What if I told you that the ‘TimingBeltExpectancyometer’ actually exists. It’s a little gauge that counts the number of miles you have driven and, based on the manufacturer’s recommendation, you should replace it when it reaches a certain number of miles...

Lottery number predictor. My burgeoning fleet of rust old Brits, Italians and Frenchies isn’t going to maintain itself...

I really like the idea of car makers producing ‘best of’ new cars from their back-catalogue. All the development is already done, and you can claw back something from the used market.

It’s like a modern-day Lotus Elite :)

I like that you thought of people working on it themselves :) so few car reviews do that.

That thing is utterly fantastic. What a machine!

Played golf with Nader on the weekends? That’s my guess...

I do yes :) I’ve got a 156 already, so we’re just waiting on you ;)

I would do terrible terrible things for one of these in RHD. I think in all my time of looking I’ve seen maybe 3 for sale. One rust bucket and two concourse.

A Montreal is better value than a Fiesta :) I seriously doubt the upkeep on the Alfa will be as steep of a cost as the depreciation on the new Fiesta.

Yep, in my opinion. Most Mercedes, C included, weigh in a bit on the ‘chintzy’ end of the spectrum for me.

Am I the only one who really likes this car?

Jeez? Really?

I don’t see why they don’t include recalls as part of whatever annual vehicle roadworthiness check you have in the US.

Add to that that the small sports saloons of today are just as big, if not bigger than the large luxury saloons of 2 generations ago and I don’t think we’ve actually lost anything at the larger scale of things...

Am I the only one who is in the least bit excited about a Lotus crossover? Probably, but only if they do it right.

That’s even better :) I think you’re right. I’ve been to Italy twice, both times spending a month or two there teaching English.

Hah! So you do come from a perspective of experience. I don’t think your outlook on them is shared by the majority of owners, but it’s probably pretty accurate.

Charmless? Have you driven one perchance?

Very nice :)