Introduction to the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
With the all-electric versions of the Alfa Romeo Junior already in place, it's time for this storied Italian company to add some internal-combustion-powered derivatives to the range to widen the B-segment crossover's appeal. And the first of these to appear is called the Ibrida.
That, somewhat unsurprisingly, is the Italian word for 'hybrid', denoting that this new addition to the Junior canon deploys a familiar Stellantis mild-hybrid drivetrain. This is formed of a 1.2-litre, three-cylinder, turbocharged petrol engine, assisted by a 21kW electric motor and 0.9kWh (0.5kWh net) lithium-ion battery pack, with drive going to the front wheels alone through a six-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox.
If this powertrain make-up sounds familiar, that's probably because it has been used in everything from the likes of the Jeep Avenger and the Fiat 600, through to the Citroen C4 and Peugeot 2008, and right up to the likes of the Opel Grandland, Peugeot 5008 and Citroen C5 Aircross.
To check out Alfa's interpretation of the technology, we went to the company's homeland to drive the new Junior in the Langhe region of Piedmont.
Pros & Cons of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
Pros: Stylish looks, sweet to drive, inexpensive to run
Cons: Cheap interior plastics, minimal legroom
Exterior & Design of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
• Looks the same as all-electric model
• Distinctive looks and detailing
• 17-inch wheels as standard
Whether you like the look of the new Ibrida or not will depend largely on how you feel about the Alfa Romeo Junior's visuals in the first place. Externally, it is barely any different from the Elettrica and Veloce models, the main differences being the exhaust outlets for the engine poking out at the back of the hybrid version, while it sits on smaller 17-inch wheels as standard.
But it still has the triple-light signatures fore and aft, the distinctive shield-shaped grille, those 'hidden' rear door handles and the option of a contrast roof if you want it, so overall we approve of the way the Junior Ibrida looks.
While it's not an enormous car, it has plenty of presence and dramatic, eye-catching detailing as you're walking up to it that makes it look more imposing and special than it probably would be if Alfa had played the design a little more safely.
The Junior Ibrida's dimensions are:
Length: 4,173mm
Width: 1,781mm
Height: 1,539mm
Wheelbase: 2,557mm
Interestingly, not only does the hybrid stand a little taller than either the Elettrica or the Veloce, but it also has a wheelbase that is marginally shortened by 5mm, due to subtly different packaging requirements in terms of suspension.
Interior, Practicality, Tech & Comfort of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
• Some nice Alfa-specific touches
• Exquisite Sabelt seat option
• Minimal rear passenger space
The Alfa Junior is closely related to the Jeep Avenger and Fiat 600, and you can see much of the basic architecture of both of those built-to-a-careful-cost cars in the cabin of the Ibrida.
This is not particularly good news, because it means the Alfa - attempting to portray a sportier and more premium air than products from other manufacturers in the Stellantis stable - has cheap-looking and unyielding door cards made of black 'rhino skin' plastic, as well as a particularly ghastly piece of trim atop the dashboard that scratches at the slightest provocation.
None of these convey a particularly upmarket air. The column stalks, toggle-like gear selector and drive mode rocker control in the Junior have all been lifted wholesale from an array of Peugeot and Citroen products running back through the years, and while there's nothing inherently wrong with either of those French manufacturers, anyone expecting Alfa to stand a little way apart from other brands is going to use this synergy as a stick to beat the Junior with.
Same goes for the ho-hum 10.25-inch infotainment system, which you can at least bypass with either Android Auto or Apple CarPlay connectivity.
But we have plenty of praise for the Junior cabin, too. The standard seats look nice, while they also feel plush and comfortable to sit on, even if they're a bit too high-mounted in the body.
The Alfa steering wheel is a high-quality item, while the 10.25-inch digital cluster looks great in Alfa's own graphics and fonts - here complete with a rev counter, given the Ibrida has an engine.
There's also some attractive scalloping to the passenger-side dashboard and even, potentially, the option to fit a set of truly exquisite (and likely four-figure expensive) Sabelt bucket seats, complete with Alcantara upholstery which is then liberally applied around the rest of the Ibrida's cabin to match. We hope these will be confirmed for the Irish market, although bold will be the Ibrida buyer who specifies them.
When it comes to practicality, on the one hand Alfa giveth, and with the other it taketh away. At 415 litres, the boot on the Ibrida is not only 15 litres bigger than it would be in either of the two electric Juniors, but the Italian company claims it's class-leading in size when held up against that of any comparable crossover.
But legroom in the back is most assuredly not. This is not a specific flaw of the Junior - both the related Avenger and 600 suffer from the same thing - but anyone above about five-foot eight sitting in the back of the Alfa for any length of time is not going to thank you for stuffing them back there.
It gets even worse if the Sabelt seats have been specified, because their rock-hard shells mean the knees of second-row passengers will have to be painfully pressed against the seat in front of them.
Performance of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
• Sharp handling is enjoyable
• Ride and refinement excellent
• Not particularly Alfa-like in feel
The Ibrida has the least-powerful drivetrain of any Junior so far, with 136hp and 230Nm. That puts it behind the 156hp Elettrica and 280hp Veloce flagship, which both produce more torque as well.
That said, the turbocharged 1.2-litre three-cylinder petrol engine could make 136hp on its own before it was hybridised, so adding a 28hp electric motor to the mix cannot have hurt matters. Indeed, another benefit of the Ibrida is it's a good 240kg lighter than either of the electric models, so it's actually quicker to 100km/h by a tenth than the Elettrica.
And, in practice, this is certainly more than enough power and torque for a car which only weighs 1.3 tonnes. The Junior Ibrida is willing and linear from low revs, yet it doesn't run out of puff at higher speeds, proving deeply impressive for roll-on acceleration on the motorway.
Even if you do have to extend it out, as it's a three-cylinder engine then the noise the Junior emits is suitably appealing, and while we wouldn't call the 'e-DSC6' dual-clutch auto transmission the absolute best of its type, it's far more refined and unobtrusive in operation than it was when we first sampled it a few years ago.
With lovely, crisp response to the throttle and well-judged brakes, controlling the speed of the Ibrida is a genial experience. You don't even have to put up with horrid, dull accelerator feel in Advanced Efficiency, the most 'eco' of the three 'DNA' drive modes in the Alfa, because the throttle and steering maps don't change as you shift from A to N (Normal); the only thing the Ibrida does is attempt to prioritise electric driving in A, while also switching the climate control down to a more energy-efficient setting.
Not that you can run that far in all-electric mode anyway. It might be called 'Ibrida' and it might be a 48-volt system, but the Junior is a mild hybrid, not a full one. So, while Alfa claims it will travel for more than 60 per cent of the time in urban driving with its engine off, and up to 45 per cent on country roads, we found the engine was being called into action far more regularly than not on our test drive. At least the segue between electric and hybrid running is seamless.
Where the littlest Alfa really earns its spurs, is with its superb dynamics. The company has managed to tune the Junior Ibrida's chassis to its own demands, which promises to make it better to drive than almost any of its competitors.
And while the Alfa isn't exactly out-and-out thrilling when you're behind the wheel, the body control, steering weight and sharpness of the underpinnings are all operating at a high enough level that you can definitely tell this is, by class standards, one of the best things you can drive in the sector.
It'll cut the power to the front wheels a little too readily for our liking in tighter corners, even with traction control switched off, and the rear axle doesn't seem to want to do an awful lot other than trail around faithfully in the front wheels' wake, but the way the Junior Ibrida flows gracefully down a challenging road is really quite splendid. A true Alfa? Maybe not, but it's talented enough to merit wearing the company's badge.
Yet, just as importantly, it's quite exceptional for ride comfort. The Junior Ibrida doesn't thump disconsolately around town when it's travelling at lower speeds on broken-up tarmac, and conversely, it's super-stable, assured and languid as it cruises along a motorway at 110km/h and more.
In between, the well-tuned suspension that doesn't allow much in the way of body lean, which helps with its cornering abilities, also means that your passengers won't often be thrown around if you're just trying to navigate through some twists and turns at a reasonable pace.
Tellingly, the Junior feels quite senior when it comes to the way it drives - it always has a premium, big-car sensation to it, despite the fact it's actually quite small and affordable.
It comes with fabulous noise suppression too, with little significant to report in terms of tyre roar in the rear of the cabin, the thumping of the suspension as it does its stuff, nor wind noise susurrating about the glasshouse at speed.
Running Costs of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
• Officially as good as 4.8 litres/100km
• Low emissions result in €180 annual tax
• Extended five-year warranty offered
Although the Ibrida can't quite take advantage of the various tax breaks afforded to its all-electric Junior siblings, a CO2 output of just 109g/km means the Alfa Romeo won't be too expensive to run.
On our test drive, we couldn't match the official 4.8 litres/100km fuel consumption figure, but in more strenuous circumstances (climbing hilly roads with lots of hairpins and acceleration etc) the car still managed to average 6.5 litres/100km, so we have no doubt that 5.6 litres/100km would be easily attainable with a more sympathetic driving style.
In terms of aftersales support, Alfa Ireland does offer various maintenance bundles and roadside assistance packages, but the standard warranty is the three-year, 100,000km minimum.
However, at the time of writing, the company was offering a five-year variant of this cover that buyers can avail of, with the Junior among the cars qualifying for the extended warranty.
Irish Pricing & Rivals of the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
• Same price as entry-level electric Junior
• Decent level of standard equipment
• Enters competitive crossover segment
The Ibrida will start at the same price as the entry-level electric Junior, which is listed as €34,995 after incentives.
The standard equipment should include 17-inch alloy wheels, full LED exterior lighting, the twin 10.25-inch screens inside and automatic climate control as a minimum. It is likely that a more upmarket Ibrida Speciale will be on the price list too, which would bring in 18-inch alloys, electrically adjustable 'Spiga' front seats and Level 2 autonomous driving gear.
Rivals to the Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida are multitudinous and include hybrid versions of the Ford Puma, Opel Mokka, Jeep Avenger, Fiat 600, Peugeot 2008, Renault Captur, Nissan Juke, Toyota Yaris Cross, Hyundai Kona and Kia Niro, among more.
Verdict - Should You Buy the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida?
Yes, you should, because the Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida is one of the better-driving vehicles in this market segment, it looks good and it promises to be competitively priced for what it is.
There are issues with the interior finishing and rear-seat practicality of this crossover, granted, and while it's good to drive, it's not sensational, but overall, it's a very competent, very capable and very likeable urban runaround. The fact it wears an Alfa Romeo badge is just the icing on the cake, really.
FAQs About the 2025 Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida
Is there a four-wheel-drive Alfa Romeo Junior?
In other markets, there is a 'Q4' derivative which adds an electric motor to the rear axle. However, Alfa is not going to convert that for right-hand-drive markets, so the Junior - including the new Ibrida - is exclusively front-wheel drive for now.
Do I have to plug the Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida in to charge it?
No, it is a mild hybrid, not a plug-in - so the petrol engine, and indeed a degree of regenerative braking capacity from the 21kW motor, do the job of replenishing the small battery in the Ibrida while you're on the move. Incidentally, the battery itself is mounted underneath the driver's seat in the Alfa.
Was the Alfa Romeo Junior previously going to be called Milano?
It is indeed - Alfa originally wanted to call its smallest crossover the Milano after the company's home city, but had to make a -turn on the name after the Italian government, at the last second, decided to veto the move on the grounds the Junior is not made in Milan; it's made in Poland.
So, kind of like a protected denomination - i.e., Champagne can't come from anywhere but the Champagne region of France, otherwise it's just white sparkling wine; just a little reminder for President Trump, there - the Milano had to be changed to one of Alfa's historic badges, Junior. That name was originally appended to the 105- and 115-series coupes of the 1960s and '70s.
Want to know more about the Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida?
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