What it’s like to drive the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio

Alfa Romeo doesn’t think so. The Italian maker with a grand history, which includes giving Enzo Ferrari his start, calls the Stelvio Quadrifoglio an SUV. Albeit one with a Nürburgring lap record under its belt. I beg to differ. A tall station wagon, perhaps. Maybe a hearse, but certainly not an SUV.

Need evidence? Consider what wasn’t part of the presentation that Alfa gave us ahead of the drive. There was no mention of ground clearance, departure or approach angles, dirt traction, snow traction, not even cargo or passenger room. Nothing even remotely approaching an SUV spec. It’s a tall Giulia hatchback. A race jockey wearing elevator shoes.

And a damn fine jockey at that. The motor is all aluminum with 2,900-psi direct injectors and variable timing. All told, the two single-scroll turbochargers spin up and help spit out 505 hp at 6,500 rpm and 443 lb-ft of torque between 2,500 and 5,500 rpm. ZF’s tried-and-true eight-speed automatic takes that power, delivers it to an active transfer case to that goes on to distribute power to the front and rear axles. The engineers designed the Quadrifoglio to be inherently rear-wheel drive, but up to 60 percent of available power can end up at the front axle. The rear differential is both limited-slip and torque-vectoring, meaning that 75 percent of all the power can go to a single rear wheel.

Handling prowess, given the COTA lapping exercise, is probably no surprise. Aside from a supercar-quick 12.0:1 steering ratio, the Stelvio makes use of a double-wishbone suspension up front and fully independent multilink in back. There are adjustable shocks and Pirelli P Zero summer tires to top the performance handling cake.  Brakes? Brembos, of course. Six-pot calipers in front, four in back. And they lock down on 15.4-inch front, 14.2-inch rear carbon-ceramic rotors, assuming you checked that $8,000 optional item box.

Okay, there’s an inkling of SUV here with the Stelvio’s all-wheel-drive system. The Giulia Quadrifoglio is rear-wheel drive. Ironic, in a way, because the Stelvio’s system is quite similar to the AWD system available on the Giulia model, just not the Quadrifoglio. By the way, that accounts for most of the 477-pound weight difference between these two Italian hot rods.

Coupled with the four-setting drive-mode selector, called Alfa DNA Pro, and the adjustable shocks, if one were to put all-terrain tires on this product, that person could theoretically not get stuck immediately in an off-road situation. We’re guessing that would require new wheels, too, however, as I do not know of many SUVs wearing 20-inch wheels that are 9 inches wide in front, 10 in back. The P Zeros that wraparound said wheels are 255/45R-20 and 285/40R-20, respectively.

Those four drive modes: advanced efficiency, which ensures low-rpm gear shifts, a slower throttle and use of the powertrain’s available cylinder deactivation; normal, the default setting upon start-up; dynamic, which loosens up stability control and speeds up throttle; and race — yes, race — which turns stability control off and holds on to the lowest gear possible.  

That last setting really puts an exclamation mark on the Stelvio Quadrifoglio. It transports you to an alternative universe where car nerds rule the world. And the Italians cater to our every need. The Quadrifoglio takes the already swoopy shape of the Stelvio and adds aggression and a sense of immediacy. That carries on inside with stitched leather and carbon-fiber trim appointments. Not just your eyes, but all senses are attended to in the Quadrifoglio. Depsite the turbocharging, the exhaust note sounds alive and snarly. With each shift, a momentary exhaust overrun gives a satisfyingly explosive pop-pop.

Even at slow speed, your hands stay attentive on the wheel, partially due to a fast-reacting rack, but also because there are zero dead spots. The motions of the body while traveling over pavement give you a sense of constant urgency — as if the fuel in the tank was replaced with espresso. It’s not harsh, but hurried, rewarding when chucked through a set of switchbacks, but lacks tranquility when traffic picks up and average speed comes down.

What you have here is an $81,590 bobsled set at the top of the run. It seats five, but hopefully no one minds snuggling. The agility of the Quadrifoglio is what stands out, not its utility. And a quick review of some of the options available shows how one-directional this vehicle is. The aforementioned carbon-ceramic brakes, a $3,500 carbon-fiber Sparco driver’s seat, $2,200 for Competizione Rosso paint.

The Stelvio Quadrifoglio is not an SUV, but a slightly more expensive Giulia with all-wheel drive and bit of cargo space. It’s for someone that wants a track car, but not strictly a car. A machine with neutral balance, serious hardware and enough Italian flare to stoke all your senses.

Robin Warner


– Robin Warner is Editorial Manager at Autoweek. He once tried and failed to become a professional race car driver, but succeeded in learning about debt management and having a story to tell. A former engineer, Warner loves cars for their technology and capability.

See more by this author»