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| Launch Report Alfa Romeo MiTo MultiAir |
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by David Finlay (11 Mar 10)
I'll deal with MultiAir first because it's used on various cars in two forms. What I won't do is explain anything about it here, because the important thing is not how it works but what its effect is. Never let it be said that CARkeys shies away from talking about technology, though - if you're interested in the nuts and bolts of the system, read our feature on the subject. The 135bhp version of the MultiAir engine appears in four MiTos (there's a choice of Lusso and the more expensive Veloce trim, and of a five-speed manual gearbox and a new TCT twin-clutch semi-automatic transmission) priced between £15,165 and £17,385. In every case, two significant facts about the engine - first that it's quite small, at 1.4 litres, and second that it has a turbocharger - are almost entirely hidden. As far as the driver is concerned, there might as well be a much larger, very relaxed engine under the bonnet, capable of providing decent performance almost regardless of how many revs are on the clock.
Compared with the previous 120bhp non-MultiAir engine, this one can be described with some pretty impressive figures. The increase in maximum power knocks 0.4 seconds off the 0-62mph time, which is now down at 8.4 seconds, combined fuel economy has improved to 50.4mpg, and CO2 emissions are down to 129g/km. (That's assuming the car has the manual gearbox. TCT makes everything better - 8.2 seconds, 51.4mpg and 128g/km, though it does add £1250 to the list price.) As with all MiTos, the 135bhp MultiAir cars use the three-mode DNA (Dynamic, Normal and All-Weather) system which is controlled using a switch on the centre console. I could have sworn that DNA used to affect the suspension settings, but now the difference between Dynamic and Normal is restricted to variations in throttle response and the amount of assistance in the power steering. In fact, some alteration to the suspension wouldn't hurt. Over some very jolly country roads in central Scotland, I felt that 135bhp was about as much as the chassis could cope with, and that ideally the handling could be a bit sharper. Still, it's quick, it's fun, and it has that tremendous front/rear balance common to every MiTo I've driven - the back end seems nailed to the tarmac, while the only way of upsetting the front is to apply power too early in mid-corner.
The range-topping £17,895 Cloverleaf gets the MultiAir engine too, but this time tweaked to provide a maximum of 170bhp. Again, there is no sense of a small engine working hard, but it's also much more obvious that the MiTo can cope with the power it has in this form. That's because the specification includes active suspension (sensors all over the place, and varying amounts of oil allowed into the dampers according how stiff the computer thinks each one should be in a given situation) which is controlled through the DNA system. The Dynamic setting differs considerably from the Normal one in that it allows the MiTo to react more rapidly to changes of direction, and to corner with a remarkable lack of body lean. The balance is every bit as good as it is in the less powerful car, and over a road which has been one of my favourites in the country since I first encountered it aged 19, the Cloverleaf was in most cases superb.
But not in every case. The surprising thing about the way the suspension has been set up is the ride comfort was considered equally important in the Dynamic and Normal settings. I find it difficult to complain about this, since the MiTo undoubtedly rides very well, but it does mean that a certain sharpness which might have made the car feel more sporty (and which is immediately apparent in every example of the MINI, which Alfa has said right from the start is the target at which the MiTo is aiming) is notable mostly by its absence. It's a question of turn-in. At the instant you enter a corner, the Cloverleaf reacts like a car tuned for comfort rather than handling, which at that point is exactly what it is. It becomes a hot hatch almost immediately (though still with a tendency to complain if the power is brought in too soon), but by then the moment has been lost and the subject has changed - we are now talking about mid-corner behaviour. Turn-in, normally the most interesting and exciting part of the cornering process, is in this case something of a non-event, and in more enthusiastic motoring it leads to a lack of confidence that the Cloverleaf will really do what it is genuinely just about to.
Alfa Romeo is as outspoken these days as it ever was in the past about its intention to create passion among drivers, but the Cloverleaf - like the 135bhp MultiAir cars to some extent - is in fact a brilliant technical exercise without conveying much passion at all. I have never known this to be the case with any Cloverleaf-badged Alfa before now, and for the car to be worthy of that name I think the engineers need to revise their views about how important they consider ride comfort to be when the DNA system is in Dynamic mode. While they're at it, they might also give some thought to making the MultiAir engine sound more interesting than it does, since its bland exhaust note (no doubt partly forced upon Alfa by noise regulations, but surely capable of being legally jazzed up at least a little) creates no more passion than the driving experience does. |
