A 3000-mile marathon in the 191mph Alfa Giulia Quadrifoglio reveals its hidden talent

'It’s a great long-distance machine,’ said deputy editor James Taylor while chatting about his Giulia long-termer. A lightbulb immediately pinged on in my head: I had a long distance to cover soon – a 450-mile run up to the Scottish Highlands for a holiday – so it would surely be remiss of me not to verify the Alfa’s abilities in this department by borrowing it for the week in question.

Or at least that was my excuse. I actually just wanted to grab some time in the Quadrifoglio, but it soon became apparent that it really is a great long-distance machine. It’d been a while since I’d been in one, and I’d forgotten how remarkably relaxed its ride is when the DNA selector is left in Normal. We’re talking properly supple, with none of the underlying firmness so often found in its obvious rivals. Instead the Alfa feels like a car designed to work as best it possibly can on the road, not with half an eye on lap times. How refreshing.

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Meanwhile, at a motorway cruise the twin-turbo V6 fades into the background, barely audible as it lugs along in top (eighth) at around 1500rpm, sipping unleaded at a rate of just over 30 miles to the gallon. Tyre noise from the 245- and 285-section Pirellis is largely unobtrusive too, so in-cabin conversations can be held without resorting to raised voices. And I never gave the seats a moment’s thought, which must mean they are perfectly comfortable and supportive. As the miles slip by oh-so effortlessly, the only real concern is keeping your pace in check, so well does the Quadrifoglio disguise its speed – even from the passenger seat, where 70-something feels more like high-50s and can have you wondering why the driver doesn’t get a wriggle on.

Over the next six days the Alfa clocked up another 700 miles in the Highlands, and it continued to be as calm as custard throughout (except in those moments when ‘calm’ wasn’t what was being asked of it, of course). It really is quite astonishing how docile and useable a 513bhp, 191mph, sub-four-second car can be. The Giulia’s size is a major strength too – big enough to be practical, but never feeling too wide or cumbersome like, say, a current M3 can at times.

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The pronounced crown on one particular single-track road got the better of that easy-going ride, though: even below 30mph a light scrrrrrrsh could sometimes be heard as car underside met asphalt when the suspension compressed at the wrong moment. Selecting Dynamic mode mitigated this by firming up the dampers, but this also introduces an annoying abruptness to the first couple of millimetres of the accelerator pedal’s travel, the torque being introduced (or withdrawn) much less progressively, thus making silky-smooth adjustments difficult. (You can see this spikiness in how suddenly the lb ft figures leap up from – and down to – zero on the infotainment system’s Technical Gauges display.) If only the damper button in the middle of the DNA dial would allow you to add firmer damping to the default ‘n’ mode, not just subtract it when you’re in ‘d’.

But there the gripes end. Everywhere else the Giulia was an absolute joy to be in, and ably demonstrated what a considered, desirable supersaloon it is. And yes, I am happy to confirm, one that is indeed great over long distances.

This story was first featured in evo issue 328.

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