Despite the qualitative leap that the Alfa Romeo Brera (and brother 159). also failing to keep up with Giugiaro's refined lines, even with proportions that suffered in the transition from concept to production model — architectural issues.
The coupe's excessive weight — technically a three-door hatchback — was the main cause for the lack of agility and pace. The lighter versions were north of 1500 kg, and even the 3.2 V6, with 260 hp, much heavier and with traction at four, could not get better than the official 6.8s up to 100 km/h — a value hardly replicated in tests…
To top it off, and putting salt on the wound, the V6 was not the desired Busso, set aside due to its inability to comply with current environmental regulations. In its place was an atmospheric V6 derived from a GM unit, which despite Alfa Romeo's intervention — new head, injection and exhaust — was never able to match the character and sound of the V6 Busso.
S, from Speciale
This unit, however, is different and unfortunately it's on sale in the UK and right-hand drive, but it caught our attention and you'll understand why…
It is a Alfa Romeo Brera S , limited variant conceived by His Majesty's Lands, with the help of Prodrive's wizards — the same ones who prepared the Impreza for the WRC — in order to free the sports car that seemed to be shackled in the Brera.
When equipped with the 3.2 V6, the Brera S got rid of the Q4 all-wheel-drive system, relying exclusively on the front axle. Immediate advantage? Loss of ballast, having been removed almost 100 kg compared to Q4 — also contributing to the gains, the use of aluminum in suspension components, the result of an update of the model.
Prodrive essentially worked on the chassis, applying new Bilstein shock absorbers and Eibach springs (50% stiffer than the standard ones), and applied new 19″ wheels, identical in every way to the 8C Competizione, which despite being two inches larger than the 17 standard ones were 2 kg lighter. Measures that allowed the effectiveness of the front axle in dealing effectively with the mass and 260 hp of the V6.
But performance continued to be lacking…
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Enter Autodelta
This is where this unit stands out from the rest of the Brera S. Courtesy of Autodelta, the renowned British Alfa Romeo preparer, a Rotrex supercharger is added to the V6, which adds more than 100 hp to the V6 — according to the ad delivers 370 bhp, the equivalent of 375 hp.
Considering that it's an all forward, it will always be an interesting challenge for the front axle. Autodelta itself has a number of solutions to deal with these power levels — they became famous for their 147 GTA with more than 400 hp and… front wheel drive.
We don't know for sure what was done on this Brera S, but the announcement says that the brakes and transmission have been updated to handle the greatest number of horses.
The Alfa Romeo Brera S is an exclusive car — only 500 units were produced — and this Autodelta conversion makes it even more desirable, so it's no wonder this is currently the most expensive Brera on sale in the Kingdom United, with a price of approximately 21 thousand euros.