2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia QV new car review

This is the moment of truth for Alfa Romeo.

The Italian brand wants to compete with the big German three - Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz - as the fourth European premium brand. But it has been a long time since the company has had a car equal of its cross-border rivals.

The new Giulia Quadrifoglio Verde (QV for short) is THAT car; the one which the brand has been waiting a long time for. First revealed in June 2015 the Giulia QV has finally arrived on Australian roads.

Drive has already sampled the car on racetracks in Italy and Australia but this week the time finally came to see if the new Alfa Romeo could cut it in the real world.

While the mainstream Giulia models are coming shortly, the brand is leading with its strongest model, the QV, that is aimed directly at the iconic BMW M3 and Mercedes-AMG C63.

It is a bold aspiration for a brand on the comeback trail but after driving the Giulia QV on the challenging Oxley Highway in northern New South Wales this week the Germans should at least be looking over their shoulders.

We've gone over the specifications of the Giulia QV many times but for the record here they are again; The car is built on an all-new rear-wheel drive platform that is dubbed 'Giorgio' and has been developed by former Ferrari engineer Roberto Fedeli (the man responsible for the Ferrari 458 Speciale and LaFerrari). Not only is it important to the Giulia, but it will underpin all eight new Alfa Romeo models due by 2020.

Under the bonnet is a newly developed 2.9-litre twin-turbo V6 that produces 375kW of power and 600Nm of torque. It is coupled to an eight-speed automatic transmission. A manual version is available overseas but has not been engineered for right-hand drive markets.

Alfa Romeo has focused on keeping weight as low as possible so has made signficant use of carbon fibre. All Giulia models get a carbon fibre driveshaft and the QV's bonnet, roof and rear spoiler are all made from the same lightweight material.

We've already discovered that the QV is plenty of fun on a racetrack in our previous drives, but often a car that excels on the wide and smooth environment of a circuit can be a little too narrowly focused out in the real world.

In the Giulia though any fear of that situation is quickly erased when you get behind the wheel. The first element to impress is the ride quality. Leave the adaptive drive mode switch, labelled DNA (for Dynamic, Natural and Advanced efficiency plus a Race mode in the QV), in its Natural setting and the QV soaks up the bumps with the compliance of a genuine luxury car. Even in Dynamic the suspension retains good bump control, to the point that never during our time in the car did it thump or jar over a blemish in the surface.

At speed, the Giulia QV feels solid, stable and responsive. Alfa's focus on lightness comes shining through, as the QV responds with the same light touch you expect from a sports car.

The steering is worth special mention. It is incredibly accurate, reacting faster than any of its rivals - so fast it takes a little while to adjust your driving to suit. Arguably it could use more weighting to help improve the feel and feedback.

The performance that impressed us on the track translates to the road as well. The twin-turbo V6 has plenty of punch and thanks to a limited slip differential and torque limiting in the lower revs the power delivery is smooth, eleminating the traction control intrusion that is common in its rivals.

While its performance off the mark is impressive enough, it is the Giulia's ability to build speed when on the move that really blows you away. The Giulia QV may be giving away two cylinders to the V8 C63 but it feels every bit as quick in the real world.

Pulling the car up is handled by six-piston Brembo brakes with 360mm discs at the front. There is an optional carbon ceramic set-up available too but during the course of our road drive the sharp bite and steady pedal feel of the standard QV brakes proved more than up to the task.

In fact, the Giulia QV is a complete package that is genuinely capable of taking on the big German three, specifically the BMW M3 and Mercedes-AMG C63 S.

Is it a better sports sedan than those two? We'll reserve our judgement until we can compare them side-by-side in the coming weeks. But based on our initial road impression the Giulia QV is a brilliant first step on Alfa Romeo's journey back to relevance.

2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia QV pricing and specifications

On sale: Now

Price: From $143,900 plus on-road costs

Engine: 2.9-litre V6 twin-turbo petrol

Power: 375kW at 5600rpm

Torque: 600Nm at 2500-5000rpm

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic, rear-wheel drive

Fuel use: 8.2L/100km