Common sense says you can not build an SUV that os as quick as a sports car, even if the vehicles share a chassis and engine. Alfa Romeo knows that, which is why the Stelvio Quadrifoglio SUV comes with all-wheel drive to try to offset its extra mass and higher centre of gravity while the sporty donor, the Giulia sedan, has rear-wheel propulsion.
The benefit of AWD is driven home on a slick Albert Park GP circuit with the Stelvio resolutely refusing to deviate as it used all four tyres to scrabble out of the lower speed corners. In contrast the Giulia was far keener to wag its tail if you snatched too much throttle too early.
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