Alfa Romeo Stelvio Now Offered In Rear-Wheel Drive Spec For $2,000 Less

Most crossover SUVs at least offer all-wheel drive as an option. But not everyone who’s in the market for one needs all that traction. So while the Alfa Romeo Stelvio was offered until now exclusively with all-wheel drive, it’ll now be offered without it as well.

According to Car and Driver, Alfa’s debut crossover will, for 2019, be offered in a new base version that does away with the front driven wheels, reverting to rear-drive only and likely wearing a Q2 (instead of Q4) badge. That’ll cut about a hundred pounds off the curb weight – expected to drop just below the two-ton mark – and cut $2,000 off the price of admission to bring the base price down to $41,440.

C/D reports that a Sport package will be offered for $1,800 (which almost covers the entire savings for the rear-drive model), upgrading with 19-inch wheels, colored brake calipers, aluminum pedals and such. The rear-drive Stelvio will only be offered with the base engine, a 2.0-liter turbo four, channeling 280 horsepower and 306 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels through an eight-speed automatic transmission.

The more budget-friendly proposition will only come in base spec, with the sportier Ti and the Quadrifoglio, with its 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6, sticking with AWD.

Expect a slight bump in fuel economy to result. Though the EPA has yet to release its official ratings, the all-wheel-drive version returns 22 miles per gallon in the city, 28 on the highway, and 24 on the combined cycle. The order books are already said to have opened, with deliveries to commence “within the next few months.”