![\"Detroit](\"http:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/-mm-\/a1614f336cc75a89fba8c39f3be9c24d80e2e46b\/c=271-0-1729-1096&r=x513&c=680x510\/local\/-\/media\/2015\/08\/21\/DetroitNews\/DetroitNews\/635757697947241973-0-cruisers-intro.jpg\")
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Courtesy of the fine folks at Chevy, Ford and Fiat-Chrysler, the official Detroit News Dream Cruisers this year were a 2015\u00a0Corvette Z06 convertible\u00a0<\/a>and a pair of topless turbo-4s: The\u00a0Ford Mustang\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0Alfa Romeo Spider<\/a>.<\/p>\n Which begged the question: Can a 4-banger find love at the Dream Cruise?<\/p>\n After all, the Cruise is V-8 country. Hellacious supercharged Hellcats. Earth-shaking \u201967, 389-cube GTOs. And of course, \u2019Vettes, \u2019Vettes, \u2019Vettes. But in the early 21st Century, the Green Church rules and in our zeal to save the polar bear the V-8 is an endangered species. With 54.5 mpg-by-2025, the new fuel mileage standard automakers are turning to fewer cylinders and more turbochargers to both conserve gas and quench our thirst for speed.<\/p>\n Turbo-4 Mustangs, turbo-4 Camaros, twin-turbo BMW M3s …\u00a0Rumors even swirl that a mid-engine, turbo-6 Corvette<\/a>\u00a0is in the works. Clearly, we\u2019re going to have to get used to fewer V-8s. Six-bangers aren\u2019t much of a stretch. But can a pony car be a classic with a 4? Can a $70,000 sports car?<\/p>\n My fellow News writer, Tom Greenwood, and I put the Alfa and Mustang to the test in a week of top-down driving along with the undisputed King of the Cruise, the Z-OMG-6.<\/p>\n That the \u2019Vette is king is not in dispute. The new C7 Stingray is an instant classic. A muscled Michelangelo sculpture. Its base 450-horsepower, 6.2-liter V-8 makes grown men weep. Supercharge it to 650 horses and they bow before it. Porsches inspire. The Z06 you\u2019d follow into battle.<\/p>\n Even at 5 mph (the Official Average Speed of the Dream Cruise) the V-8 is authoritative. Between 11 and 12 Mile Saturday a kid holds up a sign: \u201cREV IT UP!\u201d<\/p>\n I pop the eight-speed auto tranny in neutral, stomp the gas, and the 389- cubes of pistons jackhammer the pavement. BRAAAAPPA! BRAAAPPA! Car alarms go off for blocks. All hail the king!<\/p>\n The Alfa pales by comparison. At 13 Mile I pass another kid. Another \u201cREV IT\u201d sign. Surprisingly, the turbo-four \u2013 which has a wonderful, obnoxious growl at speed \u2013 sounds bashful. The kid and I look at each other in mutual disappointment. How can such a wicked-looking schnauzer have such a weak bark?<\/p>\n The rev test aside, however, the Alfa is a Cruise star.<\/p>\n Begin with its supermodel looks. They don\u2019t call it the \u201cbaby Ferrari\u201d for nothing. Curved flanks, mid-engine layout. Our matching yellow Alfa and Z06 cruised Woodward together and the Italian got more attention. Maybe because only 500 4Cs have been sold in the U.S.<\/p>\n But good looks are just the beginning. The Alfa is simply the most fun car on the road today.<\/p>\n Put your foot in it and the turbo-4 barks on upshifts, snorts under power, and generally sounds like a Rottweiler with indigestion. But handling is what sets it apart. Driving the ferocious Z06 around Metro Detroit feels like having a nuclear war in your living room,<\/p>\n while the nimble Alfa is a much more precise weapon. Its stiff carbon fiber tub gives it an over-sized, go-kart feel as you fling it through Oakland County\u2019s lake hills.<\/p>\n But the real payoff is the bottom line. The 4C is not just half the price of our $113,835 Z06, it is the only carbon sports car under $135,000. At a remarkably affordable $53,000, both the base Alfa and base C7 offer totally different performance experiences.<\/p>\n At $43,290, the Mustang was our bargain cruiser, but its\u00a0310-horsepower turbo-4<\/a>\u00a0was the big question. After all, muscle cars have been defined by its throaty V8s back to the 1960s.<\/p>\n Greenwood cruised happily in our bright, \u201cCompetition Orange\u201d pony all week. It\u2019s striking, comfortable and powerful. Ford has worked wonders with its Ecoboost turbos which offer greater power than similar fours from BMW and Audi. It\u2019s no slouch against V-8s either.<\/p>\n