Standing in front of the Alfa Romeo display in Paris, we found ourselves in a bit of a conundrum. The big news from Alfa was, of course, the official worldwide show debut of the MiTo, and the stand was rife with them. But we've already brought you galleries of photos of the MiTo, and even flew all the way over to Italy to drive it. (For you, of course.) But a European car show wouldn't be a European car show without some shots of an Alfa Romeo. Fortunately the Italians were kind enough to oblige with a new, hotter version of the impossibly gorgeous Brera. The Brera Ti picks up some of the improvements developed by British rally and racing concern Prodrive (yes, that Prodrive, the ones who field Aston Martin in Le Mans, Subaru in the WRC and brought Honda back into F1). The Ti gets a stiffened suspension, 8C-style 19-inch anthracite alloys and Brembo brakes.
We're already distressed about not being able to buy the Brera in the U.S. Now, Alfa Romeo is giving its Brera the Turismo Internazionale treatment for the Paris Motor Show, and we want it even more. Called, naturally, the Brera TI, the car gets a number of modifications that separate it from the standard coupe: stiffer springs and dampers, 19-inch wheels with 8C-derived rims, red Brembo one-piece front calipers, and TI logos on the front fenders for the outside. Inside, along with more TI logos, are highly bolstered and top-stitched seats, aluminum console trim or optional carbon fiber, aluminum pedals, perforated leather throughout, and the choice of a leather dash. The car goes on sale later this year with either the 185-bhp 2.2 JTS engine or 3.2-liter V6.
We didn't need another reason to want an Alfa Romeo Brera, nor another excuse to ogle its breathtaking lines. But then Prodrive comes along, with all its racing and rallying know-how, and gave us the Brera S. The toughened-up version addresses some of the gorgeous coupe's performance shortfalls and makes us cry "it's not fair", because it isn't. A car so beautiful and now, thanks to David Richards and Company, so dynamically improved, should be ours, but unfortunately a little puddle called the Atlantic Ocean keeps that dream from becoming reality. So we'll just have to wait until Alfa Romeo finally makes the voyage Stateside, by which time the limited-edition Brera S will undoubtedly be all gone, and with good reason. We'll just have to console ourselves with this new batch of achingly gorgeous images, which we're glad to share with you in the gallery below.
As we reported earlier, Alfa Romeo handed over its Brera to Prodrive, which has extensively honed the hot hatch into what's being called the Brera S. Prodrive fit the new Brera S with Eibach coil springs and Bilstein dampers, and then conducted extensive testing to find the right balance of spring and damper rates for sharper handling without ruining the ride. The steering was also tweaked to take advantage of the car's faster reflexes, and 8C Competizione-inspired lightweight 19-inch alloy wheels wearing Pirelli rubber keep the car affixed to terra firma. Along with lighter wheels, hollow anti-roll bars and aluminum suspension components further reduce the car's weight below the rest of the Brera range. Exterior mods are minimal, but the exhaust has been reworked and is capped with chrome tips featuring Prodrive's logo, and there are now Prodrive-branded mud flaps up front and either 'S' or 'SV6' badges on the C-pillar. The Brera S has also been fitted with new seats that, along with the dashboard, door panels, steering wheel and gear shift, feature red stitching. There are drilled aluminum pedals for your footsies and a limited-edition Brera S aluminum plate featuring the flags of each company's home country (Italy and Britain) is located in the headrest recess. The Brera S package can be had with either the 2.2 JTS model powered by a 185bhp four-cylinder or the 3.2 JTS V6 powered by a 260bhp V6, though only 500 will be made. We'd love to have one but suspect they'll all be acquired by the time Alfa Romeo gets around to selling cars in the U.S. again.
Prodrive is in the process of developing a performance package for the Alfa Romeo Brera S, the first collaboration between the two since Prodrive campaigned a pair of factory-built Alfa 155s in the British Touring Car Championship in 1995. Based off the 2.2 JTS and 3.2 V6 models, between 250 and 300 special edition models will be released. The majority of the focus will be spent on the suspension, aero enhancements and (thankfully) some weight savings. 19-inch rollers are expected to fill the wheel wells, while a handful of driver-oriented improvements, along with some S-badging, will find its way inside. Beyond that, details are scarce, but anytime you mix one-part unobtainable Italian with another part British racing legends, good things are on the way.
We here at Autoblog would like to thank Alfa Romeo for releasing updated versions of the Brera and Spider models. Not because we're that excited about the minimal updates themselves, but because it gave us another excuse to stop by the Alfa booth and gawk at this pair of stunning two-doors, whose beauty in the Alfa Romeo range is rivaled only by the luscious 8C, the roadster version of which Alfa also unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show.
As we brought you back in late February, the updates to the Brera and its Spider counterpart are modest, limited mostly to removing weight from the rolling stock. Modest improvements, which we'll let interested parties read about in more detail in our preview post and attached press release, but with a vehicle this breathtaking, as you can see from our images in the gallery below, we're glad Alfa kept the changes minimal in addressing some of the vehicle's dynamic shortcomings without tinkering with the styling.
Alfa fans have been a bit disappointed that the Italian automaker reportedly decided to push back the debut of the highly anticipated upcoming Junior model past the upcoming Geneva Motor Show, and Bertone's unveiling of the BAT 11 concept remains up in the air, but just the same, Alfa Romeo will have plenty to show us next week. In addition to debuting the production – and we use that term loosely, considering only 500 will be made – version of the 8C Spider, Alfa will be unveiling updated versions of its unspeakably gorgeous Brera and Spider models.
Thankfully, the Italians know better than to attempt improving on a masterpiece, so Alfa hasn't messed with the award-winning design to any great extent. The wheels, brake calipers and suspension components have been replaced with lighter-weight aluminum versions, which should help address the cars' lamentably underwhelming performance relative to its design by taking a chunk out of its unsprung weight. The subtle changes continue inside, where redesigned seats offer a sportier and more ergonomic driving position, another drawback often reported on the first-generation model. The dashboard has been updated as well to integrate a new dual-zone climate control system and a new sat-nav unit. Meanwhile, underhood, a new 185hp 2.2-liter four joins the 260hp 3.2-liter six and 210hp 2.4-liter JTDM turbodiesel, mater to a variety of six-speed transmissions in various degrees of automation. All in all, Alfa seems to be addressing some of the shortcomings of its most head-turning standard-production models, and has hopefully found a new sweet spot. Check out the press release after the jump for all the details on the 2008 Alfa Romeo Brera and Spider.
