Alfa Romeo has high hopes for its upcoming Giulia sedan. Primarily aimed at the BMW 3 Series and the Audi A4, the Giulia will be Alfa’s first compact sedan in several years and its first rear-wheel drive sedan in over two decades.
Since the Giulia has a lot to live up to, Alfa is leaving nothing to chance and a new report indicates it will inaugurate several brand new engines that will eventually power other members of the company’s lineup.
The headline-grabber will be a 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine fed with two turbochargers, a smaller one that spools up at low rpm and a bigger one that kicks in at higher engine speeds. Fitted with direct injection and variable valve timing, the turbo four will make 300 horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 295 foot-pounds of torque at 3,800 rpm in its most powerful configuration.
Equipped with this engine, the Giulia will be able to reach 62 mph from a stop in six seconds flat and go on to an Autobahn-worthy top speed of 152 mph. It will likely be fitted with a start/stop system in order to keep fuel economy in check.
A number of less powerful diesel- and gasoline-burning engines will also be available, though whether or not the oil-burners will be available on our side of the pond is up in the air. At the other end of the spectrum, Alfa’s answer to the potent M3 will be a hot-rodded version of the Giulia called Quadrifoglio Verde powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6 rated at over 480 horsepower.
The Giulia will be offered with both manual and dual-clutch transmissions, though Alfa understandably predicts that the take-up rate for the automatic will be a lot higher in the United States. Rear-wheel drive will come standard, and a few models will be available with all-wheel drive.
Alfa has been keeping silent about the Giulia, and some media outlets report that it will even be called something else entirely. We’ll have all of the details next fall when the long-awaited sedan is introduced at the Frankfurt Motor Show.