[hypersloth]

Greetings everyone, first time poster long time reader. Hoping for some advice here.

I've been looking at cars now for about 6 months off an on and more seriously in the past month or so. Ive read every review, video etc out there about cars in this category and really came to the determination that the Alfa Giulia was the one for me. The other option was the Audi S3 but I couldn't spend that money on what is really a Volkswagen.

I really wanted a TI Sport loaded, black with red interior (wife's pick). Not a big fan of the black 5 hole rims on the volcano black, I think it would look better with the Y rims but no one orders those. I hate the look of the bright 5 hole.

This is a hard car to find. Well, I finally found one rather far from my location and with the deal that made it worth the drive 3.5 hours to Strongsville Ohio. Great people to work with and great pricing! Alas, I think the dealer wants to choke me as I had to walk away yesterday.

After second guessing myself for 2 weeks, I was finally set on picking up the car yesterday. I got out of work much later than I had hoped, rented a car and zoomed up to Strongsville, passing stopped cars in traffic on the shoulder, full of caffeine to fuel my spirited ride to pickup this car before they closed at 6. My ETA was 4pm , originally plan was 2, I arrived at 4:15! I planned on leasing 36 months then buying out the car if I really liked it but would most likely just pickup a new alfa at that point and finance it.

The Test Drive:
They seemed a bit confused that I wanted to test drive the car which threw me a bit, or maybe I took it that way and they actually didn't but I had an alarm go off right there. So I get in the car , drive it down 2 miles away into a park and pop it into manual going through 1-5 and some sharp bends. Fun...
Then I start to hear a clunk, which is getting louder and louder. As I brake I started to hear the clunk get louder and a grind. Not good. I take it back to the dealer, 5 mins later they said it was some road tar but to me it sound like an incorrectly mounted wheel (they swapped rims for me), or a loose brake caliper allowing the pads to flop around on a slightly warped rotor. BUT, sure enough it drove FINE after that.
We drove around a bit, then were heading back to the dealer, at the intersection prior I noticed a yellow message on my alert screen. The sales person told me I must have hit something, so we as we pulled in, we were pushing every button imaginable to clear the message. My focus was on hitting a button that would turn it off and back on, not reading the message then...another message popped up.
As I can recall, one stated Lane Departure Warning Failure - Service but probably not that verbiage exactly. The other said something about ECU or ? I just don't recall.

We turned the car off and like magic it disappeared upon power up. I took it for another ride and yet another warning. As I reached for my phone to take a pic, it went away.


The dash was dirty, the car has sat for four months, there were scuffs on the door, the center console and a small scratch inside the door. Nothing worth not taking a car over as I'll do all of that in the first week. But couple that with all the other issues I had to walk away. The dealer was not happy.

I texted my wife letting her know I wasn't going to take the car, she said look at the Quad and just get the Quad as that was what I've been drooling over. The dealer at this point already walked away from me angry at this point. They also didn't have a mechanic there at this point so they couldn't hook it up to read the codes and did not offer to call me today with an explanation. The dealer said "hey no worries, I'll turn this around and sell this tomorrow". Moments prior he promised that the car was up to date with all its shots (software flashes) but as there was obviously issues with warning messages, I was a bit surprised he wasn't going to look into those issues and get them resolved for the next customer. If they were then why wouldn't they just do it for me right then or today and then call me to tell me it was resolve? Of course, there's the off chance they were sick of me and didn't want to deal with me anymore

SO my question to the group is, was this worth walking away from? I'm not going to get this car with the same specs unless I want to drive to Texas from Pennsylvania! I'm actually now considering the Quad and the S4 now at this point if I'm going to spend big boy money but as this is my daily driver and my commute is 35 miles one way, I'm really kicking myself for passing on this car. I knew though that if I took this car I would be waiting for the next warning and having to take the car to the only dealer near me that I couldn't work out a deal with that will not give a rental if you don't buy the car from them. I'm too busy with work/life not to have a semi reliable car or at least a quick rental swap to get back on the road. Not to mention, the peer pressure of everyone I know saying WHY would you consider that car, and yet you still bought it and now you are taking it the shop a week after you bought it?!

Does anyone know how benign these messages are? I see a sizable number of 'anomalies' on these forums with errors and issues which would actually make me think twice about going on a long road trip with this car with my young kids in the back. That just shouldn't be for such a new car in 2018 but as this was to be my daily driver and weekend car for the family when we go places together from time to time except when we hit the mountains, I wasn't too worried and was ok with taking a car with some 'quirks'.

 

[FNM]

Personally I'd go with your gut feeling on it.. seems a lot wrong here. It should be noted that dealers can cross shop for you, so for example you found the exact spec in CT they should be able to ship it for you. I've heard countless times for free too. Seems like the dealer is a bit off to me.

 

[Chipshot]

I'd have walked as well. That car wasn't ready for delivery. If there are perfect moments during ownership, that should be one of them (often accompanied by a bit of nervousness as you drive your new mount home or whatever your first destination may be). Quirks can come, and be dealt with, later. So maybe give up on that Giulia but not all Giulias. Good hunting.

 

[JayM]

You've done the right thing by walking away

 

[Verrilli]

No lights should be coming on in a new car and the dealer should have been bending over backwards to make it right. The only lights that have appeared on my car in 5000 miles have been due to things I've done (change wheels, mess with the auto start/stop). I think you did the right thing walking away from that car. I wouldn't give up though. Try for a different car either from that dealer or a different one. If from that dealer, request that they test drive it and detail it well before you make the trip there.

 

[Martyn]

I’d walk away too. The Giulia is a great car so don’t write it off your list yet.
In my case, I couldn’t find the exact color combo and option spec at my local dealer, but did test drive one. He searched high and low but couldn’t find what I wanted. So I had the dealer order it for me. This was a painless process and in my case, the Salesman asked for no downpayment!! The length of time between that visit to order the car and the day I paid for it and drive it home was only 6 weeks. Now I have the exact car that I wanted, without annoying options like lane departure, etc. love the car and it was definitely worth the wait.

 

[mtb.ck]

Hard to do, but the right thing

When I took possession of my Q4 last April, the cars had been on the lot for a whopping 6 days. I understood that shots (FW updates), as you called them, would very likely be required. I asked the dealer about updates and was answered with a very lukewarm, "they're in there" -- a platitude which I expected. On the side, I had a candid conversation with the GM, and came to understand his AR tech team training was still underway, and I was certainly an "early adopter/enthusiast", knowing there would be a price for my enthusiasm.

Sure enough, my first CEL happened day 2, where the car went into N only mode, and required two visits to actually fix. Found out later the update process hadn't been trained as of visit number one, so they just cleared the code and handed me back the car with the same faulty firmware. Visit number two came with a loaner Fiat 500, and two days without my baby, so the regional engineering team could train my service department on how it actually was done. Car never threw a CEL after that, and although more "shots" were coming (overpressurized tires, proactive updates and headlight adjust in June, Infotainment fixes in August / September, most recent T57, etc.) this daily driver has been as reliable as my previous Jettas and Toyotas. Just a hellova lot more fun!!!


I am using your 36 month lease, buy another (QV likely) Giulia later strategy. Without a doubt, this Q4 has been the finest motorcar I've ever owned. With some minor mods, this loaded Sport spec can (and has) crushed everything $62K and down. My Jag, Merc and Audi buddies have all expressed buyer's remorse, envy or plans to jump on the AR bandwagon.

Now, 20 plus months after NA general availability, second model year, you should rightly demand a higher standard. No reason for missing FW and the basics like cleaning and proper prep. The Giulia programs at dealerships should be well known, somewhat grooved and mature. A dealership like you encountered is either having a very bad day (and that happens), or a "run away! run away!" bad sign of things (not) to come -- like customer service and competent repair.

You did the right thing.

Even if the QV becomes your choice, dealerships are critical and as shown by many posts on this Forum, the weak link in FCAs NA program. Find another dealership.

If on to other marques, best of luck to you and hope your S4 experience can compensate for missing the QV boat.

 

[ALFATECH]

That experience is totally unacceptable! The car should have been clean and ready to go...preferably with tight wheels ffs! In my experience the sales team does very little if the car is ripunning with no lights on, meaning the updates are rarely done if they can sell it without a visit to the service department for these free updates, ugh! I cannot understand why any salesperson would want a customer buying a car, then coming back with issues that likely would have been resolved with simple flashes before delivery, but I it is what it is.
As far as still wanting the car, well you could call or email them back asking what happened with the car, they may have an honest answer, or they may npfeed you some more bs. If it was me I’d try for a deifferent salesperson if possible, since that one doesn’t seem to care much about making you happy.

 

[hypersloth]

Thanks everyone for your feedback. I'm going to work with my local dealer to find something or order something. In the end I think it's better to buy local vs out of state.

I drove the S4 at my closest dealer today, close to the city. I couldn't get it over 40 and for the most part was under 25mph because of where they are located. The interior is nice and I love the virtual instrument cluster. I felt a more responsive steering actually in the S3 when I tested that months back on back roads. Although I couldn't really drive the S4, I could tell that the steering and fun factor wasnt there like in the Alfa. The alfa feels like it has 4 wheel steering, the Audi S4 felt like a sedan with a big engine in it. And those paddle shifters...so tiny and on the wheel. Sigh.

The audi dealer also said 'big deals, close to invoice' because they are making room for 2019 stock, and all orders will be 2019. Any ideas as to when Alfa will be releasing 2019 models and any rumored updates?

I think I need to take a quick look at the BMW 340. Did anyone consider the 340 before buying their Alfa? If I recall my drive in the 330 was very 'meh'. Along the same lines as my drive in the Mercedes CLA 250.

So, for me it's still the Alfa and to keep with my plan for the 36 month lease. I'll try to work with my local dealer who really tried to find the car I wanted over the period of a couple of weeks but could not. I also do not want to pay anywhere near MSRP so, ordering is probably out.

Wish me luck, however I look forward to driving the Alfa every day and eventually wearing out the newness in it to the point that I'm willing to eat a burger and drink a milkshake in the drivers seat. Hey eventually I may even park it within 5 spots of the last car in the lot at the shopping plaza.

 

[JerryNY]

Greetings everyone, first time poster long time reader. Hoping for some advice here.

The other option was the Audi S3 but I couldn't spend that money on what is really a Volkswagen.

That does stop people from buying Bugatti’s! :grin2:

Seriously though the S3 is a great little car. I had one and can’t really say much bad about it. The RS3 is a little beast but kinda shocking they don’t offer power seats. Still Audi’s are really great, very competent, cars with fantastic interiors but they aren’t what I’d call super fun like an Alfa. The QV is the first car I’ve had in a long time that I really love and makes me smile every time I get behind the wheel.

 

[Sensei]

I think you did the right thing. You shouldn’t drive off the lot wondering if you have a reliable car there will be others.

 

[lost1750GTV]

Big guess here, and I could be way wrong, but I'm thinking that dealer, who pursues internet sales aggressively, perhaps acts as an outlet center for cars that have sat at other dealers. they want to get fresh inventory, send the old stock there, then they ship it to someone out of state and any issues from updates to floor mats to filthy become the local dealers problem.
like a heck of a lot of stuff I could be way off on this, and it's not to say they don't offer a great price - just that there might be some aggravation involved.

 

[hypersloth]

That does stop people from buying Bugatti’s! :grin2:

Seriously though the S3 is a great little car. I had one and can’t really say much bad about it. The RS3 is a little beast but kinda shocking they don’t offer power seats. Still Audi’s are really great, very competent, cars with fantastic interiors but they aren’t what I’d call super fun like an Alfa. The QV is the first car I’ve had in a long time that I really love and makes me smile every time I get behind the wheel.

Yea I had fun in the S3. Too many people out there poo poo'd it with the debate on it not being a 'real' quarto and basically an overpriced VW golf,...but if all else fails I wouldn't be upset if I drove that.

My wife originally told me 'You're NUTS!' when I mentioned the pricing of the QV. The dealer I visited yesterday was willing to take 10k off MSRP on anything in stock including any incentives if any that are currently offered. They have in fact 2 , 2017's left that they are taking 12k off of. Not sure how these guys are discounting this deeply but I couldn't get anywhere near that deal at my local dealer. However after texting my wife with what happened with my attempts at purchasing the TI Sport, she told me to "go for the QV then, you only live once". That was my opportunity, as she will never say that again. She was in a good mood that day and the stars were aligned just right.

So to be clear, Alfa Strongsville - their sales manager there was GREAT and tolerated my questions, texts, emails going back and forth on the car. And I did show up at 4:15 on a Friday when they close at 6, but I also drove 3 hours to get there so. When I told him I wasn't comfortable taking this car today, he shook my hand and said its ok Ill sell this quick (its been there for 4 months), then zipped off with the car to who knows where. No offer of checking the codes, finding another car and shipping it to me, or test driving a QV to move one of their QVs. I hung out for awhile looking for another dealer on the way home but they all closed at 6 so I returned home in my ford fusion hybrid at a less than stellar pace!

70 mile commute each day, at least 4 days each week, 3/4 in traffic unless I take the long way or move..hmm. Winters where I live can be brutal, and I don't have the garage space to keep the QV inside which is killing me. 2 car garage, 1 filled with kid stuff, tool benches etc the other half with the wife's SUV. Hard to consider the QV in my circumstance.

 

[Eagle7]

For starters, if the dealer knew hours in advance that you were driving that far and were on the way, they absolutely should have had that car washed, shiny and ready for you when you got there. The fact that they didn't, tells you everything you need to know about that dealership and/or salesperson. That's a problem car they know about, and haven't had it out on the lot for people to look at and drive because they know it's a problem car. They were hoping to just unload it on you. The clue was when they were 'surprised' (translate: 'uh-oh') that you wanted to test drive it. They were hoping you'd just take it away and they'd never have to see that car again.

You absolutely did the right thing to walk away; always go with your gut instincts.

What color combo/specs are you looking for? A lot of us know what our local dealers have on the lots; maybe we can connect you with the car you want.

 

[hypersloth]

Big guess here, and I could be way wrong, but I'm thinking that dealer, who pursues internet sales aggressively, perhaps acts as an outlet center for cars that have sat at other dealers. they want to get fresh inventory, send the old stock there, then they ship it to someone out of state and any issues from updates to floor mats to filthy become the local dealers problem.
like a heck of a lot of stuff I could be way off on this, and it's not to say they don't offer a great price - just that there might be some aggravation involved.

I dont know anything is possible. The sales manager there seems very much into the cars he sells and very interested in educating people in the Alfa's over their competitors. I cant say the same with the other dealers I've spoken to. In fact I am embarrassed for Alfa and their sales force. The ones I've spoken to are not educated on the Giulia's let alone their competition. Comments like "this Giulia is better because it has a 6 cylinder engine in it, not that crappy little 4 cylinder in the S3" are more than cringe worthy...not only because the guy doesn't know what he is selling but because he thinks 4 bangers are 'crappy'.

The local dealer near me for example orders ZERO cars with the TI performance pack because 'they don't need it'.

Sigh... If there were only money in owning a car dealership I think Id find a few people to open an Alfa dealer with.

 

[hypersloth]

For starters, if the dealer knew hours in advance that you were driving that far and were on the way, they absolutely should have had that car washed, shiny and ready for you when you got there. The fact that they didn't, tells you everything you need to know about that dealership and/or salesperson. That's a problem car they know about, and haven't had it out on the lot for people to look at and drive because they know it's a problem car. They were hoping to just unload it on you. The clue was when they were 'surprised' (translate: 'uh-oh') that you wanted to test drive it. They were hoping you'd just take it away and they'd never have to see that car again.

You absolutely did the right thing to walk away; always go with your gut instincts.

What color combo/specs are you looking for? A lot of us know what our local dealers have on the lots; maybe we can connect you with the car you want.

yea I still feel like a jerk though and maybe I'm reading into their reaction to me wanting to test drive the car. I really doubt there was anything insidious going on here. I did call and tell them I was running late and asked if we had enough time, but I got the sense that I was asking for something out of the norm. I was just so **** bent on finally getting there and getting this car so I can focus on my next project that even if they told me no I probably would have still showed up.

The car was fairly clean with some dirt wash running down here and there. I sensed the use of Armor All on the tires based on the greasy feel but I cant fault them for not knowing better. The interior was vacuumed but there was still some dirt on the dash, screens, on the door, the center console. Caked a bit here and there on the outside of the car from sitting near a busy road likely during the winter when ash/salt is spread and that dust flies up. Not an optimal spot for a car dealer and a car sitting for 4 months. The paint overall looked ok but it was not a sunny day to really check for swirls or to detect a dealership that knows how to avoid using the same bucket with sandpaper essentially for a sponge by the time they wash 5 cars.

I'm looking for a Black TI SPORT, AWD with Red leather interior. LOADED but can live without the engine block heater.
If I had to settle for the right deal, I don't care if the car does or doesn't have a sunroof or leather uppers. There is a car locally without the leather uppers, sunroof - but also omits the pack which includes the lane keep and emergency braking. I'm a bit nervous about the emergency braking as I don't want to be casually flying down the road at 85 on a highway and suddenly have the car decide it wants to stop so that I will likely disable, but I like the lane keep warning. Reminds me of a stall warning on an airplane.

 

[19737]

That's horrible treatment. The dealer was mad that you didn't like error lights on the test drive? Did they explain how tar could cause a clunking noise? Did he expect you to believe he could sell that car tomorrow? Lol, these cars are not exactly flying off the lots.

I think walking away was the right thing, not so much because of the car but because of the dealer. If he doesn't care before the sale he certainly won't after. These guys are car dealers, they are supposed to work around customer's schedules. It did not sound to me like you were being a jerk.

Was this an Alfa Romeo/Fiat dealer or AR/Maserati?

 

[Eagle7]

The local dealer here in Boise, Idaho has what you're looking for except with a black interior instead of red:

https://www.alfaromeousaofboise.com...o-Giulia-010dfff90a0e0aea7510e2754c86036d.htm

It's a loaded 2017 they've marked down $11k. They have a few others left, but this one has the most features, it's a Ti sport with AWD which will make a difference in the winter. You probably wouldn't want to fly in and drive it back (although Idaho is beautiful this time of year), so I'm sure they'd arrange a transfer. If you're interested, call Tom Cotner 208-859-9944 or email [email protected]. He's the guy I bought mine from and was great to deal with.

 

[MorganB]

The alfa feels like it has 4 wheel steering, the Audi S4 felt like a sedan with a big engine in it. And those paddle shifters...so tiny and on the wheel. Sigh.

I test drove the A4 and A5 a few times before settling on my Alfa Ti Q2. I was coming from an A6 and while I like Audi I found the A4 uninspiring. The design is solid both inside and out but a touch bland. Fast forward to seeing an add for the Giulia on TV, having no idea Alfa was back in the US, and 3 weeks later I was driving a Giulia. The Giulia makes me happy every time I see it and drive it. The on board tech is not near the level of the Audi but the driving experience is off the chart. It is my favorite car I've ever owned. No regrets. You did the right thing by walking away. I got lucky and located exactly what I wanted and it was inbound to a Texas dealer. My dealer did a trade and I was good to go. A fresh arrival that hadn't sat on the lot. I was lucky.

 

[ferraripete]

you are not wrong for expecting a better dealer experience. I will say that my qv was trailered tome and I expected the car to be ready to drive w/ no excuses. I headed strait to the car wash pit and once fully dry, began the full paint correction and detail. took the weekend to have the car properly ready and to my expectations. I was pissed off for about two days but now that the car is perfect and wrapped in suntek...no more heart burn.


the dealers today leave much to be desired and alfa has really done themselves a disservice with the dodge/fiat alignment. ****...I am getting pissed off again just thinking about a service at that crap dealership