“I am someone who places great value on detail. That was always the case, even in my days as a racing driver.
A comment by Niki Lauda, the Austrian racing driver, motorsport executive and aviation entrepreneur who competed in Formula One from 1971 to 1979 and from 1982 to 1985.
Lauda won three Formula One World Drivers’ Championships and, at the time of his retirement, held the record for most podium finishes. In 1978, Formula One was at the pinnacle of motorsports and that year Lauda joined forces with Alfa Romeo’s F1 team.
Some background: More than a century ago, Enzo Ferrari signed a racing driver’s contract with Alfa Romeo and the seed of what would later go on to become Ferrari was sown. It is very likely that if Enzo hadn’t begun racing for Alfa, he would never have gone on to found the Scuderia Ferrari racing team.
This month, we tested Alfa’s SUV Imbrida, which blends bold Italian style, clever tech and hatchback charm and marks the brand’s bold leap into the electric era, blending classic Italian flair with modern tech and practicality. It forms Alfa Romeo Australia’s two-variants, one-trim Junior range with the Elettrica Junior Alfa’s first all-electric vehicle with a fully electric powertrain.
Alfa Romeo is owned by Stellantis, which means the Junior shares a platform with numerous models from six other brands under the global corporation’s umbrella, including the Jeep Avenger and Peugeot 2008. Sales have been slow for both these cars, but Alfa is hoping the Junior can tap into new buyer groups to turn that around.
A test run from Brisbane to Beerwah on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast stirred the racing driver within. Our ‘racetrack’ was the Bruce Highway so it was foot to the pedal whenever the maximum 110 km sign came into view.
The Junior Ibrida is priced at $45,900 before on-road costs, making it $12,000 cheaper than the all-electric Elettrica flagship.
Like Niki Lauda says the devil is in the detail so here’s some of the detail for the our test Imbrida:
- Exterior colour: Blue Navigli with black roof.
- Number of cylinders: 3.
- Electric motor (kW): 21.
- Power: (kW @ rpm) 100 @ 5500.
- Torque: (Nm @ rpm) 230 @ 1750.
- Combined power (kW): 107.
- Transmission: dual clutch.
- Number of speeds: 6.
- Acceleration: 0-100 km 8.5 secs.
- Max speed: 206 km/hr.
Safety features include adaptive cruise, lane keeping for Level 2 autonomy, parking sensors, blind-spot detection and traffic sign recognition.
The Ibrida powertrain pairs a 1.2-litre three-cylinder turbo (100kW/230Nm) with a 48V mild-hybrid system. The electric motor integrated into the six-speed dual-clutch transmission enabling electric-only driving up to 150 km/h with light throttle.
Features such as e-Launch and e-Parking help achieve the impressive 4.1L/100 km fuel consumption figure and like all Alfa’s Romeos, the Junior comes with five-year unlimited-kilometre warranty.
The seats are firm and supportive, but there’s only single-zone climate control and a six-speaker stereo … so what?..
The back seat is roomy for a small SUV, thanks to impressive packaging, and the boot is likewise surprisingly spacious. An adjustable cargo floor is a nice touch.
The Elettrica Junior retains front-wheel drive with a single electric motor rated at 115kW/260Nm.
Despite the higher outputs, acceleration is slightly slower at 9 seconds to 100 km/h. The difference comes down to a 1545 kg tare weight for the Elettrica, versus 1280kg for the Ibrida.
Alpha rates the driving range for the Junior Elettrica is 407 km, and energy consumption is listed at 15.2kWh/100km.
The all-electric Junior is equipped with a 54kWh (gross) lithium-ion battery with a 51 kWh useable capacity.
The battery can be recharged at a maximum of 11 kW on an AC charger, or up to 100 kW on a compatible DC charger, allowing a 20-80% top-up in a claimed 27 minutes.
Detailed changes between the two powertrains relate primarily to the mechanical specification with differences in boot space (415L hybrid, 400L EV), rear brake discs (249 mm hybrid, 268 mm EV), rear suspension (torsion beam on both, with a Panhard bar on the hybrid only), and wheelbase (2557 mm hybrid, 2562 mm EV). Other changes include visible exhaust tips and shift paddles on the hybrid but not fitted to the EV.
Faced with established rivals such as the Audi Q2, Jeep Avenger and Lexus LBX, can the Alfa junior compete. We think so … magnets also for the high-status-seeking alpha male and female looking for high performance, style and appearance of a racing car but at a very challenging competitive price.
Congratulazioni Alpha!
