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Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio is new SUV king of the 'Ring

It's been a couple years since the last Nurburgring SUV lap record was set by the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S, a quick time of 7 minutes and 59 seconds making it the first SUV to pull off a sub-8 minute time. The Cayenne's glory days are over, though, as the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio just obliterated that time. Alfa's wild SUV with its Ferrari-based 510-horsepower twin-turbo V6 managed to whip around the north loop of the 'Ring in just 7 minutes and 51 seconds. Not only does that make it 8 seconds quicker than the Cayenne, it's an insane 23 seconds faster than the Land Rover Range Rover SVR, the record holder before Porsche. The Stelvio also was working with a notable power disadvantage compared with the Cayenne and the Range Rover. The Porsche packed 565 horsepower, and the Land Rover had 542 horsepower. View 9 Photos Alfa Romeo also got the whole lap on film, which you can view up above. The video also shows that the Stelvio had an aftermarket roll cage fitted for an extra layer of safety. Alfa didn't say anything about how that might affect performance or what may have been done to offset it. But as we always point out with these records, they shouldn't be taken too seriously, especially for the SUV segment, in which we can virtually guarantee no one will be attempting to replicate this lap time with their personal Stelvios. Related Video:

Alfa Romeo Quadrifoglio trims leaving North America this summer

Larry Dominique, Alfa Romeo senior vice president and head of North America, used a LinkedIn post to set the countdown clock on the brand's Quadrifolgio models here. He wrote, "The opportunity to order a 2024 Giulia Quadrifoglio or Stelvio Quadrifoglio will close to North America at the end of April 2024. The last internal only combustion powered Quadrifoglio models for U.S. and Canada will exit the Cassino plant in June 2024." That gives shoppers about 10 weeks to place an order for the hottest versions of Alfa Romeo's sedan and midsize SUV, and until late summer to find a fresh example on a dealer lot. It's possible the internal-combustion-only Quadrifoglio is dying in the U.S. on its 101st birthday, Italian racing driver Ugo Sivocci having had the four-leaf clover painted on his car for the 1923 Targa Florio. Today, the clover represents models powered by Alfa's twin-turbocharged 2.9-liter V6, an engine said to be inspired by Ferrari's twin-turbo 3.9-liter V6. The six-cylinder makes 505 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque in typical form, the limited-edition Quadrifoglio Anniversario models produced last year making 520 horsepower and picking up the mechanical limited-slip differential derived from the sold-out, 540-horsepower Giulia GTA. This is just another step in the automaker's transfer to an all-electric lineup, all of the brand's launches from 2027 and thereafter meant to be electric. This isn't the end of the Quadrifoglio, Dominique himself writing in that post, "I look forward to presenting the next chapter in the four-leaf clover’s journey." Successive iterations will get some sort of electric assistance at the least, and perhaps turn into the 1,000-hp battery-electric 2026 Giulia Quadrifoglio that CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato hinted at last year, with an 800-horsepower Veloce trim below and a 350-hp base trim. Or, with PHEVs coming into fashion as a more affordable middle ground to the fully electric promised land, it might be time to take a little more inspiration from Ferrari — now a separate company — and poke around the underside of the SF90 Stradale. Alfa noises and pure electric driving on demand? Si, certamento.          

Alfa Romeo limits Giulia and Stelvio Quadrifoglio NRING editions to 110 units

The 505-horsepower Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio and the 505-horsepower Giulia Quadrifoglio are two of the most exclusive, powerful, and attractive four-door vehicles on the market. In the past, they've both set records at Germany's Nurburgring, and Alfa has created limited-edition packages to honor the spirit of the legendary racetrack. The NRING-edition cars will be limited to 110 total examples. If this sounds familiar, it's because the idea is not new. In June of 2018, Alfa Romeo announced NRING packages for Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. At the time, we believed the special-editions would not be coming to America; turns out we were incorrect. The tweaks start with the paint, as the NRING cars are only available in matte Circuito Gray. As its association with motorsport and racing continues, carbon fiber has been applied to the mirror caps, the "V scudetto" front grille, the roof on the Giulia, and the side sills on the Stelvio. Red brake calipers with white scrip hide behind dark 19-inch wheels on the Giulia and 20-inch wheels on the Stelvio. The Stelvio also gets a dual-pane sunroof. Inside, Alfa Romeo added a carbon fiber steering wheel, a carbon fiber shifter bezel, a serial number badge on the passenger dash, and red and black leather with red contrast stitching on the seats. Light-up carbon fiber side sills are applied to the Giulia, and carbon fiber Sparco racing seats are optional on both cars. The NRING cars also come with the convenience package, the driver assistance dynamic package, and the premium alarm system. Unfortunately, there's no mention of the "Welcome Kit" the other markets got, which is a bummer. Who doesn't want racing gloves, a jacket, and a scale model? Alfa Romeo lists the 2019 Giulia Quadrifoglio NRING at $91,485 with destination, which is $15,895 more than the Giulia Quad's $75,590 starting price. The Stelvio NRING is $97,485, also up $15,895 from the $81,590 starting price. Only 55 examples of each car will be built.