[Lombard Chariot]

Thinking of getting a Visconti Green Speciale 2.2 diesel - yes I know that the black fuel is the devil's spit but it's hard to argue with the fuel economy and tax implications here in the UK; plus, I know that anti-diesel legislation is being mooted but I never drive into a city where that's being considered.

I'm going to wait for the Apple CarPlay option to be available then see what offers the dealers can give me..... A lot of the reviews compare the direct competitors - Audi Q5, BMW X3, Land Rover Disco Sport, Volvo XC60 etc., but I'm coming from a 12 year old Audi A3 so I'd be happy if it's better than that.

My mother ran an Alfasud back in the 70s - and it did break down a lot! - but I have seen more Audis on the back of tow-wagons than almost anything else, so whilst Alfa does have a reliability perception to salvage, I'm not convinced that they have a build quality reputation that is a) accurate and b) markedly worse than their competitors. The main problem I have discerned is the "aftermarket attitude" of the dealers themselves.

One question I do have is:
If I don't get a space-saver wheel at the time of order, can I easily install one at a later date? It'd be great to see a picture of what the "under-boot" looks like without a space-saver installed.

 

[Marco]

I'm going to wait for the Apple CarPlay option to be available then see what offers the dealers can give me.....
A lot of the reviews compare the direct competitors - Audi Q5, BMW X3, Land Rover Disco Sport, Volvo XC60 etc., but I'm coming from a 12 year old Audi A3 so I'd be happy if it's better than that.

My mother ran an Alfasud back in the 70s - and it did break down a lot! - but I have seen more Audis on the back of tow-wagons than almost anything else, so whilst Alfa does have a reliability perception to salvage, I'm not convinced that they have a build quality reputation that is a) accurate and b) markedly worse than their competitors. The main problem I have discerned is the "aftermarket attitude" of the dealers themselves.

One question I do have is:
If I don't get a space-saver wheel at the time of order, can I easily install one at a later date? It'd be great to see a picture of what the "under-boot" looks like without a space-saver installed.

Apple Car Play is important to me too and i am waiting for it .....
I have driven all the cars you mentioned and i will tell you Land Rover has a huge dependability issue here in the US ..... The XC60 is louder than normal in the cabin, the pictures look better than the car and the driving experience is blah ........ Audi Q5 has that hideous infotainment set up that looks like the designers forgot to allocate space for it and at the last moment decided to stick it on top of the dash ...... and the X3 is under powered and looks like they use inferior material on the interior.

And to answer your question, i would think you could because the sheet metal would be the same on either option. The space saver just fills the spare tire cavity with foam. Can probably have both options and interchange as you like. (i.e. long trips vs. daily driving)