first impressions on board of the competitor of Peugeot 2008 and Renault Captur

“Alfa Romeo is the only brand that can sell an exclusive car for 2 million euros, at the same time as a range available from € 30,000,” says Jean-Philippe Imparato, General Director of the Italian brand, during the official event. presentation of Milano. It is true that between the 33 Stradale and the new SUV (orders for the Special launch edition, which starts at €31,500, will open from April 25), Alfa Romeo has the lowest price category.. But the link between the two models does not leave a mark: “The 33 Stradale project is important to establish the brand, its attitude: at this price, we have to be very careful about all the details so that the car is perfect ” And then we transfer this experience to everyday cars Link this is the essence of Alfa Romeo”, explains Daniel Guzzafame, Product Director of the brand.

Read also: all the news and prices of the new Alfa Romeo Milano

The “seen it” style.

Either. Alfa Romeo is about to offer a range of four models, something that hasn’t happened “for a very long time”, in the words of Daniel Guzzafame himself. As for the bonus prize, the 33 Stradale, its impact on the so-called “classic” range must be seen, but not only in design. The attention to detail, mentioned by Alfa Romeo’s Product Manager, is certainly present on the new SUV, in the design of the famous Scudetto grille, of which only the Progresso version (and Biscionne) was presented to the public in Milan. It is also available in a light signature, in the Coda Tronca that will bring back memories for the most unintelligent of “alfists”. But it all seems, in some respects, to want to do too much: the sporty presentation of the Veloce version at the fair undoubtedly has a lot to do with this feeling. (20 inch rims heavily drilled, trim reduced by 25 mm, etc.). The most classic version will definitely be the most humble. But let’s continue, because in the end the taste and color …

Passengers were pampered more than the driver

On the other hand, the most questionable thing concerns the passenger compartment. Not in terms of internal space. At a length of 4.17 meters, the engineers have managed, in fact, to provide a very useful trunk volume of 400 l, with surprisingly good space in the rear seats.. The Sabelt Sport seats on the front seats are however heavily perforated and perforated to provide knee comfort for rear passengers. Headroom is very accurate at around 1.80m, and legroom is spacious. Only the seats do not have height below the thighs and above all, you will have a hold of your neighbor if the driver decides to indulge in a series of turns: no grab handle is provided.

In terms of presentation, if the brand focused on certain features such as counters with two hoods, modern thanks to the digital panel, it would be wise not to draw too boldly from the Stellantis ingredient bank. A sporty or premium call also requires some uniqueness: all the buttons placed on the center console are common to all models in the group.. As for the controls on the steering wheel, they are straight from the DS. Moreover, for better ergonomics, the touch screen should be placed a little higher: here it forces the driver to look down a lot.

The kingdom of hard plastic

But the main disappointment comes from the quality of the materials used. Indeed, the presented Veloce models had Alcantara trim, including on some contact points.. In what aspect will this material be changed in more classic versions? Let’s just hope these aren’t the same plastics as those offered on the dashboard, hood or even the Sabelt Sport’s seat shell: they’re hard and offer a confusing finish. This is clearly not about what we would expect from Alfa Romeo, especially if the engineers were as “analysts” as on the 33 Stradale, as Daniel Guzzafame told us. Perhaps this is one of the secrets of €31,500… In comparison, the Peugeot 2008 does better.. However, the collection of different elements was found to be quite accurate.

We can bet that the models presented were still the original series. The Alfa Romeo Milano will, in fact, only arrive on sale next September. At the same time, we will have had the opportunity to test the SUV, to check if the dynamic behavior of the Milano complies with the requirements of the developers who also worked on the 33 Stradale.