I studied graphic design at college and part of the syllabus was to learn the art of design. Basically, we learned the difference between good and bad design, because everything is designed, even the ‘stop’ sign, someone had to design that. Working for the best advertising agencies in the world, you get trained to spot bad or good design in under three seconds. This reminds me of when I crashed my B7 Audi S4. My mother cried, and those tears were not for me. I suspect she was mourning the loss of my beautiful designer car that
Another thing about design is that, the simpler the design, the more difficult it gets to create. It takes years to understand color, lines, shape and form in order to create a simple elegant design.
On a Wednesday morning, I landed in Cape Town for the launch of the new Alfa Romeo Giulia. We got picked up in classic Alfa Romeo Guila’s from the 1970’s. Personally, I thought that was a nice touch. I rode with a gentleman by the name of Peter Smith, who shared the history of Alfa Romeo and to be honest, I didn’t know about the rich history Alfa Romeo had. Outside of my memory of the 145 in the township. Actually, I didn’t like any other designs besides the 145 and the 159, those are the only designs that stood out for me under the Alfa brand.
We arrived at Johaan Rupert’s farm for the presentation and a brief history lesson about Alfa Romeo. Only then did the penny drop about why Jeremy Clarkson loves the brand so much – it’s because of the history. Alfa Romeo has a rich history, which I feel has not been explored or shared enough. After the presentation, we stepped in to the race track that is on the farm to have a go at the new Alfa Romeo Giulia GV. The design of this car is flawless in my eyes, less lines on the side, the back looks very ‘mean’, like how a fast car should look. The front looks very sexy and sporty as well. You know how some manufacturers make a sporty version of a sedan, but you ask yourself why it doesn’t look mean or sporty? this one doesn’t have that problem. The front seats are carbon fiber and it looks like a driver’s car, the design again is minimal, not cluttered so you can see and reach everything you need.
Another thing about this car is fast! Yes, I know that a lot of cars are fast out there, but there is something special about this car that speaks to the artistic side of me. It’s made for those who want to stand out, so if you are one of those crazy ones, who don’t fit in with everyone and everything, this one is the car for you. This is one Alfa, that will get that street cred in the hood. It might even get a name as well. As fast as it is, it’s still solid on the road and corners.
When we were done with the GV, we took the scenic route back to the airport with the 2.0-liter version of the new Giulia. Even on the open road the Giulia is solid. What I found annoying, was that you can’t connect to the Bluetooth while the car is in motion. I did however, love the navigation dashboard for its minimalistic design which is very hard to achieve.
Sadly, I never got the chance to test the sound system out, because I was driving with two other old people in the car, lol! Overall, this is a brilliant car from Alfa Romeo. I wonder if Alfa has improved in the reliability department because everything else is great about this car.
It’s a terrific creation, albeit quite expensive for its natural size segment. As tempted you may be to compare it to BMW M4 and Mercedes-AMG C63S, it straddles two segments. It costs nearly as much as an E63 S, yet it is peers to the C63 with M5 beating speed. This can be a drawback to some and an attraction to others. Either way, it’s a staggeringly accomplished car and Alfa Romeo needs to be applauded. For ZAR 1.4 Million, you can have the standard model in your driveway. More money can be spent on RACE versions or MOPAR accessories your choice. – PetroSexual