In 2015, Alfa Romeo got its second wind. The Italian brand gave us the Giulia - its first, rear-wheel-drive, sporty sedan in 30 years – which allowed it to reappear on enthusiast’s radar. A year later, Alfa Romeo introduced the Stelvio – a sporty SUV, underpinned by the same platform. It quickly became apparent that the rear-wheel-drive, Giorgio platform was more than capable to take on the German offerings, especially when underpinning the Giulia sedan. Here are a few reasons why the Alfa Romeo GiuliaSport Ti may be all you need from a performance sedan.

Depending on who you ask, this could be either a good or a bad thing. Among other things, this means that it’s styled with passion. The design was done in-house, in Centro Stile Alfa Romeo, by Marco Tencone and you have to agree it’s one of the more refreshing designs we have seen of late. While aesthetics are subjective, you have to agree it’s more exciting to look at than the latest offerings from Mercedes or Audi. Moreover, given that it is the first, Italian, rear-wheel-drive sedan in a few decades makes it that much more special. Even after the Alfa Romeo Giulia’s update for the 2022 model year, the design has remained the same, and we are glad.

If you are in the market for a sedan, you probably care about practicality too. While the Alfa Romeo Giulia is one of the more aesthetically pleasing offerings in the segment, it manages to combine form and function. The interior not only has that special, Alfa feel, but is also spacious enough for four adults. Moreover, with 16.95 cubic feet (480 liters), the Giulia boasts the same cargo capacity as a BMW 3 Series. Not really a surprise, given the Italians benchmarked the Giulia against the Bavarian sedan.

You may not think much of a 2.0-liter inline-four, but the newly-developed, GME engine family is a pleasant surprise. With 280 horsepower (206 kilowatts) at 5,250 RPM and 295 pound-feet (400 Nm) at 2,250 RPM, the Giulia is able to rocket to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 5.1 seconds. Of course, part of the credit goes to the ZF, eight-speed automatic with very short first through third gears, and the optional, Q4 all-wheel-drive system. In the UK, however, you can only have the Giulia Veloce as a rear-wheel drive only.

More importantly, the engine comes, from the factory, with forged internals, and is capable of tremendous performance gains with just basic mods. With a downpipe and a tune, the Giulia is able to, consistently, reach 60 mph (97 km/h) in 4.5 seconds and a sub-13.0-second quarter-mile. At the same time, the Giulia’s punchy, four-banger is able to return over 28.0 mpg combined, according to the WLTP standard.

Despite Alfa Romeo being an old brand with proud racing history, it is, unfortunately, plagued by a dodgy reputation in terms of reliability. While the brand’s ranking in terms of reliability is going down, the Giulia has been described as a very reliable car. According to a survey, Giulia ranked fifth out of 32 brands, among which were Honda, Subaru, Mercedes, Porsche, and others.

J.D. Power consumer reviews have an average score of 4.7 out of 5, with 55 reviews, and Edmund’s consumer reviews have an average score of 4.3 out of 5, with 22 reviews. There are, of course, minor quirks with the Giulia, as with most cars, the most common of which you learn about here, but overall, the Giulia is a surprisingly stout machine, especially for an Alfa. The only downside to Alfa’s turbo-four may be the soundtrack, which is something you can fix with an aftermarket exhaust if you so choose.

It’s a well-known fact that modern-day cars, regardless of the segment, have become quite a bit heavier than their older counterparts from 10 to 15 years ago. This is due to the fact that modern vehicles are stuffed with high-tech features as well as passive and active safety. While the Alfa Romeo Giulia does not lack safety, it also managed to keep the weight down. In Sport Ti guise (which replaces the Veloce trim), the Italian, sporty sedan has a curb weight of 3,150 pounds (1,429 kg).

To put things in perspective, a similarly-equipped, 2022 Audi A4 45TFSI tips the scales at 3,461 pounds (1,570 kg), and a 2022 BMW 330i tips the scales at 3,516 pounds (1,595 kg). Out of the Giulia Veloce’s direct rivals, the Lexus IS300 is the heaviest, tipping the scales at 3,847 pounds (1,745 kg). The Alfa Romeo Giulia is no Lotus Elise, but all of a sudden, it seems lightweight when compared to its rivals.

The Alfa Romeo Giulia is still on sale and can be bought brand new. While it starts under $40,000, the 280-horsepower, Sport Ti will set you back around $46,000. For comparison, the twin-turbo V-6 Giulia Quadrofoglio starts at $75,050 while the track-focused Giulia GTAm costs a whopping $150,000. All things considered, the Giulia Sport Ti is a very appealing proposition in terms of bang for your buck.

Alfa Romeo, as a brand, exists since 1910 and throughout the first 50 years of its existence, it was mostly known for its successful racecars. Enzo Ferrari started his racing career there and would later modify Alfa Romeo cars for racing, before founding his own brand, Ferrari. The Giulia, naturally, is part of this heritage as well as a spiritual successor to the Alfa Romeo 75 – Alfa’s last rear-wheel-drive sedan that came before the Giulia.

The Alfa Romeo was a breath of fresh air when it debuted in 2015, and it still is today. With that said, the days of the stylish, Italian sedan, as we know it, are numbered. The Giulia got a refresh for 2022, which means it will be around for a little while. We also know that the Giulia name will survive, but for its second generation, which is expected to arrive around 2025, it will be an EV sedan with a 500-mile range. This means that in a few years, you won’t be able to buy a brand new Giulia, powered by an internal-combustion engine. One more reason to enjoy the Italian competitor to the BMW 3 Series, while you can.