Boxing (Not So) Clever - Alfa Romeo Mito Quadrifoglio Verde

Can a new twin-clutch gearbox help Alfa’s littlest hot hatch keep pace with Fiesta ST and co?

Romance, passion… science? It’s an uncomfortable fit for some, and one that Alfa’s been pushing with its Quadrifoglio Verde range – its top-shelf performance models. For the Mito QV, the smallest of the pair of hot hatches that have been updated for 2014 (we tested the revised Giulietta QV last month) the biggest change is a new dual-clutch gearbox in place of the traditional manual, and the death of the stick-shifting Mito.

‘It changes gear faster than Gabriele Tarquini,’ Alfa boss Louis-Carl Vignon tells me, referencing his current WTCC driver, and the man who helped the Italian brand claim the ’94 British tin-top title. I don’t care, for Alfa is seemingly on commission from whoever owns the rights to the word ‘beauty’, and talks of Italian soul, emotion, and things that aren’t precision cut, decided by boards or based on pure rationality. And now it’s trying to tell us that a dual-clutch ’box is better than the satisfaction of a manual because –gulp– it’s faster?

Flat-bottomed wheel is new, sat-nav is standard. Other tweaks include one less pedal

On paper, then, the new QV been’s awarded a 7.3sec 0-62mph claim thanks to the six-speed dual-clutcher. That’s 0.2 sec quicker than the old manual, but there’s no more power – it’s still 168bhp, so it’s all down to the gearbox for the extra pace.

Perched in the Mito’s cabin, which doesn’t feel like it’s aged one bit since its arrival in 2010, you’ll be in supportive yet almost too firm seats, gripping the delightful flat-bottomed steering wheel. The turbocharged 1.4-litre the new transmission is hooked up to makes a delicious burble – not a symphonic masterpiece at idle, but nice and bassy nonetheless.

Here comes the science bit: new ’box cuts emissions and improves economy by 10%

It doesn’t live up to the promise set by it’s stationary tune once you’re moving, though. Here, the straight-line punch is smooth, not exhilarating, with the ride on those new 18in alloys good until the Mito has to tackle bumps, where it struggles to maintain composure. The steering, too, is good, but doesn’t give you the connection that you want, even if there’s solid road holding when you tip the QV into a series of tight turns. To get the most out of it, you need to rev the QV’s engine, as that lack of straight-line aggression translates to a slow corner exit if you’re not pushing it hard.

The gearbox is good, not great: it punctuates the engine note well, especially on down changes, and while the shifts from the wheel-mounted paddles are quicker than doing it yourself, they’re not as seamless or as quick as rivals such as the VW polo GtI. Nor is the Mito as involving as a Ford Fiesta ST in turns, even if its on paper stats don’t have it too far behind.

Alfa Romeo Mito Quadrifoglio Verde drivetrain

Throw in the Mito’s $33.147 asking price – more than its key rivals – and the reason you’ll buy the Mito will be down not to science and rationalism, but to passion and romance.