Geneva show: Alfa gives Giulietta some 4C panache

ALFA Romeo has transplanted the turbo-charged aluminium engine from its mid-engined 4C coupe into the updated front-drive Giulietta Quadrifoglio Verde hot hatch that will premiere at next week’s Geneva motor show and arrive in Australia by September.

The 1750cc direct-injection turbo that serves as the beating heart of Alfa’s sexy new flagship mid-engined coupe shares its capacity with the engine from the outgoing Giulietta QV, but has more power and less weight.

Outputs are 179kW of power (up from 173kW) at 6000rpm, and 340Nm of torque (unchanged, but available across more of the rev band). The old QV’s six-speed manual gearbox has been ousted in favour of the 4C’s TCT six-speed twin dry-clutch automatic with paddle-shifters.

Beyond the weight-saving use of aluminium in the block, the new engine gets dual continuous variable valve timing and Alfa’s ‘scavenging control system’ that monitors fuel metering and other various engine parameters to iron out turbo lag.

As ever, the Alfa DNA switch changes the driving ‘mode’ between Comfort, Performance, Safety and Efficiency. Throttle response and transmission shift times are tweaked accordingly.

Thanks to the new (Euro 6) engine and the slicker TCT, the zero to 100km/h sprint time for the Italian Stallion is 6.6 seconds, down two-tenths, and top speed is 240km/h.

The exterior of the revised four-leaf-clover bearing QV now includes glossy black mirror fairings, grille, door handles and fog light frames. The distinctive 17-or 18-inch alloy wheels cover the four-piston Brembo brakes with 320mm discs.

Inside the cabin are new sports seats with leather and Alcantara trim, revised QV instruments, aluminium pedals, bespoke stitching and a black roof lining – albeit no pictures thereof. There is also a 6.5-inch screen with sat-nav.

In addition, Alfa will also release 500 special Launch Edition models with special carbon spoilers and mirror fairings, new side skirts, unique dark grey 18-inch alloys and distinctive red or grey paint-jobs. A small number will come to Australia in the fourth-quarter of 2014.

Meantime, Alfa has also upgraded the smaller MiTo QV, which will be re-introduced to Australia around the middle of this year. It sport an updated 127kW/250Nm 1.4-litre MultiAir turbo engine with the TCT dual-clutch automatic, cutting the 0-100km/h sprint time by 0.2s to 7.3s.

It also substantially cuts fuel use thanks to a better valve management system, the new TCT and latest idle-stop system. Alfa claims combined-cycle fuel consumption of 5.4L/100km (down 10 per cent)and emissions of 124g/km (down 11 per cent).

A subtle new look and an increase in standard equipment also feature, including a new 5.0-inch touch-screen with navigation. Enthusiasts can fit Sabelt racing seats with carbon-fibre casing.