Imagine you had one of the fastest race horses money could buy. Your horse—let's call him, say, Nozze di Figaro—could run hard and win races. But instead of letting well enough alone and enjoying ol' Nozze for his intended purpose—i.e. dashing around the track—you harness him to a small farm cart so that you can carry your groceries and a handful of family members around, too.

That's kind of what it's like driving the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio. Always champing at the bit to go, go, go, it's a vehicle that responds poorly to soft inputs, but goes like hell when you lay into it. Is it practical? Sort of—but in this modern era when reliable, fast-as-hell performance crossovers are a dime a dozen, it's more difficult than ever for automakers to sell that kind of "character" to American car buyers.