Wednesday 2nd December 2009

Official Pic: New Alfa Romeo Giulietta

147 replacement revives a classic Alfa name

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The new Alfa could be called Giulietta

This is the first official picture of the Alfa Romeo Giulietta, an all-new replacement for the ageing 147 hatchback, due for launch in Italy next March.

Alfa is aiming its new model squarely at the heart of VW Golf territory, and bosses hope to make the new five-door hatch the best-selling car in Alfa's history, with ambitions of upwards of 100,000 sales a year.

The new Alfa Giulietta takes its design cues both from the outgoing 147, with its coupe-like roofline and hidden rear doorhandles, and from the Mito supermini, with the large round headlights and prominent shield-shaped grille.

The car looks long and low, but its length (130mm longer than a Golf) is deceptive - it's actually 50mm taller than the old 147. 16in, 17in, or 18in wheels will be available with a choice of alloy wheel designs that includes the classic Alfa 'telephone dial'.

Under the skin are MacPherson struts up front, with a multi-link set-up at the back, while the engines will all be turbocharged four-cylinder efforts (both petrol and diesel), most of which will use Fiat's Multiair electro-hydraulic valve technology. For now, the top engine is a 170bhp turbodiesel, but a hot 230bhp Cloverleaf version is due towards the end of 2010.

As for the name, the new car was originally going to be called the Alfa Romeo Milano, but Milanese workers unhappy about Alfa moving its headquarters from Milan to Turin have made that name politically sensitive in Italy - hence the revival of the Giulietta moniker.

The new Giulietta is currently pencilled in for a UK launch next summer at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.

[Beefmeister]

According to Autocar it's confirmed as Giulietta...

And by gum, it's a lovely looking thing.

Very impressive in the metal, certainly makes the Focus, Astra, Mazda3 etc all look very dull indeed.

I just hope it has some decent dynamics...

[irishpete]

Beefmeister said:

And by gum, it's a lovely looking thing.

Are you blind? Looks like it's cross-eyed.

This is another awful front end from Alfa. What possessed them to swerve away from the fantastic and very mean looking front ends of the 159/Brera to this myopic euro/asian blandness is beyond me.

That idiot Frank Stephenson who started this by trying to graft the 8C to a Punto has a lot to answer for. I love Alfas and currently have an old GTV which looks fantastic from the front with the Alfa grill between the 4 lights in the bonnet.

Imagine the Mito and this, with the front end styles of the 159/Brera, three lights either side of the grill - that would look awesome.

[LuS1fer]

I love Alfas so clicked this link preparing to go "Wow" as I love the 147.

Oh dear.....

Sort of Panamera-ish - a very very bad thing.

Edited by LuS1fer on Wednesday 2nd December 12:20

[Neomagic]

I think it looks awesome! And I am not blind....

[LHD]

Hmmm...

Not exactly a looker IMO.

Mind you, i've gone off the Mito too now, it looks quite clumsy in the metal.

[Raja]

if the dynamics work and we see a 3.2 v6 that can get the power down i'd consider buy one. looks far more sophisticated than the focus/golf alternatives.

[telecat]

Fish Face. Another bloater from Alfa.

[r11co]

irishpete said:

That idiot Frank Stephenson who started this by trying to graft the 8C to a Punto has a lot to answer for.

The man is obsessed with retro, but then he's drunk on the power of his own judgement after the success of the new Mini.

I was surprised that, under his guidance, the new McLaren didn't come out with the front end from a '60s Can-Am racer.....

[jamieboy]

I like the look of it, seems nicer than the spy shots we had before with a bit more structure to it.

The 230bhp one sounds like it could be fun, too.

Don't agree about putting the 159/Brera lights on the smaller cars, I think the proportions of the front are all wrong for that design to work. The MiTo is a lot better in real life than in pictures, and I guess the Giulietta (if that's what they call it) will be too - and given that in pictures it isn't as challenging as the MiTo was, I reckon it'll look fine.

Dodgy wheels on that one, though.

edit- also, I think they should have given it proper rear door-handles. The hidden ones were a nice idea ten years ago, but even Honda are doing it now.

Edited by jamieboy on Wednesday 2nd December 12:35

[Agoogy]

Its not as nice as a 147 is it...

horrible surface treatment down the sides, that swage line...urgh!

I agree the current 159/Brera aesthetic set Alfa apart...now....well welcome to uglyu party...
ruinous LEDs too.... have these lighting designers have no imagination?

[-Z-]

Does Porsche do Alfa's designing now?

This seems to be Alfa's Cayenne. You can't just stretch a supercar's face to suit whatever body style you want!

[Pothole]

nasty.

[kambites]

I don't think it's fair to call it ugly, but it's certainly not their finest hour. Not really a fan of the new front end treatment they seem to be going for, it looks a bit... odd.

[Pooh]

I quite like it, it will probably look better in the metal and I could be tempted by one of these if it does.

[Pothole]

do you think whoever wrote that copy looked at the picture at all: "large round headlights"......

[LuS1fer]

jamieboy said:

The MiTo is a lot better in real life than in pictures, and I guess the Giulietta (if that's what they call it) will be too - and given that in pictures it isn't as challenging as the MiTo was, I reckon it'll look fine.

It's an odd car, the MiTo. I saw the photos and hated it. I saw a few on the road and they looked big and fat. then I saw one in a shopping centre in red with what looked to be an inviting interior and stood close, it looked quite good. Then I saw one on the road again and still didn't like it. Odd.

Not sue why people think the Punto nose (not the proposed facelift) looks bad - there was one in the car park next to a Maserati 3200GT, both nose out, and they both looked really good.

[adycav]

Not as attractive as some of Alfa's other efforts.

They've somehow managed to make the wheels look too big and the car to look underwheeled, all at the same time.

At least there's talk of a decent powered version.

[mk1chopper]

Dont like the front end styling, but the rest of it looks good.

[Pooh]

It looks better in these pics IMO.

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/alfa-romeo-giuli...

[courtster]

All confirmed as Giulietta now.. The Fiat press release confirms and the images on the site have Giulietta on the number plates.

http://www.alfaromeopress.com/index.php?lng=2&...