Overview

Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by petrol engines and utilizing the 5-door hatchback body style within the same 'Small family car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (front for the Alfa Romeo and 4 x 4 in the case of the Subaru). The first one has a Alfa Romeo-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 235hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 105hp engine designed by Subaru.

Safety

Both vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the Alfa Romeo being a slightly better choice apparently. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. Both vehicles belong to the small family car segment, which is generally classifying them somewhere in the middle safety-wise, still it doesn't help us solve our dilemma, does it? Furthermore, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, the Italian car offers a marginal difference of 1% more metal.

Reliability

Manufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that Subaru as a brand displays somewhat better results, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of Alfa Romeo, as well as Subaru, with the same average rating of 4.2 out of 5. The same official information place Giulietta as average reliability-wise, and Impreza is more or less at the same level.That apart, owners of different cars powered by the same engine as the Italian car rank it on average as 5.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 4.1 out of 5.

Performance & Fuel economy

Alfa Romeo is way more agile, reaching 100km/h in 7.2 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 242 kilometers per hour, 67km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy things look pretty much the same for both cars, averaging around 7.6 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (37 mpg), in combined cycle.

Verdict

Subaru appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, the Italian car offers much better overall protection, which launches it ahead of the other contender. It all continues in the same direction, with Alfa Romeo outracing its opponent in any situation possible, making it better choice for boy racers. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... All together, there's not much more to say, in this case I wouldn't even consider anything but Alfa Romeo. Nevertheless, let's not forget that people have different preferences and needs, so what really counts is your personal feel. I'm only here to help. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, out of 12.000+ vehicles we currently have in our database.