A LABORIOUS LABOUR OF LOVE
Only a few days before the 20th century had run its course, the legendary Giorgetto Giugiaro was bestowed with the title of "Car Designer of the Century" by a jury of over 120 journalists. Like many of the iconic sports cars penned by the Italian, with sincere bodywork enveloping thunderous engines, he was not ready to slow down—not yet.
At that point, the illustrious career birthed some of the most iconic vehicles to grace public roads and private collections. Arguments over his best could continue until the cows come home; the Golf, Lancia Delta and Giulia Sprint GT are combined in an eclectic medley that includes rarities like BMW's M1 and Doc's DeLorean. In South Africa, that very Golf that made its first public appearance in 1974 continued to be produced until the end of 2009. Timelessness, but a few years before that final celebratory model rolled out of its Eastern Cape factory, Giorgetto had penned another masterpiece that would not let the sands of time erode its beauty...
The year was 2002 and the Brera had been unveiled to the prying eyes of the Geneva Motor Show just over the Alps from the ItalDesign studio from where it was conceived. It took three years to go from this surreal surrender of design constraint and eventually morph into a vehicle destined for public consumption. Away was the Maserati V8 and those stupefying scissor doors but fortunately, the production version had not strayed too far from the design prowess exercise from Geneva.
"Less is more" - Bauhaus Design Director Ludwig Mies van der Rohe
At around the same time, I was in the final few years of my primary school career. This was the time of my life that further cemented my endearing passion for cars but during this period of youth, I had befriended the brother of a girl I knew over a shared passion for cars. His name was Brendon Scholtz and that is the genesis of this labour of love.
A few years older than me, Brendon and I quickly discovered we were cut from the same cloth. Our diction was automotive topical, our childhood bedrooms were draped in motoring merchandise and we both took a keen interest in car design. Brendon reminded me that those formative days had the back of our school books brimmed with sketches of cars.
We went our separate ways during high school but eventually revisited those initial years and the love we had for cars, but now only with the real things. I took notice of the dozens of cars Brendon had owned from the date he could legally drive. Too many to mention, he had eventually purchased an Alfa Romeo and like many of us, the bug had bitten. Without surrender, his collection is dominated by these Italian creations, alongside a few Porsches.
"I loved them when they first came out and I never thought I would ever own them, of course, we were young, but my first Alfa was a GT with the 1.9 JTD motor. I loved that car's diesel torque and ability to do 1 000 km on a tank."
During this ownership period, Brendon told me the story of when a neighbour had scraped the fender of the GT while parking in an adjacent bay only to be notified by his dad who happened to be at home. In a frenzy, he dropped everything at work to see the extent of the damage. The minor dent soothed his fears but Brendon stated that the prior call from his dad was the most emotionally triggering message he has ever received about a car. Jokingly, there was some silver lining since this was the first interaction Brendon would have with the local Alfa community, which he adds was a lot bigger than he expected. With help from other Alfisti, this was the start of a broader network that would contribute to the reason this article has been compiled.
Brendon went on to confirm that since that GT, he has lost count of all of the Alfas he has owned but his ambitions with the brand would go far deeper than just ownership. A few years on from his first taste of Alfa in 2016, Brendon had wondered how the sultry styling of the Brera would look with five doors instead of three...
A local coachbuilder was given the brief, but Brendon was not satisfied with the cut-and-shut finished product and proportions that were incongruent with the original ideation.
Born and bred in a nation of resilience and resourcefulness when it comes to tinkering with Alfa Romeo, Brendon opted to give the project another attempt. It was all or nothing and this was the point that I got a phone call asking if I wanted to have a look at the revised creation. A workshop nearby was undertaking the project with Brendon’s strict supervision and he invited me over to have a look at some early progress. I obliged following growing intrigue after the first attempt and wanted to see what the revised project would look like under the surface – a question many pepper towards its owner.
Brendon detailed that the 159 shell and powertrain would have the Brera donor rear end meticulously disassembled of its spot welds before the subassembly would find its place on the 159 frame. This painstaking procedure was Brendon's end goal since it retains a semblance of OEM structural integrity and would look far more professional under the surface. Harking back to our youth and the dozens upon dozens of doodles we'd create in search of ultimate harmony and proportions in car design, this very same fervour enabled Brendon's endeavours. The fantasy work from those notebooks culminated into a man-obsessed.
These efforts continued for several months and eventually, the bodywork had been completed to a degree of professionalism indistinguishable from something that would have rolled out of the Brera's Pininfarina factory in Torino all of those years ago. A painstaking amount of effort to ensure the variation between rooflines of the 159 and Brera yielded what has taken the Alfisti world by storm. This has become the world's first five-door Brera in existence, finished in a zealous hue of 8C Red and sitting on a set of Giulia Quadrifoglio wheels. This completes Brendon's Brera duo which also includes its three-door counterpart of similar specification.
Now in 2025, it celebrates 20 years of life!
The first public debut took place at the 2024 Alfa Romeo Concorso D’Eleganza in Johannesburg but 2025 is the momentous year that both the 159 and Brera celebrate their 20th production anniversary. Closely inspecting the final result, I wasn't surprised to find that none of the modified rear end exhibited any signs of its handmade provenance. Ivano, responsible for all of our photos of this car, took a closer look to figure out where bodywork was cut and joined in an effort to ensure none of it was shown in the final photos. The exercise was futile. Having developed a penchant for modified bodywork and repair damage, the meticulous efforts Brendon has imparted to the Brera make it worthy of a place in Alfa's Museo Storico.
During the time of the photoshoot where Ivano took to capturing both of Brendon's twins to the moment of writing, the five-door Brera has still been in a constant state of evolution. Minor tweaks are being tackled on the project, with the most recent being a back box delete to let the V6 announce itself more appropriately upon arrival and correct alignment for the tailpipes. It isn’t a garage queen and Brendon uses it as often as possible.
While on the lift being given its burbly voice, a curious onlooker at the exhaust shop with a BMW was intrigued by this car and brand he knew very little of. With its beauty and singularity intriguing the man, the workshop owner ushered him to Brendon who then received a flurry of compliments. Resonating with me and my own Alfa, Brendon proudly stated that it is a common occurrence to be approached by the intrigued who are naive to the brand but can’t get enough of looking.
Brendon and I concluded that as much as Alfa Romeos in South Africa are the best-kept secret for those besotted with motoring, their rarity and unique style emboldens their sense of occasion to every other cookie-cutter-styled car out there.
It goes to show that sometimes Alfisti will spare no amount of time, money and effort, in their quest to fill in the history gaps with their own labour of love.
Images: Ivano Mattiello
Words: Alex Shahini
