Owners have filed 159 complaints on the Alfa Romeo Stelvio, covering 2018–2022. The system named most often is Electrical System (39 reports). Worst years by volume: 2018, 2019, 2020; cleanest: 2021, 2022, 2020. 5 reports describe a crash, 4 a fire. On average the car was 4.9 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Alfa Romeo Stelvio
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 159 Stelvio complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Electrical System 39 Read
A corroded faulty ground strap under the car, which is connected to the transmission caused the engine wiring harness to overload a smaller ground wire in the wheel well, then continued to melt other sections of the main engine wiring harness when trying to start the car. This is only a $200 part, but caused $6k+ of…
Ground wire to starter had corroded and broke into. Wife tried to start the vehicle and saw smoke coming up out of the hood. This caused the main wiring harness to burn and wires to fall apart. The wires run from the front wheels up into the engine bay and throughout vehicle. The vehicle could have caught fire or…
I own a 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio (VIN: [XXX] ) with approximately 102,000 miles. The vehicle recently experienced an electrical issue caused by a failed ground strap — a known problem in these vehicles that is widely reported by other owners. After the vehicle became inoperable, I observed smoke and visible signs of…
Fuel System 35 Read
The contact owns a 2021 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The contact stated that while driving at approximately 35–45 MPH, the check engine warning light illuminated. The “Do Not Drive” message was displayed. The contact called an independent mechanic and was referred to the dealer. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where…
The contact owns a 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 25V586000 (Fuel System, Gasoline); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The dealer…
The contact owns a 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The contact stated that the vehicle intermittently failed to exceed 30 MPH while driving and depressing the accelerator pedal all the way to the floorboard. The message that the throttle and the ignition were inoperable was displayed. The vehicle was taken to the dealer,…
Power Train 15 Read
After fueling up the fuel tank, the vehicle was driven on the highway and smoke began to emit out from the vehicle's hood. The driver was not alerted there was any issue from the vehicle's dashboard indicator/warning lights. The driver pulled over on the highway shoulder and the vehicle was on fire until the…
When leaving to go to work, I pressed the button on the gear shift to put the car into reverse and then drive. I heard something click into the cupholders as I drove. It was the gear shift button. The plastic actuator button fell off completely. It would not fit back in. I think the plastic broke. I continued to drive…
Please be advised that Alfa Romeo vehicles are experiencing a very large number of gear shift selecting buttons that "POP OFF" during driving and while parked and can't be driven or moved!!! This is a know reported and COMMON ISSUE according to the ALFA ROMEO SERVICE MANAGER but not a reported recall issue!!! This is…
Engine 14 Read
The contact owns a 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The contact stated while driving approximately 35 MPH, the engine seized without warning. The vehicle was towed to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that coolant had entered the engine. The vehicle was not repaired. The contact stated that the failure was related to…
The engine cooling hose is failing and may be made of similar materials under the same recall as the Stelvio Qudrofiligo NHTSA CAMPAIGN ID Number: 18V635000. Mine has a leak which can cause a loss of coolant and cause a crash. The engine cooling hose may have inadequate webbing material allowing a coolant leak
On september 21, 2018 whole cooler engine fluid was flushed inside in the passenger side car. The car was purchased on 09-19-2018. The recall had been seen since 09-14-2018. The car was sold to us with a safety recall with same VIN number
Fuel/propulsion System 13 Read
I received Safety Recall 25V-586 regarding the fuel pump defect on my 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The notice states that the vehicle can lose drive power without warning, which could lead to a crash. However, the letter also says that the remedy for this condition is not currently available. I am extremely concerned for…
Fuel pump failed as in recall 25V586000 , vehicle stalled in middle of an intersection of a busy road , could not get vehicle into neutral to push out of road. Manufacturers recall does not include my vehicle vin (yet)
Recall Issue Sep 09,2025 Manufacturer Recall Number93C NHTSA Recall Number25V-586 Recall StatusRecall Incomplete, remedy not yet available I would like to submit a compliant that it has been two months since the recall was issue and there still is no formal remedy provided
Air Bags 7 Read
I was in an accident that was can be contributed to my lane keeping assistance. Once the car crashed into another vehicle my airbags failed to deploy
A recall was issued for a disrupted connector on the front buckle switch hall effect sensor that may cause the air bag to not deploy during a crash. This seems to be an important safety concern. However all dealers in my area (Los Angeles) either do not have the part(s) to repair the issue and do not have a timeline…
The contact owns a 2022 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 24V510000 (Air Bags, Seat Belts); however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time…
Service Brakes 6 Read
The contact owned a 2019 alfa romeo stelio. The contact received notification of the NHTSA campaign number: 19V148000 (forward collision avoidance, service brakes, hydraulic) however, the parts to do the repair were unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the…
The contact owns a 2019 alfa romeo stelvio. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic where the vehicle had an oil change. After leaving the independent mechanic, the contact was driving at 65 mph approaching an intersection, the ani-collision warning light illuminated. The contact applied the brake pedal which…
Sometimes when brakes are initiated the engine accelerates and speeds up
Vehicle Speed Control 5 Read
The contact owns a 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvio. The contact stated that while at a stop light, the contact pressed the accelerator pedal and the steering wheel erroneously turn to the right and the vehicle experienced unintended acceleration causing the driver to loose control of the steering and crash into a highway…
While pulling out, vehicle decelerated as I was pressing the gas. Almost hit by another vehicle. Managed to avoid being hit and car still would not accelerate. Ultimately, pulling over at store and parking. Contacted manufacter because it was related to the recall, but they wasnt able to do anything about it. Im…
The vehicle randomly has a yellow A! Error code, then it loses power while driving, when going up a hill, sometimes barely makes it. No mechanics can figure this out and its a topic of complaints amongst numerous forums regarding this vehicle. Why isn't there a recall on this?
Stelvio years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Air Bags,seat Belts | — | — | |
| 2021 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 2020 | Air Bags,seat Belts,lane Departure | 1 | — | |
| 2019 | Electrical System | 2 | 1 | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | 2 | 3 |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 68 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.3 |
| Worst single series | 8 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 4.9 years |
A model average of 2.3 hides a worst series at 8. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Stelvio?
By complaint volume, 2018, 2019, 2020 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Stelvio years are the cleanest?
2021, 2022, 2020 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Alfa Romeo Stelvio have?
159 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2018–2022. Of those, 5 describe a crash and 4 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.