Alfa Romeo Stelvio 2nd year maintenance - ridiculous

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Hi, I am trying to do the 2nd maintenance on my 3 year lease and this is just crazy. When I got the car, I paid about 750 for the prepaid maintenance package. Assuming all future maintenance during the lease will be zero cost for me. 1st maintenance is obviously free. 2nd one is more expensive and dealer claimed it is only partially covered by the maintenance plan they sold me. To make it even more ridiculous, he made it look that if I paid for the whole maintenance out of pocket, it would cost me less than going through that company that provides the maintenance plan.

What should I do here, argue about the coverage of the maintenance plan, or do the items covered only and go somewhere else for the rest? Or not do anything uncovered at all?

Below is his email with the price breakdown:

The first service is:

  •      Oil change w/filter

  •      Replace cabin/ pollen filter

  •      As well as inspecting battery, tires, etc

This cost before tax is ~$299.95

The second service is:

  •      Oil change w/ filter

  •      Replace cabin/ pollen filter

  •      Replace engine air filter

  •      Perform brake fluid exchange

  •      Replace drive belt

This cost before tax is ~ $499.95

These prices are not indicative of individual service items as this is a bundle price.

Cost for:

  • oil change - $251.75 – covered

  • tire rotate - $75.00

  • cabin filter – $64.85 – covered

  • engine filter – $124.20 – note covered \

  • brake fluid exchange – $444.95 – note covered > Total before tax ~$ 745.65

  • drive belt is – $176.50 – not covered /

              Total before tax ~ 1137.25
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They are ripping your off.

Check the owner’s manual, the 20K is very close to the 10K service an none of that belt/brake etc is actually required:

Also, not sure where you are in NC but find some private shop specialized in Alfa service and have them do the maintenance.

Ex: https://v-12motorsports.com/alfa-romeo-service/

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What does your contract say is covered?

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Typical dealer adding recommended items and saying they are required.

Wow a drive belt after one year, is this a lambo?

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That dealer is a complete scam, I would ask for a refund on the maintenance plan and or throw a big fit in the showroom, these guys are trying to scam you. The big red flag is the tire rotation for me, most decent tire shops do that for free, and any reputably dealer doesn’t charge more than $25. Engine filter? I assume that means oil filter, that should be covered by the stupid oil change. I’d throw a fit and get drag the sales dept into this, they can’t sell you a maintenance plan that doesn’t actually cover the maintenance. If you have another service after this one, I assume it’ll be towards the end of your lease, just reset the light or have a reputably indy shop change the oil. Oh engine filter is air filter, again that’s a $20 part and takes about two seconds to install, scam!

Another example of a great FCA dealership experience

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What’s a brake fluid exchange? Sounds like a replacement, which for my Cayman is about $100. Apart from that, how do you like the car? Has it been reliable?

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Per contract they sent me: 20,000 Miles (removed all “inspect” garbage):

Change engine oil, engine oil filter and lube
Rotate Tires
Replace cabin A/C Filter (If equipped)
Top off engine fluids & check tire pressure

From the Alfa Romeo owner’s manual, the list of the items to do with the 2nd service (removed all “inspect” garbage):

Change engine oil and replace oil filter
Check and, if necessary, top up fluid levels
Visually inspect the condition and tensioning of the accessory drive belt(s)
Change the brake fluid

So from the dealer’s list I added in the 1st post, the following items are covered:
Oil change w/ filter
Replace cabin/ pollen filter - mentioned as Replace the passenger compartment cleaner in the manual
Tire rotate

The following items are neither covered nor required:

  • Replace engine air filter - there is an item in the owner’s manual: Replace air cleaner cartridge that is required at the 3rd maintenance and it is also listed in the contract for the prepaid maintenance plan for year 3
  • Replace drive belt - only required after 150k miles per manual

The only item that is required by manual would be:

  • Perform brake fluid exchange - I have read that it is quite complex but it costs way less than $400+
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I own a Jetta outright and for the 40k miles service i got quoted around $700 from the dealership. I got the tires rotated for free at Costco, oil change at Jiffy Lube for $80, spark plugs i changed myself ($60 for the actual parts), cabin filter was $18 and engine filter was $20 and i youtube’d it.
You can get your tires rotated for much cheaper than that. If you bought tires from Costco they do it for free, if not, a tire shop will do it for like 20$.
The cabin air filter is under $20 and you can look it up on youtube, same with the engine air filter.
There’s no way you need the drive belt replaced on the 2nd service lol.
The brake fluid flush is a more thorough process and i actually need to do it on my car too but have not inquired about quotes yet, looks like too much work to do it myself.

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And you know what? When you turn it in a year from now, the inspector and Ally/Whatever bank won’t give a rip if you do that or not, I’d skip it.

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You’re getting scammed. Some of it is unnecessary and all of it is overpriced.

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I was going to suggest the same thing lol but not sure if you need to provide proof that you actually did it or anything. Realistically, the brake fluid will not “go bad” by the time you turn your lease back and it is very hard to check for discoloration or consistency within the fluid during this period. If you brake and your brake pedal seems fine and there’s no weird feeling in the pedal, you will be fine.

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We’re not dealing with Benz here, it’s either Ally or Chrysler I think, they won’t ask for any service records.

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You’re fine just doing oil change/oil filter, cabin air filter (this goes a long way, I’ve found I sneeze less in the car), and tire rotation (do this yourself for free).

The car is going back and honestly it won’t suffer if you don’t do the other services to it.

Don’t count “inspect” out of a service. Inspecting the proper parts regularly will go a long way towards avoiding expensive emergency repairs. Ask me how I know.

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So this whole thread was based on the OP not checking the required maintenance schedule?

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Not quite, the Belt and the Brakes are listed with an *. And under brake fluid says much be changed every 2 years and under belts it says 2yr IF in a extreme weather enviroment. NC does have bad weather but it’s not extreme compared to say Maine.

The dealer is going for the ‘if it MIGHT need a change, we change it for $$$$’ mentality.

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Thanks for being so nice. The thread is based on the shocking dealer’s quotes and statements and a requirement to pay anything, and especially that much over the existing prepaid maintenance plan.

Cancelling the plan may be tricky. Below is the cancellation section of the contract:

On cancellation requests received within the first 60 days from the original purchase date of the Plan, you will be refunded the full amount you paid for the Plan, provided no claims have been paid against the Plan. In the event claims have been paid, or requests received after 60 days, your refund will be based on the full amount you paid for the Plan, less a pro-rata adjustment for time or mileage used, whichever is greater, less a cancellation fee as indicated below.

If I read it correctly, I will get 1/3 of the price I paid and it will be the same or less than I will pay to a third party shop for oil change and parts. Is there a precedent for a chance to get a full return if I demand?

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  1. Doubt you can ask for full refund, you might need lawyers involved.
  2. It’s much less than 1/3 try more like 1/5 after all the ‘fees’ are calculated.
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