Skip to footer

2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio SUV debuts at Los Angeles auto show

Alfa Romeo’s first SUV is finally here, and the Stelvio brings Italian flair and passion to the small luxury SUV segment.

|
Mike Blake/Reuters
Alfa Romeo introduces the 2018 Stelvio SUV at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles on Nov. 16, 2016.

It’s been a long time coming but Alfa Romeo’s first SUV is finally here in the form of the 2018 Stelvio.

Making its debut on Wednesday at the 2016 Los Angeles auto show, the Stelvio brings Italian flair and passion to the small luxury SUV segment.

The name is borrowed from a small town located in the Alps of northern Italy, close to the border with Switzerland, though it’s more commonly known because of the nearby Stelvio Pass. This famous stretch of winding road is considered one of the best driving roads in the world because of its fast switchbacks and elevation changes combined with beautiful scenery.

Alfa Romeo’s Stelvio introduces the SUV version of the rear-wheel-drive Giorgio platform that made its debut in the Giulia sedan. Attributes of the platform include low weight, a low center of gravity and impressive chassis technology. The platform also allows for all-wheel drive, which has been made standard on all Stelvio models.

The Stelvio makes its debut in high-performance Quadrifoglio guise. This particular model is unique in the segment but will soon face stiff rivals in the form of a BMW X3 M, Jaguar F-Pace SVR and Mercedes-AMG GLC63. Power comes from the same twin-turbocharged 2.9-liter V-6 as the Giulia Quadrifoglio, with output remaining at 505 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque. Mated to a paddle-shifted, 8-speed automatic, the engine will rocket the SUV from 0-60 mph in just 3.9 seconds and to a top speed of 177 mph.

Below the Quadrifoglio will be standard Stelvio and better-equipped Stelvio Ti (Turismo Internazionale) models. These will feature identical turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-4 engines delivering 280 hp and 305 lb-ft of torque. They also come with an 8-speed automatic, 18-inch wheels (19- and 20-in are available), a carbon fiber driveshaft, leather trim, a power liftgate, parking sensors and a rearview camera.

There are two main rotary controllers, both located on the steering wheel. One is for the driving modes selector, which has Dynamic, Natural and Advanced Efficiency modes. The Quadrifoglio picks up an extra mode, Race, designed for spirited driving.

The secondary rotary controller is for the dash-mounted infotainment screen, which measures 6.5 in across as standard and 8.8 in when the wide-screen option is selected. There will also be a rotary pad in the center console that will be able to recognize handwritten gestures. All Stelvios get a second, 7.0-in screen in the main instrument cluster.

Production of the Stelvio commences at Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ [NYSE:FCAU] Cassino plant in Italy in late 2016. The first examples are due in showrooms in mid-2017.

For more from the L.A. auto show, head to our dedicated hub.

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.
editor@csmonitor.com
Subscribe
Mark Sappenfield
Editor

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

Subscribe to insightful journalism

QR Code to 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio SUV debuts at Los Angeles auto show
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/Business/In-Gear/2016/1116/2018-Alfa-Romeo-Stelvio-SUV-debuts-at-Los-Angeles-auto-show
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe