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The 2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia's infotainment system is new, but is it better?

When Alfa Romeo introduced the Giulia in 2017, it was praised for its its on-road manners, its gorgeous styling and its performance credentials. It was criticized for, well, just about everything else, including a clunky, low-resolution and feature-light infotainment system. Enthusiasts can forgive many of a car's flaws so long as the driving experience is stellar, and for that reason, the Giulia quickly became a darling. But Alfa can't depend on enthusiasts alone to buy its cars; they need to be seen as legitimate players in the luxury market, and to do that, they need interior tech and materials to match their price points.  For 2020, Alfa Romeo addressed the Giulia's shortcomings. The infotainment system was overhauled, with a new 8.8-inch touchscreen headlining a host of additional features. The Giulia now has acoustic glass for a quieter, more luxurious cabin, and some much-needed material improvements on the steering wheel, dash and center console. There's also a new USB Type-C outlet, a wireless device charging option and some other behind-the-scenes features, like a wireless hot spot and over-the-air firmware update capabilities.  The Giulia's original infotainment system was criticized for its low-res screen with no touch interface, a lack of quick access buttons for key features, and a lack of depth when it came to integrated tech. On paper, Alfa has addressed all of these shortcomings, but I wanted to see how it performs in the real world. To do this, I set aside some time with the 2020 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio to dedicate solely to exploring its new tech features. What I found was a bit of a mixed bag.  Let's start with the interface itself. The 8.8-inch screen used to be an upgrade, but the extra real estate is now standard and, as we mentioned up top, it's now a touchscreen. Both the resolution and the quality of individual page graphics have been significantly improved compared to the old software. Alfa says the underlying hardware was improved to support the improved visual experience.  Improved, perhaps, but not perfected. The interface still lags inputs (especially touch) and lacks a crisp, responsive feel. Even after the system has fully loaded, there's a visible delay between finger gestures and responses from the interface.

Ford GT Mk II at Goodwood, Bentley EXP 100 GT concept EV and driving the Hyundai Veloster N | Autoblog Podcast #588

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski and Associate Editor Joel Stocksdale. To kick things off, they talk about driving the Porsche Cayenne S, Hyundai Veloster N and Nissan Armada. Then they recap the Goodwood Festival of Speed, including the Ford GT Mk II that debuted there. Next up is news: the Bentley EXP 100 GT electric concept car, Ford canceling diesel for the Transit Connect and Elon Musk dismissing talk of a refresh for the Model S and Model X. Finally, they take to Reddit to help pick between a 2016 Audi S3 and a 2017 Alfa Romeo Giulia. Autoblog Podcast #588 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Cars we're driving: 2019 Porsche Cayenne S 2020 Hyundai Veloster N 2019 Nissan Armada Ford GT Mk II debuts at Goodwood, and other impressions from the event Bentley unveils EXP 100 GT electric concept car Ford cancels diesel engine for Transit Connect Tesla Model S and X wonÂ’t get a refresh Spend My Money: Audi or Alfa? Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video:    

Chrysler earns $1.7B in 2012, revises product plans for US

Hot on the heels of Ford's earnings announcement for the year that was, Chrysler today reported a 2012 net income of $1.7 billion, up substantially from the comparatively minuscule $183 million profit earned in 2011 when it repaid its US government loans.
Chrysler's good year ended with an excellent fourth quarter that saw net income rise 68 percent from $225 million in 2011 to $378 million. Where are all those extra earnings coming from? Market share, which Chrysler saw increase to 11.4% last year on sales of 1.65 million vehicles. In fact, the Auburn Hills, MI-based automaker out-paced the industry's market growth of 13 percent last year with sales up 21 percent for the year.
The company also revealed an updated product plan for its Chrysler Group and Fiat brands that looks all the way out to 2016. It's an updated version of the plan introduced in 2009 shortly after Fiat took control of the American automaker, and includes such new additions as an Alfa Romeo model, likely the 4C, to be introduced in the US this year, as well five more Alfa models by 2016. Likewise, Fiat will be growing by an additional seven models in the coming few years.