Self-fulfilled prophecy - Alfa as unreliable as ever

[basscadet]

As someone who couldn't work up the courage to pull the trigger on a QV as a replacement for my M3: validation. Jalopnik:

The fact is, Alfa Romeo’s comeback car has been plagued with problems, and these are increasingly well-documented by the journalists who have been testing them.

Consumer Reports’ Alfa has been to the dealer service bay three times since they bought it. The UK’s Sunday Times had three Giulias crap out on them. Forums abound with reliability issues. Pistonheads had an Alfa Giulia break down in the middle of a test against a Mercedes and a BMW. Motor Trend’s Alfa was completely defeated by a normal driveway. Car and Driver said that their Giulia suffered “foibles.”

And perhaps most damning of all, Road & Track’s Sam Smith said sister mag Car and Driver actually has “an in-house code reader all but earmarked for Alfas, and every test Giulia they’ve seen has had problems.”

http://jalopnik.com/the-alfa-romeo-g...ian-1796883384

If the above is true, the resale on these will be S-class Mercedes level of bad.

[kdphan]

hm...my wife's commuter fiat 500 was a POS

I wasn't expecting Alfa Romeo to be any different.

[Tacoma]

C&D just published this review of the Giulia (non QV) and said the following:

"By now you’re probably wondering about the Giulia’s build quality, long a pain in the side of all Italian cars. Our test car definitely had a few foibles, including a sunroof that called it quits and a Bluetooth system that had trouble maintaining a consistent connection with a paired phone—and we had the car for only a week. "

And then there's the PH review (discussed here) in which the Giulia QV went into limp mode and then just broke down altogether.

[KevinM]

Yeah, although I didn't think the Alfa would be super-reliable (especially in its first year), the number of documented problems during comparisons and tests is completely nuts. Too bad, as the car by all accounts is actually very good. I hope Alfa gets its act together.

[MCarRacr07]

Originally Posted by KevinM

Yeah, although I didn't think the Alfa would be super-reliable (especially in its first year), the number of documented problems during comparisons and tests is completely nuts. Too bad, as the car by all accounts is actually very good. I hope Alfa gets its act together.

@Kevin....we know each other from the M5 board...
I sold my F80 for a new Alfa Quad...
My car has been nothing but fun....even went to the M Track days with it at Monticello...no complaints...nuthin but smiles...
I won't candy coat Fan-Boy like ahem some owners...the car def. has 1st year issues...that have effected some people...
I am willing to see what the MY18 brings with the updates...
still have my E30 & E39 to put a smile on my face as well though....
Enjoy the true Beast our E39!
Regards
M

[KevinM]

Originally Posted by MCarRacr07

@Kevin....we know each other from the M5 board...
I sold my F80 for a new Alfa Quad...
My car has been nothing but fun....even went to the M Track days with it at Monticello...no complaints...nuthin but smiles...
I won't candy coat Fan-Boy like ahem some owners...the car def. has 1st year issues...that have effected some people...
I am willing to see what the MY18 brings with the updates...
still have my E30 & E39 to put a smile on my face as well though....
Enjoy the true Beast our E39!
Regards
M

Glad your Alfa QV is treating you well and there have been no major issues.

E39 M5..

Enjoy your cars!

[Tacoma]

Originally Posted by MCarRacr07

...
I sold my F80 for a new Alfa Quad...
My car has been nothing but fun....even went to the M Track days with it at Monticello...no complaints...nuthin but smiles...
I won't candy coat Fan-Boy like ahem some owners...the car def. has 1st year issues...

Brushing these off as "1st year issues" is kind of candy coating (or maybe wishful thinking) because historically Alfas continued to have issues beyond 1st year. So far, there's no reason to believe the Giulia has been able to to buck the poor quality trend.

[MCarRacr07]

Originally Posted by Tacoma

Brushing these off as "1st year issues" is kind of candy coating (or maybe wishful thinking) because historically Alfas continued to have issues beyond 1st year. So far, there's no reason to believe the Giulia has been able to to buck the poor quality trend.

@Tacoma....good thing I didn't give up on my 08 E92 M3 that was 1 day away from being bought back under the lemon law then
time will tell...if the Alfa goes south...then I will buy something else, all good, Chief all good

[neilum]

First things first...




Secondly, raise your hand if you are surprised that Alfa's are having issues.

[MCarRacr07]

Originally Posted by neilum

First things first...




Secondly, raise your hand if you are surprised that Alfa's are having issues.

not sure if your troll comment was meant for me...
just corresponding with Kevin as we know each other from the M5Board...
certainly not a troll...and frankly this is my first car other than an M car since 1989...maybe before you were born??
so play nice
much appreciated

[neilum]

Originally Posted by MCarRacr07

not sure if your troll comment was meant for me...
just corresponding with Kevin as we know each other from the M5Board...
certainly not a troll...and frankly this is my first car other than an M car since 1989...maybe before you were born??
so play nice
much appreciated

I am a lot older than that when Alfa's were still unreliable and had build quality issues. ; )

Sorry I am not in my 20's, I couldn't afford a car like this when I was.

Curious what is with Italian cars in general. Usually full of character and fun but also headaches and quirks. They are like the hot crazy chick who is fun for a few nights or a short time but you would never seriously consider anything long-term.

I wouldn't blame anyone for leasing it though...

[MCarRacr07]

Originally Posted by neilum

I am a lot older than that when Alfa's were still unreliable and had build quality issues. ; )

Sorry I am not in my 20's, I couldn't afford a car like this when I was.

Curious what is with Italian cars in general. Usually full of character and fun but also headaches and quirks. They are like the hot crazy chick who is fun for a few nights or a short time but you would never seriously consider anything long-term.

I wouldn't blame anyone for leasing it though...

Something different plain and simple...after almost every Gen of M3 (skipped over the E46)...the last one (F80) just didn't feel right for me....granted my F80 was pre-ZCP package, got the car in Sept. of 2014....
The biggest issue for me with the Alfa is the infotainment system...very different than BMW...and I'm used to how BMW works...
from a driving perspective...loads of fun...and still analog in that when in R mode no nanny features...none...all you have is ABS...so it just makes you grin.....
will it give me headaches?? who knows...so far so good...and my dealer is just as good as my BMW dealer was so that angle is covered..
Regards
M

[neilum]

Originally Posted by MCarRacr07

Something different plain and simple...after almost every Gen of M3 (skipped over the E46)...the last one (F80) just didn't feel right for me....granted my F80 was pre-ZCP package, got the car in Sept. of 2014....
The biggest issue for me with the Alfa is the infotainment system...very different than BMW...and I'm used to how BMW works...
from a driving perspective...loads of fun...and still analog in that when in R mode no nanny features...none...all you have is ABS...so it just makes you grin.....
will it give me headaches?? who knows...so far so good...and my dealer is just as good as my BMW dealer was so that angle is covered..
Regards
M

I am sure the car is a freaking blast, I have no doubt it drives very very good and is full of character. You're just braver then me I guess

And at the end of the day your downside risk is small, the car is within warranty so yeah what's the worst that can happen even it doesn't work out long term...

[Tacoma]

Originally Posted by neilum

I am sure the car is a freaking blast, I have no doubt it drives very very good and is full of character. You're just braver then me I guess

And at the end of the day your downside risk is small, the car is within warranty so yeah what's the worst that can happen even it doesn't work out long term...

Yes, there's the warranty but if you can afford a $70-$100K car, I don't really think cost is a big issue and the downside risk is not as much about money as it is about inconvenience - the inconvenience of having to take time off to take car to the garage or the inconvenience of having it go limp or break down in the middle of the road, etc.

That, for me, is the bigger downside risk.

[MCarRacr07]

Originally Posted by Tacoma

Yes, there's the warranty but if you can afford a $70-$100K car, I don't really think cost is a big issue and the downside risk is not as much about money as it is about inconvenience - the inconvenience of having to take time off to take car to the garage or the inconvenience of having it go limp or break down in the middle of the road, etc.

That, for me, is the bigger downside risk.

As I mentioned after 28 years of driving BMW M cars, this was the first time a car ever tempted me to change....I have always liked the fact that M cars were equally at home on a track as on a street....and that I could haul my family around especially when my kids were small...nothing out there could come close...
so fast forward to today...kids long gone...always wanted an Italian car...and here is where I find myself and so far so good....
Regards
M