Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio 2019 Track Review

It’s bloody shame the Alfa Romeo being launched on the eve of last week’s Rolex Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix was an SUV – even one as capable and fun to drive as the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio.

Because the Albert Park layout is fast, challenging and, ultimately, when you get it right, extremely rewarding. I say ‘when’ because in the two laps during which I sampled Alfa Romeo’s rapid new flagship twin-turbo petrol V6 power-SUV, I failed to get it right. It was hard enough to form an opinion of the car, let alone ring its neck and make the most of the 5.303km layout.

Perhaps in a brand new Alfa Romeo supercar or Kimi’s F1 car, my mind would have been focussed entirely on the hardware. In this case, I admit I struggled to take in much of what the car was doing – I was more focussed on the track and the novelty of topping 180km/h on what was once my commute – on a road that normally has ducks and a 50km/h speed limit.

So this NOT a road test. It’s at the very best a taste test of the Stelvio Quadrifolglio.

Fortunately, the palate warms quickly to this Italian super SUV. Newly minted Alfa Romeo factory driver and haiku exponent Kimi Raikkonen has picked the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio (Q from now on, okay?) as his company car and I can understand why.

The Q tops the Stelvio SUV line-up and in doing so takes aim at the likes of Porsche Macan Turbo and Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 S.

To say this genre of vehicle is flavour of the month Down Under and elsewhere is obvious. BMW Jaguar, Audi and others all have offerings here or on the way. SUVs are now a default choice, and Aussies can’t get enough performance. Kerching…

In very simple terms, the Stelvio shares its building blocks with Australia’s Best Driver’s Car – the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio Verde.

The same 375kW twin-turbo V6 stars under the bonnet and the chassis shares its concept, if not competent set. Add in a modestly jacked up ride height, some wagon-style versatility and a new set of clothes that have a hint of Giulietta hatch photocopied at 12/10ths scale, and voila…

The big difference, of course, between Giulia and SUV is that the Stelvio also gets all-wheel drive. Called Q4 in Alfa speak, the system is a heavily sport and rear-biased affair. In fact, until any slip is detected it’s 100 per cent rear drive. In low traction conditions up to 50 per cent can be shuffled forward. Add in an electronically controlled torque vectoring rear diff and you have impressive drivetrain smarts.

The best praise I can deliver after two laps of damp but rapidly drying Albert Park is it’s hard to pick this SUV is anything but rear-drive. I guess Alfa’s chassis boffins would say mission accomplished.

Alfa Romeo has been aggressive with the pricing of the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Q – above and below the line. Priced from $149,900 (plus ORCs), it’s positioned between the Porsche and AMG but, Alfa would argue, is better equipped than both.

Indeed, not only do Alfa’s local connections say the specification-adjusted pricing favours the Stelvio, but that the Italian SUV offers items standard equipment and/or finishes not available on the German cars. It also proudly proclaims that in the Stelvio’s cabin, the aluminium is real aluminium, the leather is real leather, and the carbon-fibre is… Well, optional, but you get the message.

We detailed the full pricing of the Stelvio Q when details were announced last year.

Although Alfa Romeo now offers a five-year warranty on the standard models, the Stelvio Q’s coverage is capped at three years/150,000km.

After two-laps, I’m not going to say you should. Way too early for us to say so – and we haven’t even turned a wheel on Aussie roads.

So wait – or dive in head first and get wet…

We can tell you that the Stelvio Q is fast and fun. More fun, in fact that any SUV has the right to be – especially on a racetrack.

The 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6 sounds good and has serious mumbo. Alfa claims 375kW and 600Nm and it’s the latter figure that you feel – peak torque hits from 2500-5000rpm.

Performance in a straight line is impressive. It doesn’t feel as fast as the 3.98sec 0-100km/h time would suggest but the way it builds pace from 120km/h up tends to suggest the 283km/h top speed claim has veracity.

What’s really pleasing is how the car handles silly cornering speeds and rapid changes of direction. This is far from a roley-poley offroader – indeed, in isolation it feels much as a sport sedan would in terms of lateral body control and fore and aft pitch and roll.

It’ll be interesting to see if the strong wheel control on track translates to the road or whether, in fact, it will seem harsh on our normal blacktop.

Brakes are strong – even the steel items fitted to the two test Stelvio Qs. Real performance aficionados might ticked the carbon-ceramic option ($12,000) but it is after all an SUV!

The Alfa Romeo Stelvio Q is in dealers already – the press was late to the driving party and the car overall was late to this marketplace – frankly we expected it late last year.

There are fairly limited quantities of Stelvio Q right now, however, so you will need to be decisive if you’re keen to be one of the first. Some may say, keen – and brave. But Alfa counters that its warranty rate on Giulia has been low. We’re not hearing any alarm bells yet.

Alfa Australia and FCA boss, Steve Zanlunghi told us that each of Alfa’s 16 local dealers (the aim is to have 20 to start 2020) have at least one demo Stelvio Q each and that bespoke orders (there are not that many option boxes to tick) should be able to be delivered relatively quickly.

It goes without saying the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Q should appeal to Alfistis with the need for all-wheel drive and a bit more space. I hardly think there’s a business case that’s been built only on them, however.

As noted above, the blend of performance (and/or prestige) and the dimensions, driving position and versatility of the SUV body style is a compelling combination for many Aussie buyers.

Alfa Romeo may be a courageous choice for those who want to keep up with the Jones, but the Stelvio Q’s attractive if cobby proportions and undeniable performance credentials (and decent equipment and finish) could tempt a few… Especially those who have already ticked the Porsche Macan box a couple of times.

It’s also a far better looking SUV than the likes of BMW’s X4. Macan-like, there really is a bit of hot hatch on growth hormone to the Stelvio that I can’t help but like.

Given the very restricted exposure to the car, I’m far from forming a firm opinion, however. That will have to wait for the road drive.

Let’s leave it at this – I like the show and the go…

How much does the 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio cost?
Priced from: $149,900 plus on-road costs (see also text)
Engine: 2.9-litre six-cylinder twin-turbo-petrol
Output: 375kW/600Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 10.2L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 223g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: N/A