FACTfile - Alfa GTV – Page 4

Travelling in Comfort

The new Alfa Spider and Alfa GTV have inherited great handling and driving comfort from their predecessors, due above all to the suspension layout adopted. The front suspension is an independent MacPherson system with wishbones and anti-roll bar. The rear suspension is multilink. The multilink configuration assures extraordinary precision, prompt approaches to bends and high stability.

That takes care of the driving satisfaction. But Alfa Romeos must also offer on-board well-being. And that means surrounding the driver and passenger with technologies that ensure the very highest acoustic and climatic comfort. Hence the need to make the interior environment into a cosseting, enveloping living room. So the new Alfa Spider and GTV offer an automatic climate control system and thorough soundproofing thanks to the body's high torsional and flexural rigidity. Acoustic comfort is also optimal on the open-topped model because the hood comes with improved locks and aerodynamics. Its practical details have also been improved with mechanisms specially designed to make folding and unfolding operations easier, faster and safer.

Interior climate is one of the main comfort factors during a trip and is also very important for interior safety because temperature, humidity and ventilation affect the driver's well-being and thus his level of alertness. And of course the heating and ventilation system is also responsible for demisting the windscreen and side windows. For this reason, the New Alfa Spider and Alfa GTV come with a sophisticated climate control system that automatically controls temperature, air flow, air distribution, compressor activation and recirculation by means of an electronic control unit.

Suspension
The front and rear suspension systems on the new Alfa Romeo sports models are derived from those of the original models but offer special settings and a few new mechanical details. The front suspension is an independent MacPherson system with lower wishbones and a new anti-roll bar for the version equipped with a 3.2 V6 24v unit. Overall suspension geometry aims to achieve high transverse rigidity to ensure the best possible roadholding in critical situations and effective longitudinal flexibility for improved driving comfort. The gas shock absorbers with a segmented intake valve also come with new settings to improve comfort and driving noise levels. Tapered offset springs facilitate steering and reduce noise levels transmitted to the body.

The new Alfa GTV and Spider also come with multilink rear suspension (wheel struts guided by four arms) that offer impeccable roadholding under all driving conditions, particularly over winding roads travelled at speed, for a significant contribution to driving comfort even in extreme conditions. This suspension has also been revised to incorporate new adjustments and shock absorber settings.

Multilink suspension systems are a development of the conventional double-wishbone geometry always adopted on high-performing Alfas. They are remarkable for the fact that their constituent elements - upper triangle, double lower wishbone, and anti-roll bar - are anchored to a light alloy subframe arranged beneath the floorpan.The most outstanding feature of the Alfa rear suspension is the ability of its drive chain to exploit transverse loads generated in the car while steering that normally tends to trigger vehicle roll to optimise rear wheel working angles. This helps give the car the stability that is so vital during sporty driving at high speed over mixed roads by making it easier to adopt a new trajectory and improving tyre grip.

More specifically:

1. during the initial steering stage, the suspension sets up a steering motion out of phase with the front wheels so that the car takes up the new trajectory more rapidly
2. then, as the vehicle takes the bend, the suspension cancels out the rear wheels' out-of-phase steering manoeuvre while the side force exercised on the tyres induces a steering manoeuvre in phase with that of the front wheels. Car handling is thus improved during the first part of the curved trajectory and stability is improved during the next stage

Further advantages of the rear suspension system on the Alfa GTV and Spider are:

1. the ability to optimise the rear wheel camber angle automatically to maximise tyre contact area with the ground. This aids lateral grip and thus roadholding even at the maximum lateral acceleration levels (g forces) achievable by these cars
2. the negative kingpin offset typical of its virtual steering angle that helps the car remain perfectly stable even when braking on bends
3. optimal drive train performance even during sudden emergency manoeuvres to avoid obstacles (sharp steer and countersteer)

Automatic climate control system
The new Alfa Spider and Alfa GTV come with an automatic climate control system that offers the best comfort and safety conditions. Passenger compartment temperature, humidity and ventilation affect the driver's alertness and well-being - not forgetting that the climate control system is also responsible for demisting the windscreen and side windows.

One of the benefits of the automatic climate control system fitted to the new models is its ability to store a temperature setting and reactivate the system with the same settings even after parking with the engine off. The variable displacement compressor also makes the system very efficient because power uptake is related to the temperature difference between car interior and exterior.

Hood
The Alfa Spider's new hood is truly a thing of beauty. The first of its five steel and aluminium arches is shaped to mould to the upper edge of the windscreen thus continuing the exterior shape seamlessly and making the car more aerodynamic with its hood closed. The hood features two skins. The outer skin is a multi-layer cloth with good flame resistance while the inner skin effectively soundproofs the passenger compartment. The rear window, in plastic, is secured to the outer skin by zip and Velcro. If required it can easily be removed and replaced.

The hood also offers special features designed to prevent wind noise while driving with the hood closed, even at high speed. For example, the window retaining channels are specially shaped, the mechanisms include gas compensation springs for maximum containment of operating loads which are less than 10 kg at each stage of the folding/unfolding process, spherical hinges that allow the hood to spread out sideways according to whether it is folded or unfolded to make the best possible use of space - and self-centring pin pairs that guide the front and rear hoops into closed position. The rear hoop is released and the automated hood cover opens by means of two pushbutton-operated electromechanical actuators with fallback manual operation in the case of a fault.

The hydraulic circuit also incorporates a total of 6 actuator pistons (2 to open/close the hood cover, 4 to move individual hood hoops) that are operated by six solenoids - plus 4 automatically-operated catches.

Car radio
The new Alfa Spider and Alfa GTV come with a new fully integrated audio system with CD player. The system consists of four speakers and offers a power output of 4x40 Watts. It is complemented by a rear subwoofer, one for the Spider and two for the GTV. The radio is integral with the dashboard design and located in the middle of the facia in a position that is convenient for both driver and passenger. It can store up to 30 stations. It offers RDS (Radio Data System) and also TA (Traffic Announcement) and PTY (programme choice option) and a big alphanumerical display. Each time the radio is turned on, the volume is the same as when the set was turned off. The radio with CD player also comes with a 7-band graphic equaliser. This device offers a choice of four equalisation settings: the default setting and also Jazz, Rock and Classic.

Safety
The new Alfa Spider and Alfa GTV offer the most sophisticated devices currently on the market to allow maximum protection for driver and passengers. Firstly, the braking system is powerful and prompt to respond. The front disc brakes are ventilated with a thickness of 22 mm and a diameter of 284 and 305 mm in the 3.2 V6 24 valve; the rear brakes are 11 mm thick and measure 240 in diameter.

As far as passive safety is concerned, the two new Alfa Romeo sports models offer two front airbags as standard throughout the range. On the active safety front, both models offer ABS with EBD and ASR. The ASR allows customers the satisfaction of driving in accordance with their own style and at the same time guarantees optimum safety during dynamic car control. The ASR (Anti Slip Regulation) optimises traction at any speed with the aid of brakes and engine control. The device computes degree of slip on the basis of wheel rpm calculated by the ABS sensors and activates two different control systems to restore grip. When excessive power demand causes both drive wheels to slip (e.g. in the case of aquaplaning or when accelerating over an unsurfaced, snowy or icy road), it reduces engine torque by reducing the throttle opening angle and thus air flow. If only one wheel slips (e.g. the inside wheel following acceleration or dynamic load changes), this is automatically braked without the driver touching the brake pedal. The resulting effect is similar to that of a self-locking differential.

Another not inconsiderable advantage of the ASR is the lower stress exerted on mechanical parts such as the differential and gearbox due to more effective control of low speed take-off and traction. The ASR is activated automatically whenever the engine is started but must be turned off by means of a switch on the central console to cut out. When the ASR is active, a warning light on the control panel flashes. A control panel warning light comes on (with the switch led off), to indicate system faults or irregularities. ASR deactivation is required when snow chains are used because the wheel must be able to slip by tiny amounts to pile up the snow so that force can be transmitted to the ground and the ASR tends to avoid this type of action.

The Range
The Australian Alfa Romeo Spider and GTV come with a choice of two power units, with two equipment levels for the GTV and three versions of the Spider.

The standard Spider JTS has as standard, cloth seats and door panels, front seat-belt pretensioners, driver and passenger airbags, electrically-controlled windows and door mirrors, cruise control, automatic climate control system, remote central locking and check control for door and boot closure, height and reach adjustable three-spoked steering wheel, radio and CD player, power steering, headlight alignment corrector, fog lights, electronic immobilizer and new-design 205/50/16" light alloy wheels. The Spider JTS Lusso adds Momo Leather and an electrically powered roof and this specification is shared with the V6 Spider, but with 225/45 tyres and 17 inch alloy wheels.

The GTV JTS has the same specification as the standard Spider, with the GTV 3.2 V6 24V also gaining Momo leather and 225/45 tyres and 17 inch alloy wheels over the GTV JTS.

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