Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida - long-term review

Our Alfa Junior Ibrida arrived in top of the tree Sport Speciale trim with a gloss black body kit, the nose of a 1930s racer, and Alcantara on its seats, dash and flat-ish bottomed steering wheel. So, it looks the part, feels rather racey from the inside and has ‘sport’ in its name, but does any of that translate into a small crossover that’s actually fun to drive?

Well, recently we discovered the all-electric Junior Veloce kicks it’s a**e on a twisty road with its extra power, bigger brakes and Torsen limited-slip diff, but that costs almost £10k more and the real-world range is dreadful. So, here’s a hybrid rival that’s around £200 cheaper than the Sport Speciale’s base price and should give it another run for its money… it’s the Ford Puma ST.

And yes, keen followers of Fast-ish Fords (if they still exist, because only one car does) may still be lamenting the fact that the Puma ST is now only available with this 1.0-litre three-cylinder mild-hybrid setup. The Fiesta ST’s brilliant old 1.5-litre turbo triple – which the hot Puma initially borrowed – is no more. To add insult to injury, this downsized powertrain can only be equipped with a seven-speed dual clutch auto rather than the neat six-speed manual of old.

Still, immediately the Puma feels more purposeful than the Alfa. You sit low in 'FORD PERFORMANCE' bucket seats, and while it may have done away with the bigger engine, Ford did keep the old ST’s stronger chassis and fancy suspension. It’s seriously stiff. On rough roads I think it might actually be too firm for comfortable everyday use, but where the Alfa Romeo leans and understeers through corners, the Puma resists roll remarkably. You really can chuck it at bends, and there’s decent weight to the steering too.

And while it may be down on power vs the old ST, this 1.0-litre’s 168bhp output comfortably beats the Alfa’s 143bhp. Ford claims 0-62mph in 7.4 seconds, while the heavy-legged Junior can only manage the same sprint in 8.9. I’m also left feeling let down by the Alfa’s supremely soft brake pedal.

There’s actually a bit of torque steer in the Puma, and in its Sport or Track modes (yep, really) you get a few crackles and pops from the exhaust. It’s fun, and not just for a crossover, but then you remember the hot Puma that came before and this one pales in comparison.

It is far sportier than our Junior though. It’s also techier inside with its 12.8in dial display and massive 12in central touchscreen slapped on the dash. Said screen runs Ford’s SYNC 4 system and is quicker to respond to your inputs than the Alfa’s infotainment, although the serving platter-sized squircle steering wheel is extremely unsporting and slightly ruins the vibe. Despite its shared Stellantis parts, the inside of the Junior feels a whole lot more premium.

If you’re looking for a genuinely sporting crossover then, avoid our Junior Ibrida. On a twisty road it might be a little more game than its Peugeot, Citroen and Vauxhall siblings, but christening this top trim level ‘Sport Speciale’ was probably a bit of a reach. Then again, you do see a fair few 128bhp Toyota Yaris Cross GR Sports on UK roads, so what do we know?