Review: Alfa Romeo Junior Elettrica

The Alfa Romeo Junior Elettrica Speciale is a front-wheel drive group platform hatchback with electric or mild hybrid petrol motors and drivetrains. As such, though, it is the first electric Alfa Romeo.

It is composed from a shedload of parts from the US-European mega group Stellantis which includes Alfa Romeo, Abarth, Fiat, Maserati, Jeep, Opel Vauxhall and Peugeot Citroën.

Alfa Romeo’s great stylists have to work with the Stellantis mould which in this case gave us the Peugeot 2008 and Vauxhall Mokka and Jeep Avenger.

The cooking motor, tested here in second tier Speciale trim produces 154bhp and 192 lb ft of torque through an automatic gearbox. The 54 kWh battery with a heat pump delivers a claimed range of 250 miles and a 0-60 time inside nine seconds. Prices start at £33,895 and £35,695 respectively.

You want quicker with a capital Q? The Junior Veloce gets bespoke use of a 278bhp, 254 lbft re-tune of the same 54kWh battery to give 0-62mph in 5.9 seconds and a reduced range of 216 miles. If you drive like you’re really super excited with the grip from the limited slip differential then expect many fewer miles.

It costs £42,295. Ouch, but remember, electric cars pay no London congestion charges at present; no street pollution as you whisper past schools and playgrounds; low on-the-road taxes and servicing costs; zero pay roll tax if it is a company hack.

If you like the Junior for itself and are not in the market for an EV (costs, can’t charge at home, want a longer range without half-hour re-charges etc) then Alfa Romeo has added a 1.2 litre mild hybrid petrol turbo with a six-cog dual clutch automatic gearbox, the Ibrida. It could cost less than £30,000 and an all wheel drive Q4 version may be imported. Chat to your dealer.

Back to now and the 154bhp Elettrica Speciale which did look special with its extra-cost gloss black over Brera red paint and a tech pack adding £2,550 to the bill. It brought navigation, smart matrix headlamps, wireless phone charging and a powered tailgate with kick activation.

The matt black shield grille with an almost abstract portion of the brand’s logo is clever. Those wanting something more obvious can specify Alfa Romeo in cursive script.

The shield sits between triple LED headlamps and looks imposing, much different from the faces endemic in EVs. Pub chat: for pedestrian safety the number plate is central not offset to the nearside.

Further external separation from its Stellantis kin is at the back, which is bordered by a cowled tail which is too close to that of the Kia EV6 to rule out flattery.

Inside there is a smart fascia with tap button controls for quick access to the ventilation below the mid-level information screen which worked well enough.

Not the best but you can live with it. There are controls on the leather steering wheel and voice command too.

There is plenty of active and passive safety stuff. Storage ideas fade in the back, just facing map pockets, no door bins, no ventilation ports and one USB socket.

There are supportive sports seats front and back, smart in leatherette with central red fade in the herring bone panels. Shoulder width of 54 inches and a minimum load deck width of 38 inches is tight.

Users of Vauxhalls, Peugeots and Citroëns will recognise various hand controls and the slide selector for the gears.

Power and steering response can be altered quickly using a rocker switch. Dynamic mode sharpens things up with maximum bhp.

I ran it mostly in “natural” and on an Octopus public charger paid £27.69 for a gain of 183 miles, taking the battery to 91 per cent and a range of 231 miles in 45 minutes on a 50kw charger. The rate was around 85p/kWh. A slower home charge on an EV tariff would cost about £2.80.

The ride comfort was good and quiet on deep walled Goodyears. Handling at speed took a little learning to feel confident — a combination of the tall tyres, slightly higher chassis and the weight balance. It’s no Giulia, the last classic rear-wheel-drive Alfa, but little is. The brand is going electric, but the existence of a petrol hybrid Junior suggests not as quickly as we thought. Carmakers are back-tracking until more of us accept what many of us do not want.

Alfa Romeo Junior Elettrica Speciale

Price: from £35,695.

Battery: 54 kWh capacity

Power: 154bhp

Torque: 192lb/ft

Transmission: single ratio automatic

Top speed: 93mph

0-62mph: nine seconds

Economy: 4.1 miles per kWh

Claimed range: 250 miles