Alfa Romeo Giulia 2018 Review

The Alfa Romeo Giulia is supposedly the Italian marque's answer to the BMW 3 Series, but there's more to it than that.

In many ways, this is a car much like the Jaguar XE in character. There's little of BMW's more clinical approach to design, although nor is the Alfa Romeo Giulia as anarchic as some Alfas have been in the past. But just because it's a car that debatably appeals more to the heart than the head doesn't mean the Giulia is dumbed down.

Few will find fault with the sweeping style lines and moderately aggressive frontal design treatment, and that visual flair is carried over inside. So from the moment one lays eyes on the Alfa Romeo Giulia, the car signals all the right intentions.

The Giulia's design flair is joined by aural charm, with an engine that sounds sporty, yet refined, and emits a pleasant burble at lower speeds. Unfortunately, the turbocharged four-pot powerplant is quite subdued and misses an opportunity to let the world know just how charismatic it is. No twin-choke Webers or Dellortos hanging off the side of this engine...

There's plenty of mid-range torque available though – much like classic Alfa engines – but power begins to tail off from around 5500rpm, inducing drivers to change up to the next cog before redline. At redline the engine hits a rev limiter and holds steady there – none of that inelegant blipping often the case in other cars.

With eight speeds, the transmission is always in the right gear to supply ample torque to the rear wheels. There's enough torque to hold a high gear on steeper grades with the cruise control set and the engine running at around 2000rpm. The torque available makes the Giulia easy to drive around town and fun on winding country roads.

While the transmission shifts smoothly, it can occasionally thump into gear when its' caught out by restarting automatically and moving off the line for a green light. The idle-stop system that restarts the engine automatically did conserve fuel. During the week, the fuel consumption figure finished up at 9.6L/100km, which is around a litre better than previous experience with the Jaguar XE 25t. Admittedly, the Alfa's superior fuel consumption is partly explained by school holidays and more freeway cruising than usual.

From first impressions, the Giulia's suspension is pretty hard, even in the (optional) active suspension's normal mode. Hit a pothole and the impact harshness is quite sharp. Change the DNA setting to Dynamic and the suspension firms up again. There is a button at the centre of the DNA knob to soften the suspension setting, and this works quite well. Mostly the ride quality feels brittle around town, but at speeds above 60km/h, on country roads, the body control feels about right.

It's worth noting too that the Giulia on test came equipped with the $4000 Veloce pack, which includes the active suspension and 19-inch alloy wheels shod with Bridgestone tyres. This wheel and tyre combination likely detracts from the Giulia's ride quality. And the tyres also contribute to road noise, which is the major sound source in the cabin at touring speeds (from 80km/h and higher).

Compensating for the Giulia's ride is the car's cornering prowess and braking ability. The brakes are tremendous, but feel sudden initially, until the driver adjusts to the pedal feel. Stomp on the pedal and the Giulia will blink the hazard warning lights in rapid succession.

Complementing the brakes' immediate response, the steering is very direct, even in normal mode. It's also quite light in this setting, but still provides a decent level of feedback. Change to Dynamic mode and the steering is heavier and even more communicative. It's like the Giulia is constantly shouting at you about the reserves of front-end grip.

There is a downside though. Like other Alfa Giulias we've driven in the past this one seems to have too much caster on the front wheels. During low-speed manoeuvring – such as turning out of a driveway or even parallel parking – the front tyres scrub and skip unpleasantly with the application of sufficient lock to make the tighter turning. Turn right across an intersecting carriageway over tramlines and the over-castered Giulia will skip and catch with an audible bump in the transition from low-friction steel to high-friction bitumen.

The rear wheels don't tend to stray too far from the straight ahead, unless the driver is being provocative with the throttle. Power on through a corner (either at higher touring speeds or at 'donut' speeds) and the Giulia will step out, but it feels secure even then. Although this should wait for a comparison, I suspect the Giulia's handling isn't ultimately as tidy as that of a BMW 3 Series, but it's quite a lot of fun, nonetheless.

For night driving, the Giulia's headlights are just not good enough. They're very weak on low beam, although they do improve markedly on high beam – as they should for bi-xenons. The Giulia comes with static cornering lights that illuminate to light up the inside of corners. They're fine for suburban street corners, but do little on a winding country road at speeds of 80km/h or higher.

The forward collision warning system is not as sensitive as other systems and sounds an audible alarm that's like a Romanesque triple horn blast. Surprisingly, the Giulia's system is not as startling as Volvo's system, as an example – and therefore less likely to induce cardiac arrest. It's driver-assist technology you could learn to tolerate.

Inside, the cabin is stylish and seems built to a reasonable standard of quality, although the indicator and wiper stalks feel a bit downmarket to use.

The driving position is generally functional. There's a starter button front and centre, mounted in the cleft formed where the left and lower spokes meet the wheel hub. It's much easier to find than most starter buttons mounted on the dash.

That's one example of Alfa's generally sensible approach to ergonomics. The Giulia's interior designers have also placed the electronic parking brake button closer to the driver – where it should be. Unlike some rivals, the Giulia's buttons are labelled with a straightforward mix of universally accepted graphics and text.

In other words, complete newbies can nut-out how the controls and instruments operate after a brief spell of trial and error – without having to drag out the owner’s manual.

Scrolling or resetting the trip computer readout is by pressing and/or holding a button in the end of the headlight stalk. Climate control switchgear is at Japanese/Korean levels of simplicity. The single-point controller for infotainment is basic... in a good way. And the touch screen in the centre fascia is easy to read, as are the major instruments – with the tachometer's redline and calibrations actually big and bold for optimal legibility at a glance. Furthermore, the redline is an accurate indicator of the point where the engine is reaching maximum revs.

Changing the damper settings in dynamic mode is a matter of simply pushing a concentric button in the top of the DNA (drivetrain mode) control knob. The button features a backlit 'damper' icon that toggles between illuminated or dark according to the mode selected – and each mode is conveyed in a trip computer message in the instrument binnacle.

In short, it's a piece of cake learning how to operate all the Giulia's functions, whether or not you have previous experience driving a mid-sized prestige sedan.

One slight ergonomic misstep is the Alfa's transmission shift paddles, which are large and easy to grab in the heat of the moment, but would be better still if they turned with the wheel. They remain fixed in place on the steering column. I also found the pedals were skewed slightly to the right – although not enough to be annoying.

The seats fitted to the Giulia are leather-trimmed and feature six-way electrical adjustment. They are great seats, with plenty of heavy-duty side bolstering to hold the occupant snugly in place, yet they're quite comfortable too. Unfortunately, they are part of the extra-cost Veloce option pack already mentioned.

But that option pack does offer a lot of equipment for $4000. As well as the active suspension and 19-inch alloy wheels, the pack includes red brake calipers, sports steering wheel, aluminium interior trim/sports pedals, gloss-black window surrounds and privacy glass for the rear seat.

The Giulia is a driver's car, and packaging reflects that, to an extent. Rear-seat accommodation is tight, with legroom that can't match that of a 3 Series BMW, and entering or leaving the rear of the Giulia is hindered by narrow doors and limited space to swing the feet in an out between the seat and the B pillar. Headroom is fine for adults though, and the Giulia does feature adjustable rear vents.

For a family sedan, the Giulia's boot is not especially practical. Alfa Romeo claims it will hold 480 litres of contents, but the floor is shallow and the shape is not ideal for larger suitcases.

So the Giulia is very much a car for driving enthusiasts to savour. If the 19-inch wheels of the Veloce pack do exacerbate the lack of compliance in the suspension, as suspected, then the basic model without that option might be the car to choose.

How much does the 2018 Alfa Romeo Giulia cost?
Price: $63,900 (as tested, plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 147kW/330Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 6.0L/100km (ADR Combined); 9.6L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 138g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star ANCAP (2016)