Fiat Chrysler has no compact or mid-size sedan to offer for the 2017 model year. Affordable, high-volume four-doors from established American brands weren’t working, and so the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 were jettisoned. In the vast space below the full-size Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger, then, expectations fall solely on the shoulders of a luxury sports sedan from a relaunched Italian brand that last sold a four-door here in 1995. Oh, and the most expensive version of that new car is going to start at $73,595.
That’s for the 505-hp 2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio, on sale this month at 156 dealerships (basically, wherever you might find an existing Maserati or Fiat franchise). For its princely sum, the four-leaf-clovered Quadrifoglio offers owners a Ferrari-derived twin-turbocharged V-6, all-wheel drive, torque vectoring, various carbon-fiber body parts, and admittedly delectable performance and style?read our First Drive review here. Initially, the Quadrifoglio will offer a choice of seven exterior colors, four wheel styles, and three paint finishes for the brake calipers. Navigation, blind-spot monitoring, an adaptive suspension, an electrically powered active front splitter, and a red start button mounted on the steering wheel (just like in a Ferrari 488GTB!) all are included.
Even better, the Quadrifoglio’s 191-mph top speed doesn’t need to be unlocked via an option, as is standard practice at Mercedes-AMG and BMW M. But even thou...