Alfa Romeo is a Italian carmaker founded in 1910, now part of Stellantis. The cars themselves are another matter: across 2 VIN prefixes on record they came off lines in 1 country — Italy 100%. 19 models are tracked here (1981–2026). Reliable? yes, and comfortably so — 4.3 out of 5 across 19 rated models, though the spread between model years is far wider than the badge suggests (every model ranked →).
Who makes Alfa Romeo
Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. is an Italian luxury sports-car brand owned by Stellantis. Founded in Milan in 1910 as Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (A.L.F.A.), the company was renamed Alfa Romeo in 1920 after Nicola Romeo took over and added his name. Alfa Romeo's racing heritage spans 11 Mille Miglia victories, five F1 World Championships, and Enzo Ferrari's pre-Ferrari managerial career as the head of Alfa Corse from 1933 to 1939. The Giulia sport sedan and Stelvio SUV anchor the modern lineup, both launched in 2016 on the rear-wheel-drive Giorgio platform shared with no other Stellantis brand. The Tonale plug-in hybrid compact crossover joined in 2023 as Alfa's first electrified vehicle. The Quadrifoglio (four-leaf-clover) sub-brand designates high-performance variants powered by a Ferrari-derived 2.9-liter twin-turbo V6. Alfa Romeo's parent Stellantis trades on the New York Stock Exchange under STLA. Recall data for every Alfa Romeo VIN is reported to NHTSA, and EPA fuel-economy ratings, IIHS scores and J.D. Power studies (where Alfa has consistently ranked below industry average for dependability) provide independent benchmarks. ForCar.org decodes any Alfa Romeo VIN to surface trim, factory options, open recalls and original MSRP.
A.L.F.A. (Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili) was founded in Milan on June 24, 1910, in the former Darracq factory. Engineer Giuseppe Merosi designed the company's first car, the 24 HP. Industrialist Nicola Romeo acquired the firm in 1915 and added his surname to create Alfa Romeo. The 1923 P2 Grand Prix car won Alfa's first World Manufacturers' Championship, and Enzo Ferrari ran the Alfa Corse racing department before founding his own marque in 1947.
| Alfa Romeo | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1910 |
| Founded by | Nicola Romeo |
| Headquarters | Turin, Italy |
| Owned by | Stellantis |
| Listed as | STLA |
| Slogan | «La meccanica delle emozioni» |
| Models tracked here | 7 (1981–2026) |
| Assembled in | 1 countries |
Technology it is known for: Giorgio rear-wheel-drive platform, Q4 all-wheel drive, Quadrifoglio twin-turbo V6, DNA driving mode selector, Alfa Connected Services.
This page covers Alfa Romeo Automobiles, the Stellantis brand — not the alfa Greek letter or any unrelated Romeo (e.g. Romeo Music).
Where Alfa Romeo cars are actually built
A badge says where a company is registered, not where its cars were bolted together. The first three characters of any VIN — the world manufacturer identifier — say the second thing, and that is what we counted: 382 vehicles on record, 2 distinct manufacturer codes.
| Assembled in | Share | VIN starts with | Years seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Italy | ZAR, ZAS | 1984–2026 |
Read your own: the first character is the region, the first three together identify the plant's manufacturer. A Alfa Romeo beginning ZAR was assembled in Italy.
All Alfa Romeo models 19
Every Alfa Romeo model we track, grouped by body type. Click any model for its VIN decoder, recalls, MPG, safety and ForCar Reliability Score — broken down by year.
Alfa Romeo SUVs & crossovers 2
| Model | Years | Recalls | Complaints | Best MPG | ForCar score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alfa Romeo Stelvio | 2018–2026 | 43 | 179 | 25 mpg | 4.0/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Tonale | 2024–2026 | 10 | 1 | 29 mpg | 4.0/5 |
Alfa Romeo Cars & sedans 3
| Model | Years | Recalls | Complaints | Best MPG | ForCar score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alfa Romeo Giulia | 2016–2026 | 49 | 195 | 27 mpg | 3.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo 8C | — | 2 | 1 | 13 mpg | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Milano | 1985–1990 | 2 | 1 | 19 mpg | 4.5/5 |
Alfa Romeo More models 14
| Model | Years | Recalls | Complaints | Best MPG | ForCar score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alfa Romeo 4C | 2014–2020 | 1 | 1 | 28 mpg | 3.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Spider | 1981–2013 | 9 | 4 | 23 mpg | 3.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Quadrifoglio | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo 33 Stradale | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Giulietta | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Gtv | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Brera | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Jr | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Montreal | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Gta | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo 159 | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Veloce | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo Mito | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
| Alfa Romeo 155 V6 | — | — | — | — | 4.5/5 |
Alfa Romeo by the numbers
What the federal records say about the marque. Each line links to the full breakdown by model and year.
| Topic | Alfa Romeo | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Recalls | 116 campaigns | Most recalled: Air Bags:frontal |
| Owner complaints | 382+ filed | Most reported: Giulia |
| Fuel economy | 29 mpg best | Leader: Tonale |
| Insurance | $2,075/yr typical | Cheapest: Tonale |
Compare model years like a dealer does.
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Get a Alfa Romeo window sticker by VIN
Recreate any Alfa Romeo's original Monroney label — MSRP, factory options, EPA MPG and safety — free from the VIN.
Alfa Romeo window stickers →How to read a Alfa Romeo VIN
Every Alfa Romeo built since 1981 carries a unique 17-character VIN (Vehicle Identification Number). It encodes where and when the vehicle was made, its engine and body — here's what each part means:
- WMI (1–3) — country & manufacturer. Tells you it's a Alfa Romeo and the country it was built in (real Alfa Romeo codes below).
- VDS (4–8) — model, body style, engine, trim & restraints. The 8th digit is the engine code.
- Check digit (9) — a math check that proves the VIN is genuine.
- Model year (10) — the year it was built (e.g. R = 2024, S = 2025).
- Plant (11) — which factory assembled it.
- Serial (12–17) — the unique sequential production number.
- ItalyZAR · ZAS
The remaining digits — engine (8th), model-year letter (10th) and plant — follow the universal SAE standard. You can decode any VIN for free and get the year-code table, the country codes and the exact spots where the number is stamped.
Who owns Alfa Romeo, and what you get
Alfa Romeo belongs to Stellantis. Alfa Romeo competes in luxury sport sedans, SUVs and compact crossovers against BMW M, Mercedes-AMG, Audi RS, Porsche Macan and Genesis. Within Stellantis, Alfa serves as the Italian sport-luxury complement to Maserati's grand-touring-and-supercar positioning. The brand's small US dealer network (~120 dealers) limits sales volume relative to German rivals, but Quadrifoglio variants compete directly with M3, C 63 and RS 5 on track-day benchmarks.
| Alfa Romeo | |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | Italy |
| Ownership | Stellantis |
| Stock ticker | STLA |
| Basic warranty | 4 years / 50,000 miles |
| Powertrain warranty | 4 years / 50,000 miles |
| Assembly countries | Italy |
⚠ Worth knowing before you rely on it: across our complaint records the typical car reaches the halfway point of its faults at five years, while basic cover here runs 4 years / 50,000 miles. See when Alfa Romeo models actually start to break →
Alfa Romeo — frequently asked
Is Alfa Romeo italian?
Alfa Romeo is a Italian company, headquartered in Turin and founded in 1910. The cars are a separate question: 100% of the Alfa Romeo vehicles in our records were assembled in Italy.
Where are Alfa Romeo cars made?
Across 2 manufacturer codes on record, assembly splits as: Italy (100%). The first three characters of a VIN identify the manufacturer and plant country — that is where these shares come from.
Who owns Alfa Romeo?
Alfa Romeo is part of Stellantis.
How many Alfa Romeo models are there?
We track 19 Alfa Romeo models spanning 1981–2026. The full list is above, ordered by how often each is searched.
What is the Alfa Romeo warranty?
New vehicles come with 4 years / 50,000 miles basic cover and 4 years / 50,000 miles on the powertrain. Terms vary by model year and market — confirm with a dealer.
Is Alfa Romeo reliable?
It depends far more on the model and year than on the badge. Every Alfa Romeo model is ranked by complaint rate here, along with the age at which each starts to fail.
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