Alfa Romeo Real People

My family home is in Howth, to many this means beautiful views and cliff walks and this is true, but to the learner driver it is a nightmare because of one thing – hillstarts! Myself and my trusty Polo had to negotiate many, many of these tricky manoeuvres but if I had of owned the Giulietta this would not have been an issue.

I’m not sure an instructor or indeed a tester would approve of the amazing feature of the Giulietta which means it clings to the hills meaning there is no need to pull up the handbrake. Now to be honest, you would need to have learnt with the handbrake to be able to take this feature on safely but it is a joy to feel the car do most of the work for you. When stopped on a hill, you take your foot off the brake to go back on to the accelerator you would usually have the handbrake engaged and need to ease off gently but you can feel the car hug the road. Hillstarts, made easy.

Eager to do my upmost to do all I can to keep this beautiful car, I have enlisted the help of a scientist who has agreed to oversee a couple of research assignments on the Giulietta. I am not at liberty to say where I got this scientist but lets just say she was very expensive!

Her first assignment is to look at whether the Giulietta is a man or woman’s car. This is something you often hear said about a particular car, many men would feel a certain car is ‘a girl’s car’. So where does the Giulietta sit? My scientist looked at some of the key features of the car and speaking to a group of 5 men and 5 women, attributed them accordingly.

MALE FEATURES

DNA Function – The control which enables the Giulietta to drive in 3 different ways; Dynamic – a surge of extra power, Normal – for everyday driving & All Weather – for more treacherous conditions. The women were impressed by this, particularly the All Weather function but each of the 5 men had this as their no.1 feature of the car.

Sports Pedals – While the female participants agreed they were attractive, they did not garner ‘whoa deadly’ reaction which came from the males. (None of the males in the group were aged under 30, in case you thought they were teenagers!)

Gearstick – The silver round gearstick had pretty much the same effect.

Armrest – The men were impressed by this for comfort when driving on longer journeys. The women were more interested in the fact that you could keep ‘stuff’ in it (see below).

Alloy Wheels – Again this was something women thought was an attractive feature of the car when they were pointed out to them but the men of the group clocked them instantly.

FEMALE FEATURES

Boot Button – Having a button to open the boot on your key and a handle on the inside to close means you don’t have to get your hands dirty when getting into the boot. This appealed to all the women.

Autolock – The men did not rate this highly, however the women of the group felt much safer as they would often travel with their handbags on the passenger seat and knowing that no matter what the car doors were locked was an attractive feature to them.

Mirror - Mirror with a light for last minute check before heading into your destination (parked with engine off of course!) – a no brainer choice for the ladies.

Diesel Gauge – Knowing how many kilometres were left in the tank was appealing to the ladies who, interestingly enough from this survey, seemed to leave it longer when filling their tank. The men felt this could be potentially damaging to the engine ‘driving with dirty diesel’ so while they thought it was good to be able to see what was left, it wouldn’t be a favourite for them.

Double Cup Holder – While this would be used by the men also, it was more appreciated by the women.

Plenty of places to put their stuff, keeping the car looking tidy, appealed to the ladies of this group and the Giulietta was deemed to have plenty of those.

BOTH GENDERS EQUALLY

The overall look of the car; One of the participants thought that, particularly in black, the car looked a little like ‘the batmobile’! So this was of course suitably manly but it was also thought not to be ‘too big’ for a woman to drive. (Again I should point out this was said by the men in the group!)

The women felt it had a sporty sleek look making it suitably stylish for them to drive.

In Built Sat Nav System - Contrary to what the above book says, the sat nav was equally appealing to both groups, taking the stress out of driving.

The fact that you can also play your mp3 player through this by connecting it in the glove compartment was equally appealing to both groups and rated highly.

Blue & Me – Connecting your phone through bluetooth means you can make and take calls using the steering wheel or voice control. This was very attractive to both groups and was seen as a very safe way to make calls as opposed to using headphones as you never have to touch the phone.

Cruise Control – Rated by both groups for comfort on long journeys and also as fuel saving, always a plus.

Isofix – There were a number of parents in the group and all liked the fact that the iso fix was present, as it is deemed the safest way to travel with a child’s car seat.

Conclusion

With 5 features picked only by the men, 6 by the women and 5 picked by both it can be seen that the car can be driven by either. The fact that the women picked one extra feature only serves to show that they are more observant. (The scientist said that!!)

Requests & Recommendations

A couple of features came up that the Giulietta Lusso was unable to provide. Heated seats would be nice on cold Winter mornings & a motion sensor and camera for reversing would make parallel parking a breeze for the ladies (the scientist said she deserved that one!)

This month Alfa Romeo have asked us ‘Real People’ to pick a target market we deem worthy to drive this delicious Giulietta we’ve had to pleasure of owning for the past 10 months. The group I feel would suit the car best would be aged between 25-44 & I’m naming my group ‘Young Professionals with their Eye on Style’.

1. Chris Doyle, Chief Executive 98fm

Not yet 30 Chris has had an incredible career in radio. Previously the Music Director and subsequently the Programme Director & General Manager of Spin 1038, he now heads up 98fm.

Chris’s job means he is seen at all the big gigs, festivals & award ceremonies. He needs a car that can be equally impressive pulling up to a board meeting as it can driving to Belfast for the MTV Europe Music Awards as he did last month. His partner Sean Munsanje, ex presenter of Xpose and now of FM104′s The Juice, has interviewed everyone from the Black Eyed Peas to Russell Brand and while he is a very down to earth guy with no airs & graces, it’s only right that he should be chauffered in style by Chris at the weekend!

2. Chantal Hourihan, Head of Press & Promotions, Universal Music

Chantal leads a very busy lifestyle juggling all the music acts signed to the Universal Music label such as Lady Gaga, Take That, Rihanna & closer to home U2, The Script & Mary Byrne. Radio airplay, signings, interviews for the acts on radio & TV are all managed by Chantal. She would also act as representative for the label at events already mentioned as well as their gigs & appearances at festivals. She has on occasion used her car to collect acts such as Pixie Lott & The Wanted from the airport to ferry them from radio station to radio station and then on to the Late Late Show or The Saturday night show.

But keeping her busier than even the most high maintenance music artist are her two kids & with her and her husband massive fans of water sports and the outdoor The Giulietta is a car that can give her the functionality her life requires, handle the mileage she clocks up and not look out of place alongside some of the biggest names in music (the sound systems is up to the job too!).

3. Pat Hyland, Studio Manager, Red Works – Ogilvy

Pat manages the design studio for Red Works so he knows what looks good and will grab and hold attention, he appreciates streamlined style. Also at 6foot 6.5 inches he needs a car that he can sit in comfortably and while the Giulietta does not appear to be a large car, at first glance it’s hard to even tell it’s a 5 door, it still has plenty of leg room, a luxury for the tall!

Pat also DJs regularly, so plenty of room for record bag & mates eager to use up his allocated space on the guestlist. A family man too Pat needs a car to ferry his kids from their various weekend activities including a karate keen son & an irish dancing daughter. He recently found himself waiting for his almost teenage daughter outside a school disco & while this time he was ordered to park a bit up the road, in the Giulietta surely he’d be allowed to the front door!

4. Barbara Coady, Creative Director, Laundry Room

Barbara is the brains behind the hugely popular fashion label Laundry Room. Working for a fashion wholesaler bringing various labels to the boutiques of Ireland Barbara felt many were falling short of the mark and failing to meet the markets needs to decided to have a go herself. Her laid back dresses with vintage appeal have trailblazed through the industry and are now available in BT2 and Brown Thomas in Dublin, Cork, Galway and Limerick as well as 40 other outlets nationwide. Laundry Room also has a stand alone store in Dundrum Town Centre.

Barbara needs a car that is suitably stylish whilst still young, fresh & current, like her collections. All of the Laundry Room range is glamorous but affordable rather than austentacious & out of reach – the Giulietta fits this bill, it’s got serious style but is not over the top and can still deliver on functionality. The boot space can also handle boxes from the warehouse that might sometimes be hand delivered to boutiques to replenish the fast selling stock!

5. Dave Davin, Head of Raic Productions & DJ

Dave is another person with a busy lifestyle. Deciding the 9-5 grind was not for him he set up his own TV production company Raic Productions and between that and his radio & DJing commitments, he now works 24-7!

Raic describe themselves as young & vibrant, like the Giulietta and working with a range of clients, from corporate videos to filming at festivals Dave needs a car that can be equally suited to both.

Presenting Dirty Disco on Spin 1038 & DJing at various clubs around town Dave appreciates the boot space & the sound system. And as he and his fiance are taking the plunge nest year, to save a few quid for the big day & honeymoon they have decided to share one car. The Giulietta is quite unique is that it is appealing to both male & female – it’s got enough style & sophistication to suit a female with plenty of power for the lads!

Giulietta held my hand recently on a bittersweet day when I packed up all Flynn’s first clothes, moses basket and the rest of the entourage of a newborn as he hit 6 months! He is now an almost crawling bundle of energy & I am making the most of what time I have left before he is fully mobile!

 As you can see, a very little person needs a hell of a lot of stuff (bearing in mind I have vacuum packed the clothes!) But as ever, just one trip in the Giulietta was needed, with the little man in the car too & his buggy and wheels, everything fit perfectly.

The reason an Alfa Romeo is different begins with the history of the car. When asked to think of the most romantic city in the world, Paris comes to mind right? And when asked for the most passionate race, I’m pretty sure most of you would think Italian. Well it was with French & Italian blood that Alfa Romeo was born and that romance & passion for design and drive has been evident ever since. The company that became Alfa Romeo was founded as Società Anonima Italiana Darracq (SAID) in 1906 by the French automobile firm of Alexandre Darracq, with some Italian investors. In the late 1909, the Italian Darracq cars were selling slowly and a new company was founded named A.L.F.A. (Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili English: Lombard Automobile Factory, Public Company), initially still in partnership with Darracq.  In 1920, the name of the company was changed to Alfa Romeo with the Torpedo 20-30 HP becoming the first car to be given this badge.

Today Alfa Romeo is part of the Fiat group, once a truly aspirational car, they have now filtered down from the sports car to the every day car but have lost none of their style or appeal. But to know the love for an Alfa Romeo car is to know its owner. In Italian the owner of an Alfa Romeo is an “Alfista”, and a group of them are “Alfisti”. There are many thriving Alfa Romeo owners clubs and Alfa Romeo Model Registers. Aside from planned gatherings where the cars can be shown, from new models, to newly restored beauties the internet links many and allows them to compare notes, ask refurb questions or just brag about their motor. I went to a number of those sites to ask the Alfist what made their Alfa Romeo special, why did they think it stood apart from other cars. Here are just some of the answers I received;

Don Sanders – 1977 Spider

“Cars, boats, tractors, planes, and other fine equipment have female names… for
a reason.

Alfa’s are special because they are (by design) always in need
of a little attention and care to give the owner that wonderful driving
experience they are so capable of delievering. Properly cared for Alfas are hard
working, reliable vehicles that are full of spirit.

I find that Alfas
seem to convey the richness of driving pleasure, in much the same way that art
expresses something in particular. Alfa owners (aka Alfisti) find enjoyment in
the sensations of the road, environment, and dynamics of the vehicle”

Larry, Waco, Texas

“1995. The transport driver turned it over to me and I drove it home just BEAMING
with joy and pride!

I wanted to roll down the window and yell out to my
neighbors “I’M DRIVING AN ALFA ROMEO!!!”… but I couldn’t. The window wouldn’t
go down.

I still have the car, and still love to drive it. The window was
easy to fix. The previous owner had worked on it some and simply left the switch
unplugged.

There are many shockingly beautiful Alfa Romeos. But Alfas are
made to be looked at in motion, not standing still. Their true beauty can only
be appreciated either by the turning head”

Alfisto Steve, Virginia Beach

“Well, my current love affair with both my Alfa 164 and my wife goes back to
February 1991, On February 7, 1991 I met my wife for our first dinner date. On
February 18, 1991 President’s Day I bought the new 164, I still have both my
wife and the Alfa. It has been a 20 year love affair.

On our first
driving date in the 164, she turned down the radio so she could hear the Alfa V6
engine whine song as it came up on the cams about 3500 RPM. Nothing quite like a
women with an ear for Alfa engine music. “

Salfa Romeoabb

“It’s hard sometimes to explain what draws someone to a particular vehicle or
what makes someone keep one around. This will not be my last Alfa. I know that.
It will always be my first, and if possible I’ll make sure i never have to see
it go. They key with the serpent keychain is in my pocket even when i drive
something else.”

Meredith, 77 Spider

“My Alfa means the world to me. I’m a 20 year old female college student, and
therefore not exactly your typical Alfa Romeo owner. Like most college students,
I’m living that “starving” lifestyle. I can barely make rent, let alone other
necesseties like gas, oil (yes, oil), and food. Seriously, I don’t even have a
blanket on my bed.

For me, owning an Alfa Romeo was a dream. I think I
was about 8 years old when I first took a ride in one of dad’s Alfa’s (dad goes
through car project phases…Saabs, Alfas, now Porsches). That same week I
started telling EVERYONE that I wanted an Alfa Romeo Spider Veloce to be my
first car. Of course nearly everyone (except dear old dad) told me that was a
terrible idea and I’d understand why when I was older.

One
day dad called me and told me, “Don’t make plans this afternoon, we have to go
look at a car.” It was about an hour’s drive away, up to the
mountains. Needless to say…I fell in love. Gray with red interior. Needs love.
Runs. All things mechanical and otherwise meet dad’s approval…so we get in and
drive away (top down of course, even in February). Or rather, Dad drove, stepmom
followed, and I called everyone in my family to yell “I JUST BOUGHT AN ALFA
ROMEO SPIDER VELOCE!! I TOLD YOU SO!!” And I named him Marino Ottaviano–Mo for
short.
 I love my
Alfa Romeo. When I get in my car, I feel something. Owning an Alfa Romeo
is an emotional experience and a special sort of bond; and for me personally,
owning an Alfa Romeo is my dream come true. You can’t get that feeling from
anything else. “

GTV-GR, Athens, Greece

“it’s like owning a spitfire ww2 airplane , it’s
badass yet beautiful”

Henry Ford (he did not reply to my post!)

“Whenever I see an Alfa Romeo car, I take off my hat to salute” 

So where is my opinion, me Clare McKenna, driver of the

Last Sunday was my first day away from my little boy. Though still on maternity leave from Spin 1038,  I have continued to do weekly voiceover work so I am used to a few hours away, but this time I was going to meet the girls for lunch in honour of a friend’s baby shower (yep, becoming a parent is so hot right now!).

So I left the little man with the big man, my husband, and of course I had to leave my other baby behind – the Giulietta. It has the iso fix feature in the back for the baby car seat and while you can secure it in any car using the safety belt, the iso fix is just sturdier and feels safer, so rather than confine them to the house I left him with the Alfa (he is insured).

This left me with his car. Now it is a nice car, a 98 Saab in great nick, he works in the transport business and his mechanic sold it to him, it had been his car & he’d put a new engine into it. It’s far nicer than the banger he had before it which I said I wouldn’t allow our baby to enter!

Anyway, off I set in the Saab after many instructions on how best to drive it. As I say, it is a nice car, but 100mt up the road and I was already longing for my Alfa. I have become so used to the features. The Giulietta tells you when to shift gear and I hated having to make that decision myself – gas how you can change so quickly.

The car got me to town though of course & after a lovely few hours baby free (though mainly answering questions about him!) I headed back to Stephen’s Green carpark. Hit the key twice to unlock as order, placed in the ignition & nothing! It wouldn’t start!! I had to ring home and it was only then that my loving husband informed me that it had happened to him a couple of days ago and I should just keep trying. After a few deep breaths and about 6 tries, it finally fired and I was off.

It was a stark reminder of what could be if I am parted from my Giulietta at the end of this competition and let me tell you, it is not a pretty sight!

A trip to Galway for the christening of my best friend’s little girl (she was born the day before my little man) meant a chance to give Giulietta a good run. Hubby won the toss to drive (I needed a chance to put the finishing touches to my make up, the glamour schedule is very different with a baby to get ready!). Jonathan decided to take advantage of the fantastic cruise control feature on the Giulietta & travel in style…..

As my pal’s house was packed to the rafters with relatives, we took the opportunity to stay at the very gorgeous G Hotel and as you can see, Giulietta was right at home….

** Please observe husband putting the case in the boot wearing his Dublin GAA jersey. We made a swift exit after check in on the Sunday for the football semi final & thank god we did!!

I parked my Guilietta outside a city centre hotel today, went in to meet friends and came back out to this…….??!!

What on earth did my motor witness, did someone try and woe her? I think she’s more a black magic chick to be honest

Seriously though, answers on a postcard if you can suggest what the hell is going on here!!