It was the most talked-about car at the last Frankfurt Motor Show (VW aside), and at the Zurich Motor Show it continued to amaze, appearing in the Quadrifoglio version. The new Giulia carries us back to the past, returning Alfa Romeo to rear-wheel drive, though a 4x4 version should not be missing either. The car will be produced in Cassino (Lazio), so it is worth highlighting a “Made in Italy” product (these days everything and nothing is made in Italy). The car will be based on a 2.0 turbo 4-cylinder offered in three variants: 180, 250 and 350 hp. There will also be a 3.0 6-cylinder turbodiesel produced by VM, with twin turbochargers and a new cylinder head with 4 valves per cylinder, expected to deliver 340 hp. In the photo below, the Quadrifoglio variant, a powerful 2.9 6-cylinder petrol turbo with a full 510 hp (with manual or automatic transmission), the only one on sale at the moment, very soon available in Switzerland too (within the first quarter of the year). Prices start at 87'000 CHF, but let us remember that this is the top-of-the-range version, so ordinary mortals will have to wait at least until 2017, when all the other versions will follow.
A distinctly Italian design. The new Giulia embodies the three peculiar features of Italian design: a sense of proportion, simplicity and care for the quality of the surfaces. This is the “skin” that Alfa Romeo's designers have shaped with craftsmanlike care over the mechanical parts. The new Alfa Romeo Giulia is perfect for that audience of enthusiasts orphaned of the real Alfas of the past, fast, engaging and exhilarating, for pleasure or for work, perhaps with the family in tow. The category of “sporty dads” is the most fitting, but singles and company fleets cannot resist the charm of the new Italian four-door either, which in Europe and North America revives the idea of the fast saloon, as beautiful to look at as it is to drive. Together with the new Giulia, Alfa Romeo has also launched a new logo, redesigned by the Robilant Associati studio. It is the classic emblem with the red cross of the city of Milan and the green serpent, surrounded by the Alfa Romeo lettering on a blue background, the whole thing however renewed and modernised in its graphics. The centre background now appears entirely white, whereas before it was partly blue.
As the Head of Alfa Romeo for FCA North America Reid Bigland explained during the Los Angeles Motor Show: “the new Giulia is not just a new car, but a genuine new ‘benchmark’, that is a ‘point of reference’ that will mark a new generation of Alfa Romeo. It was created by a small group of engineers, led by two Senior Managers from Ferrari.” The US boss compares the Giulia's horsepower with the various rivals; let us look at them together:
Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio - 505 hp (officially in the EU it is 510 hp)
Mercedes-AMG C63 S -503 hp
Mercedes-AMG C63 - 469 hp
AUDI RS5 - 450 hp
AUDI R8 V8 - 430 hp
PORSCHE 911 CARRERA 4 GTS - 430 hp
BMW M3 - 425 hp
Unbelievable! Finally, we leave you with a very entertaining clip that is at the same time of great importance for Alfa Romeo, since the new Giulia sets the new outright record at the Nürburgring (even faster than Lamborghini), freezing the stopwatch at 7 minutes and 39 seconds.
For more info and a test drive, visit the official website: www.alfaromeo.ch
