RISE UP AND BE COUNTED
Does Alfa Romeo’s first SUV live up to the brand’s sporty heritage? Matt Allan puts it to the test
“Despite its hot hatch-shaming pace the Stelvio still returns 58.9mpg”
Every body has to be building an SUV now. Even brands that have specialised for yearsin sleek, sportingsaloons. Hence we have the Jaguar F-Pace, the Maserati Lev ante and even the likes of Lamborghinibuilding the Urus. And, of course, this— the Alfa Romeo Stelvio.
There’s no doubting that it’s an Alfa. The corporate face is there—albeitin a deeper morebulbous fashion. The restof the exterior follows Alfa’s curvy design language in an inoffensive but not particularly inspiring way. The curse of SUV proportions meanit’s no Giu li a but the curves area nice alternative to a lot of sharply-shaped rivals.
Theinterior is more con-vincing, there’ s nothing overlyfussy, just a straight forward sensible layout where everythingfalls to hand as you’ d like it to. The dark, grained wood on the dash is nicely done and flows neat-ly withrest of the dash. Circular air vents, a twin-bump instrument binnacle and steering wheel-mount-eds ta rt button are other nice touches that don’t verge into the showy and elsewhere it looks and feels good. I’m not convinced, however, that it’s quite a match for the likes of the Audi Q5 and Volvo XC60.
It is at least a properly usablesized SUV. There’ s good space all round for driver and three passengers and as apractical family machine there’ s a healthy if not spectacular 525- litre boot.
The biggest letdown in the cabinis the lack of refinement for such a supposedly premium vehicle. Wind and road noise are fairly obvious atthe national speed limit and more so than I’ d expect in a £ 40,000 car.
Also contributing to the noise is the engine. The 2.2- litre diesel sounds gruff even under fairly light loads. It settles down reasonably at cruisebut under any acceleration you’re reminded that it’s an oil- burner.
Inits favour,the four-cyl-inde r engine is remarkably potent. Working through a smootheight-speed auto gearbox its 207bhp and 347lb ft of torque deliver 62mph in 6.6 secondsand buckets of shove whenever required. And despite its hot hatch-shaming pace the Stelvio still returns 58.9mpg.
The steering and ride feel set up to remind you that this is an Alfa — a brand renowned for its sporting heritage. A Stelvio Quadrifoglio has just blasted round the N ur bur grin gina record- breaking seven minutes 51 seconds in an effort to prove that this is still a sporting Alfa.
Our test car might have been equipped with the humble 2.2 diesel rather the QF’S 503 bhp 2.9- litre petrol but evenin this model the steering is remarkably sharp and quick. Aidedby a relatively light kerbweight this makes for an engaging drive where you can chuck the Stelvio around with aplomb lacking from some others in the class.
The ride, too, is definitely at the firm, sporty end of the spectrum. This aids the sporty drive but at the expense of comfort. It might feel composed on the smooth autostrada of Italy but on the pockmarked B1224 just outside Weatherby it never feels settled.
A four-wheel-drive diesel Stelvio like our test car start sat £38,450 and comes with the sort of kit you’ d expect for that money: dual-zone climate ,8.8- inch DAB touch screen with navigation, auto lights and wipers, parking sensors, power tailgate, AEB, lane departure warning andprojector halogen head lamps. An extra £7,000 of options chuck sin thelikes of poweradjust able seats, 19- inch alloys, rear camera, auto high beam, keyless go and even a cooled central armrest.
The St elvio has got the badge, the looks and the kit tocut it inthis sector and it’s a fun drive, too, thanks to plenty of shove and lively handling. Only its harsh ride and below- par refinement let it downin the face of some fierce rivals.