[gwales]

Very dissapointed to notice a rust spot that has developed on the off-side wing of my GTA since I got the car in June of this year. The three year paint warranty will expire at the end of this month and I am on safari in a week!

The rust itself is bubbling under the paint and is on the flat vertical part of the arch that is not in a place where a stone chip should/could occur and there was no sign of surface damage from any of my inspections whilst hand washing the car over the summer.

What are my chances of having Alfa accept a warranty claim? Should the wing not be galvanised?

I am heading to the dealer today but am expecting excuses rather than help.

 

[jwyatt]

If it's not from previous accident damage that you're unaware of, I'm really suprised - let us know how you get on. It should indeed be fully galvinised and apart form specific issues like the 156 windscreen surround I've not heard of rust as an issue on modern alfas.

Is the warranty only 3 years???????? It's the perforation warranty that would apply here, the paint warranty deals with imperfections and paint quality issues not rust.

 

[gwales]

I checked the small print of the 8 year perforation warranty and it says that it applies when the rust comes from an internal void or other non painted surface. I also read a post about a vauxhaul dealer that refused to take action under a perforation warranty until a hole had actually appeared!

The dealer have acknowledged the defect under the paint warranty and have taken pictures for sending to the area manager. Next time he is in town I'll need to go back and apparently he will evaluate the thickess of my paint using some fancy gadget. I presume that means that if the paint isn't regulation, they will put the whole thing down to a previous repair and I'll need to visit a body shop at my own expense.

Ironic that when I mentioned buying an Alfa my mates ribbed me on electrical problems and rust. I already have an infocenter that crashes when you apply the handbrake or hit the ASR button

Still don't regret getting GTA'd though

 

[gwales]

An update on this one ... usual dealer run around.

Having waited 2 months for this area manager to put in an appearance I am now told that wings on these cars were galvanised (no kidding ) and that I can bring the car around anytime to have the body shop manager make a decision in whether the car has been previously repaired. The tone of their correspondence is not hopeful.

Incidentally I asked about the future of Arnold Clark and Alfa Romeo and the chap confirmed that Alfa Sales are not expected to continue within Arnold Clark though they do plan to deal with warranty and service issues.

 

[Big Jon]

I'd keep at them if I were you. My '05 GTA had a problem with the paint on the leading edge of the wing. The paint had cracked and there was rust bubbling up underneath. The Alfa Romeo zone manager inspected the car and approved the repair. He went round the car with a paint depth gauge and said the paint depth was as it should be. He also had a little magnifying glass and had a good look at the area concerned (obviously looking for stone chip damage). I discovered later that the same thing was starting on the leading edge of the bonnet beside the grill/badge and this was repaired also.

Just to clarify, when you say area manager do you mean the Alfa Romeo zone manager and did he inspect the car and turn down the repair?

 

[gwales]

To be honest I am not sure if it was the dealers area manager or the Alfa Zone manager. He basically has never asked to see the car although I was told this would happen on his next visit.

I have spoken to them by phone in the meantime and the dealer have sent various photos by email. Having pressed them for an answer they have told me that they received a letter instructing them that their body shop manager makes the call.

I still don't know if this is Arnold Clark or Alfa that are calling the shots (I would expect Alfa). Arnold Clark have a huge monopoly on the Scottish motor industry (not just Alfa franchises) and their reputation for cocking things up is legendary.

I will ensure that they convince me that a previous repair has been done to the car if they attempt to side step this. It may be the case but not to my eye!

 

[Big Jon]

To be honest I am not sure if it was the dealers area manager or the Alfa Zone manager. He basically has never asked to see the car although I was told this would happen on his next visit.

I have spoken to them by phone in the meantime and the dealer have sent various photos by email. Having pressed them for an answer they have told me that they received a letter instructing them that their body shop manager makes the call.

I still don't know if this is Arnold Clark or Alfa that are calling the shots (I would expect Alfa). Arnold Clark have a huge monopoly on the Scottish motor industry (not just Alfa franchises) and their reputation for cocking things up is legendary.

I will ensure that they convince me that a previous repair has been done to the car if they attempt to side step this. It may be the case but not to my eye!

It would be a bit strange if Alfa left it to a body shop to make the call on whether a potentially expensive repair was a warranty job. Personally, I would ask to speak to the dealer's customer services manager and insist that they get an Alfa Romeo representative to look at it. BTW the guy that dealt with mine was called Peter Lynch and I think he covers most, if not all, of the UK.

 

[gwales]

Hooray!

Finally (after three months) got lucky and phoned the garage for a strop on a day when the Alfa rep happened to be in. I took the car straight up and the Dealers body shop manager and the Alfa Area Manager inspected the rust and then both agreed it was a warranty issue (Paintwork Warranty).

The repair has been done which is great. My only gripe is that they never resprayed the wing but blended it in across the flare of the arch and because its a metallic finish you can totally see the join in certain lights.

I can't decide if it is worth persuing further.

 

[jwyatt]

That sounds like a bit of a pain - I scraped some paint off a rear wheel arch and chips away did a repair that is totally invisible, despite the cosmos blue paint that is pretty much pearlescent, let alone metallic.

You've reminded me as well - our Focus has rust that has come right through the bottoms of the doors - I must get that sorted soon as the 6 year warranty is up in Feb!

 

[oldboy]

I scraped some paint off a rear wheel arch and chips away did a repair that is totally invisible, despite the cosmos blue paint that is pretty much pearlescent, let alone metallic

Has anyone else had experience of using 'Chips Away'? My wife has scraped the rear passenger door without denting it and it needs to get resprayed before they start spreading salt on the roads. Are they expensive?

 

[gtachris]

It depends on the skill of the individual but they are usually pretty good at around £75-100.