Italian cars are supposed to be sensual and make one’s heart flutter with unrivaled driving dynamics. Ergonomics? Easy-to-use technology? These are not the calling cards.
The Alfa Romeo Giulia sedan and Stelvio crossover SUV both deliver on that Italian charm, but they’ve had chintzy interior bits and confusing infotainment systems since they arrived in the U.S. a couple years ago.
When the 2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio arrive in U.S. dealerships in December, they’ll feature a new touchscreen infotainment system, higher-quality controls, and more active safety technology—all for $800 more than the 2019 models. What won’t change is the benchmark-worthy driving dynamics.
2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia
Now we touch
The 2020 updates aren’t so much a refresh for a pair of vehicles that aren’t very old as an emergency fix for poor interior controls and infotainment systems.
For 2020, all Giulias and Stelvios feature a 7.0-inch digital instrument panel display nestled between the analog gauges. A new 8.8-inch touchscreen infotainment system replaces the 6.5- and 8.8-inch non-touchscreen units and adds a capacitive touchscreen along with a tile-like interface. The tiles correlate with system functions like navigation, vehicle safety systems, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and can all be dragged and dropped to reorder the home screen like a tablet.
Alfa adds a matte plastic screen in front of the capacitive touchscreen’s glass panel. While this reduces glare and fingerprints, it makes the screen less accurate to touch inputs and it can look washed out when the sun hits it. Still, the system’s interface and touchscreen inputs are far easier to use than the 2019 models’ rotary dial, and it no longer makes me want to pull out my remaining hair when flipping from one function to another.
2020 Alfa Romeo Stelvio
Fragile, eh?
The controls and materials are upgraded, too. The drive mode selector no longer wiggles, the volume knob no longer feels like it might fall off, and the rotary controller for the infotainment system no longer feels cheap and plasticky.
The previous gear selector often had a plastic seam that could give drivers paper cuts. For 2020, the good folks in Italy wrapped it in leather to avoid death by a thousand cuts. There’s even an Italian flag at the base of the gear selector now as a point of Italian pride.
To fit American-size Big Gulps, the front cupholders are now larger and the sliding cover over them has been removed in the Giulia to make storage easier for front seat occupants. A wireless charging pad for smartphones is now available for easier charging.
The new steering has a meatier design that works just fine, but I prefer the thin rim in the 2019 models.
2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia
Safety comes standard, kind of
Every 2020 Giulia and Stelvio now features automatic emergency braking and forward-collision warnings. Both were previously optional on all models. A more-advanced adaptive cruise control system with stop-and-go capability is now available. Also new are active lane control, a driver-attention monitor, traffic-sign recognition, blind-spot monitors with steering assist, and intelligent speed control that will adjust the speed when the speed limit changes. Blind-spot monitors, lane departure warnings, automatic high beams, and parking sensors carry over.
2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia
2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia
2020 Alfa Romeo Stelvio
2020 Alfa Romeo Stelvio
Runway model
While the interiors of the Alfa siblings needed to be sent to finishing school, the exteriors were perfect just the way they were. The sensual lines, soft curves, and taut sheet metal all remain to maintain the Giulia and Stelvio style as icons of their classes.
The only telltale exterior clue to distinguish a 2020 Giulia from a 2019 is if it wears one of three new paint colors: Anodized Blue, Lunare White Metallic, or Verde Visconti Metallic.
The Stelvio will be easier to spot thanks to plastic cladding that changes from unpainted gray to body-color on all but the base model. Previously, only the high-output Quadrifoglio model had body-color cladding.
2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia
True sports sedan
The Giulia and Stelvio are among the best-driving vehicles in their classes thanks to perfect 50/50 weight balance, steak knife-sharp steering, strong engines, and composed suspensions. Nothing changes for 2020, and that’s mostly a good thing.
Base versions of both still derive power from a 2.0-liter turbo-4 that cranks out 280 horsepower and 306 pound-feet of torque and sends it to the rear or all four wheels via a slick-shifting 8-speed automatic transmission.
Alfa says the 4-cylinder Giulia will still sprint from 0 to 60 mph in just 5.1 seconds on its way to a top speed of 149 mph. The Stelvio’s just a tick slower with the same turbo-4.
The quick steering ratio (11.8:1 in the Giulia and 12.0:1 in the Stelvio) means small inputs translate to big steering changes. Most of the time this provides a thrilling driving experience, but on the freeway it can become tiresome as it requires lots of minor corrections.
The Stelvio, thanks to its increased ride height over the Giulia, exhibits more body roll, but both expertly balance firm suspension tuning with a comfortable ride. Both also feature Alfa’s DNA mode selector that cycles the throttle, transmission, steering, and stability control responses through Dynamic, Natural, and Advanced Efficiency modes. The Stelvio’s Dynamic mode makes the dampers feel like the Giulias in Natural mode.
Our one complaint about the dynamics of both vehicles is the brake-by-wire system that simulates the pressure of a hydraulic system with a rubber block behind the brake pedal. It’s still overly sensitive and requires real effort to brake smoothly.
2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia and Stelvio
Have it your way
The 2020 Giulia and Stelvio will roll into U.S. dealerships priced from $40,440 and $42,440, respectively, including the mandatory $1,095 destination charge. Both will be available in six trims and offer two appearance packages, 14 exterior colors, five interior colors, and four different brake caliper colors.
With the refinements for 2020 the Giulia and Stelvio are no longer just the driver’s choices in their classes. They now have the interior materials and infotainment systems to take on all comers.
Alfa Romeo paid for travel and lodging for Internet Brands Automotive to bring you this firsthand report.
