of instruments and indicators fundamental for sportstype driving. The instruments and indicators are grouped in a functional manner in different areas and, with the controls, with due regard to ergonomics.

From the driver’s viewpoint, the electrically adjustable seat and telescopic steering column, which is also adjustable for rake, adds up to an Ideal position for everyone, Irrespective of size or shape. This is a spacious car and the air of roominess Is further emphasised by the absence of an overhanging fascia ahead of the front seat passenger. It Is virtually flush with the lower boundary of the windscreen. The Italians, unlike the Germans and the British, apparently believe that they have produced a car that is such a joy to drive that there is no need to divert the attention of the pilot by such things as a trip computer which will summon up useful, if unnecessary, information, regarding average speed and fuel consumption while on the move. I must say that I tend to agree with this approach, for the Alfa 164 is indeed a pleasure to drive and in Italy at least, where one can travel as fast as one desires on the autostrada.

it is advisable to remain undistracted at speeds beyond 200 km/h.

In Milan we were able to sample the Alfa 164 over a test course of about 100 kilometres. It comprised a blast up and down an autostrada and a loop off it on some indifferent secondary roads and through a couple of typically Italian villages. As about 1000 motoring journalists from the farthest corners of the world and around 750 cars were involved, the test drives involved considerable organisation. Before the session started, it was discovered that two of the cars had been stolen overnight, despite the fact that the car park was heavily guarded.

The runs were not without incident A Scandinavian journalist allegedly having a rare uninhibited drive — drink-driving law enforcement is extremely strict in Scandinavia — had , little difficulty in writing off a brand spanking new 164 in some trees located a considerable distance away from a secondary road, while a couple of Greeks standing on the roadside by a steaming 164 looked more than a little hot and bothered after one of them had accidentally downshifted from fifth gear to' second gear while travelling in excess of 160km/h. Naturally enough, the Alfa engine took exception to the treatment and complained expensively. Add to that a nose-to-tall collision that caused minor front and rear damage to a couple of enthusiastically driven cars and the drive programme could be counted a great success. We tried the 2-litre T Spark first and as we launched it on the autostrada, the thing that impressed most was the throaty Alfa growl as we surged smoothly away. This is a sporty car and as the speed rose the growl changed to a satisfying hum. Apart from that there was no noise. Wwhen we turned off on to the secondary road loop the features that impressed most were the complete absence of pitch.

on broken-up tar-sealed road surfaces and the leech-like roadholding in the fast, sweeping bends. The Alfa 164 suspension is worthy of some comment

Independent suspension, front and rear, featuring telescopic units with helical springs, offset to reduce transverse loads, along with anti-roll bars have been adopted. At the front the suspension includes broad base sheet steel wishbones connected by variable stiffness bushes to the subframe supporting the en-gine-gearbox assembly, which is bolted to the front of the bodyshell. The subframe, which completes and is a structural part of the 164’s front structure adding to its stiffness, also carries the power plant components, steering system and radiator. The lower extremities of the front struts are carried forward so that they are mounted level with the front axles instead of above them. This lowers the strut turrets and allows for a sleeker bonnet profile. The rear suspension is also a pre-assembled unit which brings considerable advantages in terms of adjustment, checking and quality.

It features transverse links and trailing arms that prevent changes in wheel geometry during vertical and sideways movements. The suspension provides sports car responsiveness, but displays none of the' harshness commonly asso- ~ elated with the ride qualities of cars of this type. .In fact there is full riding comfort at all times, combined with superior road-holding, even under extreme cornering, . - The only indication that this is a front-drive car comes under hard acceleration from rest There Is ascertain element of nervous torque steer as the car gets under way, but this soon disappears. Otherwise the power-as-sisted steering, suitably weighted, is generally neutral with neither understeering nor oversteering characteristics. Even the most hardhearted will fair in love with this car, because it is so composed at all times. Its other endearing feature is that it has a character all of its own, rather than the competent but bland qualities of, say, a 7 Series B.M.W. or Jaguar Sovereign.

In short, it looks a luxury saloon and behaves like one, but it is a dis-

tinctively sporting car. The V6-engine version is in reality an executive express, although ,it ’is hard to Imagine an owner , being chauffeur driven in this one. • Needless, to say, option? include aM self-levelling system to maintain the car’s attitude unaltered irrespective of load, and an anti-skid braking system for the all-disc layout Although the Alfa 164 is • a saloon designed to be exploited on the autobahn and autostrada where speed restrictions are unheard of, I’m sure it will prove to be equally competent when driven at the genteel pace permitted in this country. Certainly the rigidity of the body and the excellence of the suspension should make it a happy traveller on the more mediocre of our roads. The only apparent fault that I could find was the particularly high-lipped luggage boot which, I must say, is extremely generous’ in size. r | I eagerly await the opportunity to sample the Alfa 164 in New Zealand conditions. In the meantime it is by no means extreme to forecast that this Alfa Romeo is-one that will generate excitement among Alfa dealers and their customers.