Alfa Romeo Giulietta VS Hyundai i30
Alfa Romeo Giulietta
Likes
- Stunning looks
- Great engine
- Big boot
Dislikes
- Poor cabin storage
- Turbo lag
- No reversing camera
Hyundai i30
Likes
- Impressive features list
- Value for money
- Drive incredibly well
Dislikes
- Dual-clutch transmission gets confused in stop/start traffic
- Shorter servicing intervals
- Some safety tech is intrusive
Summary
Alfa Romeo Giulietta
Richard Berry road tests and reviews the new Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce hatch with specs, fuel consumption and verdict.
Nobody just buys an Alfa Romeo, in the same way that nobody goes out and just buys a top hat. Yes it's functional and yes you'll looking amazing in it whether you're male or female, and people will pay you compliments - possibly question your judgement, too, but it's not the obvious choice and buying one is a conscious decision. See, you don't even know if I'm talking about the top hat or the Alfa any more.
At backyard barbecues and dinner parties throughout Australia you'll overhear people saying: "My heart says yes but my head says no." They're not discussing robbing the convenience store on the corner after dessert, but they're more likely to be talking about buying an Alfa Romeo. See Alfas are famous for their stunning beauty, their racing pedigree and their performance, but in the past they've been infamous for their reliability issues. You knew that, right?
The top-of-the-range Giulietta Veloce with the dual-clutch auto is the best reference to the brand's performance pedigree. This version has only just arrived on the market, and follows a major styling and technology update to the Giulietta in 2015.
Like most test cars, we lived with it for a week. Is it too small to be a family car? What's wrong with the glovebox? Is it as racy as it looks? What's with all the water? And is it just me or are my hands too small to drive this car? We'll even be able to point you in the right direction for a guide to Giulietta's reliability.
| Safety rating | |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | 1.7L turbo |
| Fuel Type | Premium Unleaded Petrol |
| Fuel Efficiency | 6.8L/100km |
| Seating | 5 seats |
Hyundai i30
The Hyundai i30 sees an update for the 2025 model line and the base N Line variant gets the best of the new stuff, including a new mild-hybrid powertrain.
This might mean trouble for its nearest rivals, the Toyota Corolla, Mazda3 and Kia Cerato, because the update makes the N Line one of the better base-model hatches to come out in recent years for its segment.
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In this review, we see how it also handles urban life!
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| Safety rating | — |
|---|---|
| Engine Type | — |
| Fuel Type | — |
| Fuel Efficiency | —L/100km |
| Seating | — |
Verdict
Alfa Romeo Giulietta6.3/10
So much right and some things not quite right – the Giulietta has the Alfa Romeo mix of highs and lows which the brand is famous for. There’s no mistaking that this is a unique and sexy looking car, with the practicality of a five-door hatch plus impressive handling and performance.  More heart than head decision here though it seems, but romantic Alfa enthusiasts should adore it.
Have you got a 'classic' Alfa Romeo experience, good or bad? Tell us in the comments below.
Click here to see more Alfa Romeo Giulietta Veloce pricing and spec info.
Hyundai i308.6/10
The updated Hyundai i30 N Line doesn’t look like or perform like a base model.
You really do get bang for your buck here with its features. It’s a good-looking hatch that’s fun to drive in the city or open road and while the multimedia system is basic and occupants will be squished in the rear row, everything else is a big plus.
Design
Alfa Romeo Giulietta8/10
Alfa Romeo couldn't design a boring car even if it was handed a picture of a Toyota Camry and told to copy it or else. The Giulietta is no exception.
There's the deep 'V' grille shared with the new Giulia sedan and 4C sports cars that make up the current Alfa model line-up. There's the bug-eye headlights with pretty inset LEDs and the chiselled bonnet, a side profile which looks like that of a mini Porsche Cayenne and a cute-but-tough bottom with its elegant taillights and twin exhausts.
The latest update brought a honeycomb mesh grille and a slightly different design to the headlight and LED foglight surrounds. The tail pipes were also given a styling tweak, so too were the alloy wheels.
The cabin saw new materials and finishes added. The Veloce had the Alfa Romeo logo stitched into the integrated headrests, shiny sports pedals, and lashings of faux carbon fibre trim on the doors and dash.
You can tell a Veloce from the outside by the red Brembo brake calipers behind the front wheels, 18-inch alloys, its chunkier exhaust tips poking out of the diffuser, red pin-striping to the front and rear bumpers, and the black window surrounds.
Okay, how big or small is it? Here's some dimensions for you. The Guilietta is 4351mm long, 1798mm wide, 1465mm tall and the Veloce with its sports suspension is 9mm lower than the others with 102mm of ground clearance.
Compared to say a Mazda3 hatch the Giulietta is 109mm shorter end-to-end and only 3mm wider. But if you're considering an Giulietta why are you looking at the Mazda3 anyway? That would be sensible - Like comparing Cancer Council hats to top hats.
Hyundai i30
The design memo seems to be to make the i30 N Line look sportier and more purposeful.
They've nailed the design. The i30 is a good-looking hatch that looks like it has European styling.
The reshaped grille features new air intake vents, and stylish V-shaped daytime running lights. The rest of the body looks sharply dressed with new side skirts, reshaped bumper, black side mirrors, dual exhausts and 18-inch alloy wheels.
The cabin has been refreshed with a black headliner, upgraded leather and suede upholstery with contrasting red stitching and an N Line steering wheel and leather gear shifter.
The dashboard features new materials and additional soft touchpoints that make the interior feel like it's not a base model at all.
Practicality
Alfa Romeo Giulietta5/10
Beautiful things tend to favour form over function. The Giuletta tries to do both and succeeds…but also fails in places.
Successes first: despite its coupe looks it's actually a five-door hatch with ‘hidden' handles for the rear doors placed up at window level near the C-pillar. So good is the two-door disguise that our photographer climbed into the back seat through the front door.
Rear legroom is a bit tight back there and at 191cm I can sit behind my driving position but I'd hate for me to be sitting behind me because my knees are digging hard into the seat back.
Headroom isn't much chop either and I literally can't sit in the back seat and hold my head high – a combination of that sloping roofline and the optional double sunroof reduces the head space.
A major practicality fail is the lack of storage throughout the cabin.
My wife's phone kept mysteriously appearing in the footwell every time we left it in the glove box, like there was a tear in the time-space fabric, but then we realised it was slipping through a gap.
There's no centre armrest storage bin in the front – actually there's no centre armrest. There is a pop-up hidey-hole on the dash but with only enough room for a pair of sunglasses.
The two cup holders in the front are small. It's safe to say that unless you have somebody with hands at the ready, ordering drive-thru is possibly out of the question.
Or if you have long arms and can reach the fold down armrest in the back there are two decent sized cup holders along with a small storage space. There are no bottle holders any of the doors, but there is fortunately room for a phone and wallet because there isn't space for them anywhere else.
But wait, the Giulietta is saved from a total storage fail by a large-for-the-class 350-litre boot. That's 70 litres bigger than a Toyota Corolla's and only 14 litres less than the Mazda3.  We could fit the pram, the shopping and the rest of the gear which goes with a military operation such as a trip to the park with a toddler in there.
Hyundai i30
Like most hatches, the front row of the i30 benefits the most when it comes to leg- and headroom. Taller passengers will be most comfortable up front as the rear row doesn't offer all that much legroom. It's squishy behind my driving position and I'm only 168cm tall!
Access however is decent for both rows because of the wide door apertures, but it's a low car to get in and out of because of the 140mm ground clearance. Expect a couple of grunts after a gym session.
The seats in both rows are fairly well-padded and offer the most comfort on shorter journeys. Even with the new powered lumbar support on the drivers seat, fatigue can set in quickly on a longer trip.
Individual storage is excellent throughout the car with a large glovebox that can hold a thick manual, middle console, phone tray, four cupholders, a drink bottle holder in each door, two net map pockets and even a sunglasses holder!
Other than the Kia Cerato, the i30 has one of the largest boots compared to its rivals, at 395L, and it’s enough for road trips and a decent grocery haul. The taller boot lip means you can stack items too but you don’t get a spare wheel in this model, just a tyre mobility kit. The base model also doesn’t get a powered tailgate, but the lid is not heavy at all to operate.
The new digital instrument cluster looks great but the multimedia system is basic and there’s no satellite navigation, so you're reliant on the phone mirroring apps but these maintain a strong connection. The radio is a hit or miss but that’s typical for the grade level.
Charging options are great for a base model with a single USB-A port, three USB-C ports and 12-volt sockets, and a wireless charging pad to choose from.
Price and features
Alfa Romeo Giulietta5/10
The 2016 update saw the Giulietta variants renamed. There's the entry grade $29,990 Super Manual which has a six-speed manual gearbox, then buyers can step up to the Super TCT with a six-speed dual clutch automatic transmission for $34,900 and then there's our test car – the Veloce for $41,990. There's 10 paint colours at your disposal from the colour of our car (Alfa Red) to Perla Moonlight. Only Alfa White comes at no extra cost, the rest are a $500 option.
The Veloce collects the same features as the Super TCT such as a 6.5-inch touch screen, with sat nav, front and rear parking sensors, three drive modes and then adds bi-xenon headlights, 18-inch alloys, leather and Alcantara seats, a flat-bottomed steering wheel, the big exhaust tips and the sports diffuser, tinted rear glass and then less cosmetic features such as sports suspension and launch control.
There's no reversing camera which is disappointing, considering they come standard on some cars half the price.
At this price you'd shop the Veloce against a BMW 120i hatch for $41,900, a Volkswagen Golf GTI for $43,490 or possibly a high-end Mazda3 SP 25 Astina for $37,040.
Hyundai i30
There are two models for the 'regular' i30 and we’re testing the base model, the N Line. Its new price point of $36,000, plus on-road costs, means it's $8940 more expensive than the most affordable rival, the Kia Cerato hatch.
The Mazda 3 Pure hatch is the next at $30,470 and then comes the Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport at $32,110.
However, the base models differ greatly in terms of standard features and the updated i30 N Line delivers upgraded leather and suede upholstery as opposed to the standard cloth. There are now two-USB-C ports in the rear, and a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster that comes standard.
The driver also gets extendable under-thigh and powered lumbar supports to increase comfort.
Key features include wired/wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, keyless entry and start, rain-sensing wipers and dusk-sensing LED headlights. Anyone familiar with base models might know that a lot of those items are not standard features and it’s nice that you don’t have to go up a grade level or two to get them in the new i30 N Line, although you are paying more in the first place.
Other standard features include an 8.0-inch touchscreen multimedia system, dual-zone climate control, a USB-A port, three USB-C ports, three 12-volt sockets, a wireless charging pad, digital radio and a six-speaker sound system.
Under the bonnet
Alfa Romeo Giulietta7/10
The Giulietta Veloce has a 1.75-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine which produce 177kW of power and 340Nm of torque. It's a great engine that lets loose a wonderful scream when pushed hard and the little grunts it makes when it changes gear when driving around normally sound like a giant enjoying his food.
The transmission is a dual-clutch auto which Alfa calls a TCT or twin-clutch transmission. I'm not a fan of them regardless of the brand of car they're in but the Alfa version is better than most of the others in its smoothness at lower speeds and decisiveness.
What about the Giulietta's reliability over time? This version of the car is less than two months old so we can only comment on what it offers as a brand-new vehicle, but you'll find good context in our used review of the earlier 2011-2014 Giulietta.
Hyundai i30
The updated i30 N Line has a new mild-hybrid powertrain that features a 1.5-litre 7 four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine and combines to produce 117kW and 253Nm of torque. This new combo means it has higher outputs than its nearest rivals and you get three drive modes, including Sport which makes those outputs feel even more prevalent.
Like its rivals, the i30 N Line is a front-wheel-drive, but it has a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission which can sometimes feel like it's confused in stop/start traffic.
Efficiency
Alfa Romeo Giulietta7/10
Alfa Romeo says you should see your Veloce drink at a rate of 6.8L/100km during combined driving, but the dash showed more than double that during mainly urban driving while channelling  Enzo Ferrari.
Hyundai i30
The new engine coasts in neutral when you’re not accelerating to improve efficiency and it works for that purpose as my real-world usage of 6.3L/100km isn't too far off the official combined fuel cycle figure of 5.6L.
Based on the official combined fuel cycle and 50L fuel tank, you should see a theoretical driving range of up to 893km, which is downright respectable.
Driving
Alfa Romeo Giulietta6/10
There's so much potential here for a great driving experience such as the accurate and direct steering and great suspension which provides a comfortable ride and great handling, only for all to be let down by turbo lag which kills the responsiveness in the car.
Of the three steering modes: Dynamic, Natural and All Weather, the Dynamic setting was kept on almost always with the other two just feeling too lethargic.
The Giulietta is front-wheel drive and there's a lot of torque being sent to those wheels, but unlike a stack of Alfas in the past there's next to no torque steer. That said, our hill start test on a wet night saw those front wheels scrambling for traction as it accelerated up the slope. Cornering grip from the tyres is excellent, however.
There's some Alfa Romeo ergonomic issues in the cabin we've gotten used to over the years, but just because you're accustomed to something doesn't mean it's okay. For example, the cramped driver's footwell with the brake and accelerator pedals so close that it's easy to hit both at the same time.
The indicator and wiper stalks are also so far from the steering wheel rim that they're almost out of reach – I don't think I have small hands, nobody's ever pointed them out or laughed at them.
And speaking of wipers, the Giulietta is obsessed with keeping itself clean. Pull the wiper stalk towards you to clean the windows and such is the intensity of the spray from both the window washer and the headlight washers it's like you're captaining a fishing trawler that's hit a massive wave at sea. Put the car into reverse and the rear wiper starts squirting and washing.
For Christmas I want Alfa to upgrade their media unit or bin it – the UConnect system disconnected my phone without prompting and isn't intuitive to use.
Hyundai i30
The new powertrain is impressively punchy and you almost feel like you’re driving a hot hatch when you hit the open road because it’s effortless to keep up and overtake when necessary.Â
The steering is firmer than what you’d expect and that makes the car feel heavier than what it is. Cornering is great – barely any roll – but the suspension is not finely tuned, especially for regional roads. But the overall feel is sporty, so it’s forgivable.Â
At lower speeds, the cabin is delightfully quiet and although the exhausts are thrumming with noise, you don’t really hear it! It’s only once you get on the open road that the road noise creeps up but you can hold a convo without raising your voice, so that’s still good.
The i30 is pretty low to the ground and that makes it easy to scrape the bottom of it, especially when you have a full car load, so take ramps and bumps at a slight angle.
Hatches are always the best for parking because you can park ‘em anywhere! The i30 N Line has front and rear parking sensors and a decent reversing camera, so it’s extra easy.
Safety
Alfa Romeo Giulietta6/10
The Alfa Romeo Giulietta has been given the maximum five-star ANCAP rating. It doesn't have the advanced safety technology such as AEB and lane keeping assistance which is now standard on any small hatches for a lot less money.
For child and baby seats there's two top tether and two ISIOFIX points in the back seat.
Hyundai i30
The i30 has a maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating from testing done in 2017 and features seven airbags but, like its rivals, it doesn’t have a front centre airbag yet.Â
Safety features includes items which are often at cost extras for a base model, like blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert.
Other standard items include driver attention warning, safe exit warning, rear occupant alert, tyre pressure monitoring, DRLs, lane departure alert, lane-keeping aid, traffic sign recognition, intelligent seatbelt warning, adaptive cruise control, a reversing camera system as well as front and rear sensors.
The lane keeping aid and traffic sign recognition tech are a bit intrusive for daily driving but easy enough to adjust if need be.
The i30 model has two ISOFIX child seat mounts and three top tethers but two seats will fit best.
AEB with forward collision warning is standard but ANCAP does not stipulate it's operational km/h range.
Ownership
Alfa Romeo Giulietta6/10
The Giulietta is covered by Alfa Romeo's three year/150,000km warranty. Servicing is recommended at 12month/15,000km intervals with a major service every two years. Alfa Romeo doesn't have capped price servicing but there is Mopar Vehicle Protection which customers can purchase with the vehicle for $1995.
Hyundai i30
Hyundai offers the i30 with a five-year/unlimited km warranty, which is a normal term for the class and you can pre-purchase three-, four- or five-years worth for servicing and the five-year option cost $1795, which is competitive.Â
Servicing intervals are okay at every 12 months or 10,000km, whichever occurs first.