Those who bought the Alfa Romeo Giulietta in South Africa have waited an extraordinary long time for a new version – the Squadra Corse being a glimmer of hope although limited production didn’t give dealerships much to cheer about.
A number of simple changes are then probably not what Alfa fans had in mind. The new 2016 Alfa Romeo Giulietta evidently sits in the soon-to-be-launched Giulia’s shadow.
A new front bumper, new tailpipes, a redecorated badge and different alloys is the very minimum you would expect. Of slightly more significance are the three trim levels: Giulietta, Giulietta Super and Giulietta Veloce.
The base comes with black and grey fabric seats, leather steering wheel and gloss black trim with the Super adding new Alfa Romeo trademark grey and black fabric “cannelloni” seats. Leather seats are available on both trim levels as optional.
As the name suggests, things get mildly exciting in the Giulietta Veloce with sports bumpers with Alfa Red profiles, new carbon look headlights, glossy anthracite accents on the mirrors, door handles and on the grille and fog light surrounds. Alcantara, red stitching and carbon fibre details try and uplift a cabin architecture is feeling retro, in a bad way.
Rather than autonomous systems, big touchscreens and crash avoidance systems, Alfa is sticking doggedly to the belief that drivers want to monitor the performance of their car through a number of gauges and statistics, – some of which can be delivered to your smartphone for later analysis…. That’s hardly going to be the way to wrestle customers away from Golf GTi who have consistently proven that the new hot hatch needs to possess a broader range of talents.
Years on and the engines still hold their own, testament to how Fiat excelled with MultiAir design. Our pick was the middle 1.4T spec with 125kW and 230Nm but you can go on either side of the price with the 88kW 206Nm 1.4 turbo or the 173kW 340Nm 1750 TCT version.
Pricing information
Giulietta 1.4 Turbo – R 319,900.00
Giulietta Super 1.4 Turbo – R 362,900.00
Giulietta Super 1.4 Turbo TCT – R 412,900.00
Giulietta Veloce 1750 Turbo TCT – R 479,900.00
The new Alfa Romeo Giulietta launches in South Africa in early October 2016 and is sure to build excitement around the Alfa Romeo brand once again.
