Alfa Romeo Stelvio vs Mercedes-Benz GLA250

What's the difference?

The Alfa Romeo Stelvio Veloce is the car you get when you want a sports car but happen to have a kid or two. Its ride comfort is on the lower end but it has heaps of power and enough features that it manages to slide into its price tag without feeling too cheeky. The back seat’s size will limit this to smaller families, though. And I would prefer to see better tech at this grade level, so this gets a 7.1/10 from me.

My son didn’t spend much time in this one but he liked the red paintwork. My mum, however, loved the power and sexy packaging. She gives it an 8/10.

My wonderful wife, who is not really into this kind of car, admitted to me in a quiet voice that she really liked the GLA45 as long as it was in Sport + mode. And I have to agree. While I'm very fond of the ridiculous Audi RSQ3 (that turbo five-cylinder sounds amazing), I think I'd stump up the extra for the GLA.

Importantly, it can be comfortable, it can be quiet and it's a better fit for most humans than the A or CLA. It is getting on a bit and could do with a further clean-out of the poor ergonomics, but in what is likely its final year on sale, it's still a belter.

While the Veloce has had a facelift, the changes are so minor I would dare to ask, why bother?

The daytime running light signature has been tweaked but only die-hard Stelvio fans will notice it. I do like the larger 12.3-inch digital instrument display but surprisingly the multimedia screen remains on the smaller side at 8.8 inches.

Otherwise, there’s no denying the Veloce looks like an Alfa Romeo, staying true to its Italian heritage. It’s solid, with a 1903mm wide stance, but so robust that it moves away from words like 'sleek' or 'sexy'.

The black grille, 20-inch alloy wheels and red brake calipers make it look sports car mean and hint at what's under the bonnet.

The interior looks well made and it's got a bat cave element with the black headliner and panoramic sunroof. There's a plethora of soft touchpoints throughout and the circular air-vents found in both rows add some flair.

Overall, though, the interior is understated and if you’re looking for something as flashy as the exterior, you may be disappointed.

The GLA45 isn't a looker, but then, none of the GLAs are. There's a certain blobbiness to it. A bit of Teletubby mixed with...um, another Teletubby. It's not ugly, it's just not particularly attractive. The 20-inch wheels do much to lift the appearance and negate the effect of the raised ride height compared to the A45/CLA45.

The body kit stops just short of lairy, which is heartening. So if you want to stand out, venture out into the aftermarket world.

Inside was a mild surprise. The last time I drove a CLA 45 I used the word "gaudy". While the GLA isn't amazingly better, the texture of the Alcantara replacing the brushed metal-look plastic, or the carbon of the option pack, was much more pleasant. The brightwork in the cabin is still a bit odd looking, and it's still overcooked with its red detailing, but it is an otherwise beautifully built and well-detailed interior.

The front row benefits the most in terms of space and features. I have stacks of headroom and legroom in the front seat and didn’t feel like I was too close to my passenger this week.

I like the comfortable electric seats and the fact you can adjust the side bolsters and under-thigh support.

Individual storage options are on the slim side throughout the car and it was something my mum and I found annoying on our road trip because there aren’t a lot of spots to put your little items up front. Think snacks, sunglasses, lip balm etc.

The two cupholders are really drink bottle holders because they’re too large to fit a small takeaway cup without popping the lid off but I like the large storage bins in each front door.

It's a tight squeeze in the back seat for my 168cm (5'6") height and that’s behind my driving position! It could feel a tad cramped back there for those with longer legs.

It’s also a bit awkward getting in and out of the back seat because of the large wheel arches.

The storage bins in the doors are too small to hold a drink bottle but the middle armrest has two cupholders and a phone holder.

Charging options are fantastic up front with two USB-A ports, one USB-C port, a 12-volt socket and a wireless charging pad to choose from. You even get an 'aux' jack, too.

The amenities in the back seat are okay and you get a couple of net map pockets, reading lights, a USB-A and C port, as well as directional air vents.

This Alfa has a no-nonsense approach with the other tech, though. I usually don’t mind that but the touchscreen multimedia system is a little too no-nonsense for this spec-level.

I found it to be laggy and too small. It also regularly turned itself off and rebooted. This happened a few times while needing satellite navigation directions, which was annoying.

Also on the sat nav, you can’t search for a general name of something, like a business, you have to input an address which meant using my iPhone anyway. It’s great that you get wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, though.

The digital instrument panel looks upmarket but isn’t properly customisable and I was disappointed the ambient lighting package only meant that there are lights in the footwells and a tiny overhead light. Adding some extra lighting would have transformed the night-time driving experience.

The boot is the highlight for me because you get a decent capacity at 499L. The load space is level and I like the back row's 40/20/40 split-fold. We had plenty of room on our road trip for luggage and shopping.

You get a temporary spare tyre and a retractable cargo blind. The latter is stiff enough to double as a shelf which is handy and a handsfree powered tailgate comes standard, as well.

The front seats are utterly brilliant and feel as good as they look. On first acquaintance they may feel under-padded, but once you've adjusted them to your liking, you never want to leave. The AMG cars also feature one vast improvement over a normal GLA - the ergonomic disaster of a column-mounted shifter is removed, with a console-mounted shifter added where a small cubby once lived. It's so much better, although the Park button is oddly difficult to press.

When luxuriating in those snug front seats, you'll have access to two cupholders and door-mounted bottle holders, as well as a console bin (where the USB ports are) and a tray under the climate controls. Rear seat passengers will find legroom tight but headroom good, even with the huge sunroof.

The GLA's boot holds an entirely reasonable 421 litres, rising to 1235 when you drop both rear seats.

The GLA 45 lightens your wallet by no less than $89,211 - more than double the GLA 180 front-wheel drive, and about $5000 more than the bonkers (and ancient) RS Q3.

Packed into the GLA's kit bag are 20-inch alloy wheels, a 12-speaker stereo, dual-zone climate control, comprehensive safety gear, reversing camera, keyless entry and start, front and rear parking sensors, electric and heated front seats, sat nav, auto LED headlights, auto wipers, leather trim (some real, some not), auto parking, powered and heated folding mirrors, a massive sunroof and dynamic dampers. There's no spare tyre, just a tyre-repair kit.

The multimedia system is Mercedes' COMAND unit and it is as user-unfriendly as ever. It does, however, power a very decent stereo, and also offers Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Thankfully our car was bereft of both the carbon-fibre package ($990) and the aerodynamics package ($1990).

The Veloce has a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine that gives a maximum power output of 206kW and 400Nm of torque. It’s an all-wheel drive and has an eight-speed auto transmission which is very smooth. 

Checking out the specs I didn’t think this would be as powerful as it is. But it’s really fun when you need to put your foot down! I mean, it can go from 0-100km/h in just 5.7 seconds.

AMG's fabled 2.0-litre turbo four lurks under that higher bonnet, still kicking out an improbable 280kW and 475Nm. Drive reaches the road via Merc's own seven-speed twin-clutch transmission and all four of its wheels.

All that power and grip translates to a 4.4-second dash to 100km/h for the slightly tubby (over 1600kg) GLA, but just between you and me, anything under five seconds feels scorchingly quick.

The official combined cycle fuel economy figure is 7.0L/100km and my real-world usage came to 8.4L/100km.

I drove our test model hard but did A LOT of open road driving - 2051km to be exact - so I was happy with the average but I would expect it to be higher in the city.

Based on the official combined cycle number and 64L fuel tank, you theoretically should be able to get a driving range of around 914km but my real-world tests see that figure come in closer to 700km.

Alfa Romeo recommends a minimum 95 RON petrol be used for the Stelvio.

The official combined-cycle figure suggests the GLA45 will consume 7.5L/100km. Obviously that figure is largely irrelevant, and not just for the usual reasons, but because you don't buy a GLA45 to potter about in. I got, uh, 12.5L/100km, so you can imagine how much I was enjoying it.

As you might expect, you'll need to feed it 98RON.

The Veloce is downright fun to drive because of how damn responsive it is. There is plenty of power, so much so, that you’ll look forward to hitting the open road. 

The sporty steering makes for sharp handling and the car moves decisively. I have felt confident all week that it would do what I wanted it to do. It's wide stance also makes it hug the road like an old friend.

However, the suspension is also sporty, aka firm! The padded seats help soften the impact when you hit a bump but you’ll still know it when you hit one. There's also a resonating 'ker-thump' in the cabin, in case you didn't feel it.

The big thing that marred the driving experience for me, at least for a longer trip, is how loud road and wind noise are at higher speeds. It’s loud enough that you need to raise your voice to talk, which I didn’t enjoy.

The Veloce earns back points with how easy it is to park and it handles those stupidly small hotel car parks extremely well.

I don't rate the reversing camera, though. The quality of the image is terrible for this grade-level.

When the 45-badged cars first launched, they were something of a revelation. BMW's turbo six-cylinder fans sniffed at the 2.0-litre's staggering outputs and all-wheel-drive chassis, but this car really captured the imagination. The GLA45 might be slightly unexpected, but it's better in almost every way as a daily driver than the A or CLA.

For a start, its higher ride height seems to translate to a much better ride quality. Anything on 20-inch wheels should have an appalling ride, but the GLA45 manages to be firm yet comfortable. Put the other two in Race mode and you'll need to up your private health insurance extras to include osteo, physio and whatever "o"-ending specialist fixes your back.

The improved ride quality meant I was far happier to chuck this car around. While it doesn't have the same ultimate overall performance of the lower cars, it's far more comfortable whether you're on it or just driving around. The front seats are supportive and comfortable, and the steering is excellent.

As for the engine...well, it still farts like toddler during a moment of silence at a funeral, but you can't deny its technical brilliance and huge power outputs. I remember the CLA45's engine as being a bit highly strung. Perhaps I couldn't separate the overall high-strung nature of the car from the engine, but I felt the same engine in this car wasn't as jumpy.

The way it propels this car into triple figures is tremendous fun. It's not as charismatic as the Audi five-cylinder, perhaps, but that doesn't matter in the end - it's properly fast, attached to a better chassis and offers a cabin with a driving position fit for humans.

The GLA comes with nine airbags (including driver's knee), blind-spot sensors, lane-departure warning, lane-keep assist, forward-collision warning and mitigation and driver-attention detection.

The GLA does not have its own ANCAP rating, but the A-Class on which it is so heavily-based scored five stars in 2013.

The ongoing costs aren’t too shabby on the Stelvio because it comes with a five-year/unlimited km warranty and you also get five years roadside assistance.

It’s a 24/7 complimentary service that covers a host of items but check out the terms and conditions for more information.

There’s capped priced servicing for five years or up to 75,000km, whichever occurs first.

Services cost an average of $573, which is competitive for the class and servicing intervals are good at every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever occurs first.

The Mercedes standard warranty is three years/unlimited kilometres with roadside assist to match. Service intervals are a very reasonable 12 months/20,000km.

The company also offers capped-price servicing - first service is $576 but the second and third are a whopping $1152 each. Three years will set you back $2880.