Alfa Romeo Giulia Veloce- A bold stand in a class dominated by calculated Germans #blogpost

When a good friend of mine asked me if I could take care of a Giulia Veloce for a few hours- I happily obliged. After only four hours and about 200kms driven, this column might as well read as a memoir of an addict. I already had a chance to ride along in a Giulia Quadrifolgio Verde, and I loved that car; however, I was worried about long-term reliability, and it just didn’t make that much sense in the city, well thank you God for making the Veloce.

Sensibility and Alfa Romeo- two words you rarely see together. Alfa is one of the most infamous automotive brands, we all know the jokes, don’t we? However, they have been hitting the bullseye with every single car since introducing the Giulia. They have created a fun and a surprisingly reasonable alternative to the Germans. While of course, you are still taking a gamble buying an Italian saloon over a C-Class or 3 series, it’s a gamble worth taking.

Alright, now I want you, readers, to kick back in a comfortable chair, get a cup of Joe and let me tell you a story about the best day of 2018 yet. On Wednesday I noticed that my friend (@carburator_) picked up a press Jeep Trackhawk to drive around for a few days and I asked whether there was a possibility of us catching up so I could see the car in person and maybe ride shotgun in possibly the craziest machine you can buy today. Maciek, being the kind person he is, said that he would let me know in the evening. About an hour later he asked if there was any chance I was free until midday the next day. Curiously, I responded that it depended on the offer he was about to give me- in retrospect, I wasn’t emotionally ready for his offer. He then proceeded to ask me If I could take care of a press Alfa Romeo Giulia Veloce and take it back to the dealer by midday, Thursday. My heart rate immediately jumped up to that of a runner finishing his second marathon of the day, and between screaming and jumping, I somehow managed to write “Of course, I’d love to.”

At about 9:45 PM, with a roar of a 700hp, supercharged V8 he arrived to pick my dad and me up so we could have a taste of the Jeep and go pick up the Alfa. After doing a few pulls and driving under the speed limit we arrived, for me to discover the Giulia in the most astounding specification I’ve seen on one of these.

The car is finished in Misano Blue, a 1000 euros option, which is worth every, single penny. It is the single most beautiful color I’ve seen on a car. It also has the 19 inch, light wheels that you can also find on the QV, and contrasting yellow brake calipers.

It’s powered by the 2.0T engine, making 280hp, which are transferred to all four wheels through an 8 speed ZF gearbox.

I drove the car for about 30 minutes on the way back home and almost immediately proceeded to fall head over heels for the car. I drove it home in “Normal” mode, it was quiet, comfortable and the fuel consumption was about 8.0l/100km, which isn’t all that bad. Unlike my dad, I really enjoyed the sports seats, they offer great support while still being comfortable and not claustrophobic. I was also positively surprised by the infotainment system- it is very well done. It’s fast, intuitive and well designed. I also like the option of connecting your iPhone to Apple Car Play, it works seamlessly. What I wasn’t impressed by at all was the Harmann audio package, it’s really not good at all, definitely not worth the premium. The sound is way too low for my liking, I don’t recommend it.

I couldn’t sleep at night, and when I briefly fell asleep I dreamed about driving the Giulia with a broad smile on my face, it was a prophetic dream.

I woke up at 7:30, took a quick shower, woke up my sister and my girlfriend and I took them for a short drive around the block and I slowly started to introduce myself to the Dynamic mode to which I got addicted and never turned it off. After the short ride around the block, we grabbed a bite to eat and I cleaned and topped off the Giulia so the Misano Blue could really shine. Fortunately, both my sister and my girlfriend loved the car almost as much as I did, so they are still my family after all. Unfortunately, my (ex)mother wasn’t that fond of that gorgeous blue, so we aren’t on good terms.

After that I drove the car nonstop for almost two hours, giving a few of my closest friends ride-alongs and taking pictures of the Veloce in a few different locations all around Warsaw. I drove it through the city center and I’d lie if I said I didn’t enjoy all the jealous looks thrown at myself, the car attracted attention wherever it was.

One thing about the car I loved the most is definitely the ZF gearbox and the paddles. The box is extremely responsive and the paddles are a joy to use- they click when you shift, and stay in place when you turn the wheel- JUST LIKE THEY SHOULD. They are also helpful when you want to make a lot of noise with downshifts, in a tunnel, which I totally didn’t do… twice.

The suspension is also phenomenal, it has two settings- comfort or slightly stiffer than comfort and both are very good, I found myself leaning more towards comfort, but that’s mostly because of the quality of polish roads. The car doesn’t “float,” but it muffles the bumps very well making it very accommodating for longer journeys.

The interior of the Giulia is very well thought out, with a decent amount of storage space and enough space to comfortably accommodate four adults. As I’ve already mentioned, I liked the sports seats, but neither my girlfriend or my dad did, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. I did not enjoy the rear visibility with the headrests up, it’s not very good; however, the Giulia does have a High Definition rear camera.

To nitpick some more, the 19-inch rims with low profile tires, as beautiful as they are, scary to use around town, I backed out of many parking spaces out of fear of curbing them. If you are expecting a Quadrifoglio Verde level of exhaust noise, you won’t get it, the Veloce is way quieter, but turning the car into dynamic mode definitely helps. I also found the accelerator to be moved a bit too far to the right, but that’s a personal issue.

Another issue is the price. The Giulia I drove is just a hair over 60.000 euros which is comparable to a very well specced BMW 330i xDrive, or a well specced BMW 340i. While I would buy the Giulia over any modern BMW, I believe the price might be a bit too high for potential buyers. BMW is one of the best in the business with an almost immaculate record, Alfa simply doesn’t have that kind of reputation just yet.

To finish this article on a high note, I must admit that I’m crossing my fingers for Alfa, I believe their cars genuinely are a great alternative to the dull, German vehicles that flood the European and American market. The Giulia is a car that doesn’t encourage you to lose your license, it just quietly pokes you from time to ask if you could drive a little faster. It’s predictable, easy to control, fun and fantastically satisfying to drive. If someone gave me 60.000 euros to buy a daily, I’d settle on the Veloce, and I would pay an additional thousand for that blue…

Szymek Ślusarczyk