Simply Abu Dhabi XXXVI

2 2 1 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I I f you want to start a conversation about cars, or even if you don’t want to, show up in an Alfa Romeo because it seems that everyone has an opinion on the charismatic Italian and they all want to share it. This is amplified when the Alfa you’re driving is the performance flagship Giulia Quadrifoglio which has the audacity to challenge the supremacy of the Germans like the BMWM4 andMercedes-AMGC63. Alfa’s heritage was born in motor racing and has travelled the full circle, starting a century ago with a track record that is among the world’s best for wins in everything from Formula One to sportscars, touring cars and rallying. It’s now back to its roots in Formula One. For those into their motorsport heritage, seeing the Alfa Romeo badge back on the track with drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Antonio Giovanazzi this year has been stirring. Adding to the allure of the team is a small decal on each car that names them; “Stelvio” for Raikkonen’s car and “Giulia” for Gio’s steed. The current Alfa Romeo represents an amazing comeback for the brand as recent product over the past few decades has failed to uphold the company’s sporting credentials. Following the Alfa 75 which was the last rear-wheel drive model, the company spent the next 30 years producing a range of mild front-wheel drive saloons and hatches which were barely shadows of their former sporting ancestors. At the same time Mercedes, BMW and Audi muscled in and introduced models that filled the slot with their C63 AMG, M3 and RS4 variants. Finally, Alfa has bounced back with a worthy competitor in the Giulia Quadrifoglio which on paper at least, looks to have placed the company back on track for the first time since the early ‘90s as the master of performance saloons. Its Ferrari-inspired, turbocharged, 2.9-litre V6 pumps out 503bhp, 443Nm of torque and reverts to a traditional rear-wheel-drive layout, while it hits 100km/h in 3.8 seconds and tops out at 307 km/h. The best part however is that it’s all wrapped in a stylish, yet practical four- door saloon body. The new Giulia marks a return to form for Alfa’s mainstreammodels as well as providing the basis for a performance alternative that’s worthy of its historic Quadrifoglio (four-leaf clover) badge. Traditionally Alfa Romeo has reserved this badge, which dates back to a young Enzo Ferrari’s days as the company’s race mechanic, for its high performance models. All Giulias use aluminium suspension arms and subframes along with aluminium doors and wings as well as a carbon fibre driveshaft to reduce weight. The Quadrifoglio adds a carbon fibre bonnet and roof to the mix in addition to a carbon fibre front splitter with active aerodynamics to keep its weight down to a lithe 1,580kg. It all plays a part in its nimble handling that feels lighter than the German competition and more direct with steering that is beautifully weighted and reacts to the tiniest, fingertip inputs from the driver. As is the norm now, the Alfa comes with a rotary dial in the centre console which among other things, controls the performance settings ranging from ‘Advanced Efficiency’ for ultimate fuel saving where it slots into the overdrive eighth gear as quickly as possible to ‘Natural’ which is the default setting, then on to ‘Dynamic’ for a more sporty flavour while keeping all the driver aids on and finally, ‘Race’ mode. The difference between these settings feels more noticeable than with most other cars as it changes character with each click of the rotary dial. Race mode opens up the exhaust to deliver a lusty V6 bark while