When a professional driver competing with an Audi claims that the SUV Alfa Romeo is quite simply the best he's ever driven, the statement is worth making. And there's nothing marketing about it. It comes from Matteo Poloni, an Italian driver who competes in the Italian TCR class in an Audi RS3, and also runs a workshop specializing in gearboxes.
Unexpected face-to-face
It all began almost by chance. One evening, in his Gear Works workshop, which specializes in the overhaul and repair of automatic and manual gearboxes, Matteo Poloni came across a very unusual car: an Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio in Vesuvio gray, with yellow calipers. A configuration strictly identical to the one he owned for two years. Not only does he know this car by heart, but above all because he's actually driven it: over 30,000 km in all conditions, on the road, in the mountains, on a daily basis. Enough to form an unfiltered opinion.
An outstanding machine, even today
From the very first words, the conclusion is clear. For Poloni, the Stelvio Quadrifoglio was already "out of its league" when it came out, and it remains so today. He claims to have tried almost all SUVs capable of offering such chassis, driving precision and mechanical feel. None of them left the same impression on him. What strikes the driver is the feeling of a car designed without compromise, with real mechanics, natural balance and a direct link between driver and road. The Giorgio platform, developed in the days of Sergio Marchionne, is at the heart of the matter here. For Poloni, it symbolizes a bygone golden age.
On the road, the Stelvio Quadrifoglio is no pushover. Its ultra-direct steering, extremely precise front end and deliberately aggressive tuning demand experience. At low speeds, it's surprisingly agile. At high speeds, it can be intimidating if you don't know exactly what you're doing. But on a mountain road, everything lines up. Poloni describes an SUV capable of cornering with disconcerting speed, braking very hard, transferring mass violently, then exiting curves with a slight, perfectly controllable oversteer. An efficiency that he compares, in no uncertain terms, to that of the Ferrari Purosangue, while pointing out that Alfa Romeo's Italian model offers a much rawer, less filtered feel.
More efficient than a Giulia Quadrifoglio in certain conditions
Interesting fact from a purist: Poloni claims that in certain contexts, particularly in mountain and winter conditions, the Stelvio Quadrifoglio can go faster than a Giulia Quadrifoglio. The reason? Its all-wheel drive capable of sending up to 50 % of torque to the front, enabling much earlier acceleration out of bends. Where a rear-wheel drive car struggles to find grip, Alfa Romeo's SUV literally catapults its driver out of the bend, with the front axle "pulling" the car towards the exit.
The dark side
Not everything is perfect, however. Poloni points out some typically Italian faults: the quality of certain interior components, seats that relax prematurely, poorly finished small details. But above all, he reveals a far more serious problem: aerodynamics at very high speeds. Above 240-250 km/h, the car becomes unstable, with worrying turbulence. According to the Maserati engineers he spoke to, the problem lies with... the rear-view mirrors. Too voluminous and poorly designed, they generate air vortices that cause violent aerodynamic resonance. A flaw identified during development, but never corrected. For Poloni, an unthinkable mistake for a German carmaker.
Symbol of a bygone era
In the end, the conclusion is melancholy. For Matteo Poloni, the Stelvio Quadrifoglio, like the Giulia, probably represents the last Alfa Romeo designed by true enthusiasts, without concessions, with an obsession for driving pleasure above all other considerations. An imperfect car, sometimes excessive, but deeply endearing. And above all, a powerful symbol of an era when the Italian automobile still dared to put emotion before all else.
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Of course, the Giorgio platform is the best for production cars, delivering driving precision and pleasure far superior to that of BMW or Audi.
It's hard to overstate just how exceptional the Giulia and Stelvio are. And yet their sales have been disappointing. Which goes to show that most drivers don't know much about cars, and are content to follow other buyers like sheep.
It's a real shame we didn't decide to extend the Giorgio platform, because there's no guarantee that the STLA will be at the same level.
Isn't the STLA Large a modernized Giorgio?
Well, most buyers drive normally and have nothing to bra...lish about a chassis that's just a little on the nose and, in the end, only moderately comfortable. Besides, an SUV for sport is a casting error anyway. Already, none of them should exceed 180kmh. Too much energy needed for that.
To say that the Giorgio chassis is "moderately comfortable" is not to have driven a Giulia or Stelvio. They're great tourers, comfortable and above all bluffly efficient and precise.
I recently owned a Stelvio for 4 years, and couldn't get a new one in 2025 due to scarce availability, apparently caused by high demand in the USA. This was my 3rd Alfa, superb cars to drive!
I now drive a BMW 1 Series M sport nice car but wish I had a Stelvio.
Rearview mirrors too big? It's a large SUV, what did he want, a pair of bicycle mirrors? Ridiculous. And if he really wants, just get a pair of aerodynamic aftermarket ones.