Alfa Romeo Stelvio 2.0 280 Super AWD 2017 review

The Stelvio is fundamentally rear-wheel drive, like the Giulia, with 100% of the engine’s effort channelled to the rear axle – for which a mechanical limited-slip differential is optionally available – unless traction issues require a contribution from the clutch-controlled front axle. How much time does this take? ‘Nothing,’ is the unbelievable answer from a smiling Fedeli, and he doesn’t follow up with the millisecond interval in question. But, on the track, the Q4 system responds briskly enough to avoid feeling clunky. Up to 50% of the torque can be redirected to the front wheels, matching the Stelvio’s ideal 50:50 weight distribution. There’s plenty of urge to direct, too, with the 276bhp engine launching the Alfa to 62mph in 5.7sec – usefully faster than the latest Golf GTI. The diesel Stelvio is capable of the same sprint in 6.6sec.

Balocco’s slightly slithery Tarmac provides a decent chance for exploration of the effectiveness of this hardware, with tight low-speed corners soon revealing the amusing discovering that the Stelvio’s quite substantial rear-end can be poked decisively sideways. That’s if you’re in the dynamic setting of Alfa Romeo’s familiar DNA driving modes, which allows some slippage but not enough to spike your heart rate. The electronic stability program (ESP) can’t be completely killed, which is probably a good thing, given that it’s also quite easy to make the Stelvio’s front tyres slide towards understeer. The realisation that this is good comes during a long, 75mph sweeper that starts edging the Alfa unnervingly wide, a situation you’d be highly unlikely to encounter on the road. As we know, tracks can often be highly deceptive, so it will take a twisting, bump-scattered road – or indeed, the Stelvio Pass – to discover what this Alfa’s really like. So far, though, it’s more than promising.

And so to seat folding, boot space and the mundane necessities of family car life. The Stelvio manages two fair wins with decent rear room and a long, uniformly shaped boot, although it might have been wider had its sides not been packed with components-unknown behind carpeted trim panels. The rear seats can be semi-released from the tailgate end, but only semi, because the backrests don’t drop once their catches are released, making this facility rather pointless. The backrests do fall fairly flat however, and the tailgate is powered as standard on all models.