autoevolution
 

Alfa Romeo Giulia to Be FWD After All?

We are baffled as to why we keep hearing so many rumors about the upcoming Alfa Romeo Giula, only for the more promising ones to be contested by other, more negative rumors which keep surfacing. According to autoedizione.com, it seems that the Giulia (159 replacement) will, in fact, not be rear-wheel drive. Previous indications that the car would send all of its power to the back are apparently incorrect.
Giulia Speculative Rendering 9 photos
Photo: Car Magazine / Radovan Varicak/Motor Forecast
Centro Stile SketchesCentro Stile SketchesCentro Stile SketchesCentro Stile SketchesCentro Stile SketchesGiulia Speculative Rendering Giulia Speculative Rendering Giulia Speculative Rendering
Sadly, this means that Alfa Romeo will fail to challenge BMW’s 3-Series (which cannot be faulted techically, but lacks soul), despite being a brand with a much older sporting pedigree than the Bavarian firm. All-wheel drive will be an option on models higher up in the range, but in reality, very few people will choose the Q4 - which is what it will be called if they stick to the current naming scheme.

While we’re sure Alfa can make the a competent front-wheel drive platform, even the best of these (which it probably won’t be, though), like the Megane RS, while they may be fun, they can never give the driver the same level of control that a rear-wheel drive setup can and does offer. We expect the Giulia to share its platform with the Dodge Dart and Fiat Viaggio, to keep costs down. The car is also expected to use light-weight aluminium (remove the unwanted ‘i’ if you are from the US) to keep its weight down and have good agility through the bends - still no substitute for rear-wheel drive.

This will enable its range of engines to pull (and not push, sadly) the car along faster, while doing so more efficiently. We also expect the car to be powered by various engines from the Fiat-Chrysler group, ranging from small turbocharged units, possibly even the 1.4-liter unit - definitely the 1750 TBI (which may be tuned to as much as 300 hp), to the V6 diesel currently powering the Chrysler 300C and the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Power will be transmitted to the road via either a six speed manual, or Alfa’s TCT gearbox which is basically an automated manual, with seven speeds at the driver’s disposal - it is already available on the Giulietta and it’s not bad, from what we hear. We honestly hope this rumor turns out not to be true, but we must admit that we have all-but completely lost faith in Alfa Romeo, a once great car manufacturer with one of the most evocative badges in the business, which has now been reduced to selling two small front-wheel drive Fiat-based hatchbacks - pity.

If they don’t get the Giula just right, to please the Alfa Romeo fans (and trust us, there are surprisingly still a lot of those), as well as fleet buyers, the brand will probably disappear for good. A FWD car will not please the American buyers Alfa expects to sell at least some of the Giulias to, either.
If you liked the article, please follow us:  Google News icon Google News Youtube Instagram X (Twitter)
 

Would you like AUTOEVOLUTION to send you notifications?

You will only receive our top stories