We’ve heard the ranting and raving done over Alfa Romeo’s latest M3 killer and its exquisite looks, but not often is its track performance discussed. As you might imagine, the car has enough grunt to make anyone grin: 505 horsepower and 443 lb-ft of torque mean 60 is met in just 4 seconds and 100 in 8.3. So, it’s got the firepower, but how does Alfa’s super sedan manage when braking and tidy cornering is concerned?

Predictably, it’s a bit of a hooligan and loves to roast the rears whenever the throttle’s stomped, but with a progressive push of the loud pedal and some careful steering, it’s good—though the systems still intervene slightly when all the systems are supposedly turned off. The gearbox is a letdown, and the amount of torque available encourages the driver to take a higher gear more of the time.

The Alfa is pure fun—it offers a controllable form of oversteer that leaves you feeling like Superman.

Weight transfer isn’t as crisp as a track car ought to have—this is a comfortable car, after all—and a hint of understeer at the corner entry is perhaps the weakest aspect of this car’s handling, but it compensates with a strong, natural oversteer. The driver can manage that torque setting the rear tires alight, and even at speed, the car wants to pivot into the corner and offer the driver a very positive, pointy machine to work with. It’s certainly exhilarating, and its progressive nature means it’ll make anyone with some talent look like a driving god, but it’s not a track scalpel. The question remains— it have the handling and traction to hang with the car it intended to knock off its pedestal: the BMW M3?