We can all celebrate the arrival of an “SUV for the S-curves,” a 505-horsepower, 0-100 km/hour-in-4.1-seconds racy wagon called the Alfa Romeo Stelvio.

2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio

So three cheers for La meccanica delle emozioni (the mechanics of emotion), and good luck, too.

The top-of-the-line Stelvio, the Quadrifoglio, will have the most powerful engine, while the starter versions – the Stelvio and Stelvio Ti – will deliver a more prosaic 280 horsepower/306 lb-ft of torque from an aluminum 2.0litre turbo four. Top speed 232 km/hour. Every Stelvio gets all-wheel drive.

The design is a sexy collection of curves and bulges, the antithesis of staid German rival SUVs like the Porsche Macan and BMW X3. Breathtaking looks and heart-pounding performance will get Alfa attention. Perhaps enough so that frothing customers will overlook the fact that Alfa is part of the bigger Fiat Chrysler (FCA) conglomerate that keeps churning out vehicles with crummy quality.

Top Gear once declared Italy and Switzerland’s Stelvio Pass one of the best driving roads in Europe.

FCA brands are all near the very bottom of J.D. Power’s Initial Quality Study and Vehicle Dependability Study. Consumer Reports’ latest reliability study planted FCA brands at the bottom, too: Jeep at No. 23, Dodge at No. 26, Chrysler at No. 27, Fiat at No. 28, and Ram at No. 29. Ugh.

Still, “The Stelvio has all the ingredients to eventually become Alfa Romeo’s best seller,” IHS Automotive analyst Ian Fletcher tells Bloomberg. “To do it right, the SUV should really feel like a premium product with an Italian flair.”

Alfa hopes the Stelvio will compete successfully with the Macan, Audi’s Q5 and the X3. Buyers here, however, are finicky; they are impatient with break-downs and intolerant of quirky technology.

Alfa has a new SUV with the allure of Sophia Loren looks and a pedigreed brand. For Alfa’s sake, let’s hope the new Stelvio is not as problem-plagued as everything else FCA sells.