WHOA! Long Term Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio Has Been In The Shop 20% Of It's 10,000 Mile Life

The kicker for Car And Driver’s 10,000 mile check-in report for its Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio long-term loan reads: “When we have it, we love driving it. We just wish we had it more.” It perfectly represents the disappointment of having such a fun new car plagued with so many problems, but who is surprised?

Car And Driver is not surprised. As pointed out in the magazine’s latest follow up, they were already having issues with the Giulia pretty much as soon as they got it. According to the July article, a warning light for the electronic throttle control lit up at around 2,400 miles, quickly followed by a check engine light. Then the same warning lights lit up again at 4,100 miles during track testing.

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TomM - 9/26/2018 12:29:28 PM

+3 Boost

ANd THEY COMPLAIN in the article about delays due to a tire bubble (Tires are almost always warranted by their manufacturer - not the car maker)- and also a Cracked WIndshield - caused by an airborne rock - certainly not a warranty problem.

valhallakey - 9/26/2018 1:03:36 PM

+1 Boost

Agreed TomM, you have to read the article to get the full context. Certainly a diff failure is significant, but the primary reasons it was out of service so long was that they had to order the new one and then they did not have a technician around that was available to fix it. The stuff about tires and chipped windows could happen to any car. BTW anyone know if Alfa makes the diff or if they buy it from a third party?

cidflekken - 9/26/2018 1:31:19 PM

+7 Boost

Wait. TomM and valhallkey, nowhere in the article did it talk about any delays for the windshield or tire issue. It mentioned they had issues with both, but they were almost just statements of things they ran into, not complaints. Read the actual C&D article and don't be influenced by the tone of the Jalopnik article that is attached here.

Are you really overlooking something pretty serious here that created the MONTH-LONG SERVICE VISIT?? First, with less than 10K miles, the entire rear diff had to be replaced. Not fixed. Replaced. And it took long because there wasn't a tech available to fix it. Really? A car that costs this much, from a brand that is trying to re-establish itself in this country and it took a month to get a tech to complete the work on the differential. A MOTHER-FRICKIN'-MONTH. I personally cannot wrap my arms around that.

TomM - 9/26/2018 1:54:00 PM

+2 Boost

THen WHY did they even mention them at all - When they had nothing to do with the actual reliability of the vehicle. Instead - they said - "And that's not all" as if it was relevant.

No I am not overlooking something serious like a Diff bearing failure - but the fact remains - on virtually every other car on the road - they would have had the bearing(s) on the diff replaced - not the entire differential. Having been in that industry (I rebuilt transmissions) - Bearings are generally common items that You can most often get from a bearing supplier quicker than a dealer. It is Extremely rare today for a bearing to be a "special" made specifically for one item - today you buy from a catalog of already available items. I will bet I can get every bearing in that diff TODAY if I needed to.

As far as having only ONE mechanic - today most line mechanics have to have the ability to cover virtually every possible repair(yes including engine and transmission rebuilding) on a car. Bearing replacement - a common thing - is not a special task requiring some super trained tech. Mechanics have been replacing bearings in rears for 100 years. THe idea that it would be different because it is Italian is COMICAL. ANd replacing a whole differential - is actually something that probably could be accomplished by YOU - if the car was on a lift. I cannot believe that any Alfa dealer actually has only ONE mechanic - and still has a dealership.

So - I agree with your statement - I personally cannot wrap MY arms around this NONSENSE - it does not add up.

cidflekken - 9/26/2018 4:48:10 PM

+1 Boost

TomM, did you read the actual Car and Driver as I recommended? All they stated was, "Also....". I also stated to not allow the Jalopnik write-up to influence what your'e reading. The Jalopnik writer is the one that added the "And that's not all" statement. C&D, with any long-term car, they write about the entire experience, whether it was due to the car's reliability or not.

https://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/alfa-romeo-giulia-quadrifoglio-reliability-update

PUGPROUD - 9/26/2018 5:25:29 PM

+1 Boost

Two words...Lemon Law. Oh yeah that's right, they were given the car to use!

MDarringer - 9/26/2018 6:25:27 PM

-2 Boost

The Giulia has a litany of problems and the abysmal quality control does it no favors. Lease one MAYBE but do not buy one. For the money of a Quadrapleggio I'd get a Charger Hellcat. The Charger is far more reliable and it's a hoot to drive.

valhallakey - 9/26/2018 11:50:02 PM

-1 Boost

Cool word "Quadrapleggio" copyright it :)

MDarringer - 9/27/2018 6:30:22 PM

+1 Boost

"Quadrapleggio" is from Jeremy Clarkson as is Quadraformaggio"

skytop - 9/27/2018 6:19:10 PM

0 Boost

I remember the last Italian car I owned (a Fiat).
I learned in a very expensive and painful way that Fiat was an acronym for:
"Fix It Again Tony!"
Alfa is NO different.

mini22 - 9/28/2018 11:19:29 AM

+2 Boost

My 2017 Fiat 500 Abarth has been very reliable so far.