Handy Auto Guide

The brand new 8C Spider from Alfa Romeo is reviewed by Automobile Magazine who concludes the marque is "in essence, a Maserati in disguise". 'The 8C Spider is a handbuilt concept, but it works well enough to keep breaking the lap record inside the shuttered Alfa factory again and again. The back straight of the building is long enough for a full blast in third gear, so here we go once more, molto vivace. With the throttle butterflies wide open and the four tailpipes blowing like chrome trumpets, you can almost see the plaster crack, and you can hear the skylights rattle in their frames. Redlined at 7800 rpm, the 90-degree V-8 keeps pushing you deep into the Sparco racing seat, which was originally developed for the Ferrari Enzo. Unlike the 8C coupe, which is all carbon fiber inside, the Spider's cockpit is dominated by black leather. Black is also the color of choice for the steeply raked windshield frame and for the steel rollover-protection elements..'

Auto Express have published their "First drive" review of the Alfa Romeo MiTo. 'In spite of the long front overhang, the car looks great. Inside, it’s smartly styled with a carbon fibre-effect dash and deep-set dials. The driving position is low and sporty, and while some plastics don’t have the high-quality feel of a German car, the raft of kit compensates. Three trims are available – Turismo, Lusso and Veloce – and even the basic car comes with air-con, 16-inch alloys and an MP3-compatible stereo.

The Independent have published their review of the Alfa Mito 1.4 T-jet 155 compact. 'The Mito's name is a conjunction of the Italian abbreviations of Milan and Turin. In the first publicity material it was rendered as Mi.To, but that looks awful in print. This logo-isation of running prose is now officially watered down to MiTo, but that is still horrible. So, in the interests of aesthetics, we'll go with Mito. After all, Alfa itself was originally written A.L.F.A.