[thecarguy]

I will try my best to do this car some justice in words but, my photography and writing skills are a work in progress.

Likes

• Looks exotic.
• Exquisite steering response and handling.
• Rev happy engine delivers intoxicating power, especially at the top end.
• Superb exhaust note
• Decent ride quality

Dislikes

• Lots of quirks. Doug DeMouro would have a field day with this.
• Turbo lag and torque limitation in all modes except Race.
• Lacks refinement at highway speeds.
• Weird brake feel.
• Average interior quality and feature set.
• Reliability can be a hit or a miss.

The Search
As a petrolhead, I wanted my first car to be special. I started my car search without many constraints in mind(except $), mainly it had to be a powerful sedan or coupe.

Having watched a lot of Top Gear during my childhood, Jeremy Clarkson’s brilliant review of the E60 M5 was stuck in my head even 10-12 years later. I wanted to follow in the footsteps of Bhpian rohittunga and get a V10 M5/M6. After some preliminary research, I realized that I wouldn’t be able to find one with any kind of warranty anymore, so I dropped the idea of going in that direction.


The next couple of cars that came to mind were related: either the F8X BMW M3/M4 or a Supra. It was very hard to find a low-mileage M3 and most were the non-competition version, so I dropped the idea. The Supra had long waits and I wanted a 5-seater, even if it was 2-door. I am not a big fan of muscle cars so I did not consider them seriously.


Enter the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio.


I have owned this car now for almost a month and have covered around 600 miles in this car. I don't have a daily commute, and even then I find reasons to go out for a spin. It's just so much fun to drive.

Engine and Transmission


The engine in the Giulia Quadrifoglio is a V6 variation of the Ferrari F154 V8. It displaces 2.9L and with the help of two turbos, it produces 505BHP and 600NM of torque.

It starts up with a nice rumble, especially during cold starts. There is a faint vibration that can be felt due to the uneven firing order of this 90-degree V6. In N or A mode, it feels like a normal car at city speeds. Power delivery is smooth, exhaust valves are closed below 3-4k rpm and there is a bit of lag. The car takes its own sweet time in both of these modes and only starts pushing above 4-4.5k rpm. Dynamic is similar with slightly sharper throttle response and a bit more power. There is a fair bit of road noise at speed, some of which may be due to the extreme tires.

Switching to Race mode and all hell breaks loose. The exhaust valves open to let you hear the deep and throaty rumble of the V6, the throttle becomes ultra-sensitive and the whole car just comes to life. The engine just wants to be revved hard. There is no traction control and all the power is unleashed unlike in other modes. It breaks traction till 3rd gear and the gearshifts become violent. The power keeps building till the redline, the transmission does not auto-upshift in manual mode and you can bounce off the rev limiter. Pops and burbles from the exhaust follow every upshift. You can find yourself at triple-digit speeds(mph) in seconds if you are not careful. I use this mode rarely as it can lead to terrifying moments.

Ride and handling

As expected from a car in this segment, it rides quite stiff even in the softest setting. I find the ride to be okayish over Seattle’s broken roads but I baby it over the tiniest bumps. The previous owner got it lowered so I did scrape it a couple of times, I am still looking for alternatives to get a slightly higher ride height without going back to stock.
While driving at speed, the car has loads of grip and the front end is mind-blowing. You can turn-in any speed as the car has oodles of grip. The steering ratio is very quick and the slightest inputs are met with instant response. The car was developed in a wind tunnel and has an active front splitter, that lowers at speeds for better front-end grip. I believe it is so good because of the high negative camber achieved with the after-market springs, the stock car barely has any camber. Part of the reason why I am reluctant to swap them out for standard ones. I haven’t been as hard on the rear end due to worn tires, which are almost due for a change but the car puts down power well.

The steering is nice and the paddles are mounted on the column. The gauge cluster is analog and easy to read.


The stance looks superb as it is, but it might be a bit too low for bad roads.


Quirks

Just like any Italian car, it has a lot of “character”. When the tires are cold, they tend to hop/skip at full lock due to the anti-Ackerman geometry. Alfa Romeo responded to the complaints and changed it with the 2020 update but the car lost some of its razor-sharp turn-in as per owners.

There is an auto hill-hold feature built into the car which cannot be turned off. While it automatically engages when you stop on a slope and disengage when you get your foot on the throttle. But sometimes it can trigger on very slight slopes, such as my parking and the grabby brakes make it difficult to creep forward slowly, and instead, the car lurches forward a bit. All Giulias come standard with brake by wire. The pedal has little feel and the brakes feel grabby, this is compounded due to the Carbon Ceramics optioned on my car.

Also, a shoutout to Bhpian vj123 for helping me with the purchase process with his advice. I would’ve been finessed by car dealers, if I didn't have his guidance, due to my lack of experience.


Now, if anyone has any unused Ferrari badges lying around, I wouldn’t mind taking them off your hands to add another 5-10 bhp to my car.

[vj123]

Congrats on your purchase again and the buying experience deserves a separate thread.

Wish you happy miles and hoping to see this awesome machine in person.

[RedTerrano]

She's an absolute looker!
Many congratulations on the latest addition to your stables.
If possible please post more interior pics.

By the way, what is the recommended way of accessing that start/stop engine button? Through the steering wheel or from the side? The pic you posted has me confused.

[pavi]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

By the way, what is the recommended way of accessing that start/stop engine button? Through the steering wheel or from the side? The pic you posted has me confused.

The start stop button is mounted on the steering wheel itself I believe, like the ones in a Ferrari (basically the same DNA) Basically you can start the car by using your left thumb.

[Jeroen]

Congrats with your purchase of this car. As the old TopGear saying goes, you simply are not a petrolhead unless you have owned an Alfa.

Yours is a very interesting version. Although these days I would always take comfort over performance. Performance is fine on the race track, but not so great for any regular driving, anywhere in the world. But that is just personal preference.

It takes a brave man to buy this particular Alfa, enjoy it to the fullest!

Jeroen

[ostreichwein]

I had a chance to drive a rented Giulia (not quadrifoglio) few months back in the UAE.

Boy, what a splendid handler this car is. Steering precision is at another level, and I can only imagine how awesome the quadrifoglio would be in the driving dynamics department.

I kept thinking about my time in the UAE with the Alfa for weeks after returning back to India!

[lionheart_mm]

Congrats on your new purchase. I got an opportunity to drive Giulia last year, my cousin was working at an Alfa Romeo dealer at that time. Personally, I liked it more than BMW 3series (F30). This is such an underrated car.

[Amey Kulkarni]

Congratulations on the acquisition. She looks stunning especially the side profile looks the best as it can be.

Supras suddenly after the power bump since last year have started getting a grip on the markets especially US. I got mine in two months in UAE which is a fair wait in the current times.

For the Alfa, I hope you have extended warranty on the car knowing the brand and its reliability quotient.

Wish you happy miles and looking forward to the ownership review.

Cheers,
Amey

[thecarguy]

Originally Posted by RedTerrano

She's an absolute looker!
Many congratulations on the latest addition to your stables.
If possible please post more interior pics.

By the way, what is the recommended way of accessing that start/stop engine button? Through the steering wheel or from the side? The pic you posted has me confused.

Thanks! The start/stop button is steering mounted.

Originally Posted by Amey Kulkarni

Congratulations on the acquisition. She looks stunning especially the side profile looks the best as it can be.

Supras suddenly after the power bump since last year have started getting a grip on the markets especially US. I got mine in two months in UAE which is a fair wait in the current times.

For the Alfa, I hope you have extended warranty on the car knowing the brand and its reliability quotient.

Wish you happy miles and looking forward to the ownership review.

Cheers,
Amey

Thanks!
The Supra here is a different ball game, MT's with delivery 1-2 months out have 10k market adjustment tacked on. A couple of dealers were trying to talk me into paying 3-4K over for the AT and waiting 4-5 months for it. MSRP cars have 8-12 months of waiting. Anyway, I would have waited for the 2023 M2, if I had to at all as I had put a deposit on it last month.

I like the front plate on your Supra. Blends in well.

Yes the car has 2 years extended warranty and a thorough service record, so it is not a big issue.

Sure, I will keep the thread updated!

[Maedhros]

Originally Posted by thecarguy

As a petrolhead, I wanted my first car to be special

And boy was it ever! Congrats. I've seen praises sung of this car on various YouTube channels. Finally one on Team-Bhp. Please keep us updated

[kiku007]

Originally Posted by thecarguy

Likes

• Looks exotic.

+100. Quite a brave choice. Congratulations and I wish you many happy miles with the car.

Originally Posted by thecarguy

Dislikes

• Lots of quirks. Doug DeMouro would have a field day with this.

He did make a video actually. "It has 22 more characters in its name than the BMW M3 and 9 more syllables than the Audi S4 and it also costs $80,000."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QaTn3gaCQYk

[nikhilarni]

Originally Posted by thecarguy

I will try my best to do this car some justice in words but, my photography and writing skills are a work in progress.

Congratulations on the new acquisition in your garage. Looks classy. Nice write up too - Crisp and precise. I was contemplating the Giulia before getting the '21 M340i.

Originally Posted by thecarguy

Now, if anyone has any unused Ferrari badges lying around, I wouldn’t mind taking them off your hands to add another 5-10 bhp to my car.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by thecarguy

I will try my best to do this car some justice in words but, my photography and writing skills are a work in progress.

Likes

• Looks exotic.
• Exquisite steering response and handling.
• Rev happy engine delivers intoxicating power, especially at the top end.
• Superb exhaust note
• Decent ride quality

Dislikes

• Lots of quirks. Doug DeMouro would have a field day with this.
• Turbo lag and torque limitation in all modes except Race.
• Lacks refinement at highway speeds.
• Weird brake feel.
• Average interior quality and feature set.
• Reliability can be a hit or a miss.

The Search
As a petrolhead, I wanted my first car to be special. I started my car search without many constraints in mind(except $), mainly it had to be a powerful sedan or coupe.

Firstly, congratulation on a truly exotic car. I must say you are brave to get into the world of Alfa Romeo as it’s hard to find them on the road (A neighbour owns one but, its regular Guilia) and us being usually herd mentality usually stick to the safe bets- BMW, Audi, Porsche etc. Haha!

I was always fascinated with this brand and used to ogle at the Stevlio’s Quadrafaglio back in 2018 when I was in Detroit. A colleague of mine had this car and had the opportunity to drive briefly and sat in it multiple times.

I was also involved with this brand from a professional front as my team used to do some engineering work for one of it’s primary supplier and we also built some minor engineering components for this car.

Coincidentally that same supplier is partnered with my brand as well (BMW).

I worked from their office for nearly 3 years and I used to watch a daily line up all the test cars- Alfa Romeos, BMW, WRX STi's models in the parking lot because during that time I used to drive a humble car.

My post-lunch walks used to be to walk around the lot and ogle at each of these beauties. More on it when we meet in person.

Not sure if you bumped into this thread ever. If not, I am surprised, why not?

Would you like to show off your new exotic machine on October 22nd and meet your German (mostly) counter-parts and teach them a lesson or too about the definition of “exotic”.

Do check out this meet thread and look forward to you joining up.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/team-...ml#post5414456 (Team-BHP Meets @ Seattle, Washington)

Cheers and Enjoy your drive experience !!

[thecarguy]

Originally Posted by mobike008

Not sure if you bumped into this thread ever. If not, I am surprised, why not?

Would you like to show off your new exotic machine on October 22nd and meet your German (mostly) counter-parts and teach them a lesson or too about the definition of “exotic”.

Do check out this meet thread and look forward to you joining up.

https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/team-...ml#post5414456 (Team-BHP Meets @ Seattle, Washington)

Cheers and Enjoy your drive experience !!

Thanks! I did see that thread just a couple of days ago but I will be out of town during that weekend. I will follow that thread so, I can attend the next meeting after this one. Looking forward to meeting the WA-based Bhpians.

[no_fear]

How is the after sales service and dealer support for the Quadrifoglio? My brother has been planning to get one in Singapore, but the dealership closed down and the after sales service is horrid.

I hardly get to see Alfa Romeos in the States. Most of the auto mags keep writing horror stories about the brand. It's like anything Italian for them is Euro thrash.

Kudos to you for getting this gem. It stands out in the sea of dull corollas, camrys, civics and the occasional BMW 330s.

I love the brand. It's truly special and the Giulia is a beautiful sedan.