The Alfa MiTo and Alfa Giulietta are to get a 5 Year Warranty from Alfa Romeo in the UK – but there’s a catch.
What is it that makes car buyers brand loyal?
It’s a good question, and if there was an easy answer car makers would be stealing each others customers at will. For many it’s about what car their Dad drove, for others it’s all down to reliability. For some it’s about style and for others it’s what their peers drive.
But Alfa Romeo think it’s all about familiarity; car buyers stick with what they know. And they might be right. There’s an argument that many car buyers are as ‘sticky’ to a brand as bank customers are, however poor their experience.
So Alfa’s plan is to give reluctant first time Alfa Romeo buyers peace of mind by throwing a 5 year warranty on to the MiTo and Giulietta so car buyers can try brand Alfa knowing that they’re covered for five years come what may. And it may work.
But Alfa aren’t being bold with their warranty like Hyundai and Kia which have offered cracking warranties for a long time (and it hasn’t done their sales any harm), or even Toyota, which introduced a 5 year warranty in 2010, or Vauxhall with their 100k mile warranty.
Instead, Alfa Romeo are adopting a ‘suck it and see’ approach. If you grab a MiTo or Giulietta between now and the end of September you get the five year warranty. After that, it’s back to three years. Which seems a very half-hearted offer.
Still, if you’re desperate to buy an Alfa but you’ve been put off by the lack of a five year warranty – now’s your chance.
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