Alfa Romeo Giulia QV sold out

If you're tempted enough by Alfa Romeo's hot new Giulia QV sports sedan to place an order, you'll have to wait until at least late July for delivery.

That's because the entire first shipment is already spoken for and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Australia (FCAA) is yet to receive confirmation of its request to double its initial allocation.

Although the Giulia officially goes on sale in Australia on February 16, mainstream versions of Alfa's first rear-wheel drive sedan in three decades won't become available to customers until March.

We drove one of the handful of first Giulia QVs to arrive Down Under this week at Sydney Motorsport Park, but first local drive reports are under wraps until next week (February 8) and we won't have access to mainstream models until February 21.

FCAA is staying mum on exactly how many Giulias it has already sold and how many examples of its BMW 3 Series rival it expects to sell, but has confirmed it received more than 100 orders for the QV before its $144,900 pricetag was announced on January 3.

In response, FCAA is seeking to double its initial allocation of Giulia QVs, although its request is yet to be confirmed and motoring.com.au understands the extra supply would need to come from other right-hand drive markets like the UK, where sales are also strong.

Either way, any additional Giulia QV supplies would have no immediate impact, with the first six months of production for Australia already accounted for.

FCAA chief Steve Zanlunghi said his company's full-year allocation of Giulia QVs was "a lot more than 100" but indicated supply was always intended to be deliberately constrained in order to retain the flagship sedan's exclusivity.

"We've taken unofficial orders on the QVs and before we actually even launched the pricing we had 100 orders – people blindly putting down deposits saying I want one," he said.

"We have not hit our capacity on production for QV, so we do have some production available for it for the year, and I'm trying to get additional production for it as well, because to get 100 orders without even announcing the pricing is a good signal for the demand."

Zanlunghi said the QV would account for seven to 10 per cent of overall Giulia sales, and that Super and Veloce variants would comprise the majority of sales, with diesel versions of the former making up 20 per cent.

Therefore, unlike its key competitors, entry-level models will not be the most popular versions of the Giulia, at least initially.

"QV will be our hero vehicle – the flagship – but we'll see most volume coming from the Super and Veloce models," said Zanlunghi.

FCAA has conducted a number of Giulia 'premiere' events, the most recent attracting about 100 potential buyers in Canberra this week, as part of the Alfa Romeo brand's local relaunch road show.

The Giulia's local release will be promoted by advertising across all media except radio, aimed at both traditional Alfa buyers and 'conquest' customers who might otherwise have bout a BMW 3 Series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Audi A4 or Jaguar XE.

"We're going to have two very different ways of going to market," said Zanlunghi. "One will be for brand loyalists -- the Alfisti, the guys that have kept the brand going over the years -- so we'll have a brand campaign aimed at them.

"Those guys want to see the correct product, something that lives up to the Alfa badge, and we think we've got that right.

"And the way we'll go to market for conquest [buyers] is 'how do we interrupt or disrupt the people that are going towards the traditional German brands?'.

"We haven't made public yet our marketing campaign, but we're definitely going to be touting the product features that we have, the benefits and the Italian-ness this car has to separate it from its rivals."

To support the "strong, sustainable" sales growth for Alfa, which sold just 665 cars last year (down more than 55 per cent on 2015), FCAA has reshuffled its management team and reduced the number of its national retail network from 40 to a current 16 dealers.

That number will grow to 18 by year's end, excluding more than a dozen aftersales outlets, and each of them will trade under an updated corporate identity.

"There were some that wanted to stay on with us, but we had to look at the best proposals and who would deliver the best customers experience," said Zanlunghi, who believes the Giulia has the potential has to double Alfa's fleet sales to up to five per cent.

By early 2018, Alfa Romeo Australia will have launched its first SUV, the Stelvio, with a further six to follow by 2020 including two 'specialty' models like based on the Giulia – including a 'Sprint' coupe expected to debut in Geneva next month.

Also due by decade's end will be a rear-drive replacement for the Giulietta hatchback, which is also due for release by next year, a belated successor for Alfa’s flagship 166 sedan and two further SUVs – a small crossover to replace the MiTo and a large seven-seat flagship.

FCA global chief Sergio Marchionne has also confirmed the Giorgio platform that underpins both the Giulia and Stelvio will also form the basis for other models across the Chrysler, Jeep and Dodge brands.

That means the Giulia will also spawn next year's all-new Jeep Grand Cherokee, and could also donate its platform to everything from the next Dodge Charger and Challenger to Maserat's next Ghibli, Quattroporte, GranTurismo and Alfieri supercar.