Automotive brands - A is for Alfa Romeo

Folks, if you buy an Alfa you are buying more than a car.

It's a powerful brand, one of several under FIAT's wing, and it stands for, or represents in the consumer's mind, a multitude of connections. Poll most people and they'll have heard of the brand. Most have never owned one but will think of fast red Italian coupes and open-topped sports cars. Some will think of Italian racing drivers and of heroic (well, maybe not heroic) efforts in F1 races long, long ago. A really long time ago.

More astute consumers will mention "engineering excellence" and "ahead of their time". They will have favourite Alfa body-shapes that will spring to mind. They will speak of Bertone and Giugiaro. Some will say "mini-Ferrari".

They will also say "rust" and "dodgy electrics". Some will have experienced this, or seen rusting examples. It is ingrained in the folklore of the brand that to own an Alfa is to suffer the consequences. It is almost as if they (OK, I've owned 3 so far, so I'm a serial offender) accept these failings as a given, almost a rite of passage, in order to savour the differences. They don't want to be part of the higher-volume brands and are willing to trade some degree of build quality or reliability for an intrinsic love/hate aspect that's, umm, quirky in a stylish Italianate way.

An Alfa buyer who expects Toyota reliability and Mercedes resale values has not researched the brand sufficiently, or didn't get to the chapter on "commitment". However if you are lucky enough to get a reliable Alfa (and this is relative, as generally speaking all modern cars are reliable, if well maintained) and fall into the spell of the brand, that's it - you are caught for life. It sets a standard for automotive panache that is like hearing high-fidelity sound for the first time. A veil is lifted and suddenly you see and hear what hasn't been apparent before.. you become more discerning. Not Ferrari-discerning, but you can see where faux-style ends and real style begins.

Alfa presents a new set of values to the car buyer. Trust, commitment, passion and involvement are suddenly brand values, even if your Alfa was made in a FIAT factory and the tuneful exhaust snarls and pops straight from a FIAT-family engine. Even when you relent and buy a BMW (as you probably will) it's with the knowledge that an Alfa would be better at these things, and a sure knowledge that these are qualities almost absent from a Toyota. However sometimes one must get from A to B, doesn't one?