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2022 Alfa Romeo Stelvio is a truly horrible car

16K views 78 replies 35 participants last post by  Alfa164spider 
#1 ·
Purchased a 2022 Stelvio Veloce in June 2022. On the way home, all of the warning lights went off and the safety systems shut down. They all reset when the car was turned off. Initially figured it may have been a one-off. However, it happened again a week later. So, we took it to the dealer. They kept it a week and gave it back to us saying it was fixed. It happened again on the way home from the dealer. Turned around and took it back. This time, they had it for 10 days. Told us to pick it up. Once again, on the way home, it happened again. This time they kept the car for 50 days. They said they needed to have a special technician come to the shop to take a look. I called Alfa customer service and was told that their feeling is they can just keep the car as long as they think is necessary in order to repair it. They refused a buyback. After three months, they had us pick it up without ever diagnosing the problem. They said they changed the dash wiring harness and hope that eliminates the problem. They have no idea what happened.

So, I have now sued them and the car is sitting in my driveway. I refuse to allow my wife to use it because, honestly, it's junk. We should have never purchased it. I will fight them until they take this lemon back. Run from Alfa. They are awful.
 
#2 ·
We’ll assuming this is true that’s a shame. The last thing I’m sure you want to hear is the same could occur to any brand but in this case it didn’t and it wasn’t someone else, but you. Had the same occurred to me I would likewise be inconsolable. Hopefully this will be resolved in your favor as the events you describe should qualify for a lemon law buyback. Good luck with your next vehicle purchase whichever brand it is.
 
#6 · (Edited)
Well if you would have posted sooner we might have helped save all the problems or even helped sort out lemon laws and given advice to facilitate a buyback...

Or, told you to change the battery which probably would have solved the entier issue in 5 minutes.

Have fun with whatever you get next.

BTW... You should drive the car and make sure the problem isn't solved. If your Lawyer didn't explain to you that proving the vehicle wasn't fixed will be a crucial part of your case... Because yeah, the dealer can keep the car for months on end legally if they are trying to repair. They can also just say... "Yup, it's broken but we can't fix it.. here's the keys, park it at home and don't drive it "

Which is something that is pretty common now, especially with more mainstream brands with better reputations then Alfa. Have fun throwing your money at a lawyer, hope you get something for it.
 
#7 ·
Well if you would have posted sooner we might have helped save all the problems or even helped sort out lemon laws and given advice to facilitate a buyback...

Or, told you to change the battery which probably would have solved the entier issue in 5 minutes.

Have fun with whatever you get next.
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I am hearing a lot about the battery causing so many issues. I have never experienced this with any other car, is there something different about the alfa that requires a special battery?
 
#9 · (Edited)
No.

Do some searches 12volt battery problems are common now.

Even in EVs. However other brands get a pass when Alfa get complained about. Not kidding, do a search on any brands forum looking at the cars built after 2017.

Honda currently has a class action lawsuit against them about the batteries. Honda CR-V, Accord Parasitic Draining Defect Alleged In Class Action Lawsuit Over Batteries

Difference is threads like this get deleted in those forums.

But they do talk about the issue as long as the people aren't trying to inflate thier problem into something that trashes the brand unfairly....

Here's an example of EVs owners discussing it... Also an example of a car manufacturer not giving a crap about it.

 
#11 ·
No one should have to put up with such a crappy experience from the dealer and mfg. Plus, we should not have to go on forums to find out how to fix our new relatively expensive vehicle. Some of us like me put up with weird crap; however, I would not put up with the OP's experience either.

As for the OP making the post, fine by me, no reason to write negatively.
 
#12 · (Edited)
Yet.. forums exist for every brand, not for small part so people can go on them and learn from owners how to better deal with issues that come up with their car. And they all have issues and horror stories from dealers.

At least Alfa hasn't issued a recall with no fix and told owners to park outside because the cars might explode randomly..... other manufactuers currently are.

If Toyota and Hyundai aren't trash .... Alfa isn't either.

Doesn't mean the OPs experience is ok, it isn't. However neither isn't unique to any singular brand.

Get Toyota to change how it operates and the rest of the industry will change ... No one cares about people complaining about Alfa's. They aren't the problem.
 
#13 · (Edited)
He should just use his state's lemon laws. all MFG get sued for Lemons, & buy cars back. He's getting board pushback because he's trashing Alfa and adding drama. When buy backs and lawyers are involved, there are no feelings, there are days the cars in service, and # of attempts to fix it by the MFG. He says he was without his car for 60 days, they said they have fixed it, but he refuses to drive it. It seems to me the ball is in his court to prove it's not fixed. he drove it home, and it didn't happen. Saying it's too risky is kind of diminished because both previous times it occurred, they just turned around and drove back to the dealership. It doesn't seem the failure caused his car to stall in traffic, or fail to brake, or auto brake. you know something that would warrant him saying, "I can't have my wife drive, it could kill her." Bottom line... know your state's laws, and get a lawyer that knows them involved. BTW Did you know Porsche is an awful company because there is a problem with some Taycans being dead.
 
#14 ·
If you owned a Porsche during the IMS bearing years ....

Absolutely.

Crazy to realize over 20 years later and Porsche still hasn't fixed those cars too, instead they just designed new engines and said FU to the old ones.

Thankfully there are lots of Porsche forums and aftermarket parts suppliers to help owners deal with the issue.
 
#15 ·
Hate this person had a negative experience. As stated already, every brand has experienced this. This person clearly will not be a loyal Alfa fan and likely will perpetuate an already struggling reputation for reliability to his friends and whomever will listen. Japanese car makers made a great name for themselves in the 80's on, when European car makers always had trouble with electronics...they could build a terrific engine and when it ran, man it ran! Americans struggled with reliability themselves, but I feel like they have worked hard to catch up. So, all that to say EVERY car manufacturer has a total lemon now and again. It sucks to be on the receiving end of that but does not represent every car made by that manufacturer as many will testify to on here.
 
#17 ·
If original poster has filed a lawsuit he shouldn't post anything more as it could hurt his case. Let the lawyer handle the lemon law in the state he's in. Make sure they have had the proper times to fix the identical problem. Just some advice from legal perspective. Anything on the forum posted could be used against you to get the car bought back or a new one given to replace the lemon.
 
#19 ·
You don't mention using a tender. 95% of the time its a low battery. We could have told you that before July 2022. So before you go blowing steam, gain some knowledge. Even though I am in repair hell, I don't disrespect the brand...just the idiots in Turin that can't put the right labels on parts.............sounds like your dealer isn't exactly in the know either. state and dealer may help us guide you.
 
#32 ·
You know its perfectly believable that someone had a terrible experience like this and is pissed and just venting. Just because we all have great experiences with our stelvios and are Alfa enthusiasts doesn't mean people don't have issues or get lemons. Frankly if I was in that position and this happened to me I would probably be bashing Alfa too '' they warned me.. I should've known.. etc"..

If I was having issues, I would go search forums too.. and if my issue wasn't resolved by dealer or manufacturer, I would probably go complain too, out of frustration. Regardless of brand, if you buy a new car and have repeated issues, months without it and no reassurance about issues being fixed, you have the right to be upset about it. And most people form opinions based on personal experience, not based on facts or stats so yeah, this person is probably disenchanted with Alfa thinks they are all horrible.

We can assure you, they are not! As you can see by all the positive posts here, plenty of people are happy with these cars. So if this is legit - Good luck with lemon law - personally I think they should buy back your vehicle!
 
#33 ·
I do not wish the OP experience on anyone. But as others have said, lemon laws exist in (most) states and for this very reason. 30 years ago, I bought a Dodge Shadow convertible. Numerous problems. After letter mentioning lemon law, they reached out and made offer to get me out of the car without lemon on the title. Moved on to another Shadow and no issues.

MY 22 Stelvio is my second. First was a 2018. Flawless until oil pressure solenoid went out at 52000 miles. Had Mopar coverage. Covered a rental during backorder on the part. Dealership called me weekly with update. Alfa in MI emailed me about as often. It was the only problem in 2.5 years I had the car. Handled graciously and professionally. My new 2022 flawless so far. Were it not I have a couple of excellent dealers close enough. The selling dealer is working on my Fiat. 9 years from new and this is first substantial problem. Radiator has small leak. Being fixed under extended factory coverage.

Others would say my experience with excellent reliability is not the norm. If so, neither is the other extreme experienced by the first poster.
 
#34 ·
My Stelvio is the BEST CAR ever - this is even considering the issues.

Here in Australia they are a vehicle that few think about and most miss out on experiencing. I have colleagues with BMWs and Mercs that look at my car with envy and their inner monologue is spoken without thinking - ”I wish I knew that was an option when I bought…”. I have people walk into work and whisper - ‘who owns the Alfa?‘

My issues:
  1. About once a month when I go to put my passenger window up… it goes down regardless of being controlled by the drivers door or passenger
  2. Yup, I’ve had the battery problem.
  3. I’ve had the volume knob stuck down which drains the battery.
  4. The front sensors are too sensitive so I keep them set to activate during parking.
  5. My electric tailgate button gets stuck
  6. My bonnet seized and wouldn’t open.
I‘ve actually loved experiencing them because I feel like I know the car really well.

It’s like a relationship.
 
#41 ·
My Stelvio is the BEST CAR ever - this is even considering the issues.

Here in Australia they are a vehicle that few think about and most miss out on experiencing. I have colleagues with BMWs and Mercs that look at my car with envy and their inner monologue is spoken without thinking - ”I wish I knew that was an option when I bought…”. I have people walk into work and whisper - ‘who owns the Alfa?‘

My issues:
  1. About once a month when I go to put my passenger window up… it goes down regardless of being controlled by the drivers door or passenger
  2. Yup, I’ve had the battery problem.
  3. I’ve had the volume knob stuck down which drains the battery.
  4. The front sensors are too sensitive so I keep them set to activate during parking.
  5. My electric tailgate button gets stuck
  6. My bonnet seized and wouldn’t open.
I‘ve actually loved experiencing them because I feel like I know the car really well.

It’s like a relationship.
For your stuck button use silicon to lubricant the switch. Once I did that I have not had the problem since. Been almost three years
 
#35 ·
You should not run from your car but from your dealers and that includes most of the dealers in USA. As I said many times before, obviously most of them really don't know what they are doing, which is totally unacceptable of course. Most possibly you have battery, battery terminals electrical problem which can be fixed in 10 minutes.
 
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