On Alfas, Miatas and Memories
Mazda is set to build the next Alfa Romeo Spider for Fiat. Me, I'm just remembering.
I vividly remember the first time I drove an Alfa Romeo Spider. I mention this only because I also vividly remember the first time I drove a Mazda Miata. These memories are similar but vastly different. The former is a classic Italian roadster built by a company long known for being quintessentially Italian. (Chief characteristics: oil leaks, short-lived product, short maintenance intervals, emotion out the wazoo.) The latter is a modern Japanese 2-seater built by a company aiming to re-create the feeling offered by the sports cars of yore -- cars like the Lotus Elan, MG MGB and, yes, Alfa Spider. 
The weirdness hits when you consider the players. First, the last real Alfa Romeo sold on American shores (the Maserati-based 8C Competizione doesn't count) came over 15 years ago. As Motor Trend's Frank Markus reminds us, the last Alfa Spider was on sale here at roughly the same time as the first Miata. The Japanese car succeeded and came to dominate the American roadster market because it did what the cars it emulated did not; it offered enjoyable, trouble-free driving and a relatively long service life. In 1989, the year the Mazda launched, a handful of true sports cars were on sale in this country. All of them are gone, but the Miata lives on. Alfa ceased selling cars in America in 1995, unable to cope with a changed market, its sales and reputation in the gutter. The Spider -- a car with mechanicals dating to the 1960s -- was last offered in 1993.
You could argue that the Miata helped kill Alfa here, but that might be a stretch. Spider sales in the late 1980s and early 1990s were horrible anyway, a victim of the car's iffy reliability, high price and dated performance. The first Miata did well, and remains one of the best-selling roadsters in history, because it was a great car, but also because it filled a gaping hole in the market. In 1988, if you lived in the United States and wanted to buy an inexpensive, reliable, well-handling and fun two-seat car with a top that came off, you were out of luck. You could buy a Miata in 1989, but you had to get in line and wait behind the rest of the country -- the car was wildly popular. 
But contrast this with the first time I drove a Miata, a 1989 model. It was a great experience, but when I climbed out, I felt a little cheated -- the Alfa's balance and grin-inducing spirit were there, and even bettered, but the Mazda lacked the Italian car's raw, goofy edge. (I'm fudging things here; the first MX-5 I drove was a 1991 Spec Miata racer owned by a friend from my hometown. That was also a great car, but comparing race cars to street cars is such an apples-to-oranges gulf that you rarely learn anything.) The current car carries on the tradition; it's great, if a little anodyne alongside anything built in Italy. But it also offers the reliability of a stone hammer, which a lot of Alfas do not. 
I was looking for a 2 seat sports car back in 1976. After test driving the British models including the MGB-GT, which I thought I wanted, a friend of mine told me I should go test drive a Alfa. After test driving the Alfa I HAD to buy one. I drove out of the dealership with a brand new 1974 Spider. Being from California the newest Alfa models were from 1974 because of pollution issues. So I owned the last of the non smoged Alfa's. So what if the seats started falling apart due to poor stitching or people backing over the front of my car because they couldn't see it. I enjoyed the car for 6 years before selling it. To this day I fondly remember taking a Z-28 off the line before his big V-8 caught me or the 2 liter double over head cam all aluminum block engine using 7 quarts of oil. Or replacing the engine guard because I bottomed out to many times...
206,000 miles and counting on a 94 Miata "M" model. Gone through tires, brake pads, hoses, and belts and the beast still roars.
My 60s MGBs, Triumphs, and Healeys were great, but Lucas electrics earned the title "Prince of Darkness."
Did I mention that the starter, alternator, and coil are the stock equipment from 1994, and the beast starts up instantly every morning from January to December?
I bought. in 1962, an Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint coupe, straight from the factory in Milan for, as I recall, something around $2,800.00. It was all white, a beautiful little car, and ran like a scared rabbit. Drove it all around Europe, it had a special infinity for Paris. I have passed many big Mercedes, with the cigar-smoking fat Germant guy, sitting there nonchalantly at about 80 miles per hour, on the autobahn. But here comes the Alfa, blowing by them at close to 100mph, lights flickering as a warning . . . .don't pull that damned thing to the left, I am coming through!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What fun, gives me the shivers now just to think about it.
My wife, sitting there holding on with both hands, and saying: For God' Sake, slow this thing down!
No speed limit on the autobahn, you know
Brought it home to the USA in 1964, found out it cost $75.00 for an oil change, normal cost in those days around $10.00 and I traded it for a Corvair. Believe it, or not!
Now, ask me about my 1935 Mercedes 540K !
All emotion aside, you have two different things here: The Spider, a bad car that we all really wish was great, and the Miata, a good car we all love to hate. Nostalgia is a funny thing - So what if the Spider was an archaic design, poorly made, and with the reliability of a kit car made by high school sophmores. We love the idea of it, and reality doesn't really play a part.
I look forward to the Alfa Miata... let's put a real engine in this car and move it into the ranks of the very best cars.
EXPLORE NEW CARS
MORE ON MSN AUTOS
Wheels of car-crazy celebsThe cars that celebrities choose to buy sometimes border on the eccentric.
ABOUT EXHAUST NOTES
Cars are cool, and here at MSN Autos we love everything about them, but we also know they're more than simply speed and style: a car is an essential tool, a much-needed accessory to help you get through your day-to-day life. What you drive is also one of the most important investments you can make, so we'll help you navigate your way through the car buying and ownership experiences. We strive to be your daily destination for news, notes, tips and tricks from across the automotive world. So whether it's through original content from our world-class journalists or the latest buzz from the far corners of the Web, Exhaust Notes helps you make sense of your automotive world.
Have a story idea? Tip us off at exhaustnotes@live.com.
