There is no shortage of blistering quick and ultra high performance SUV’s in today’s extensive automotive market and while Alfa Romeo has has been responsible for producing some of the most beautiful cars in the world, it now proves its caliber in building fast SUVs too.
Determined to stamp their mark in what is a lucrative segment in the automotive market, the legacy-drenched Italian automaker claimed the title of the world’s fastest production SUV in the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio around the legendary 20.7 km Nurburgring circuit. It set a record lap time of 7 minutes 51.7 seconds, a new benchmark that is eight seconds faster than the previous production SUV record.
The Quadrifoglio, the first SUV in Alfa Romeo’s long and illustrious history was piloted by Fabio Franca. He was also responsible for setting the track record for the fastest four-door sedan in the world on the same the track with the Giulia Quadrifoglio, the model that sits just above the Giulia Veloce, with a time of just 7 minutes and 32 seconds.
The beating heart of the Quadrifoglio is 2.9-litre twin turbo V6 delivering 510 hp and 600 Nm paired to an eight-speed automatic transmission, capable of shifting gears within 150 milliseconds in Race mode. Power is delivered to all four corners with the standard Q4 all-wheel drive system.
Aside from producing the most horsepower per litre in its class, the Quadrifoglio also features extensive lightweight materials to deliver perfect 50:50 weight distribution, segment-leading torsional rigidity and the most direct steering available.
It also features a four-mode Alfa DNA Pro selector with Race mode, a torque vectoring differential, Quadrifoglio-tuned adaptive suspension and a cylinder deactivation system. Optional upgrades include carbon fibre Sparco racing seats and Brembo carbon ceramic brakes.
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