Alfa Design - be grateful, very grateful

[AKress1948@xxxxxxx]

I recently had a conversation with a friend that again highlights, to me, the
way people's expectations - or at least prejudices, irrational as they may be,
color their observations & judgement.

This friend (an alfa owner of many years and many Alfas) has recently become
the technical guardian andgel of someone who just bought a '96 Porsche 993 C2.
Said friend was asked to have the shop were he worked change the oil in the
Porsche.
Well, guess how much it costs to change the oil in a 993.  $ 185 dollars!!!.
At a Porsche dealer it would have been $ 200+.  There's something to look
forward to every 3,000 miles!!!  The 993 has a dry sump, and takes 11 quarts
of Mobil 1(in this case), requires 2 oil filters, and takes 2 HOURS to fill
the sump!!!!!  One has to remove part of the inner rocker cover to expose the
sump or one of the filters or some such?, and apparently the design of the
filler requires the oil be trickled in.  If poured in "too speedily", i.e.
anythng like pouring,and the system "burps" oil back out the filler, and all
over the engine bay.  Hard to believe, but true.  Can you imagine the uproar
of criticism and constant whining and complaining if this was required on an
Alfa?  How come we don't hear about those "quirky" Porsches, and how come
people accept this Teutonic reaming without screaming about those shoddy,
uncaring, slapdash engineers?
Also, just happened to read the latest "Sports Car International" wherein they
drool and foam, and worship the new 996.  You should read the comparison to
the "old" 993 whose driving behavior is characterized as "darty and the tail
likes to come out in the wet"...Still in this car you have to be ready for
anything".  How the old floor mounted pedals mad eheel and toeing difficult,
how the old shift mechanism made it so easy tomiss a shift.  Major stuff to my
eyes.  Then he describes the new car's center console that bulges out so far
that it hurts the drivers calf.  Hurley Haywood recounts how he had to wrap
his leg to pad it after a couple of hours of steady driving in a Porsche
driver's school.  Then there is the clean sheet redesign of the dash in which,
among other things, Porsche managed to completely loose the glove box, and the
seats are uncomfortable.  Plus the bugger still generates so much front end
lift at speed that they still need that dopey rear wing.  Does this sound like
quirky?  It does to me.  All this for 60 large!
Now I'm not saying the Porsche is not worth 60 large, all other things
considered, however it does puzzle me why this manifestation of "Quirky" is
glossed over or even praised, and Alfa's quirks are used to damn.  
Oh well, back inside my cage.
Andy

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