Alfa Romeo Stelvio with rear-wheel drive added to US range, not for Oz
But a two-wheel drive Alfa SUV is unlikely for Australia
A lighter, cheaper Alfa Romeo Stelvio with rear-wheel drive will join the North American line-up for 2019, but there's no word on whether the new variant will be added to the Australian line-up.
According to Car and Driver, the 2019 model-year Stelvio will get a new entry-level model with rear-drive in the USA.
At the moment, the entire Stelvio range is offered with Q4 all-wheel drive as standard. In Australia, that equates to a starting price of $65,900 before on-roads with a 2.0-litre petrol engine making 148kW of power and 330Nm of torque, or $67,900 with a 2.2-litre turbo-diesel putting out 154kW and 470Nm.
In the USA, dropping the all-wheel drive system for rear-wheel drive slices US$2000 ($2700) from the starting price. Based on that maths (yes, we realise America and Australia aren't a perfect like-for-like) an entry-level Stelvio with rear-wheel drive could be priced from around $63,000 before on-roads.
By way of comparison, the recently-announced rear-drive Mercedes-Benz GLC200 is priced from $61,990 before on-road costs.
According to the report, only the base Stelvio will be offered with rear-drive, meaning you'll be locked into all-wheel drive power if you're keen on a high-spec Ti.
Australia
A spokesperson for Fiat Chrysler Australia said: "Locally the D-SUV premium segment is characterised by 92% AWD. We believe our current model lineup satisfies the demands of the local market."
In other words, don't hold out hope.