Compare the2023 Audi A4 AllroadVS 2023 Alfa Romeo Stelvio

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Audi A4 Allroad have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Alfa Romeo Stelvio doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The A4 Allroad’s pre-crash front seatbelts will tighten automatically in the event the vehicle detects an impending crash, improving protection against injury significantly. The Stelvio doesn’t offer pre-crash pretensioners.

Both the A4 Allroad and Stelvio have child safety locks to prevent children from opening the rear doors. The A4 Allroad has power child safety locks, allowing the driver to activate and deactivate them from the driver's seat and to know when they're engaged. The Stelvio’s child locks have to be individually engaged at each rear door with a manual switch. The driver can’t know the status of the locks without opening the doors and checking them.

The A4 Allroad has a standard Audi Backguard System, which use a specially designed headrest to protect the driver and front passenger from whiplash. During a rear-end collision, the Audi Backguard System moves the headrests forward to prevent neck and spine injuries. At the same time the pretensioning seatbelts fire, removing slack from the belts. The Stelvio doesn’t offer a whiplash protection system.

The A4 Allroad has a standard Secondary Collision Brake Assist, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Stelvio doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

To provide maximum traction and stability on all roads, All-Wheel Drive is standard on the A4 Allroad. But it costs extra on the Stelvio.

The A4 Allroad Premium Plus/Prestige has a standard Top View Camera System to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Stelvio only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

Both the A4 Allroad and the Stelvio have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver and front passenger knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras, available blind spot warning systems and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, its standard vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, its standard vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its available headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the A4 Allroad the rating of “Top Safety Pick” for 2022, a rating granted to only 155 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Stelvio has not been tested, yet.

The A4 Allroad’s corrosion warranty is 7 years longer than the Stelvio’s (12 vs. 5 years).

There are over 2 times as many Audi dealers as there are Alfa Romeo dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the A4 Allroad’s warranty.

The Audi A4 Allroad’s engine uses a cast iron block for durability, while the Stelvio’s engine uses an aluminum block. Aluminum engine blocks are much more prone to warp and crack at high temperatures than cast iron.

A reliable vehicle saves its owner time, money and trouble. Nobody wants to be stranded or have to be without a vehicle while it’s being repaired. Consumer Reports rates the A4 Allroad’s reliability 59 points higher than the Stelvio.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Alfa Romeo With 13 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Audi higher than Alfa Romeo.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2021 Auto Issue reports that Audi vehicles are more reliable than Alfa Romeo vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Audi 15 places higher in reliability than Alfa Romeo.

On the EPA test cycle the A4 Allroad gets better mileage than the Stelvio:

The A4 Allroad offers a standard sequential manual gearbox (SMG). With no clutch pedal to worry about and a fully automatic mode, an SMG is much more efficient than a conventional automatic but just as easy to drive. The Stelvio doesn’t offer an SMG or a conventional manual transmission.

The A4 Allroad’s launch control uses engine electronics to hold engine RPM’s precisely in order to provide the most stable and rapid acceleration possible, using all of the available traction. The Stelvio doesn’t offer launch control.

For better stopping power the A4 Allroad’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Stelvio:

The A4 Allroad stops much shorter than the Stelvio:

For better traction, the A4 Allroad has larger tires than the Stelvio (245/45R18 vs. 235/60R18).

The A4 Allroad’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Stelvio Sprint’s standard 60 series tires.

The A4 Allroad Prestige handles at .85 G’s, while the Stelvio Sprint AWD pulls only .84 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

The A4 Allroad Premium Plus executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver quicker than the Stelvio Ti AWD (26.3 seconds @ .69 average G’s vs. 26.9 seconds @ .67 average G’s).

The A4 Allroad is 7.2 inches shorter in height than the Stelvio, making the A4 Allroad much easier to wash and garage and drive (lower center of gravity).

The A4 Allroad has 4.7 inches more front legroom and 3.8 inches more rear legroom than the Stelvio.

The A4 Allroad has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat up than the Stelvio with its rear seat up (24.2 vs. 18.5 cubic feet). The A4 Allroad has a much larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Stelvio with its rear seat folded (58.5 vs. 56.5 cubic feet).

A low lift-over trunk design makes loading and unloading the A4 Allroad easier. The A4 Allroad’s trunk lift-over height is 26.1 inches, while the Stelvio’s liftover is 28.5 inches.

The A4 Allroad’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Stelvio’s (3968 vs. 3000 pounds).

J.D. Power and Associates surveys of service recipients show that Audi service is better than Alfa Romeo. J.D. Power ranks Audi 8th in service department satisfaction (above the industry average). With a 64% lower rating, Alfa Romeo is ranked 32nd.

The A4 Allroad Prestige has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Stelvio doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

If the windows are left open on the A4 Allroad the driver can close them all at the outside door handle or from a distance using the remote. On a hot day the driver can lower the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Stelvio can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

Manual rear side window sunshades are available in the A4 Allroad to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Stelvio doesn’t offer rear side window sunshades.

When the A4 Allroad with available tilt-down mirrors is put in reverse, the passenger rearview mirror tilts from its original position. This gives the driver a better view of the curb during parallel parking maneuvers. Shifting out of reverse puts the mirror into its original position. The Stelvio’s mirror doesn’t automatically adjust for backing.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the A4 Allroad (except Premium) keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Stelvio doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The A4 Allroad Prestige’s Park Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, with the driver only controlling speed with the brake pedal. The Stelvio doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Consumer Reports® recommends the Audi A4 Allroad, based on reliability, safety and performance. The Alfa Romeo Stelvio isn't recommended.

The Audi A4/S4 outsold the Alfa Romeo Stelvio by 61% during the 2021 model year.