{"id":2085779,"date":"2026-08-10T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-09T21:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2085779"},"modified":"2026-08-10T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-09T21:00:00","slug":"alfa-romeo-giulia-quadrifoglio-luna-rossa-review-not-for-the-shy-and-retiring","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2085779","title":{"rendered":"Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio Luna Rossa review: not for the shy and retiring"},"content":{"rendered":"
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What on earth has happened to that Giulia Quadrifoglio?<\/h3>\n

Ah yes, this is one of the crazy creations of Alfa and Maserati\u2019s relatively new (and joint) \u2018BOTTEGAFUORISERIE\u2019 skunkworks division. You may know the \u2018few-off\u2019 folk from their work on the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale<\/a> and the track-only Maserati MCXtrema<\/a>, but what you\u2019re looking at here is slightly more\u2026 cosmetic.<\/p>\n

Quite something. What\u2019s the reasoning behind it?<\/h3>\n

Well, it\u2019s called the Giulia Quadrifoglio<\/a> Luna Rossa, and it\u2019s a limited-run special \u2013 based on the brilliant but also rather ancient sports saloon, of course \u2013 that pays tribute to the Italian sailing team of the same name. And yes, Alfa is one of its sponsors. How did you guess?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Just 10 will reach customers, although as you can see from the graphic on the dash, we\u2019re driving a late prototype that\u2019s described as number zero. Changes over the standard car include a hand-painted shiny silver finish that apparently mimics \u201cthe metallic effect of steel\u201d and has been designed to replicate the colour of the Luna Rossa AC75 boat<\/a> that competed in the 37th America’s Cup back in 2024. Imagine trying to explain that to your mates down the pub.<\/p>\n

Anyway, you can also opt for a two-tone livery with a matte black bonnet and bootlid, while special \u2018Luna Rossa\u2019 graphics run down the doors. Oh, and the badges get a new red background. The extra stickers you see here are because we drove and photographed the car while tracking the 2026 edition of the Mille Miglia<\/a>. But yes, that is apparently how the repainted 19-inch wheels are supposed to look.<\/p>\n

Talk to me about that wing\u2026<\/h3>\n

Eye-catching, isn\u2019t it? We\u2019re told that the \u2018dual profile\u2019 design is to emulate the two hydrofoils that lift the sailboat out of the water and allow it to glide across the surface. Here of course it\u2019s working the other way, and when combined with a few more carbon bits stuck onto the sills and front bumper, Alfa says that the Luna Rossa can generate up to five times more downforce than a regular Giulia Quadrifoglio. You\u2019re looking at around 140kg at its top speed of 186mph.<\/p>\n

The kit also cleans up the air and reduces turbulence though, so we\u2019re promised the \u201cexcellent original balance\u201d of the standard car and just a 5mph hit on the top whack. Another one you can attempt to explain down the local.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Alfa<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Any changes to the way it drives?<\/h3>\n

Well, even though it was originally released before Homer penned his screenplay for Christopher Nolan \u2013 and even with the mid-engined 33 Stradale in the frame \u2013 the Giulia Quadrifoglio remains the very best car that Alfa Romeo makes.<\/p>\n

Thankfully, the shouty BOTTEGAFUORISERIE gang clearly agreed, because mechanically they\u2019ve mostly left the car alone. That means you still get a twin-turbo V6 up front with 513bhp being sent to the rear wheels through a ZF eight-speed auto gearbox and \u2013 as of a mid-life update back in the year 1066 \u2013 a proper mechanical limited-slip diff. Nice.<\/p>\n

Same brakes as standard. Same suspension setup too, although that was also tweaked with the hot Giulia\u2019s facelift<\/a> and means it’s the most comfortable super saloon on the market. Plus, you\u2019ve got the \u2018bumpy road\u2019 button if you feel the need to soften it further.<\/p>\n

The brakes could do with a bit more bite for big stops, but through corners you get wonderful feedback from the steering and excellent rear-drive balance.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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How\u2019s that engine?<\/h3>\n

It\u2019s a strange world where just over 500bhp doesn\u2019t actually feel like a huge amount, but the Luna Rossa is still a very quick car. The 0-62mph sprint takes 3.9 seconds, but the V6 only really gets into its stride (and really starts to sing through the Akrapovic exhaust) above 3,000rpm.<\/p>\n

Almost more interesting to drive around a bit of turbo lag these days though, isn\u2019t it? Plus, it means you\u2019ll use those gorgeous wheel-mounted paddles and the gearbox\u2019s manual mode more often. Said \u2018box can be a little lazy when left to its own devices.<\/p>\n

Anything new inside?<\/h3>\n

See that funky striped trim on the dash? That\u2019s a wafer-thin piece of the actual Luna Rossa\u2019s sail, which has been machined and mounted inside with Luna Rossa logos and each car\u2019s production number.<\/p>\n

The seats are also the carbon-backed Sparcos that are usually optional on the V6 Giulia, but here they\u2019re trimmed in a special material that\u2019s designed to look and feel like the Personal Flotation Devices worn by the AC75\u2019s crew. Alfa hasn\u2019t confirmed whether they\u2019re actually waterproof, but if they are this could be a viable alternative to the Honda Jazz Crosstar<\/a> for those who suffer from a touch of incontinence.<\/p>\n

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\"Alfa<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Elsewhere you get plenty of carbon fibre trim in the Luna Rossa, and it all feels very 2010s with proper buttons, switches and dials for almost all the controls. Yes, you get digital dials and a laggy 8.8-inch touchscreen, but the latter can also be controlled using a proper rotary dial. This is how interiors are supposed to be laid out.<\/p>\n

How much will it cost me?<\/h3>\n

Erm, well\u2026 you can\u2019t have one. Unfortunately all 10 of the Luna Rossas were already spoken for when Alfa first showed it off publicly at the 2026 Brussels Motor Show. It didn\u2019t even announce a price. You can still buy a standard Giulia Quadrifoglio though, and we should all do just that immediately.<\/p>\n

Prices now start at \u00a387,055, and it\u2019s definitely prettier in a standard metallic shade and without the twin wings anyway. The standard car still gets a 9\/10 over a decade after it was launched<\/a>, but we\u2019ll knock a point off the Luna Rossa just for those wheels\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What on earth has happened to that Giulia Quadrifoglio? Ah yes, this is one of the crazy creations of Alfa and Maserati\u2019s relatively new (and joint) \u2018BOTTEGAFUORISERIE\u2019 skunkworks division. You may know the \u2018few-off\u2019 folk from their work on the Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale and the track-only Maserati MCXtrema, but what you\u2019re looking at here […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,237],"class_list":["post-2085779","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-topgear-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2085779","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2085779"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2085779\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2085779"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2085779"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2085779"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}