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Lee Brimble, the photographer, sensing and sharing my frustration, offers some sage advice: 'Think you're gonna 'ave to thrash it, mate,' he says. And he isn't wrong. I've been driving it US-style, letting the engine lug us around and keeping the lousy gearchanges to a minimum.

This car needs to be stirred vigorously to make it come alive and sing. The QTronic six-speed auto, which wasn't available on our drive, will be the US favourite for sure.

So I thrash it, and then I thrash it some more, and sure enough the Spider changes its tune completely. Suddenly, high in the hills above San Diego, with the Q4 four-wheel drive sinking its teeth deep into the road and the engine shrieking with delight, we belt through mile after mile of bends and, suddenly, everything comes together.

Thank God. It's such a laugh, we could carry on screeching around the countryside all day, but time is short and we have a hasty straw poll to carry out.

Having found the Spider's soul at the far end of the throttle's travel, we need to start our search for some potential US customers. Without telling us how much the car will cost when it arrives, Alfa did say that it is benchmarking the Audi TT as the Spider's main competition.

That puts it in the $40k-plus range. Other cars in that arena include the BMW Z4, the Volvo C70 and the Mercedes SLK. Tough competition for sure. Our first pitstop is The Saloon Hideout Steakhouse on the road out to Warner Springs.

It might look like a patch-club biker hang out, and the riders would love you to think that, but most of them are off-duty doctors and lawyers, all hardtails and soft attitudes. Precisely the type of people who buy Audis, Mercs - and, perhaps, Alfas too.

As we park the Spider up among all the spotless Harleys, a small group of people gathers around the car. 'Know what this is?' I ask. 'It's an Alfa Romeo,' says the first biker to get close. 'What engine's it got - is it a dohc?' says another.

I stifle the urge to say, 'Of course it bloody is, you fool. What century do you think this is?' by remembering that I'm surrounded by over-polished push-rod motors. "Paddle shift too?" Yes and no, not yet, I say, asking a lady next to him how much she thinks the car costs. "It's a real good lookin' car," she says.

"Nice detailing. I'd say it costs somewhere between, ooh, 50 and 75 thousand dollars." "I reckon it'll cost somewhere between 350Z and Audi TT money," adds another bystander. "Am I right?" he says. Could be, I say in best annoying quizmaster fashion.

Would any of them think of test driving or even buying one? Er, no. There's a couple of muttered maybes and a few thoughtful expressions, but no one is prepared to go any further today than offer their thoughts on price. But it's still not a bad result for the car. Most people have pegged it at between 50 and 100 per cent more than the benchmark.