Design driven: Alfa Romeo Giulia Intensa

The Intensa is more well-mannered than its fiery Quadrifoglio sibling, but there is no escaping that Italian flair. The tricolore flag sits proudly on the wing mirrors and centre console, while a combination of muscular bodywork, dual tailpipes and aggressively-figure-hugging seats make clear this is more than a motorway muncher.

As usual, Alfa Romeo’s sedan offering competes with the Audi A4, BMW 3 Series and Mercedes C-Class, among others. And like Alfas before it – the 159 and 156 – it feels more of a design exercise than its competitors, something that prioritises form ever so slightly above function.

This is probably unfair as by all accounts it is very capable, but there is certainly a strong design team behind it, many of whom know the brand inside-out. The original design was led by Marco Tencone (credited with the Alfa Romeo 4C concept, fifth-gen Maserati Quattroporte and numerous Lancias) and long-time exterior design chief Alessandro Maccolini who has been with the brand for nearly three decades. It first launched in 2016 and was only recently given a subtle refresh, proving a remarkably durable piece of design from the past decade.

The Giulia is deceptively compact and appears far larger in images than in the metal. Its 19” rims – comparatively small by modern standards – look oversized from some angles, with seemingly painted on tyres stretched over like pastry.

The intricacy of those ‘petal’ wheels are the perfect complement to the car's otherwise clean forms and the design team clearly spent time and energy to get those proportions correct. Particularly from the rear three quarter view, the diamond-cut constellation of rings brings a level of intricacy that accents the overall package. Red is the correct colour for any Alfa Romeo and Etna Red particularly so, creating all the intended shadows and highlights of that carefully sculpted bodywork.

The exterior will rightly capture attentions, especially with the recent facelift which gives more of a hard-nosed ‘Paddington stare’ to the face of the car. But the good news continues inside under the direction of chief interior designer Inna Kondakova and her team.

Our test car came with an understated black interior – black seats, carpets, headliner, door cards, IP, arm rest and steering wheel — which might initially sound a little dull. But the collection of flat and satin finishes create useful contrast, separated further by carbon-effect inlays and polished brightwork around the air vents, central steering wheel spoke, gear selector paddles and intricate speaker covers. Even the aluminium foot pedals are a nice touch and red stitching break things up further, all of which is testament to CMF boss Roberto Corongiu and his team. It is a calming space and on long drives that deep, flowing dash frames the horizon ahead nicely. It all feels very well resolved.

Our test car came with the optional leather seat pack which is soft to the touch and visually looks spot on thanks to that ‘cannelloni’ design. However, it took longer than one would normally expect to settle in and really get comfortable. It feels more as though you are perched on those prominent side bolsters rather than hugged by them, seemingly designed for more slender Italian forms than CDN’s deputy editor. So much so that we had to stop mid drive to play around with the settings to correct things. Everything is electrically adjustable, so it wasn’t too much of a faff, and it was a pleasure to drive over the following seven days.

The touchscreen is where things fall down slightly, more in the way that widgets are grouped and driver assistance settings are hidden. The iDrive-style toggle ahead of the arm rest is far easier to use while driving with a simple spin and click eliminating any double taps or missed swipes. The screen itself is nicely shrouded in an inset cave which helped to reduce glare (we tested the car during a heat wave). The starter button on the steering wheel never ceased to delight, either. “It’s a race car!”

In terms of drivability, our test car for the week came with high praise from Alfa Romeo leadership, who suggested this was indeed the pick of the bunch as an all-rounder.

It offers plenty of punch and on cold start does introduce itself with a throaty burble, but this soon settles and – certainly within the well-insulated cabin – there is very little theatre while on the move. Wind down the windows and the unmistakable whoosh of air being sucked into the turbo is a welcome presence, but we did find ourselves pining for the warble of that V6 from the Quadrifoglio.

That aside it grips the road very nicely and remains level around tight turns, with the option for some aggressive gear shifts in sport mode. There was no lack of confidence in its ability to string together chicane-like A-roads and the ride remained exceptionally comfortable even on rougher surfaces. A reported 38mpg (about on par with what we managed over a week) is a plus over the thirsty ‘Quad but frankly nothing to write home about.  

The crucial takeaway and one that needs little explanation is that we were sad to see the Giulia leave and immediately fell deep into the classifieds following its departure. And how pleasant it is that a strong design is backed by solid driving dynamics; this may not be the sportiest variant of the Giulia, but it does a good job of masquerading as such. Accomplished work from Turin.

Alfa Romeo Giulia Intensa

2.0-litre turbo petrol

0-62mph: 5.6 seconds

MPG (l/100km): 38.2 (7.4)

Power/torque: 280bhp/400Nm

Price OTR (with extras): £52,650 (£56,400)

Key design team leaders:

Head of Design - Marco Tencone

Head of Exterior Design / Lead Exterior Designer - Alessandro Maccolini

Head of Interior Design / Lead Interior Designer - Inna Kondakova

Head of UX Design - Peter Jansen

Head of CMF Design - Roberto Corongiu