The new Alfa Giulietta has been released and first impressions from the world’s press are starting to come through. We’ve gathered some of those impressions in one place so we can check out just what the Giulietta promises and whether it might deliver.

As is the fate of many an Alfa Romeo, the focus is on style - how good does it look? I don’t know whether that means there’s nothing special to bother about under the bonnet, or whether the presence of the best Fiat technology is taken for granted. To be fair, the new Giulietta will get Fiat’s Multiair engines, Alfa DNA and dual-clutch transmission so it’s no slack on the technology front. And it will have between 120 and 170 hp, before the Quadrifoglio Verde version turns up with 230 hp.

So far, the new Giulietta is a very nice looking car. Yesterday I said I appreciated the sloping, elegant rear and overall there is plenty of classic Alfa sports style. It’s managed to keep its Alfa Romeo class without falling into mediocrity or appearing like just another, bigger 147. Given the brand image and style of Alfa, I also think it stands apart from other offerings in the Fiat Group range.

The Italians, however, are divided about this last point. The guys at Autoblog.it have compared it to the Fiat Bravo and the Lancia Delta, particularly in terms of its style. Some readers have suggested it’s the same as the Fiat Bravo, but with an Alfa badge, while others have yet said the Giulietta is encroaching on Delta territory.

Apart from pointing out the difference in dimension, the guys at Autoblog.it take on a review of the competitors to see where the Giulietta fits in the overall Fiat Group offering. It’s slightly bigger than the Fiat Bravo and is obviously going to win customers for its Alfa style, and premium brand appeal. It’s smaller than the Delta, cashing in on sports style, and I would suggest, carries more notoriety internationally than Lancia.

Autoblog.it suggests the competitors for the Alfa Giulietta, based on style and sports performance, are as follows: Audi A3 Sportback, BMW 1-Series five-door, Seat Leon and Subaru Impreza. Competitors for the Bravo are listed as follows: Ford Focus, Kia cee’d, Opel Astra, Peugeot 308, Renault Mégane, Toyota Auris and Volkswagen Golf. The Delta rivals based on elegance, are: Citroen C4, Honda Civic, Hyundai i30, Mazda 3, Mercedes B-Class, Mitsubishi Lancer Sportback, Nissan Qashqai and Skoda Octavia.

I’m divided on the Opel Astra and Renault Megane because I think they’re more on the list of Giulietta competitors. For the guys at Autoblog in the US, the Golf is also listed as a competitor for the Giulietta, but again, they see the Bravo as more suited. They view the new Alfa offering thus:

Positioned just above the MiTo in Alfa’s lineup (and, tellingly, below the anticipated upcoming 159-succeeding Giulia), the Giulietta replaces the 147 as Italy’s answer to the Volkswagen Golf. Since Alfa’s parent company Fiat already targets the Golf with its own Bravo, though, some might consider this more of an aggressively-priced competitor to the Audi A3. The hatchback takes its styling cues from the sumptuous 8C Competizione, but carries it off in a decidedly more aggressive way than implemented on the MiTo.

The Alfa Giulietta price point should prove to tip the scales, and it should start at about 22,000 euros. This puts it out of the Fiat Bravo segment, but if we consider the Audi A3 as a rival on the Giulietta list, the Alfa is priced very competitively. The guys at World Car Fans say the following:

The new car, targeted to the almightly VW Golf, is a coupe-shaped sports hatch featuring the latest in engineering, technology and safety systems that Alfa can offer.

I don’t believe that Alfa has been running around nominating competitors before releasing the Giulietta, but it will be interesting to see how its fortunes evolve and whether it will appeal over the Golf or even models such as the Audi A3. We’ll get a closer look with live pics from the 2010 Geneva motor show and there we hope to find the proof in the pudding.