Alfa Romeo Giulia 2.0T Veloce. Rosso Competizione.
Alfa’s Romeo’s sports coupe is as functionally luxurious as its name suggests. Throughout the year I’ve had predominantly Mercedes and BMWs come through my garage, and the Italian model was a welcome change up over the holiday period.
The month that I spent behind the wheel was the longest time I’ve had a car to test, and it was lovely getting to know such a unique automobile over a time of the year that is catered towards cruising the coastal roads of Cape Town.
The Giulia is an eye-catching car, with a sleek silhouette, exaggerated by the classic Italian competition red colourway. It’s also noticeable because one very rarely sees an Alfa on the road that is not a hatchback.
I’m not sure how many Giulia’s have been seen with a baby-seat fastened firmly to the back seat, but I’d like to think it made an already unique car just a bit more interesting to the confused observer.
The interior of the car is right up my alley; simple but quality leather finishes, an
unconfusing centre console, and a sleek infotainment system. Where the exterior is a bit edgier, the cockpit of the car oozes class.
The Veloce is one of two iterations, the other being the QV, a 2.9l turbocharged V6 version of the Giulia. As I’ve said many times before, I’m not at a stage in my life where performance is the priority, but the 2.0l 4-cylinder on the Veloce lacked for nothing in terms of punch, pushing out 206kW and 400Nm.
Most notable for me was the pull when accelerating, and the ease with which the car handled corners. Sitting low to the ground, with a chassis tuned to a weight distribution of 50/50, the Giulia gave such confidence when cornering and then pulled away beautifully when back on the straights.
Driving the Veloce was the first time I’ve really taken note of a car made not by the big three German manufacturers, which offered a similar driving experience. To drive Alfa’s unique sports car was to drive a car that left one with no complaints, yet still managed to stand out.
Alfa’s Giulia Veloce is a rare find in an arguably saturated market, and is up there with the coolest cars I’ve had the luxury of driving.
For pricing and specs visit CAR Magazine: https://www.carmag.co.za/news/new-
models/updated-alfa-romeo-giulia-stelvio-sa-pricing/
