History is littered with great Alfas, but there were also some shockers imported to Australia
- The best
- Alfa Romeo Giulia 105-series (1962-1978)
- Alfa Romeo Alfasud (1974-1983)
- Short history on the Alfa Romeo 75
- Alfa Romeo 156 (1997-2007)
- Alfa Romeo 156 GTA 2002 Review
- Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio (2017-present)
- Finally, an Alfa that’s stupendously fast and fun, no ifs or buts.
- The worst
- Alfa Romeo 90 (1984-1987)
- Alfa Romeo 33 (1984-1992)
- Alfa Romeo MiTo (2009-2016)
- Alfa Romeo MiTo 2014 Review
- Alfa Romeo Spider (2007-2011)
- Alfa Romeo 4C (2013-2018)
- Alfa Romeo 4C 2014 Review
Alfa Romeo turns 110 next month and over the last century-plus it has produced some classic and some not to memorable models.
Here we document some of the most beautiful, evocative and best-driving Alfas ever to have ventured Down Under, and remember some of the horrors that didn’t quite make the grade here.
The best
Alfa Romeo Giulia 105-series (1962-1978)
Undoubtedly the most influential car Alfa Romeo has ever made, the 105-series Giulia not only redefined what a small family car should be, it practically invented the compact exec class, providing the blueprint for cars like the BMW 3 Series and Audi A4.
When it was launched it was nothing short of an engineering masterclass.
Designed by Bertone, the small Giulia’s beauty was more than skin-deep. Not only was it one of the first mass-produced cars to be tested in a wind tunnel, it incorporated crumple zones too, making it safer than all its rivals.
Perhaps more memorable, for those with gasoline coursing through their veins, Alfa also stumbled on the idea of a super sedan with the Giulia.
Equipped with a light alloy twin-cam four-cylinder engine that was coupled with a five-speed manual transmission – a rarity at the time – the small sedan was renowned for its agile handling and ability to cruise at 170km/h on the highway.
Even faster variants, like the lightweight Giulia TI Super, were to come becoming what’s now recognised as a pre-cursor to the BMW M3.
More surprising for a small sedan created to carry six in comfort was the little Giulia was at home on track as it was on road, becoming one the car-maker’s most successful race cars of all time.
Alfa Romeo Alfasud (1974-1983)
Proof that the Giulia wasn’t a fluke, Alfa struck small car gold yet again in the early 1970s when it poached former Porsche engineer Rudolf Hruska to oversee the development of its next car, the Alfasud.
The result was a fascinating blend of Italian flair with state-of-the-art technology that reeked of expensive engineering.
Adopting front-wheel drive for superior packaging, the ‘Sud featured a small-spinning flat-four to provide a low centre of gravity, while the light but stiff body, in-board disc brakes and an innovative rear suspension design meant the small sedan outclassed cars twice its price on the road.
Shame then that the Alfasud’s legacy is marred by horrific quality issues that saw owners battle horrendous corrosion issues, but even that couldn’t take the shine off a landmark car from a team of engineers at the very top of their game.
Alfa Romeo 75 (1986-1992)
“The best modern Alfa ever made” was carsales’ verdict on the Alfa Romeo 75 back in 2005 and that accolade range true, at least until the 2017 Giulia arrived.
It’s a miracle when you consider, not only is the 75 heavily related to the putrid 90, but it was designed and developed at the very same time when Alfa Romeo was struggling for cash.
Designed in-house by the same man who went on to pen the Fiat Coupe and Fiat Barchetta roadster, it helped that the mid-size 75 mercifully missed-out on its bigger brother’s blocky styling, but it was the way the Alfa sedan drove that enraptured car hacks and owners alike.
Here was a car that finally felt like it had benefitted from a 15-year evolution process that began with the Alfetta it was based on.
Like V12 Ferraris and front-engine Porsches, the 75’s exotic rear-transaxle meant the Alfa sedan had impeccable balance making it an absolute hoot on track and a joy on your favourite country road.
Under the bonnet it didn’t matter if you chose the boggo 2.0-litre four-cylinder, or the bigger more powerful V6s, the 75 was fun and enjoyable whatever your budget.
Of course, it was flawed.
The first 75s had vague gear changes, while build quality inside always felt suspect and the odd electric gremlin crept in, but we declared the 75 as possessing the “soul missing” from so many of today’s cars.
Short history on the Alfa Romeo 75
Alfa Romeo 156 (1997-2007)
The Alfa Romeo 156 marked an incredible return to form for Alfa and the beginning of something of a renaissance for the Italian car-maker.
It helped that straight out the box it was also drop-dead gorgeous and achingly desirable beside a boring Benz or predictable BMW.
Inside, even the cabin was leagues ahead for the car-maker, while under the bonnet, if you avoided the gruff diesels, there wasn’t a bad engine.
Gearbox-wise, the automated manual Selespeed was fun flat-out, but was cursed with jerkiness around town.
Alfa even sold a 156 equipped with an auto that offered users a weird H-pattern gear-shifter to flick through the gears manually. It sounded like a good idea but was terrible in practice with comically-long gear throws and reactions so slow you used it once or twice, at best.
Those who bought it didn’t care – finally there was a credible Italian 3 Series or C-Class rival – until the inevitable gremlins crept in, of course.
Alfa Romeo 156 GTA 2002 Review
Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio (2017-present)
Alfa’s recent history has been full of big buts. No, we’re not talking large fleshy protuberances but the whole host of reasons why, however good its latest model was, in most cases there was good reason not to buy one.
We’re talking about their in-human driving positions, lacklustre dynamics, poor build quality, iffy reliability and, in some cases, a combination of all four.
The Alfa Romeo Giulia introduced in 2017 changed all that. From its billion-dollar architecture it was based on, stylish Italian looks and decent build, here was a car that you finally felt an equal to its rivals.
Then there’s the Giulia Quadrifoglio. Forget equal, here’s an Alfa that has its super sedan competition licked. From its Ferrari-derived twin-turbo V6, to its unflappable chassis, the Giulia Q blends supercar-hustling performance with levels of engagement and fun not matched by its rivals.
On its second outing at our annual ABDC performance, not only did the Giulia super-sedan take top honours, it beat both the BMW M5 and the Mercedes-AMG E 63.
Finally, an Alfa that’s stupendously fast and fun, no ifs or buts.
The worst
Alfa Romeo 90 (1984-1987)
It feels cruel to kick any Alfa from the early 1980s, as pre-Fiat’s purchase the company was nothing short of a basket case trying to keep its head above the water.
That said, even that can’t excuse the 90 from being a poor excuse for an Alfa.
Designed by Bertone, the boxy abomination suggests the famous Italian stylist might have been having a bad day when it was penned, but the 1990s looks were the least of its problems.
Alfa’s Arese factory outside of Milan seemed incapable of screwing them together properly. Rumour has it even Alfa’s own brochure shots were laughable, so bad were the flagship Alfa’s wonky shut lines.
Following in the tyre-tracks of the 33 hatch, the 90 was a rebodied Alfetta – and that was no bad thing. It meant it came with a supercar-like rear transaxle, front double wishbone suspension and a De Dion rear suspension.
There were even rear in-board mounted disc brakes. So at least it drove OK.
Better still, under the bonnet it came equipped with the car-maker’s Busso 2.5-litre V6 – perhaps one of the finest-sounding engines of all time but, from then on, the case for the 90 falls apart. Sometimes literally for anyone unfortunate to have bought one.
Inside, the ergonomics were a disaster zone. Weird too, from its nuts briefcase glovebox, in-human driving position, unreadable linear speed and rev counters – nothing made sense.
By far the best/worst feature of the 90 has to be its ceiling-mounted electric window switch that lived bizarrely behind the interior mirror.
Raise or lower a window and the driver of any 90 would unwittingly give the occupants of the car behind the finger.
Throw in its psychotic electrical glitches, a hydraulic front spoiler that had a mind of its own and you had to be borderline certifiable to choose one over a BMW 5 Series, or come to think of it any other sedan available at the time.
Alfa Romeo 33 (1984-1992)
The weight of anticipation weighed heavily on Alfa back in 1983. At nine years old, the once great Alfasud was well past its sell-by date but still held great appeal to enthusiasts. It’s replacement, they hoped, would be yet another masterstroke.
It wasn’t. Barely more than a rebodied Alfasud, the ‘new’ 33 was one huge backward step.
From its unappealing boxy looks, the heavier hatch managed to alienate those to still buying the ancient Alfasud by being worse to drive.
If that wasn’t bad enough, the 33’s quality levels somehow remained buried in the 1970s and the electrics were erratic on a good day and downright demented on a bad.
At least the sweet flat-four from the ‘Sud carried over and was as entertaining as ever, but its heavy steering and dreadful driving position was enough to send most buyers scurrying off to other car-makers, including some diehard Alfitsi.
Alfa Romeo MiTo (2009-2016)
On paper the Alfa Romeo MiTo was an irresistible package – an affordable Italian take on BMW’s MINI and one that would combine a free-spinning engine and agile handling with drop-dead gorgeous looks. Some of us even dared to dream that Alfa was on the eve of reincarnating the Alfasud.
Sadly, the reality was an automotive horror when it arrived Down Under as a butt-ugly, boss-eyed boring hatch based on outdated Fiat Punto underpinnings.
The half-hearted approach to its design seemed to translate to the way it drove and rode. Quite frankly, it was a mess from the off.
Ruining any ounce of enjoyment was Alfa’s three-setting ‘DNA’ switch that adjusted the throttle response and steering heft.
It was so poor on launch that the settings ranged from the odd feeling you’d left the handbrake on to driving high on amphetamines.
The MiTo did get better during its life, but never came close to measuring up to rivals like the MINI for looks, dynamics or general appeal. Reincarnated Alfasud? Fuggedaboutit.
Alfa Romeo MiTo 2014 Review
Alfa Romeo Spider (2007-2011)
You can’t blame Alfa for wanting to cash-in on its glamourous Graduate movie fame by rebooting its Spider for 2007.
The result, admittedly, was a handsome Pininfarina-penned beast but in its creation Alfa Romeo had completely forgotten an essential ingredient.
Tipping the scales at a very portly 1700kg, the Spider was neither light nor agile and, crucially, wasn’t fun to drive either.
Now, being a boulevard cruiser might have been OK in a market like the US, but back in markets like Europe and Australia it just didn’t wash alongside cars like the Porsche Boxster and Mercedes SLK.
At least the sonorous sound its V6 engine made clawed back some points, but overall the Spider was a huge opportunity missed.
Alfa Romeo 4C (2013-2018)
Rumoured to have been hastily created to cover for the heavily-delayed Giulia sedan, the Alfa Romeo 4C Coupe instantly became one of the most eagerly awaited sports cars of all time as its tech details started to leak out.
Heralded as the return of the small, lightweight, affordable sports car from Alfa, the little 4C was stunning in the metal. It was nothing short of a shrunken supercar and its engineers’ single-bloody-minded determination to achieve a sub-1000kg kerb weight was awe-inspiring.
From its full carbon-fibre tub chassis, to its trick twin-clutch transmission, it felt like the little 4C had been developed with no expense spared. We were sure it would teach Porsche a few tricks.
Then we drove it and realised it was a nothing short of a dynamic disaster on anything other than a perfectly smooth road.
A typical Australian country road, for example, brought out the worst in the 4C. Instead of flowing it fought every surface bump and crease while its unassisted steering hunted out ruts and cambers to follow.
That trick tranny? In reality it was slow and couldn’t overcome a laggy turbo-four, whose intrusive noise could make your head ache.
Dare to push on and there was a fine line between big oversteer and plough understeer that meant you had to bring your A-game.
The 4C Spider was better, with a fractionally calmer chassis, but its six-figure price tag meant the similarly priced Boxster and Cayman were still streets ahead dynamically and far better cars, period.
Alfa Romeo 4C 2014 Review
Keyword: 110 years of Alfa Romeo: The best and the worst