ROAD TEST
Alfa Stelvio is a jack of all trades
Corner-loving Italian SUV is also surprisingly proficient in the dirt
As a brand that built its reputation on sporty-feeling drivers’ cars, Alfa Romeo didn’t divert from the script when it introduced its first SUV. Based on the sweet-handling Giulia sedan and named after an iconically twisty mountain pass in Italy, the Stelvio was designed from the outset to appeal to drivers with 95 octane running through their veins. High-riding it may be, but all the engineering is focused on making this vehicle slice corners with maximum driver-pleasing poise. The suspension, along with several body panels, are made of weight-saving aluminium while the driveshaft is carbon fibre. In a further quest for agility the Stelvio has 50/50 front to rear weight distribution, and what Alfa says is the most direct steering in its segment. Thus endowed, the Stelvio very effectively counteracts the affliction of standing a high 200mm off the ground. "Car-like handling" is possibly too often used for SUVs, but I’m happy to use the term to describe this Alfa’s direction-changing...
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