Alfa Romeo Stelvio Review, a Tough New Crossover Contender
Unfortunately for Alfa Romeo Stelvio, it will have an uphill battle to dominate the group.
(Bloomberg) -- Last week, I drove the Alfa Romeo Giulia, the award-winning sedan that Alfa Romeo Automobiles Spa. used to re-enter the American car market in earnest.
This week, I had the $41,995 Alfa Romeo Stelvio, the brand’s new contender in the premium crossover segment.
While the Giulia won Motor Trend’s prestigious Car of the Year title and outsells the Stelvio stateside—relatively speaking, of course; in Q4 last year the Giulia sold 2,493 units in the U.S. while the Stelvio sold 2,088—the SUV is beautifully appointed inside and drives with the poise of a tightrope walker. It is a fine option in the fiercely competitive premium crossover segment.
Unfortunately for Alfa, it will have an uphill battle to dominate the group. Whereas the Giulia provides a significantly different look and driving feel in the smaller premium sedan market, the highly lucrative, highly competitive crossover category will be hard to crack. The Stelvio’s rivals include the Jaguar F-Pace, Porsche Macan, and Maserati Levante—in addition to popular stalwarts from Audi, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz. The Stelvio may not be distinctive enough to do it.
Alfa’s Uphill Battle
Sometimes my favorite insights are revealed in the newsroom—rather than out on the road—when reporters chat between deadlines or on their way out the door. That happened just now, as I spoke with my colleague Kyle Stock, who has well-chronicled Alfa’s challenges in the American market and its impending rise therein.
Stock suggests that perhaps American buyers will embrace the Giulia—a driver’s dream of a sedan—on the merits of Alfa’s history. The brand has produced fierce racing champions and a beautiful daily driver, after all. But they may not think of the name “Alfa” when they look to buy an SUV. When it comes to buying something that is (at least in theory) highly functional, practical and rugged, the Italians just don’t spring naturally to mind.
Maybe it should. Maybe the Stelvio will help change hearts and minds.
Little Engine, Big Heart
The Alfa Romeo Stelvio Sport I drove ($53,585 with options) comes with a 280-horsepower, four-cylinder engine and an eight-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifting and standard all-wheel drive. That’s a smallish engine, though it’s on par with those of the Porsche Macan and Audi Q5 variants. It’s efficient, with 24 miles per gallon combined fuel economy. And it’s plucky: Stelvio Sport will go to 60 miles per hour in 5.4 seconds, with a top speed of 144mph. Its 306 pound-feet of torque proved more than adequate in the urban- and highway-daily driving I performed around New York through the course of the week. I will say: The plastic-y gear shifter distracted, with different buttons to put the car into neutral vs. reverse and drive. But the gearbox itself was super-smooth and fast through low and higher gears.
The car boasts Alfa Romeo’s by-now well-known soft grille, triangulated around the nose of the car, and handsome 20-inch aluminum rims ($750). The front is the most aggressive-looking part of the whole car; the effect is attractive but subdued. It doesn’t exactly look like every other crossover out there, but it’s not breaking major molds.
Inside you’ll find ample headroom and legroom in both the front and rear of the car. As in the Giulia, the electronics are probably the weakest point here, as they respond to input with a slight delay and aren’t as intuitive or quick to operate as those from Bayerische Motoren Werke AG and Audi AG. But the power $1,350 dual-pane sunroof, the supple leather sport seats and lots of goodies (remote start, rain-sensing wipers, glossy black trim, and heated everything) made me forget the momentary frustration.
This car soundly equals Jaguar’s $42,000 F-Pace and Maserati Spa’s $76,000 Levante for comfort, convenience, and craftsmanship inside. If you’re considering those cars in your search for a crossover, include the Stelvio on your to-see list.
Good on Its Feet
What I liked most about the Stelvio’s driving personality was its dancer-worthy sense of balance. This is not something I typically feel for SUVs, which can feel oblong, top-heavy, or worse yet, wobbly. While speeding and slowing, crossing lanes, and turning, the Stelvio handled nearly as well as the smaller, award-winning Giulia.
I give the $1,800 Sport Package partial credit for the Stelvio’s excellent body control. What’s more, the Stelvio weighs less than both the Audi Q5 and BMW X3 and comes with both a made-in-Italy carbon-fiber driveshaft and thoughtful weight distribution.
With its subtly sexy good looks, generous interior appointments, and beautifully balanced drive style, it’s worth full consideration in the premium crossover segment. Now, if you want something very good, I’d wait for the 505-horsepower Stelvio Quadrifoglio (Italian for “quatrefoil”) version due out late this spring. That one holds the current lap record for crossovers around Germany’s Nurburgring. But waiting can be so hard, can’t it? If you need something now, the Stelvio Sport will do.
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chris Rovzar at crovzar@bloomberg.net.
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