With used car prices finally heading down I am looking at modern cars to replace my E46 ZHP sedan I daily. I have a few cars I have been thinking about like a mk7 Golf R, S3, F30 BMW but most recently I saw the prices of used 2.0t Giulia's are pretty reasonable. Does anyone have any idea how they are to maintain and what I should look out for? Or should I just stay away from a Giulia.
Scotty Kilmer says stay away. Having seen parts prices for those things, I would too.
I guess that is why they are cheaper on the used market. Always too good to be true.
In reply to ddavidv :
Scotty Kilmer says a lot of things...
I leased one, and I was generally happy with it. Didn't really have any issues with it other than it draining the battery when it stood for a while during 'Rona.
My understanding is that the four bangers are generally a decently safe bet, the QV is in a different league especially when it comes to maintenance costs.
I don't know how DIY friendly they are, and for me the deciding factor to return it rather than buy it at the end of the lease was that the network of dealers is pretty sparse and I wasn't too enamored with the closest one to me. Word is to use a Maserati/Alfa dealer, not a Fiat/Alfa dealer.
I enjoyed driving it, just keep in mind the engine is a typical modern turbo four that feels like it wants to be a turbo diesel. Handles well, and I found it comfortable for several 300-400 miles road trips.
Oh, and make sure to check one out with the sport seats - IMHO they're much better than the standard seats.
No thanks. They're not head and shoulders above the rest of the segment, which they need to be in order to deal with the lack of dealer support and strong possibility of reliability issues
My initial thoughts are though they are attractive, I'd have to buy one really cheap to own one out of warranty. As noted, a lease is probably the right move (if any move) because the depreciation is then a known amount. I think the depreciation otherwise is probably significant. And, the leas only makes sense if you have a dealer in your immediate vacinity. Even then, having a dealer you can take it to doen't solve the issue if that dealer can't get the part and your car just sits at that dealership.
The final straw that I see here is the advice to have a Maserati/Alfa dealer. Any time Maserati is used in the same sentence as the solution...my concern is raised!
Counterpoint: Consider a used Genesis G70 sedan w/ 2.0L turbo.
Looks like dealer prices are less than $30k for offlease models. This one with manual trans. These are rwd.
BoxheadTim said:My understanding is that the four bangers are generally a decently safe bet, the QV is in a different league especially when it comes to maintenance costs.
Came here to share a similar sentiment, though I do second checking out the G70.
I didn't watch but this might be a good comparo video:
I had one as a rental for a while last year. It was my favorite rental car ever (and I've had a lot...2nd place goes to a V8 Challenger for Petit Le Mans last year).
Sight lines are fantastic, its the only new car I've driven that doesn't feel claustrophic, the handling and driving characteristics are quite good. It was SILENT on the highway at 75+mph in the desert, which is just what I want from a sports sedan.
The 4 banger didn't sound great, I wish it came in a manual, and I worry about long term reliability and parts availability. All that being said, I would take a new one over a new 3 series every time. And my current daily is also an E46.
Wow I have never even heard of a G70. I can't believe they are manual's. I am going to take a good look at those.
While I really love the look of the Giulia and the Stelvio, i'll give the G70 another vote. I had one with the 3.3T for a rental a few months back and that thing was a rocketship.
jonnyd330 said:Wow I have never even heard of a G70. I can't believe they are manual's. I am going to take a good look at those.
Some of the 4cyl/manual cars came with a limited slip dif and Brembos I believe.
John Welsh said:The final straw that I see here is the advice to have a Maserati/Alfa dealer. Any time Maserati is used in the same sentence as the solution...my concern is raised!
It's apparently mostly because a lot of the electronics and drivetrain setup have more in common with Maserati than a Fiat 500, so the folks at the Maserati dealer actually have more experience diagnosing the systems.
The dealer I went to was a Maserati/Alfa dealer and they did a pretty decent job keeping mine in good shape. Giuliaforums had some pretty annoying stories about Fiat dealers not being able to properly diagnose issues as they may have only seen one or two of these cars each quarter.
Flynlow (FS) said:Sight lines are fantastic, its the only new car I've driven that doesn't feel claustrophic, the handling and driving characteristics are quite good. It was SILENT on the highway at 75+mph in the desert, which is just what I want from a sports sedan.
The 4 banger didn't sound great, I wish it came in a manual, and I worry about long term reliability and parts availability. All that being said, I would take a new one over a new 3 series every time. And my current daily is also an E46.
One of the guys on my work-internal car chat group has one with a manual as they were available like that in some countries in Europe. His comment was that we're not missing a lot as he didn't think it was a particularly great manual transmission.
The ZF 8-speed is pretty good, especially if you switch it to the sportier modes. Yes, it's no Porsche PDK, but even without using the shifter paddles, it was pretty spot on in sport mode. As long as one ignores the engine, which probably was the least favourite part of the car for me.
Depending on which package the PO ordered, the Giulia can come with a limited slip diff. IIRC mine had one as it was the sporty model (which also had the sport seats).
A buddy of mine bought a used Giulia QF. Let's just say it seems unlikely he'll hold onto it once the extended warranty runs out.
Also, apparently the Alfa dealer - the dealer - doesn't like working on them. So he's taken it to an independent when it's gone to the shop. Which is not uncommon.
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