Thanks for the information - up until your post I wasn't aware that my Giulietta wasn't a proper Alfa. Funnily enough when I had a brilliant 1978 Sud 1.3ti back in 1988, that wasn't a proper Alfa either according to the so called experts then.
Is this like the VW emissions scandal - can I ask for compensation for having bought a brand new car 2 years ago advertised as an 'Alfa Romeo' when it isn't a proper one. Hopefully you will be available to be called upon as an expert witness for the case hearings I presume?
Nowt wrong with a modern Astra chief, I've been searching low and high for a decent mid ranged car for the other half and they came out top o' the list. Tried the 150 SRI and that thing is very quick to boot, fast, spacious, decent handling, comfortable and has a decent ride.
I'm used to cars to wipe the floor with standard family cars, so for me to like them they have to be half decent.
The 147 and 156 were Fiat Tipo based. Real Alfas?
The Mito , I can agree is barely anything more than a Corsa/Grande Punto.
The Giulietta however does have the remnants of 147 beneath it ....
Despite being tipo based the platform was (is) dominated by the engine. Characterful and highly regarded engines. The 156/147 platform was also praised for it's handling at the time.
None of these elements can be levied at the Brera or the 159. They are pretty though. The Mito? Haha!!! I'd rather drive a Panda every day of the week.
I'd take an Astra over the pretentious rubbish that is a Giulietta.
And a 3.0 75 over everything except an SZ, GTA or a Giulia in that order.
You own a family hatchback with a (well I have to concede on that quite a lot, a fabulous) big engine and a tractor.
Hardly qualifies you to be a judge of what is an Alfa and what is not. :thumbu p:
..and before you say it, no I do not qualify either.
I own a 340HP, 3.0L I6, RWD "family hatchback", well that's a loose term if you've ever sat in the back of it. Anyway, does that "qualify" me as it's still a hatchback? Between the family we've had six Alfa's as well.
This ain't a brag either, because if you can afford a Giulietta QV you can afford one of these. There's on 25PPM difference between the two and that was years ago when the QV was cheaper.
I can't say I was overly struck on the Giulietta either, the 156 I loved and to my surprise I'm quite a fan of the Giulia too.
We've owned nearly 60 Alfa's as a family in the last 15 years, most of them 156's but we've had 166s, 155s 145s and 147s too as well as a GT and a Brera. My Dad and I rebuilt most of them.
I've worked on a Montreal, a Giulia GTV, various Mitos and Giuliettas and I also had a 3.0 75...
Oops I seem to have offended folk. That's what happens when threads like this come about.
FWIW and it is not worth much, I do rather like them. However ultimately is should not matter whether I or anybody else thinks they're a hatchback because it's your car and the one you bought with confidence.
Only you (shadowamd) know if you are qualified.
Chris, your reply was unexpected, reserved and I rather liked it
You haven't offended me in the slightest, it's all just a bit of banter. I like the look of the Giulietta's and they come with plenty of kit, they aren't even that bad to drive and mine didn't even have a single rattle. I just never found them fun / exciting, neither do they really excel in any area.
I had a 335D (313HP) diesel with ZF8AT previously, it was extremely capable in just about every area. But it was still a little bit dull tbh.. It's the perfect daily cruiser, but as you said it all depends on you and what you're looking for.
The car I've replaced it with is simply bonkers, it has a "soul" as such. For a bimmer it's ironically not that technically proficient, it's just stupid fast (0-60 in 4.6?), it's tail wags out like a happy little puppy, it's very eager and overly excited all the time but it won't snap your back or overly control you like a lot of modern cars try to do.
It reminds me of older Alfa's and the new Giluia's seem to be a return to form, a fun car to me doesn't necessarily have to be overly technically proficient to the point it sucks all the fun away. It just needs to have a personality and that for me is why for the most part I've always loved Alfa's. Besides for the style / design the 156 and GTV were fun cars with plenty of personality, the 156 doubled up as a comfortable cruiser when you needed it to.. Win win!..
Back when I got my first Alfa I couldn't afford decent cars, so I was chopping and changing every year to avoid MOT and service bills (I had everything from £800 Mondeo's to £400.00 Renault Megane's ). The first 156 I had (which were clocked at 200,000 miles) was the first car I saved up to try and get it through it's MOT / service. Unfortunatley it had rusted away and the bill was quite heavy, but ever since that 156 many years ago I've had an odd obsession with Alfa.
and gumtree...has 588 Alfas and 28 Ferrari...in the last 40 years only the last 8C came anything close to a Ferrari, let's be honest, though I suppose a Guilia Q is a kind of poor man's FF.
I'm very happy with my poor man's Maserati (166) and my pauper's Ferrari...156 Sportwagon... that is what is good about Alfa Romeo for me...affordable Italian style...
I think the MiTo and Guilietta just suffer from being modern hatchbacks...lumpy and dumpy...lots of airbags, massive plastic bumpers, claustrophobic cabins...I suppose the 156 felt like it at the time compared to the 155, though these days it feels sleek, fun and chuckable. Even my 166 looks small on the road, even compared to a Mito it looks small and sleek, because of the low profile..
I guess it's all a matter of personal perspective.
I can feel the extra weight in the GQV compared to the 147 in the bends. And the seating position is rather... questionable (throne?).
But the TBi engine is sooooooo much better than the TS in so many different ways. I think in today's climate of crappy roads, traffic jams, and reliability, the GQV is pretty slick. The handling is great too, plenty of grip. It's so pleasent when you just perch at the top of motorway sliproads, push it into "D", and its off. Really good car, and one that has quite rightfully kept Alfa Romeo going for these last few years.
Even though I have never driven one, the Mito I expect, is the same. A child of the recession years, deeply flawed, and poorly developed. But it's kept some girls and guys in jobs, and that was damned lucky for FCA since the 2008 crisis. They have done their job well enough, when Pontiac, SAAB, Saturn, and others all were (pretty much) erased.
I think 260,000 Giuliettas is a respectable figure over the 7 year lifetime, considering the odds of the brand being canned for Sergio's retirement fund. It's no 1-Series, but it keeps the jobs, and keeps some of the owners just smug enough that they own something slightly more unique and interesting.
I agree, it's a matter of perspective. But I do count some opinions when buying a new car (generally)..
Unique and exclusive for me always ring alarm bells, there's generally a reason why. Number one is generally cost, if a car is expensive there won't be masses of them. If it ain't expensive then I got to figure out why..
So, the QV's 1.75TBI isn't the most efficient engine in it's class. You can buy a 300+HP car which returns 37MPG+ (not sure why you'd buy a hot hatch for economy, but from all the threads I've seen on 40K cars comparing it there's obviously some). It ain't the fastest hot hatch out there (even in relation to relative price), so it won't appeal to the power crowd.. It ain't the best handling in it's class and it ain't RWD so it won't appeal to the purity lot. It doesn't come with a manual so it won't appeal to the max fun crowd..
It ain't the cheapest hatch out there and you can get a car in terms or price / performance that would wipe the floor with it, so it's not going to appeal to the bang for buck crowd. Alfa don't yet have the badge kudo's of other brands, so it doesn't appeal to the clueless or non-enthusiast crowd (which is the majority to be fair).
After all that, who exactly does it appeal to? All I can really think of is Alfa enthusiasts. To me it's not real shocker that it's "unique".
I did a presentation course at work recently and we were told that the words perform a very small part of the message in a discussion, like 20%. On-line we've got none of the other 80% so we can only read the words.
The fact that the current equivalent to the QV Giulietta (the Veloce) lists at £5000 more than the same car with a Multiair (Speciale) and ends up worth £500 more at the end of a pcp shows it's there for image purposes and it needs a big discount. Otherwise it's 30% more each on that pcp.
You're doing it again. If it was a Zafira I'd understand but actually it's not bad. Have you driven a Kuga? I had a 147 and I couldn't wait for the Giulietta to become available, perhaps because mine is driven every day.
Doing what? Taking the mick? It is allowed on the internet last time I checked. No, I've not driven a Kuga. Softroaders like it hold very little appeal for me.
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