@lockem I’m looking forward to pics! Sounds like you’ve planned some neat mods!

 

How's the snow pack at altitude? If not still low, would be fun to see a picture of your new Giulia dwarfed by the white stuff.

 

The weather here is currently late spring-like, conditions are extremely bad water-wise (as-in no snow). The mountain summits have 12" of snow when they should have 12' (they are officially at 14% of the water content of normal). My place at 7500' elevation has less than 1" of snow pack compared to last year at this time with 4'. The only upside I see is that I can put off buying snow tires until next year. No significant precipitation is expected for the next 2 weeks. Southern California is back to extreme drought conditions. Northern California would be too, except for that one storm in early January that caused a lot of mud slides managed to put precipitation for January above normal even though almost all of it fell inside a 48 hour window. It doesn't make up for December having 1% of normal precipitation.

Part of the problem with the snow pack is that it rained at high altitudes in January.

Heavy precipitation has been known to happen in March and April, but it is relatively rare.

I think there is very little chance of getting any great car and snow pictures and not much chance of hooning in a parking lot this year. No chance to try out my UTV tracks either <sigh>. Maybe you could send some of your snow our way?

 

Some pictures from the beauty salon (Imperial Works in Sacramento), courtesy of the shop.
https://www.imperialworkssacramento.com
Reasonable wait times, unlike Silicon Valley shops offering similar services.

Mopar CF grill installed in wrapped front fascia.

Rear door wrap (Xpel) almost done.

Numerous other work-in-progress shots were also provided. No tinting, since the windows already have a reasonable factory tint (part of infrared windshield?).

 

Here is another progress picture from Imperial Works.

Note the color and position mismatch between the rear fascia and body panel (the wrap is installed on both in the picture). In person in sunlight the color difference is less obvious.

This might be a useful reference photo for anyone having damage repaired. If the factory cannot get the color to match perfectly, I don't think it is reasonable to expect a repair shop to do so.

I suspect the color match is better with the "solid" colors. Tricoat paints have directionality to the color.

Part of the positional issue appears to be adjustable, while part of it appears to be a mismatch in the design.

 

Lookin good. The color difference in that last pic might be due to the difference in the material the paint is on. The aluminum is going to provide a brighter surface underneath the paint versus the polyurethane (or whatever they're using nowadays) bumper. My car is dark blue so I don't see any difference. Yours being white is obviously more susceptible to even the slightest variance. It's still looking good though. Over time the ppf on my car has smoothed out so that it looks like glass now. I got the entire front and doors covered. Now I'm thinking I should have had the whole car done, it looks that good.

 

The downside to having the whole car done as I am is that it costs nearly as much as repainting the whole car and it has a finite life expectancy. I suspect that a wrapped car should either be garaged or kept under a cover in order to maximize the life of the wrap. One plus of the full wrap is the risk of marks from a cover should be greatly reduced.

It might also be possible that the color difference is due to differences in the application of the flake layer, which is sensitive to density and angle, not just technical color. I believe that the base (silver?) layer is supposed to eliminate any visibility of what is underneath.

Yet another possibility is that the aluminum might be smoother than the plastic, causing a difference in the reflectivity of the base layer. Perhaps that is what you meant?

Anyway, thanks and yes the car looks good and the Xpel + ceramic coating should give the car an amazing sheen with durability and ease of maintenance. The GT350 that they had just finished in the shop when I dropped off Giulia sure looked amazing.

 

Oh believe me, the cost of repainting the entire car would be astronomical. Because of regulations, the cost of paint jobs has gone sky high. The paints themselves cost so much more than they used to because they now have to comply with environmental regulations. So does the actual process of painting the car. All kinds of environmental regulations have to be met with the paint booth and painting process. It's gotten ridiculous. With prep and paint, I wouldn't be at all surprised if a full repaint would be in the 5 figures.

This is my first car with the ppf on it, so we'll see how it works out, but so far so good.

 

Bumper covers that look ever so slightly darker than the rest of the body are pretty common on cars painted in light colors. I do not know if this is always the case, but sometimes it is caused by the flex agent added to the paint used on the bumper covers.

 

Thanks. I wan't aware that there is any additives in fascia paint, but that makes sense. I was quoted ~$5000 to repaint my Mazda Protege in a solid color and was guessing $7000-8000 for Giulia in tri-coat from that. Maybe pure BS since I simply made up the later number.

 

Here is the latest picture of Giulia at the beauty shop, now with Xpel fully installed and some subtle extras added. It is worth noting how sunlight mutes the fascia color difference.

 

Had you considered a full wrap of the rocker panel? I was thinking about doing them in a carbon fiber look wrap, but my local shop didn't have any samples of the latest and greatest CF vinyl, the Elemento 6 from Sott.

I'm not sure I'm commited to the look, though; I'm no Photoshop wiz, so I haven't visualized it, but it could look cool. I'd want to tie it in with doing the mirrors and maybe the B-pillar...dunno.

 

Lol, Lockem if you ever speak to Koshi try not to tell them they are in Serbia, you might start another Balkan war....just saying

 

Just saying what is on the current map, not trying to say anything political as I have not tried to bother figuring out what is going on in that part of the world. I guess their independence is disputed.

The official address is

KOSHI GROUP LLC
Rr. Tirana, pn
20000 Prizren
Republika e Kosoves

 

Here is the rear, with Koshi spoiler and black vinyl letters.

 

Giulia Locke is finally home from the beauty salon, but it is dark so I cannot take a decent picture. Some observations relative to the 130 mile drive home:

Imperial Works' craftsmanship is very good. They recommended garaging the car for 3 weeks to let the ceramic coating cure, although I don't see how that is supposed to happen. I guess I should see if I can get a cover sooner rather than later.

High beams refuse to come on in town when set in auto mode. I guess it cannot distinguish street lights from an oncoming car.

Android Auto works, even though the dealer told me it was not enabled.

Adaptive cruise control is really nice when driving in heavy traffic. However, it did not work flawlessly as when a person pulling a trailer with a pickup (hard to miss target) pulled out in front of me with very little clearance it did not slow down fast enough to be safe.

The driver's side floor slopes downward towards the front making it difficult to find a place to rest the right foot while using the cruise control.

It is possible to setup the door locks to behave in a much safer fashion than the default settings. In particular, enable auto door lock, disable auto door unlock, only unlock driver's door upon unlock. This defeats the possibility of someone using an "amplifier" to break into the car while it is parked in front of the house, makes it hard for someone to sneak into the car while the driver is entering (recent TV news article, a very drunk man got into his "uber" ride and nearly gave the driver a heart attack when he made his presence known), and reduces the risk of car jacking. Of course this does require using the buttons on the fob to unlock the car.

My previous statement that the car does not shift to neutral when stopping may be wrong. It seems that it switches to neutral while the brake is held and switches back to drive when the brake is released. There is a faint "thunk" that I feel a fraction of a second after releasing the brake but before depressing the accelerator.

I noticed that "funny smell" once, but only once. It did not smell like an engine compartment smell; more like a disinfectant for the heater box smell. Anyway, I only noticed it during one stop.

The aluminum gas cap weighs 50 grams more than the original gas cap. It is a bit of a PITA to install, as the cable that retains the cap is a very tight fit. Some rubber compatible lubricant helps. There is probably a tapered pin tool that would make R&R easier.

The Mopar CF grill weighs 85 grams less than the original grill, and looks great.

The useless to me rear center headrest weighs 370 grams. Removing the center rear seatbelt could be challenging as it has a retractor.

It appears that the rear deck cover is used to form a speaker box for the sub-woofer. The underside does not appear to be open to the trunk.

The heating system fan does not appear to have an "auto" mode.

The front cup holders work fine for a soda can.

The headrests do not have a fore-aft adjustment. I'll have to play with the lumbar supports to see if a comfortable position can be reached.

The courtesy seatback feature does only retract the seat a limited distance (some forum members have stated that it retracts all the way back). From what I consider to be a reasonable driving position the seat leaves adequate room for a rear passenger's feet.

 

Congrats for finally taking full delivery. Plenty to discuss. I'll limit myself to two items.
First, your Giulia's name (yes, I see the similarity to your username/handle). Why Locke?
Second, auto high beams in my car seemed sensitive to reflections from road sign (front or back). I shut it off in the first days and off it has stayed.

 

Regarding the high beams in the city, I wouln't expect them to be needed in a high ambient light situation, so it's probably less a failure of the system to distinguish between street lights and oncoming cars, and more a case of it deciding it is sufficiently lighted outside, in the same way the lights don't come on in the day.

 

Regarding the high beams, I just wanted to test them. I was on a residential street and there was nobody else there. To disable the auto high beams I just turn the headlight control fully clockwise, right? Flashing the high beams worked OK and they appear to be appropriately aimed. The low beams are no brighter than what I have in my halogen bulbed Mazda, but the high beams appear to be much brighter.

I had intended to take a dark country road on my way home, but took a wrong turn and ended up on the freeway in a traffic jamb <sigh>. So, no chance to try the directional head lights. I normally only take that road (Calaveras) in the other direction.

Unlike what was previously reported in the forums, I am able to hold the turn signal lever to get continuous signaling until I release it. Maybe it works differently on a MY2018? Of course flipping the lever until it "snaps" yields continuous signaling without holding it, but that isn't convenient for a lane change.

I also tested all of the window controls including the express up and down from both driver and passenger positions and everything worked perfectly.

I turned off headlight flash on unlock, but it literally does only that. The parking light flash and courtesy light on are still enabled. This can be a security issue by notifying miscreants that an unoccupied car is now unlocked. At least by adjusting the auto-unlock setting only one door is normally unlocked. Disabling the headlight flash will at least improve the headlight bulb life expectancy.

All doors can still be unlocked with a double click of the button on the fob. There is a curious delay of 1-2 seconds between the double click and the doors unlocking that is not observed with the single click driver's door unlock. Maybe triple click does something else?

The bulbous but keyless AR fob does fit in the watch pocket of my jeans.

Giulia is a family member now.

 

I installed my lighted CF sills today. The driver side was uneventful but not so with the passenger side. I could not find the pre-wired power connector for the light. Is it hard to find or is my car missing something?

I pulled the carpet away about 2 inches and chased along all sides of the full length of the rather substantial harness that runs along the inner side of the sill. I found cable ties but no sign of a connector for the lighted sill cover.

 

I eventually found the cable for the passenger side sill, going forward instead of rearwards under the carpet.
I also installed my Red start button.
EC V2 intake install waiting for time to gather the tools.

Giulia at the beauty salon (Imperial Works), in good company.

 

I finally managed to complete installation of my EC V2 intake. No time yet to really try it out. Here are some notes that I hope everyone can find useful:

The V2 intake is about 1.2 pounds lighter than the OEM system.
The engine cover weighs a hefty 3.7 pounds.
Although the screws in the V2 intake clamps look like zinc-plate, they are non-magnetic.
The OEM intake has a complicated venturi attached to the vapor recovery lines, presumably to put a vacuum on those lines. I do not see any such device on the V2 intake, so it may have difficulty passing smog.

My OEM intake box mounting bracket was barely more than hand tight on the car. Maybe it is worth the effort to go around the car with a wrench and tighten things.

Tools:
An assortment of small flat blade screw drivers.
7mm and 10mm sockets, ratchet, and short extension.
T25 Torx screw driver or bit for the socket.
Your favorite cable tie fitting tool should you decide to add the cable tie.
A Dremel moto tool with abrasive cutoff wheel could be helpful.

This work is done above the engine compartment which has layers of pans underneath. Unless you want to multiply your work time with pan removal activity be extremely careful to avoid dropping any tools or parts, especially sockets and screws.

I am not going to repeat the EC instructions, instead these are notes about things I feel could have been clearer:

1) The engine cover snaps at the back are fairly hard to release. Brace yourself against something good and solid to avoid bending something. The cover is very solid, you won't break it with hand pressure.
2) Use the 7mm socket to loosen the large diameter OEM clamps. A nut driver will work for this task if need-be.
3) To release the clamp on the small hose that connects to the rear of the OEM intake either grind through the crimp or use a small screwdriver to prise the crimp away from the ring of the clamp. If the later, work towards the "loose end" of the clamp, that is held in place with 3 points that protrude through matching holes in the loose end of the clamp (thanks AlfaTech for these instructions). Work carefully and gently in any case, the parts are fragile and easy to damage. The clamp will be ruined by removing it. EC says no need to install one, although an auto-parts store stainless steel spring clamp will work just fine. The hose is 14mm OD.
4) To release the turbo bypass hose, squeeze the plastic hoop at the knurling.
5) Each of the evap hoses underneath the OEM intake has little buttons on it that you push to release. Neither the button nor the release should require a lot of force.
6) The electric connector to the MAF has a red plastic lock (as noted in the instructions) that faces downward so you will have to find it by feel. It should move fairly easily. This U shaped lock normally covers a small release button. When you have it clicked open, push the little release button to get the connector off (DO NOT squeeze the whole connector as stated in the instructions).
7) The inlet duct that feeds to the OEM filter box is held to the box with 2 buttons, one on the left and one on the right. Space is very tight making them difficult to depress without cutting your hands. Some skin protection is advised.
8) The filter box has 2 rubber bushes that hold the bottom to a metal bracket. Pull up on the right side of the box (on your left as you face the back of the car) to release that end first in order to get the box loose. Attempting to start from the other end will just bend the bracket.
9) Only the large, short silicone section is a difficult fit.
10) The new evap hoses are long and floppy. I added a long, only lightly secured tie wrap as a strain relief for these hoses and to ensure that they do not get excessively abraded.

 

Oh, I forgot to mention the step that is missing from the instructions: put the engine cover back on. The rubber gasket that goes around the oil-fill pipe needs to be finessed a bit or the cover will not seat properly.

 

Installed a Centerline Titanium lug bolt set. They are about 30% lighter than the OEM lug bolts (0.9 pounds total weight savings) not 40% as claimed; apparently due to having more metal in them than the OEM bolts. They look and feel very nice.

None of the OEM lug bolts on my car were torqued anywhere near the spec 90 ft-lbs. I strongly recommend everyone check their bolts ASAP.

I installed the bolts with antiseize. The purpose of the antiseize is to get a consistent tightening torque (dry friction varies wildly because "dry-clean" parts never truly are dry or clean) on the bolt and prevent galling (which also causes false tightening, and is much more likely to happen with $$, Ti, or Al fasteners). This is SOP for high performance bicycle assembly and in my experience if you don't want bicycle parts falling off at random 100% necessary. I tightened the bolts to 90 ft-lbs, although some charts indicate a 33% torque reduction for lubricated bolts.

I probably should have taken the time to clean off the flaked-off paint from the OEM bolts from the shoulder seats in the wheels, but that appears to be very difficult to do due to the way that the seat is recessed.

I have now had the collision avoidance warning sound 5 times. Only one of those times was there a vehicle in front of me that was braking and that time there was no imminent danger. One of the times there was nothing in front of me at all (most times there was something in front of me, but I was turning away from it).

In addition last night I encountered 2 deer in the middle of the road in a turn. I was able to stop a few feet short of hitting them (ABS activated the whole way), but nothing was indicated by the collision avoidance. I'm going to have to vote "not very useful" on this pricey option.

 

In addition last night I encountered 2 deer in the middle of the road in a turn. I was able to stop a few feet short of hitting them (ABS activated the whole way), but nothing was indicated by the collision avoidance. I'm going to have to vote "not very useful" on this pricey option.

That is unfortunate, I have it set to low sensitivity and it did save me once from a collision.
Make sure you have "warning and brake" option activated instead of "warning only". Also, if there is dirt/snow on the radar or the camera it won't work.

 

Just remembered to check and observe that the OEM lug bolts have a thin film of oil on them. The oil can't readily be seen but it can be felt and it can be wiped off and positively confirmed to be there with a clean tissue. Perhaps AR has changed to oiling the bolts and using a reduced torque?

Tonight I observed that if the forward radar is non-functional because it is covered with snow the cruise control will not activate. That seems rude.

I found two more uses for silicon lube spray:

1) Wipe down the hood seals and solve the problem of the hood not wanting to pop open when it is released.

2) Wipe down the liner inside the cup holders to prevent obnoxious screeching noises.

 

Tonight I observed that if the forward radar is non-functional because it is covered with snow the cruise control will not activate. That seems rude.

The cruise control in my previous cars with adaptive cruise control could be used in non-adaptive mode. Apparently not so the Giulia's (I admit I've never tried).

Conditions in which snow or ice is covering the radar and/or camera are probably conditions where cruise control should not be used.

 

Yes, I need to be cognizant of diminished capability when driving another car that has conventional cruse control.

Drives featuring both restricted visibility and speed control segments keep me on my toes.

Is California snow whiter than the Midwest and East Coast stuff? I understand there has been orange snow in eastern Europe and Russia.

 

Is California snow whiter than the Midwest and East Coast stuff? I understand there has been orange snow in eastern Europe and Russia.

I have no idea. Orange snow sure sounds bad, though.

Worst case for forward visibility so far seems to be 40F and snowing. Everything is wet, so nothing returns much light and at the same time I get the glare off the falling snow.

Anyway, driving about 50 miles with maybe 50' of visibility is not fun in any car.

 

Got passed by a Tesla S 90-D on US-395. The driver seemed to think that there is no speedlimit (he was going 75-80 in a 55 zone) and no CHP (I've seen plenty on that stretch, and they can hide in the trees so don't think you can spot them from the road). Anyway, got to some curves which are about 0.2 gs at the speedlimit and the Tesla slowed down to a crawl. Had to flash him to get him to pull over so I could pass (at least he did so).

I am not impressed. Glad I bought a Giulia.

Interestingly, I encountered a mid-size SUV on Monitor pass and pulling 0.8 g turns put me just barely ahead of his pace. Too busy driving to catch what it was.

 

Yeah, cornering those massive battery packs is not the most fun thing in the world to do.

 

I have no idea what his deal was. He was driving like an old man at the wheel of his prized 40 year old Coupe Deville. Maybe the Tesla wallows like an old Caddy? I do not know I have never driven or ridden in one.

I am not impressed with drivers that speed in the straights but can't make a decent pace around the corners. Don't they realize if they cannot maneuver around the turns well they also cannot respond properly to emergency situations in the straights?

 

Yup and somehow they have no clue how the grade of a hill effects their speed at a constant throttle position