Balocco, Italy — There is certainly a natural gap between a car's presentation and its final launch. But this time, we had to wait more than four years. And we've been a bit uncertain as well: When Alfa Romeo showed the concept car 8c Competizione (initially with a small "c") at the Frankfurt auto show back in 2003, there wasn't even a production plan — just catching attention to camouflage another brand crisis.

In fact, the worldwide reaction to the 8C (for otto cilindri) has been overwhelming and Alfa finally decided to bring the 2-seater supercar to the road. The series version was displayed in Paris in late 2006 and will be delivered to its first European owners as you read this. U.S. customers will follow in mid-2008, but only 90 cars will be shipped over for the year.

Waiting time didn't harm the fascination at all: Here it is, the first real sports Alfa in a long time, with a convincing technical layout, sheer power, stunning proportions and fascinating styling. Just look at the dynamic presentation of the A-pillars, or the round taillights reminiscent of the glorious TZ of the 1960s. No doubt, the 8C is purebred, a well-balanced mixture of Alfa's design DNA and modern elements like LED foglights. Admire the paint, feel the materials and realize a build quality that is exceptionally good (something we couldn't say about every Alfa in the past).

Within, one will find hardly any plastic, but carbon fiber, alloy and lots of leather. Fit and finish are first-rate. The 8C seat shells (we know them from the Ferrari Enzo and Maserati MC12) are also made of carbon fiber, and Alfa offers three different sizes for a custom fit. Once in place, there's comfort and enough space for two people. Outward vision is good, but luggage space must have been an afterthought: Opening the rear hatch, you will see that for reasons of balance, the fuel tank blocks most of the trunk from the axle forward. To reduce the pain, Alfa offers a special set of fitted Schedoni luggage, matching the chosen interior colors, of course. And there are loads of other options, as well.

Anything to wish for? Keys, please! Kindly, Alfa welcomed us at its traditional test track in Balocco, Italy. Right then, the first thing the 8C driver realizes is that there is neither a gearshift lever nor a handbrake. All such activities are controlled by buttons in the lower center console or, driving in manual mode, by two big paddles fixed to the steering column.

No ignition key also, as one starts the engine by pushbutton. The reaction is a moaning roar that not only affects the driver's skin, but will serve as a wake-up call for your neighbors. Ah, but what an awesome sound to wake up to.

So off we go: In the first moments, the steering wheel seems too big, though one will get used to it as it allows quicker directional changes.

The 8C is a precise driving instrument, following the pilot's orders immediately. Changing gears manually is fun as well: In Sport mode, the Magneti Marelli system (Ferrari uses the same on the F430 and 599 Fiorano) operates even faster (0.2 instead of 0.4 second), while downshifts are accompanied by perfect blips of revs.

All this performance gives great confidence, and we get faster with every lap. Stunt drivers won't miss the handbrake, as the 8C doesn't need that kind of cornering support: Just use the right foot! Oversteer can easily be provoked, especially with stability and traction controls switched off. The 8C is a great drifting machine, but that's not the fastest way around a corner. So use all the track, steer sensitively, accelerate with care — and you will realize how quick the 8C really is.

We clocked 0–60 mph in 4.2 seconds and covered the quarter mile in 12.4 sec. at 115.4 mph. Driving for only a few hours, we got a rough idea about the 8C's fantastic balance and dynamic potential (it pulls 1.02g in lateral acceleration), and it is certainly among the best rear-wheel-drive cars we've ever tested.

And one of the best in sound too: At over 4000 revs, bypass flaps in the exhaust system change the roar to an open-air concert; using the radio at this time can be considered a criminal offense. Equally impressive as the sound was the 8C's stopping power, setting an R&T best from 60–0 mph of just 105 ft.

As the 8C delivers what has been promised, we don't doubt the official Alfa figures except one — the top speed. It is listed at 181 mph, but this is probably false to keep a certain respectful distance from Ferrari. Off the record, we have been told the 8C gets close to 190 mph...

So is this coupe a true Alfa? We believe so. Yes, it has a modified Maserati engine aka Ferrari F430 power unit, but so what? Did anyone complain about the BMW power in McLaren's F1? Also keep in mind that Alfa was founded back in 1910, while the Trident came 16 years later. Not to mention the Cavallino Rampante starting only in 1947. Today, all these dreamworks belong to the same Fiat enterprise.

The Italians have created a legitimate sports coupe and a serious alternative to Aston Martins, BMWs and Porsches. It's a genuine GT with excellent comfort on the open road as well. Knowing that the Italian brand still resounds in the U.S., we sense there is certainly a lot of potential for Alfa Romeo's North American revival. Without a doubt, the 8C will prepare the public for other (less expensive) Alfa models to come. The sadness might be that you missed ordering this stunning flagship at this time.

But here's your second chance — Alfa just announced it will build 500 versions of the 8C Spider in 2009. If you can afford it, we strongly recommend you put your order in today!

The name sounds good; it was used for those wonderful Vittorio Jano-designed racing and sports cars from the 1930s that won the Mille Miglia, the Targa Florio and many other famous races. It also brings up memories of twin-overhead camshafts, superchargers and straight-8 engines of the pre-World War II era.

The new 8C Competizione 2-passenger coupe was first exhibited as a concept car at the Frankfurt motor show in 2003, and Alfa Romeo developed and nursed it for more than four tantalizing years before initiating production. Why so long? Probably for commercial and marketing reasons, as the 8C Competizione's beautiful and exciting coupe body, born in Alfa's own styling studio, hides what is for all intents and purposes a further developed Maserati Coupe.

It is, however, notably more compact, measuring 5.7 in. less in overall length compared to the Maserati. It is based on the same platform and same powertrain as the Maserati, including an evolution of its engine, but with an increased displacement and more power and torque. Only its model name "Competizione" is misleading, as the 8C has not been designed or developed for racing. It is a road car, fast and furious, but purely a road car.

A rigid structure is essential for a fast sports car because sensitive, agile and safe handling largely depends on the interaction of the front and rear running gear. This is why the 8C uses the Maserati's strongly built steel platform with a steel upper structure designed to achieve a very high torsional rigidity. It also forms the structural base for its carbon-fiber body, this combination having been chosen for its light weight, ensuring a low center of gravity and an excellent compatibility with the car's limited production.

Its lines are smooth and elegant, the result of cooperation between stylists and aerodynamicists. The flat underpan, whose rear part smoothly rises to form a diffuser, is said to create little drag while generating some downforce. This helps the car's stability at high speeds and through fast bends, though no precise downforce figures are given.

The wheelbase is identical with the Maserati's, but the 62.6-in. front and rear tracks are slightly different, presumably because of the different offset of the larger and wider light alloy wheels (20 x 9J front and 20 x 10½J rear), carrying specially developed 245/35 and 285/35 tires, respectively.

As befits a true sports car, the front and rear suspensions are aluminum double wishbones with an anti-roll bar, the rear suspension completed by a track-control link providing some bump toe-in to avoid oversteer in the transient phase of cornering. Aluminum wheel carriers also contribute to reducing unsprung weight in the interest of both handling and ride comfort. ABS and ESP are naturally standard equipment, but the shock absorbers are devoid of any electronic control. Braking is by generous vented front and rear steel discs of 14.2-in. and 13.0-in. diameters, respectively, and steering is by a hydraulically assisted rack-and-pinion system.

Balance is essential in a sports car and to achieve this, the 8C power unit is mounted entirely behind the front-wheel axis. The 6-speed sequential gearbox is moved to the rear where it forms a transaxle unit with the ZF limited-slip differential. The clutch remains with the engine, and its housing is connected to the transaxle by a rigid tube that contains the propeller shaft. It follows that the engine and the entire transmission form one single unit, supported at its front end at engine level and at the rear at transaxle level, a distance almost as great as the wheelbase. Thanks to this, even with soft noise- and vibration-absorbing front and rear supports, the torque reaction causes only minimum movement of the engine and driveline, even under hard acceleration.

The all-aluminum 90-degree V-8 engine has twin overhead camshafts per cylinder bank, driven by a single space-saving chain, four valves per cylinder and dry-sump lubrication. It is certainly what could be expected from Alfa Romeo in the best tradition of the make. Bore and stroke dimensions of 94.0 x 84.5 mm result in a capacity of 4.7 liters (4691 cc). To help meet current European and American emissions requirements while achieving the best possible performance, variable intake camshaft timing helps the engine produce 450 bhp at 7000 rpm (with a 7500-rpm redline). Maximum torque is 354 lb.-ft. at only 4750 rpm, of which 80 percent is available in a rising curve from 2000 rpm.

Although the powerplant is also a close relative of the Ferrari 430 engine, its 5-bearing crankshaft is of the conventional 90-degree type for complete balance of first- and second-order forces. All the pressurized oil passages are part of the cylinder block and head castings, with no external lines, while the dry-sump oil system — its tank has a capacity of 10.5 liters (2.77 gal.) — ensures efficient lubrication even under the highest cornering forces. Additionally, together with the small diameter of the low-inertia twin-disc clutch, the flat crankcase bottom has made it possible to place the engine very low in the chassis for a low overall center of gravity.

To make the best use of the engine's sporting characteristics, the fully synchronized 6-speed transaxle is operated electronically and can be used in the manual mode or in the adaptive automatic mode. Both have the choice of Normal operation ensuring smooth shifts, or Sport operation ensuring extremely rapid shifts at higher revs. Operation in the manual mode is by fixed paddle stalks behind the steering wheel, and it can also be used to override the automatic mode. There is no selector lever; the operating mode as well as the selection of Park, Neutral and Reverse positions are obtained by pushbuttons on the horizontal part of the central console.

The interior appointments are both elegant and businesslike, with well contoured carbon-fiber sport seats and optional fitted luggage. The high-placed instrument cluster facing the driver is dominated by a large tachometer and speedometer. The transmission being robotized, there is no clutch pedal and unfortunately the brake pedal has not been extended to the left, as left-foot-braking addicts would wish. Many details of the interior trim are left to the choice of the customer.

All in all, the 8C Competizione is a most impressive car continuing a legendary name.