So it's been 2 years since purchasing my 2024 Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio
This is an update to this post:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Autos/comments/1loshbz/trials_of_a_quadrifoglio_ownership_1_year_owners/Some of the information will repeat..
I’ve since purchased a Lotus Emira V6 MT as well, so I’ll make some comparisons to that along with my ND2 MX5 and other cars i’ve driven.
I'll start with the negatives since most of you are probably interested in that:
The Negatives
Reliability
- I destroyed my rotors somehow in the first month of ownership. To be fair, I drove the car HARD in the street. It developed black spots on the rotors that could not be removed with standing on the brakes several times. Dealer replaced rotors and pads under warranty
- The car threw CEL several times in the first few months of ownership, but a new AGM battery and possibly a software update by the dealer fixed this. Never happened again.
- It’s now been over a year since i’ve experienced any new reliability concerns. The car has given me no issues as a daily driver. None. Okay sometimes I need to plug and replug my android phone to get android auto working but that’s how it is on the Lotus and Mazda as well
- The very slow front crank seal leak that was spotted a few months into ownership is an ongoing issue with Alfa Corporate now involved. The car is now on its 5th seal and currently in service. Because of this one issue, the car has been in service for 60+ days in 2 years. This time, they’ve found out that the vacuum pump is also leaking. It's highly possible that this was the original leak and its been dripping down to the front crank and causing a misdiagnosis. I noticed this area of the engine bay had a thin layer of oil on the block for nearly 2 years ago, and when I pointed it out to the dealership they dismissed it and said if its not dripping onto the ground its not a warranty issue. Otherwise corporate engineers have concluded there’s no crank scoring, no crank play, no PVC issues or crankcase pressure issues, the engine is not overboosting. This entire ordeal could’ve been avoided. Let’s see what happens…
Build quality issues
- Rattle in the front guage cluster surround. I already knew this would be an issue before purchasing the car and had purchased foam. Instantly resolved on day 1.
- very small rattle in the driver's side door. Only audible if i really crank the base of my music. Dealer applied foam and its significantly better
- No other concerns with build quality.
Dailying issues
- the car is low, about the same clearance as a 458 but with a longer wheelbase. The centre of the car is prone to hitting taller speed bumps. I do have to be mindful of this.
- My fuel economy was around 15L/100km last year, but this year i’ve been more sensible and averaging 12L/100km
- Big A pillar and mirror situation means visibility is hampered when doing left turns onto pedestrians
- No heated seats or steering wheel with carbon bucket seats. We have mild winters so it hasn't been a problem.
- The car idles at nearly 1000 rpm, so you gotta apply a bit more brake pressure to get the car to sit still at the red light, this can get fatiguing, resolved by putting it in neutral. This is the biggest problem dailying this car. I honestly sometimes feel the brake pedal is too far offset to the left as well.
Performance issues
- Front alignment is very limited. I'm not sure why they done it this way. Front camber is not adjustable and it sits at -0.5 degrees currently. The car handles so incredibly well and neutral I am worried about messing with this.
- Brakes, even with Porterfield R4S pads on stock rotors, are just okay. I get slight brake fade on a more intense touge session. The brakes have little feel and they behave differently depending on what more you're in. They feel best in race mode
- You pretty much have to drive this car in Race mode to get the most out of it. It's a completely different animal. There are no torque limits like in Dynamic mode in first, 2nd and possibly other gears. The car feels MUCH faster, brakes better, has a more sensitive throttle, and the stiffest suspension settings are locked in this mode. Caviat is you do not get any traction or stability control. None. I haven't found this to be an issue on PS4S tires. It hooks up so well, the chassis is communicative, well balanced and lovely. I have no qualms driving this car hard in race mode.
- In bumpier roads, you can bottom out the car because its so low if you're driving fast enough.
The Positives
Reliability 8/10, would have been 9/10 if this front crank leak issue would be resolved.
- I've been driving this car daily like any other car. In the past 16 months or so there has been absolutely no issues with the car apart from the ongoing issue mentioned above. Android auto works perfectly, everything just works. There’s been no bugs, no qualms. No bullshit. One time the back up camera didn’t come on but there has been a recall about this and its been getting dealt with.
- The oil leaking issue is 200ml/6 months or so as measured on the dipstick. I’ve never had to top it off.
- Overall this has been better than I expected. I really just want the oil leaking issue fixed. My ND has more quirks, like the overly sensitive passenger sensor, seat belts that don't retract properly, automatic wipers that work half the time, infotainment crashes...
Build quality 8.5/10 - No major concerns. Nothing new to report.
- I am going to go ahead and use my Supra, my father's refreshed Tesla model 3 as basis of comparison. You might argue that's not fair as this is a more expensive car but the interior is still a Giulia which is comparable in price to those cars.
- The build quality is significantly better than a Tesla or the Supra. The touch points are nice, including the steering wheel which feels expensive, the large cold metal paddles. There are minimum creaks or rattles compared to those cars. FAR FAR FAR less rattles and creaks than the Supra or tesla. This feels like a Rolls Royce in comparison to those cars. It's not even close but keep in mind i did fix the cluster surround rattle on day 1 but I did similar things with the Supra.
- The doors shut with a solid clunk like a vault, there's no flex in the door panel
- The paint has been solid with little orange peel and it seems to be very hard and thick as noted by my dealer.
- Body Panels align well, better than the ND2 and certainly better than the Lotus lol
- there's cheap plastics in places that don't really matter like the lower door pockets, which was also true in the Supra and the Tesla. This is where my foot hits on exiting the car so I wouldn't want this to be leather.
- The most notable cheap areas are the centre column stalks and the overhead grab handles. The stalks just have a cheap texture to them.
- The switch gear feels pretty good. I think the Supra had a bit more solid feeling switches but I mean i'd have to compare them side by side.
- I think most of the complaints against this car's build quality is the cabin's 2015 design and use of dark materials. It does not feel cheap where it matters in terms of function, rattles, and creaks.
As a daily - 8.5/10, exceeds expectations. A comfortable and quiet ride, a functional and easy to use cabin, what more can you ask for?
- Extremely comfortable ride in N or A mode. I don't really know how they've managed to do this. It is so well damped. It's a complete night and day difference to the Tesla or Supra, or even my parents 2014 E Class which is this car's contemporary. It just floats and glides on the highway, you feel the bumps, but they're not intrusive.
- It is a quiet ride. It seems like Giulia's got extra sound deadening in 2020 or so. When I close the window the world just fades away. No its not a Rolls Royce but it is excellent even for the price point. Little wind noise, or tire noise. It is wonderful.
- The cabin is very easy to use. HVAC controls all right there and intuitive, VERY easy to read and excellent resolution and refresh rate digital instrument cluster. Beautifully designed. Ease to read, well integrated, matte centre infotainment display, that does not have glare and is plenty bright. It just works. Reviewers are funny, they complain about this interior and then complain about gigantic touch screens. What exactly do you want?
- I can really comment on the stock Alfa UI, i haven't used it in nearly two years after I set up the car. That's the thing. You just plug in your phone and never see it again. There is no crucial function buried in the infotainment display. You can pretty much cover it up with carbon fibre or whatever you want and the car will be functional 100%. I love that about it.
- Excellent driving position but the brake pedal situation is a bit cumbersome.
- The Sparco carbon fibre bucket seats are comfortable though lack a bit of lumbar support, they're easy to get in and out of but I do find the Lotus Emira is easier to get in and out of overall which is insane.
- I'm 5'7, admittedly short, and there's a lot of foot space behind myself. There's ample space for a child seat in the back especially with the carbon buckets that are lower profile than the standard seats. The cabin is overall tighter feeling than the Emira.
- Rear seats fold down with ease, and they fold down flat.
- I'm no audiophile but the speakers sound good to me, better than the Supra's. I just had to raise mids a bit and lower treble. I think the Emira’s KEF system sounds a bit better than this car.
- I have no issues modulating the brakes and coming to a creep and smooth stop. I think this was a concern on earlier Giulias.
Performance - 9.5/10 - The greatest sports sedan ever made. If only the brakes kept up.
- Owning my Lotus Emira concurrently with this Alfa has really opened my eyes to just how good this car is. Its absolutely incredible. I know people don’t believe me. I tell people its a Cayman with 4 doors. They don’t believe me. This does not feel, or drive like a sedan. I don’t think there’s a sedan in history that can make this claim.
- It is so good in fact, that if the Emira was not manual, I would be hard pressed to decide which to take to a twisty road. The suspension tuning and chassis in both cars is excellent, but I wouldn’t put the Emira ahead of the Giulia. Its got a lighter front end, but less immediate steering so both cars feel equally eager to turn in. The emira’s driving character somehow feels, less overall refined than the Giulia’s. Giulia feels absolutely planted especially at over 160KPH where the Emira becomes sketchy. Giulia hunkers down. I wouldn’t mind if the Giulia was my only SPORTS car. It can handle tight touges, canyons, long high speed sweepers. It has really blown my mind.
- And this engine. So much character. Loves to be revved. Power and torque everywhere but it doesn’t die off at the top end. It’s magnificent. I prefer this to the Emira’s engine which can feel a bit wheezy and lazy in comparison. This thing is fire red hot.
- one of my favourite cars for driving is the first generation BRZ in terms of chassis feel, balance, steering feel and overall driver engagement and involvement, out of the box. The Giulia feels like that car, except with 505 hp, more grip, better aero, and an engine that begs for a beating. It’s literally a 505hp BRZ.
- This car is the most perfect out of the box car I have ever driven. My first spirited drive, I remember yelling YES YES YES like a mad man. The turn in is so good, with ZERO understeer, zero oversteer, and the car just rotates around you so well. The chassis is super communicative. The steering is light at first but loads up enough to become a bit of a work out in the corners. It doesn't communicate as well as the Porsche did but it just has this fun character to it. Im really repeating myself here.
- The transmission shifts fast in race mode, and it kicks you in the ass. It doesn't just shift smoothly like a videogame, you feel the shift like in an Aventador, its addicting and puts a smile on my face. There's just so much character with this car. Despite it being a ZF8 it is ABSOLUTELY superior to the one in the GR Supra. The GR supra shifted slower, less aggressively, and would delay like a second before upshifting if you were anywhere nearly the redline.
- The whole thing is greater than the sum of its parts, its absolutely intoxicating. For the first time In my life, I have had literal dreams of driving my own car. I own an Emira and I miss my Giulia while its been in service. Please just fix my car.
- The instrument cluster in race mode is a work of art, it reminds me of the LFA's rev counter. The best thing is how good the refresh rate is, there's no discernible lag to cheapen the experience. Alfa knocked this one out of the park
- On higher speed roads, like for example the ones around LA, it seems to have more and more grip the harder you drive. I have never driven a car, not even the Porsche, not even the Ferrari, that felt so planted and confidence inspiring at over 160-200kph in wide corners. Its not hard to believe it held the world record for a sedan at the Nordschleife on stock tires driven by a man in a t-shirt.
- I really doubt that there's any modern sedan in the world that is more fun to drive and as intoxicating as this is from the factory.
- I have not driven older Giulias QVs hard like this, but I have heard the new mechanical rear diff in the 2024 model makes it the best model year, as it improves everything from predictability to throttle response. It is a faster car.
- This year I slapped winter tires onto it and drove it from Osoyoos to vancouver through highway 3 during a snow storm in A mode. Had no issues, even drifted several corners on purpose. Had a blast.
Conclusion
The ongoing front crank seal leak, if its even that, has been the only downside to owning this car. I wish I could tell you its been problem free, but mine happens to have a problem that literally no one else on the forums is facing. I think I heard of one other person, ever, that had a front crank seal leak and it was solved on the first repair. I am hoping the vacuum pump leak, which IS a common source of leaks in these cars, is the actual source. Otherwise I’ve demanded a new engine, or a buy back because we can’t just keep changing crank seals forever. The car has now had 4 crank seals “fail”. I don't want a buy back. I just want my car to be fixed. It's literally just this one thing.
If I didn’t absolutely love the car, I would have sold it in the first year for sure. That’s what happened with the GR Supra. It burnt a quart of oil every 1500km and a bunch of other issues and I decided that you know what? This isn’t worth it. I am not having fun or enjoying myself anymore but in the Alfa, the oil leak simply fades away every time I get in and drive it. Its fun to drive at 4/10ths, 7/10ths, 9/10ths. Its fun to drive to work, to get groceries, and on the canyon passes.
It is truly special, last of its kind, and probably the last real Alfa Romeo. I really doubt in 20 years I am going to regret the 10k extra depreciation this may have over an M3, or that I had to deal with some quirks, and got lackluster service. I will more than likely reminisce on my old Alfa Romeo Giulia and smile fondly. Nearly every single time I drive it, I come home with a smile on my face and tell my wife what a great car this is, and this is happening even two years later. This car is greater than the sum of its parts. It truly feels special in a way modern cars do not anymore.
We're entering an age where cars of this class are starting to exceed 4000 lbs, with gigantic tablets in the interior, many assists, drift control, hybridization and electrification, rear wheel steer, 21 inch wheels, hideous styling, and possibly subscription service. Cars like this will be a thing of the past, I am very privileged to be able to own one of these when it was new.
I will be making similar posts for the Lotus Emira. I've only had the car for 2 months now so its hard to make a review post as of this time. It's been very solid so far though but I drive it a ton.
I will also be making a post comparing the ND2 vs Giulia Vs Emira vs GR Supra vs BRZ.
Stay tuned and thanks for reading.
