Alfa Romeo Giulietta

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Pictures

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Wallpapers

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Photos

Alfa Romeo Giulietta

Stunning... sexy and hot.But can Giulietta seduce us away from other beauties?

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LEGEND: Alfa Romeo has high hopes for the new Giulietta which revives a name from the firm's glorious past

This is sure going to be an exciting year for the South African motor industry, a hopeful year after the recession.

Many carmakers are slowly but surely pushing units off the showroom floors.

After years of failing to convince the market about their products, Fiat Auto SA is hoping that the new Alfa Romeo Giulietta will do the trick.

Launched in Cape Town last week, the new Giulietta was expected to be a solution to the Italian manufacturers' woes. How is Giulietta going to resuscitate the battling brand?

The answer is simple, according to the big guns at Fiat Auto SA - Giulietta's strong heritage and technological brains will do the job.

The Giulietta first took the world by storm in 1954 and 10 years later made its way into SA.

The Italian giant announced its intentions to bring Giulietta back to life a few years ago and the news was well received the world over.

The Giulietta , a five-door hatchback with obvious Alfa Romeo genes, is capable of expressing both great agility on the most demanding routes and providing comfort on everyday journeys.

This is largely attributable to Alfa Romeo's new Compact platform.

The new Giulietta generated a lot of interest from the world media after it appeared at the 2010 Geneva motor show. This, according to Oscar Rivoli, managing director of Fiat Auto SA, was a strong indication that the car would be well received by the often difficult South African market.

However, it won't be smooth sailing for the Italian princess as she is up against strong competition.

The Giulietta is directly positioned against the three market leaders: VW Golf, BMW 1 series and Audi A3.

How realistic is this? The Italians say they are confident that the Giulietta's spec levels and looks will sell it. Although the Giulietta is a perfect hot hatch and undoubtedly one of the most beautiful looking cars, this is going to be a tough job.

Despite all the market challenges, the Giulietta proved its worth on Cape Town roads during the launch.

The new Alfa comes wearing a hero's cap in the form of a five star Euro NCap safety rating.

The Compact platform allows the Giulietta to accommodate the needs of different owners - driving satisfaction and comfort can be adapted to specific needs thanks to the Alfa DNA selector which customises the vehicle's behaviour to suit different road conditions and driving styles. Three different driving modes can be selected - Dynamic, Normal and All Weather.

The DNA selector - fitted as standard to the entire Giulietta range - is designed to modify the operating parameters of the engine, gearbox, steering system and Q2 electronic differential in addition to the behaviour logic of the Vehicle Dynamic Control system (VDC).

The Giulietta was launched with three petrol engines, all linked to a six-speed manual gearbox.

Alfa Romeo offers a five-year 150000km warranty on the new Giulietta. Linked to this is a six-year/90000km service plan for the 1.4-litre models (with service intervals of 30000km) and a six-year/105000km service plan for the flagship 1750 TBi which features 35000km service intervals - a benchmark in the highly contested C-segment class.

The Fax:

Engine: 1.4 TB

Power: 88 kW at 5000rpm

Torque: 206 Nm at 1750

0-100km/h: 9.4 seconds(claimed)

Top Speed: 206km/h

C02: 149g/km

Price: R243 000

Engine: 1.4TB Multi-air

Power: 125kW at

Torque: 250Nm at

0-100km/h: 7.8 seconds(claimed)

Top Speed: 218km/h

C02: 134 g/km

Price: R279 900

Engine: 1750 turbo Quadrifoglio Verde

Power: 173 kW at 5500

Torque: 340Nm at 1900

0-100km/h: 6.8 seconds(claimed)

Top Speed: 242km/h

C02: 177g/km

Price: R330 275

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Pictures

Alfa Romeo Giulietta wallpapers

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Photos

Alfa Romeo Giulietta