Alfa Romeo Giulietta - Thoughts?

racer1

Ye they are lovely. I took one for a text drive and have to say i was impressed by the car and the 1.6 diesel engine in the car i took.. The interior is nice but as others have said let down by one or two cheap bits.

-Chris-

So, I went to have a look at the Giulietta today. I have to say it's a gorgeous looking car. I don't know if I'd consider it "a class above" the Focus or Golf, more "a class apart". I don't know if I'd compare it to a Focus is I was in that market, it'd either want a Giulietta or I'd want a family car (if you know what I mean).

From the front it looks nowhere near as bulbous as the photos would suggest. It's actually quite a sleek look. It doesn't look as big as a Golf at all (although it is), which is a credit to the design.




The rear is lovely to look at. The swoopy roofline does seem to steal some headroom from the rear seats and luggage space.
Really, if you saw this in a car park parked next to a Golf or Focus you wouldn't consider them to be in the same class at all. It would stand up well against the 1 Series and A3 for image (probably controversial, but my opinion ).




I'm not as sure about the interior. The plastics on the door and around the centre cowl are nice, but the cowl itself seems very cheap and plasticy. The same with the silver/grey plastic above the glove box and around the gearstick. The aircon controls are very nicely designed.



I didn't get a chance to drive it unfortunately.

Bodhan

Great pictures Chris, I like it in black too. Your right about some cheap plastics on the stuff you don't touch normally, but that's common enough in a lot of new cars.
Looking at the pictures I can't wait to get my hands on it

BTW Chris good review, you should write one for smokerspack

-Chris-

Bodhan wrote: »

BTW Chris good review, you should write one for smokerspack

Lend me your press car for a few days and I'll see what I can do... :D

RobertM

Great pics Chris, although black is a killer to keep clean

I still think that the steering wheel is a tad too big.

coolbeans

I'm not sold on the frontal looks at all. You could park a bus between the headlights and the grill. This works well on the smaller, prettier MiTo but not on the Giulietta. It just doesn't translate so successfully to the larger Giulietta. It kinda reminds me of the relationship b/w the Pug 206 and 307. The (then) new family face worked well on the pretty 206 but looked gawky and out of proportion on the 307. I'm not saying the Alfa is ugly like the 307 but I think the proportions are wrong up front despite the great detailing. That said, I thought the 145 Cloverleaf was a great looker and not too many agreed with me.

Idleater

-Chris- wrote: »

"a class apart"

I think that is (or should be) alfa's mission. I agree completely with your comments re focus and family car, and that is the unfortunate thing for alfa too good in one way and not enough in another.

If you happen to like/buy into that idea there is not much anyone can do or say to change that, but like already said, in this country that ends up being quite a small percentile.

Tea 1000

nereid wrote: »

I think that is (or should be) alfa's mission. I agree completely with your comments re focus and family car, and that is the unfortunate thing for alfa too good in one way and not enough in another.

If you happen to like/buy into that idea there is not much anyone can do or say to change that, but like already said, in this country that ends up being quite a small percentile.

Why would it not be considered a direct A3/1-Series rival though?

-Chris-

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Why would it not be considered a direct A3/1-Series rival though?

It should be, because Fiat should be competing with VW & Ford, but for some reason it's not. I think there are a multitude of reasons why.

Leonard Hofstadter

Well Alfa is a premium marque, so it makes sense to compare it to a 1 series or an A3.

It is leagues ahead of either car(IMO), though I do agree some of the plastics look a bit shall we say Italian;).

Idleater

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Why would it not be considered a direct A3/1-Series rival though?

It should be, because it is in that segment (c) of car, but my point is more that because of their designs they push the style boundaries beyond what most people buying c segment cars want their cars to do.

Besides, -Chris- drew comparisons with the Focus and golf, which are also in competition with the A3/1series, but at lower price points with much more conservative styling.

All the different cars mentioned here have varients of differing performance (eg, poverty spec 1.4p/1.6d/1.9d all the way to 2.5p and super/turbo chargers thrown in) so there are broad brush strokes being used here by me when using the terms "conservative" designs and styling.

-Chris-

nereid wrote: »

Besides, -Chris- drew comparisons with the Focus and golf, which are also in competition with the A3/1series, but at lower price points with much more conservative styling.

Actually, Paddy Comyn (the professional motoring journalist) compared it to the Focus & Golf...

CompleteCar.ie wrote: »

If you are a petrol head you always find yourself rooting for Alfa Romeo anyway, so the prospect of them making a mainstream rival to the Ford Focus and Volkswagen Golf, massive sellers in Ireland has certainly sparked the interest of lots of fans.

...

I'd certainly have this over most Ford Focus, VW Golfs and Opel Astras because it is interesting, which is something that you can't really say about the others.

?Cee?view

r1_2010 wrote: »

Especially when modern cars sold with a 2 year warranty are required to be serviced by a main dealer..... just adds to the cost.

They don't have to be serviced by a main dealer though they do have to have manufacturer approved parts used within the warranty period.

Bodhan

I know the thread is a bit old but here's a video I made of the new Alfa, I love it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6qspYi7mj8

Can't figure out how to embed the video here, sorry

Eoin

I've embedded that video for you.

If a link to a youtube video is this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6qspYi7mj8

then your code is:
[noparse]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6qspYi7mj8

[/noparse]

coffeenuts

Bodhan wrote: »

I know the thread is a bit old but here's a video I made of the new Alfa, I love it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z6qspYi7mj8

Can't figure out how to embed the video here, sorry

The Top Gear presenters are quivering in their boots.

Dont give up the day job.

Love most Alfa's but just not feeling this one. Looks too much like the Astra.

Eoin

I don't think pictures do it (or the MiTo, for that matter) justice. They look far better in real life.

coffeenuts

eoin wrote: »

I don't think pictures do it (or the MiTo, for that matter) justice. They look far better in real life.

Saw one in the flesh in Holland recently. Unfortunately it didnt change my opinion, if anything cemented it.

Disappointing effort from Alfa imo.

Maybe its that I expect more.

155, GT, 159, 8C - these are for me what Alfas are about.

Bodhan

coffeenuts wrote: »

Saw one in the flesh in Holland recently. Unfortunately it didnt change my opinion, if anything cemented it.

Disappointing effort from Alfa imo.

Maybe its that I expect more.

155, GT, 159, 8C - these are for me what Alfas are about.

It doesn't look like an astra, it looks like a Fiat in a designer suit. It's a pretty car.
Alfa are hoping to sell some of these cars, that's why it's safer, bigger and more tame than most of your list. If Alfa keep making cool looking cars like the GT and the 8C it will go out of business.
The Giulietta has all the right ingredients to sell in numbers apart from the badge. Nobody trusts an Alfa except Alfa owners.

Cheers Eoin, I couldn't work out the embedding!

Idleater

A cloverleaf version passed me last Saturday. That was nice!