BILLION DOLLAR BABY

This famously expensive to develop Alfa is now enticingly cheap to own

- ALEX WOLSTENHOLME

Unbelievably, it has been a decade since Alfa Romeo revived the Giulia name for its achingly pretty junior executive saloon, the first of just two models to use the billion-dollar Giorgio platform that took mass-produced Alfas back to rear-wheel drive for the first time since the 1980s - and made them fantastically engaging to drive.

Alfa recently confirmed the car will remain in production until 2027 while the firm reconsiders its plans for an EV-only successor, which is good news in our book - and even better, you can now buy one of these thoroughbreds for less than a new Dacia Spring, while a 503bhp V6 Quadrifoglio version is attainable for no more than a mid-spec Duster.

Despite never having received a proper facelift, the Giulia hasn't become any less alluring. Model-year updates have adjusted the bumpers and changed the colour palette and a slightly slicker tri-LED headlight motif was added in 2023, but Alfa has never felt the need for stylistic revolution, so even the earliest cars still look fresh.