Here was a car beautiful enough to negate the need for the opposite sex, but so disappointing to drive that Alfa, not exactly a legend in the customer care stakes, actually decided to do something about it. And, rightly realising that it needed to go off-campus for such know-how, it turned to the British performance outfit Prodrive - which means Dave Richards (he of the white hair and helicopters). Surely he'd have enough clout to remaster a little Italian coupe...

Alfa gave Prodrive a year, and presumably an exceedingly large amount of money, to do something about the iffy way in which the Brera drove. The upshot is this, the Brera S - 'S' for Speciale apparently, not Sport or exSpensive. It's a load of chassis and suspension revisions, some weight reduction and a slightly flashier look, all for only £1,500 more than the standard car. A no-brainer then? Perhaps.

The obvious problem with the original Brera was that it was heavy and beset by body roll. The answer, in a layman's nutshell, was to stiffen it up. Spring rates are up 50 per cent. It's also lower, steers more sharply, and in the case of the 3.2-litre V6, has forsaken four-wheel drive in order to be substantially lighter.

And yes, there is conspicuously less roll in the Brera S. But this also means the ride suffers. Not necessarily to the extent that it's hugely uncomfortable, but problems present themselves over uneven surfaces. Composure is, after all, a vital part of rapid progress. Any racing driver will tell you that to be fast you first need to be smooth, and smooth the Brera 'S' ain't.

But Alfa is only proposing to make 500 of these cars for the British market, and expects them to be snapped up. There are, after all, enough people who love the looks of the Brera and can tolerate bumping about a bit for the sake of a more focussed overall drive. (And some snappy-looking alloys.)

For so small a premium, you'd be mad not to, but remember this is still a Brera. Alfa is trying its best, but the underlying product remains cramped, podgy and way off the likes of a TT or Z4 Coupe.