Ford Focus RS (Mk III) 2015-

[Ferrer]

Some Italian tractor...

Hey, at least it was better than your French-Romanian car-SUV thing for a lap around Montjuïc, wasn't it?

Good to know. So what are you choosing between in the short term? I realized that car shopping can be very fun, no wonder why females do it so often.

At this point I'm undecided. And I have a bit of a problem. Or many of them.

I'd like to go back to a sportscar, but the truth is 90% of my driving are high speed motorway miles. That would be no problem in a high-end sportscar (911 or F-Type for example) but I can't afford those.

There is also another problem. 90% of the times the interesting roads are on the other side of those motorway miles. So in essence, unless you do them there are no (near, easily accessible) interesting roads around where I live.

Say I'd get a Subaru BRZ. At the current pace I do in the Alfa my cruising rpms would be around 4900rpm. Yes, the car would be very enjoyable in the right roads but most of the time I would hate it. Which is the reason why I got rid of the MX-5 in the first place.

So clearly that's a no go. Ideally I'd have to go for something that balances out the handling with high speed comfort. Something in the mould of the BMW 220i/230i Coupé (the 220i would lower my cruising rpms to under 4000 - success!). Sports saloons/coupés like the Giulia, XE or 3/4 Series would also be an option.

I have also considered bigger cars like the 5 Series, but they are A expensive and B not particularly sporty (especially in base trim).

I have a third problem though. Spending upwards of forty grand on something that I don't really hanker after doesn't sit well with me. All of the cars mentioned have problems; the Giulia and XE only come with a manual paired to a diesel engine, the 5 Series is expensive and slow and, truth be told, I don't really fancy modern BMWs.

My current B-plan is to actually get two cars, say an MX-5 and a 6 saloon but I'm not sure this would solve the problem at all. I'd still have to drive the MX-5 to the great roads (which remember, are far away) and two cars would mean twice the running costs.

The decision is still at least 6-12 months away, but the Giulietta is certainly leaving (eventually). As you can see, though, I have no idea at all what will replace it.