2025 Alfa Romeo Giulia Intensa Review: A Penny Too Pretty

There are two ways of looking at the Alfa Romeo Giulia Intensa. The first, as a cut-down Quadrifoglio. Standard on the Intensa are many of the parts that made the Quadrifoglio’s handling so sweet, including the limited-slip differential and Alfa’s Synaptic Damping Control. Driving it, you can certainly feel the two at work. 

Even without the ability to turn traction off in any capacity, the LSD handily enhances grip on corner exit and on the odd occasion when the back end does step out on you, it does so in a controlled and predictable manner before being quickly reigned in by the electronic systems.

The suspension is also still just as good as our staff writer Mike Bartholomew found it to be in his Veloce review. The same double wishbone front and multilink rear setup from across all modern Giulias is still present and holds up just as well, with a supple primary ride and mid-corner poise while only becoming unsettled on rougher surfaces. 

The active component, unique (for the time being) to the Intensa, consists of two modes, the stiffer of which automatically engages when entering ‘Dynamic’ on the handy rotary dial. However, for street driving in the UK, it really was a bit too stiff for my liking and worked only to intensify the otherwise minor secondary ride issues.

So, in the shadow of the dormant Quadrifoglio, the Intensa still manages to shine. But, with that car not making a return until next year, the more apt and relevant comparison lies with the still available Veloce trim. As far as the powertrain goes, the two are identical, the Intensa has the same 2.0 litre turbo four and the same 276bhp. 

The Intensa does, however, benefit from the active suspension that isn’t available at all on the lower spec Veloce. As mentioned, I didn’t actually enjoy the stiffer mode offered by that addition, and so, probably wouldn’t miss it if I were to spring for the Veloce.

What, besides mechanical underpinnings, then, distinguishes the Intensa? The wheels, for a start.. They share the same gorgeous eccentric circles design as the Veloce, but with gold accents instead of the standard diamond cut silver finish and behind them sit black painted callipers with Alfa Romeo emblazoned in the same gold. Depending on the paint choice you combine them with, both make lovely additions. Etna Red makes for a great pairing, might I add.

Other exterior touches extend to full LED adaptive matrix headlights with automatic high beam functionality and a subtle tricolore strip adorning each wing mirror.

Moving inside, the Intensa touches become a little more apparent. Most notable: leather, and lots of it. In an attempt to remedy one of the main complaints about the interiors of previous Giulia models which felt a little cheap, Alfa has covered almost every visible surface in supple cowhide. The dashboard, upper door panels, armrests and steering wheel are wrapped in the stuff and highlighted with tan stitching throughout. Some of the leather is two-tone as well, with tan thumb pads on the steering wheel, which, to me, did look a little off. You may think differently, and that’s ok.. The seats and central armrest also come with Intensa embroidery just to reaffirm your status as a top-trim baller.

Tech is also a highlight on the Intensa. It boasts a 14-speaker Harmon Kardon sound system, complete with a rear subwoofer. It sounds tight and balanced up until about half volume but stroll too far beyond that and it becomes rather boomy. That subwoofer begins to rattle the trim too.

Besides the infotainment, the Intensa also gets a full suite of ADAS systems, including a very competent adaptive cruise control and lane-keeping assistance function. It did throw up a few electrical issues in my short time with it though. But it could just be this particular car, and in its defense, it did ask to be taken to a dealer for a software update. Irritating driver speed warnings and intrusive lane departure warnings are mercifully easy to deactivate with a shortcut in the main menu and a button on the steering wheel respectively.

So the question becomes, rather than saving ~£30,000 over a Quadrifoglio, how much are you gaining for the £5,000 higher starting price versus a Veloce? The answer, unfortunately, is not much. But I do really want those wheels.