Most of the media reports about the new Alfa Giulia follow a fairly predictable pattern: any number of paragraphs filled with breathless adoration of the range-topping Quadrifoglio (QV) version, followed by a passing mention that there are some 2.0-litre variants as well, and that those are also quite impressive. And why not? The Giulia QV is a serious piece of machinery which takes the super-saloon fight right to the leaders in its class: a remarkable return to form for a company which has been scraping by on a range of front wheel driven hatchbacks and so-so saloons for the better part of three decades. Praise-worthy indeed, and I will submit my own ode to the brilliant QV in a little while.

But not just yet, because as eye-wideningly excellent as the QV is, it’s really just the halo atop the range: an almost unattainable prestige model to show us how good the new Giulia could be when developed to its peak. Even at its starting price of just over R1.4-million, the first local QV consignment of 40-odd cars sold out within days, and no mass-market saloon will ever be deemed a sales success at such low volumes. This is where the lower-level 2.0T variants come into play, for these are the ones people will have to buy if the new range is ever to achieve the numbers needed to rescue Alfa Romeo from its recent sales doldrums.

The engineers certainly studied their target market and opponents very carefully, because, on paper, there’s very little to choose between the 2.0T Giulia and most of its competitors. You’ll find a strikingly-styled four door saloon with a turbo charged four cylinder under the bonnet, driving the rear wheels through ZF’s customarily excellent 8-speed autobox. Apart from the front- or all wheel drive A4, that’s about par for the course in this segment.

Their return to rear wheel drive marks a big step for Alfa: since the advent of the 164 back in the late-1980s, all Alfa saloons used some version of a front-driven platform from within the Fiat group. Those brand loyalists who pined for the sporty handling and balance of the traditional RWD Alfas would definitely be happy by this change of heart.

That doesn’t mean that Alfa developed their new platform all by themselves, though. But, instead of sourcing something American from within the huge FCA group to satisfy their need for a RWD component set, they roped in some help from Ferrari. It might be a bespoke Alfa platform, only shared with the upcoming Stelvio SUV, but it comes with impeccable credentials: the same guy who sorted out the Ferrari 458’s incredible handling did the chassis development for Giulia, for instance.

This Ferrari influence shines through from the moment you slide into the driver’s seat and hunt for the engine’s Start button. Why put that on the steering wheel itself instead of on the dashboard? Because that’s the Ferrari way. Of course, the FCA influence shows as well, with an infotainment system much like the one you’ll find in a Jeep (and the obligatory few sub-par cabin trim pieces), but the Giulia nonetheless feels different from its front-drive siblings. You’re seated low down in really supportive bucket seats, and the instrument cluster features deeply hooded gauges, just like you’ll find in a 1970 Alfa Spider. Of course, it’s all been updated and modernised with clear digital info displays and fuss-free ergonomics, but the brand’s history shines through: the Giulia is clearly meant to evoke memories of yesteryear’s great Alfas.

Moving off, the differences to Alfa’s recent offerings are even more noticeable. The first element which grabs your attention is the steering. Not only is it very quick of ratio (as on most Alfas since about 1995), but it is also entirely uncorrupted by driving forces on the front tyres (unlike any FWD Alfa, ever). Light, sharply responsive and very accurate, the steering feel is right up there with the best modern systems. Its only downfall is a slight vagueness just off-centre during sedate driving, but that disappears as you turn up the wick slightly – this car actually encourages spirited driving, in much the same way as its 1960’s namesake did.

Combine this sharp steering setup with well-judged spring- and damper rates for the all-independent suspension setup, as well as a perfect 50/50 weight distribution between the front- and rear axles, and the Giulia leaps to the front of its class. It’s very comfortable too, with a smooth and unflustered ride quality and good suspension travel. In fact, as far as overall driving dynamics go, the Giulia is just about as good as the excellent Lexus IS (if not quite at the level of the sublime Jaguar XE on account of that slight steering glitch), and ahead of any of its mainstream competitors.

That’s not the end of the good news either, for the drivetrain is easily up to the demands of this class as well. For the time being, we’ll receive the mainstream Giulia with only one petrol engine (in 147 kW/330 Nm trim), but a stronger 206 kW/400 Nm unit is under consideration, as is a turbo diesel powerplant. There aren’t any manual gearboxes on offer, but with an automatic this good, that’s not a terrible compromise. Standard gearshift paddles across the range would have been welcome, though.

While most of the opposition field more powerful engines around this price point, the entry-level engine performs with an enthusiasm which belies its somewhat modest output figures. The combination of well-chosen gear ratios, slick transmission programming and a wide torque spread means that the 2.0T Giulia has more than adequate power under most driving conditions, with effortless overtaking ability and sharp throttle response. From standstill, 100 km/h comes up in 6.6 seconds, and it maxes out at 235 km/h – far from slothful. It sounds pretty good when worked hard as well, with a raspy hum from the exhaust pipes doing a pretty good job of imitating an old Twin Cam or a 1990’s Twin Spark.

Standard equipment levels are again class-competitive. The Giulia 2.0T is available in three trim levels, and offer a selection of sporting- and luxury packages. The range opens with the Giulia Base at R555 000, which features a full safety suite including lane departure warning and automatic emergency braking, along with the usual luxuries such as 16-inch alloy wheels, cruise control, and automatic control for the air-con, lights and wipers. Next up is the Giulia Super at R625 000, which adds (among other things) adaptive cruise control, 17-inch alloy wheels and steering wheel shift paddles. The highest specification is called the Giulia Stile, and it adds niceties such as 18-inch alloys, Xenon headlights, electrically adjusted heated seats, Uconnect 8.4 infotainment with navigation, a sports steering wheel, and leather trim for the dashboard and door cards to bring its sticker price up to R 695 000.

There are a lot of references to old-time Alfas here: the noise, the seats, the instrument cluster, the rear-wheel drive and the driving experience all harken back to some of Alfa’s greatest hits. Unfortunately, that’s not all they revived as far as their history goes, for the cabin’s perceived build quality isn’t quite up there with the best in its class. One of the (admittedly early-build and freshly-out-of-customs) cars I drove had an obviously ill-fitting glove box, and they all had some small trim panels made of clearly low-rent plastic. It’s like the engineers gobbled up all of the budget, leaving very little for the cabin designers to work with. That said, it’s still a mighty impressive effort for a car built on a brand-new platform in an astonishingly short time frame – the Giulia went from concept sketch to show car to production in less than three years.

Will South Africans warm to the Giulia’s considerable charms? They really should. Its spacious cabin (enough room for a quartet of six-footers), composed ride and decent standard specification will appeal to buyers’ practical sides, while its soulful engine, arresting styling and sterling dynamic abilities will win the hearts of enthusiastic drivers everywhere. If ever there was an Alfa deserving of sales success, this is it. Let’s hope enough buyers realise this. Now onto that Quadrifoglio…

Giulia Quadrifoglio: The four-door Ferrari
Right from the first glance, it’s clear that the Quadrifoglio is a Giulia with teeth, and with muscle to match. Where the normal 2.0T variants have clean styling, relying more on their swollen haunches and classic rear wheel drive proportions (long snout, stretched cabin and pert backside) for visual impact, the QV instantly looks aggressive and menacing. The exhaust tailpieces are doubled up (two outlets on each side), 19-inch alloy wheels fill those bulging wheel arches to capacity, and the front bumper has gaping air intakes to feed the monster lurking inside.

And what a monster it is. From a swept volume of only 2.9 litres, the Ferrari guys managed to extract some truly monumental output figures: 375 kW and 600 Nm should be more than enough to keep the Giulia Quadrifoglio ahead in the performance wars against the Mercedes C63 and BMW M3 for quite a while. This V6 engine is a direct derivative of the V8 unit doing duty in the California T, with the same bore and stroke and a twin-turbo setup, only with a pair of cylinders lopped off. Once again, there’s only a torque converter automatic gearbox featuring on the spec sheet, but it’s programmed to respond with the kind of neck-snapping ferocity you’d generally associate with the best dual-clutch transmissions.

This engine/gearbox combination results in truly spectacular performance. The 0-100 km/h sprint is dispatched in a deeply impressive 3.9 seconds, but it really comes alive as the speed mounts and those fat tyres stop scrabbling for traction. Its top-end stamina is genuinely breathtaking, feeling like it accelerates ever quicker as the speedo starts its rapid chase up the scale. Here’s an indication of this pocket nuke’s prodigious power: the top speed is electronically limited (!) to 307 km/h. If that seems an odd number, this translates to 190 miles per hour. No weak-kneed 250 km/h governors here, no sir. On top of all this power, the Quadrifoglio sounds damn good, with a raspy timbre at low speeds giving way to a delicious, filthy howl as you wind it out – and it’s all genuine too: no piped-in nonsense in the German fashion, and no “aural augmentation” through the sound system either.

All this speed would come to naught if the chassis were unable to keep up, but there’s great news on this front as well. The Quadrifoglio builds on the innate dynamic excellence of the basic Giulia, and adds stiffened (adaptive) suspension, upgraded brakes and an electronically controlled limited-slip differential to the mix. The package works beautifully, endowing the Quadrifoglio with massive road grip and predictable responses when the driver turns up the heat.

Don’t think it’s all benign and playful, mind you – something I realised by the third corner of the private track where the media launch was hosted. Injudicious throttle- and steering inputs, specifically with the Quadrifoglio’s DNA mode selector switched to Race mode (which turns all the electronic driver aids off) will result in the fiery Italian biting you face off before spitting you out next to the track – backwards. Fortunately, it’s very easy to recover when you overcook it, but it also demands your full attention if you want to extract its best.

There’s a genuine old-school sports car hidden underneath that four-door suit, a top-level athlete in a tuxedo but still wearing his Nikes. It will richly reward a skilled driver, harshly punish a clumsy one, and works best when treated with respect. But when you get it right, it’s a thrill ride second to none. The Giulia Quadrifoglio really is the four-door Ferrari you’ve always wished for. Its pricetag sadly reflects this pedigree, starting at R1.4-million and topping out beyond R1.7-million once you’ve added the carbon fibre trim pieces, carbon-ceramic brakes and a few other options. Yes, that is rather steep, but for a car of this pedigree, with this performance and such an immersive driving experience, it’s actually not that bad at all. Best to get your order in now, before the next consignment is also sold out.

Alfa Giulia Range (prices excluding options)
Giulia 2.0T Base R 555 000
Giulia 2.0T Super R 625 000
Giulia 2.0T Stile R 695 000
Guilia 2.9T QV R 1 400 000