COMPARATIVE: Alfa Romeo 147 GTA Vs Ford Focus RS test

Intro: THE BEAUTY AND THE BEAST

Banal, this face to face? Pretty unoriginal, you think? Frankly we don’t care! Because we felt like having a bit of fun comparing the Ford Focus RS and the Alfa Romeo 147 GTA.
As we compare them, you’ll soon realise that fun is just as contagious as a good dose of ‘flu. So let’s not waste any more time and go and test these two little bombs that, bit by bit, seem to quite naturally to play the Beauty and the Beast. (by Jessica Paupinat & Patrick Rivet)

Esthetique: NOBLENESS VERSUS VIRILITY

The Beauty is, of course, the Alfa Romeo 147 GTA. The Italian car in all its splendour. Look around it, pull it apart as much as you like, you won’t find anything tasteless about its dress. It’s quite simply beautiful. The Focus RS has, of course, to face up to its pedigree. This return to a label synonymous with tough little sports cars makes its demands. And Ford has taken up the challenge. Both inside and out. The wing enlargers are very visible; they protect the 18-inch wheels with their 225/40 tyres, behind which are Brembo callipers. Nothing light-hearted about all that. It has the Sparco bucket seats in a mix of blue leather and black Alcantara with racing headrests, a two-tone steering wheel and aluminium gear lever, hand brake and pedals. It’s a pity though that they didn’t cover the console in carbon as they have the transmission tunnel, which houses the starter button... In comparison, the 147 GTA looks like a... GT... it lives up to its inheritance with a retro touch perpetuating its exterior elegance right down to the seams of its bucket seats with their 1960s design.

Motorization: WRC VERSUS GT

This difference in basic philosophy that is already apparent between the Alfa and the Ford becomes even more flagrant when we take a look under the bonnets. The Italian engine is pure beauty, a V6 with 24 valves, bright and shiny in every respect, not just it’s chrome tubing.
This engine makes the 147 the most powerful compact on the market with 250 horsepower. It is coupled with a six-speed gearbox... The Focus RS’s answers with the 3.2 litre V6 atmo is a two-litre turbo, double cam with four cylinders. Its power is 215 horsepower. At the wheel these two engines don’t take long to show off their different characters. One sings melodiously whilst the other roars. Once climbs smoothly up the revs whilst the other replies with an immediate kick up the backside, frank acceleration that starts low in the revs and is capable of climbing very high.
But whether you like the song of the six cylinders or you prefer the sensations offered by a turbo, you can only applaud the achievement on both fronts, the Alfa for its nobility and the Ford for its virility.

On the road: SUPPLENESS VERSUS RIGIDITY

The diverging paths adopted by these two two-wheel drive sports cars can really be seen in their on road behaviour. In the Focus RS everything is rigorous and firm. It makes use of the rigidity of its shell and sits on the road in a way that is reminiscent of its WRC sister. The suspension is firm and comfortable and can rarely be caught out. The same can be said of the brakes that have bite and endurance. By deciding to leave aside the present fashion for electronic aids and opt for a limited slip differential, Ford has deliberately chosen to go for effectiveness and fun. Of course, and this is even more obvious when the road is wet, you feel the moments when it loses adherence. But these are neither brutal nor uncontrollable. Neither does the very precise steering force you into excessive over-reaction. Well balanced on its 225/40 tyres, the Focus RS knows no roll and is capable of cornering at mind-blowing speed. Naturally under steering, it also requires careful handling, dosing and prudence. You need to gain confidence in its capacities before pushing it to its limits. But it’s a treat to drive a car that is so rigorous that it makes you forget that it is only two-wheel drive. Its only big defect is a gap between 3rd and 4th – proof that it would have been better to couple it with a six-speed box. The Alfa 147 GTA has got a six-speed box. And it performs a fabulous double act with the V6. What personality, what vigour! But the vigour is, alas, badly mastered. Without the traction control, containing the prancing cavalry of the engine is impossible. Demonstration... It’s brutal. The Beauty becomes the Beast. Having to use the electronics is frustrating but safer all the same... Contrary to the Ford, the Alfa makes you regret that it doesn’t have four wheel drive. The GTA is a Madonna that mustn’t be martyred. And it lacks the rigidity that is the Ford’s major advantage. The driver can feel the movements of the front axle. The suspension is also rather too soft in compression and on occasion the Italian car’s superb muzzle scrapes the tarmac. Which is criminal! On the other hand, its steering is a constant treat for its precision and its handling which can never be caught out.
CONCLUSION: FORD SCORES STRONG

It’s clear: the Ford hits hard. With just 4,500 examples produced in its blue livery, of which just 150 for France, this body-built and transformed Focus doesn’t usurp its RS title. It will bring a big smile to the faces of real sports car lovers. Face to face with this beautiful beast, the 147 GTA is a seductress who tries to hide its defects. A GT saloon.