Alfa Romeo MiTo Owner Reviews: MPG, Problems & Reliability

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Jeremy Clarkson once said "everyone should own an Alfa Romeo at least once in their lifetime" (or words similar). Having recently achieved this goal, and become the proud owner of a MITO 0.9 TwinAir Speciale, I am a very happy lad. Before buying the car, I was really hard pressed to find any decent reviews. I think the only one to give this car a good report was the RAC review. Many reviewers are scathing, and give this car low ratings. I am bewildered. It is an utter joy of a car, and the only downside is that I may have future neck muscle strain, because every time I park it, I must look back at it a minimum of six times. It is a little retro feeling inside, having simple knobs for heater etc, but I like this, it has an old fashioned authenticity about it. The engine has a lovely little growl for such a small power plant, and while not blisteringly powerful, does a decent job. I have upgraded 18" wheels, which I'm so glad I pushed the dealer for (got free upgrade), as they are achingly beautiful, and just finish the car perfectly. All those reviewers that bleat about the bumpy ride? Shut it chaps (and ladies), that's rubbish, I find the road sensation spot on, I want sporty, not spongy. The car clings to bends and the low seating position adds to the sporty feel. My version came with carbon fibre effect dash, door linings, flat bottomed steering wheel, red stitching Alfa logo on head rests (gorgeous), and darkened gun-metal coloured mirrors, light surrounds and door handles, and finished off nicely with red brake callipers. I absolutely love this car, and I'm so glad I ignored the poor reviews and went my own way. I mean, some reviewers made comparisons to the Ford Fiesta.....please!

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I totally disagree with carbuyer's opinion: I think the MiTo has excellent driving characteristics, no problems with the handling, even at relatively high speed. It has superb brakes and my interior is rattle free after 7 years of use. I can't understand terms like "cheap plastics" _ would anyone prefer "expensive plastics" that rattle or crack or bend when left under heavy sunlght? One thing I would agree with is the DNA system: trying it on the test drive car I was dissapointed with the poor performance on A or N, so I ordered my car with no DNA, performance always in Dynamic.

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Well equipped and stylish. Was a good price as pre regersted With 50 miles. Fun to drive with nicely weighted controls, the TwinAir engine is far better than I expected it sounds great and good on the motorway with free road tax and low insurance. I like the firm composed ride but others might not. The seats have nice support for the lower back. The only problem I've had is an electrical fault with the rear wiper.

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I bought this car at 3 years old with 37k miles and have since added another 15k. The car is superb! The engine offers brilliant pull and more than enough power. Even when fully loaded and driving uphill I can overtake without dropping from 6th gear. I drive it reasonably 'enthusiastically' and it still returns 50mpg with no motorway use. Motorway driving sees this climb above 55mpg. The suspension is firm but no worse than a Mini and it has fantastic grip. At 6'2" i find the seats/driving position comfortable. The car has excellent equipment with bluetooth, USB connectivity, cruise control, DNA system and a good AC system. There is enough space/storage for a car of this class. It impressed me during snowy/icy weather where it felt sure footed. To date the only issue has been a leaking EGR cooler which cost £70 to replace. My sister owns a 2010 Mini Cooper which I drove regularly before buying this. The Alfa is superior in terms of seat comfort, equipment, interior quality, style, space and performance. The Mini does have that extra inch of drivers fun but the Mito is still fun and does everything else better than the Mini.

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Had it 2.5 years and only fault has been an electric window regulator which squealed a bit and was replaced by the dealer for free under warranty. Other than that no problems. Solid build quality, feel really safe in the Mito. Decent fuel economy unless you switch into Dynamic mode too much. Mine is not a multi air engine but is perky enough and handles motorway speeds with ease. Comfortable, well equipped and beautiful squeak free interior into which a lot of thought and imagination has been put. The exterior too is different and original. The ride though can be a bit bumpy on uneven roads. But still love the car.

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Great car, not had it long but love driving it. Not great on fuel but puts a lot of other cars to shame at the lights. Blue&me works great. Looks fantastic. Love driving this car! Can't comment on the reliability yet but good so far.

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The car is a good looker. Many people have told me how good the car looks... Just a shame it doesn't happen very often as mine is always in the garage due to the amount of problems. Oil is the main one. Gone through two sets of valves! Disappointed, but it which is a shame because the car is a nice little driver and is reasonably quick.

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Only one issue with track rods..but that was caused by me not slowing for speed bumps

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Only owned for 3 weeks and broke down with steering Fault and heater motor failed

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Only one minor problem (misfire) which resolved itself, but the dealer replaced the Coil after checking the car's computer data. The problem has not happened again

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No problems so far

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Great car to drive. Often leaves with a smile on my face when i get out of it after a journey, but not as much of a smile when i have to fill it up again.

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Love this car, pleasure to drive. no problems. would recommend to anyone.

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Brilliant car, spacious, comfortabel, 3 yrs on still looks fresh, reliable, good performance,

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Great looking and handling car. Responsive engine makes it a real pleasure. Interior styling is excellent and so important as it is what you are stuck looking at whilst you are driving. Our 1995 fiesta had better interior styling than most of the cars we looked at when buying the mito

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Pleasantly confident that italian style can come with a practical design and good build quality

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Great little car with really good performance in d mode. Let down by fuel economy and some minor niggles, but brings a smile to my face when i drive it.

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It is stylish with good perfomance and economy and stands out amongst other super minis

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A brilliant car underrated by the magazines. eg cheaper than the mini,better built,more practical,quicker and yet this is somehow not portrayed by the media. Best car in its class by far!

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Why this car gets such a bad press is beyond me. It's stylish, more practical than a MINI, great to drive and cheap to run - especially the 1.6 diesel. Ignore the 0-60 stats - in Dynamic mode the Mito accelerates brilliantly. The handling and grip are good - more body roll than a Fiesta, but at least you can feel it. Economy is fantastic - 60mpg easily if you drive carefully, and even thrashing it in dynamic mode you will still manage in the 40s. Great on the motorway too. Minor issues: some build quality problems - I sold this after 50k when the heating and interior lighting hit a couple of snags, and at 35k the rear third brake light cover fell off. My version also didn't have an aux port, USB, Bluetooth or DAB, but newer models will. So if you're after a stylish, fairly practical small car that's amazing to drive - pick up a used one if these.

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I absolutely adore the Mito QV. Very solid, brilliant performance and beautiful to look at. In Dynamic mode it is fantastic fun but a roomy, quality car to commute in. Genuine Alfa fun and spirit. Highly recomended.

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Recent knocking noise required replacement of front suspension strut top mountings at a cost of £276.62. This on a four year old car with less than 24,000 miles on clock. Careful driver / normal roads. Never had this with any other car and suggest there is a design or quality issue. Forget the above average mpg this will need to cover almost 6,000miles to recover the cost.

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This is my first car . I just love it . It handles very well . It feels safe and sporty . Very cheap to run . However, most plastics inside the cabin have bad quality and they make rattling noises sometimes .

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Love this little car - had it for just over 4 years. Still looks good drive drives even better. Always got the power when you want to overtake. The only slight let downs are quite a hard ride, the paint work does seem to chip more than most cars and the hand break freezes on in a heavy frost. But even so I wouldn't trade for anything - it's class. Fun to drive, looks good and cheap to run.

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Most reliable and economical car i' ve ever owned. The only dealer visits are for normal maintenance intervals. Never had this experience before with my german cars. Looks good, nice firm sporty ride, steering feedback could be improved.

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this is my first Alfa and what a car it is. The styling is awesome and always brings a smile when I look at it. for a small diesel it is quick enough and quiet which surprised me. No issues so far

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A very 'pretty girly' hot hatch. It has poor equipment and design. Steering controls wear quickly and get stuck, radio and dash is pretty ugly, the car feels cheap! The heating dials feel very cheap and flimsy, the gearknob feels loose and could come off in your hands after slight wear, the air vents are very delicate and do not take much movement over time before snapping the clips! The electric windows get stuck every now and then and shoot back down. Wipers move slightly up the windscreen at motorway speeds. Engine cover rattles on brackets/cover near the turbo. The glovebox is tiny and any sort of weight in it besides the owners manual means an annoying vibration/rattles. It's not spacious enough for a baby seat, the seats hurt your back due to a bar at the bottom and it's generally a poor driving position if you are above 4ft!! There are electrical faults galore and they completely stop the car from working. Scrapes on most bumpers due to the undercarriage and bumper. Underneath strut brace is weak and too low so gets damaged easily.

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No reliability issues.

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totally reliable so far

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I have experienced no problems with my car, it starts first time every time, runs well and drives well

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top notch, no faults and no recalls

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Some teething problems at first but now settled to being a reliable car

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Hd the car from new - just over 3 years

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So far so good

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Makes you smile but its a long wait for the door windowa to defrost in winter (you can open a frozen door but you cant shut it until it defrosts).

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It's an alfa, it puts a huge smile on your face!

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Great - neven thought about an alfa before

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Mine is a 135 lusso 1.4tb, it's a peach of a car, if you look after it and maintain it. Just make sure you use the correct grade of oil and change the oil strainer, as that always gets overlooked, the only problems I have had are the heated rear window does not work and the radio reception was pants, upon investigation I found it has 2 aerials, 1 on the roof for the GPS satnav, and one in the rear window for the radio. The Italians in their wisdom, used crap wiring, and constant opening of the boot has caused the wires to snap for the aerial and heated rear window 1/2 hour with a soldering iron and some better wire for a patch and all was fixed. I love my auto lights and auto wipers the chromatic rear view mirror, I couldn't live without that one now. The brakes in my opinion are brilliant. The ride well mine has been lowered and on coil overs so can't comment what the standard ride is like, front seats are comfy enough, though I would've loved to be able to pull the steering wheel out a few more inches. The DNA switch well put it in Dynamic mode and the electronics take over no turbo lag power is instant its like you have an extra 20bhp it's mental, I love it. Fuel economy well around town and motorway driving for the past month I've averaged 37mpg, a couple of 30 mile runs sitting at 60 I've have got it way up to between 47 and 57mpg. It's hard to admit the best car I've owned, my previous car was an Audi 1.8 turbo and this little Mito, eclipses it!

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Great little car, I have no major complaints. Bought it in 2012 and only got rid of it as I was getting a newer more powerful version. The only real issue I had was with the rear brake freezing in winter which was fixed by changing the hand brake cable. Which I understand is common with Alfa's anyway. The ride is a bit rough but other than that it's been a brilliant little car. Always started without a problem, overtook without a worry and still looked very smart. I also always felt very safe in it even in snow and ice, stuck to the road like it was on tracks. There's also plenty of boot space which it's often been slated for. All in all I'd have another.

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I disagree with the Carbuyer review of the Mito. Uninspiring to drive? Put the Mito into Dynamic mode and it wipes the floor with those boring Audi's and Mini's. The ride is firm but it's a sports style small car so what do you expect? The Mito is a stunning car to look at and sit in. The number of envious looks you get from drivers of the boring, conformist Ford Fiesta lot alone tells you something. This is the best car that I have owned by an absolute mile and I wouldn't swap it for any other brand.

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I can't fault my Alfie, being my first car (i had a previous car for about a month before it blew up - oops) and only being 18 I thought it would be "too far" for my "first" car. My insurance is next to nothing and I have no blackbox. I also have a previous claim on my insurance. I have done 5000 miles in the last 3 months of owning it, 300 mile road trip and lots of motorway commuting. She's fast, smart and an definite eye turner. Only thing I'm not so happy about is the lack of lights, I wish she came with day time running lights. I recommend to all.

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NO ISSUES

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Generally very good just the odd minor niggle

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No Problems to date

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Hasnt let me down but air con wasnt working when it was collected as a new car. Took 3 days to find the fault. Said it was due to a stray weld in the system. My view is that this should have been picked up on pre delivery inspection

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Perfect no problems to report

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No faults as of yet

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not one problem at all

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Does everything to show the outdated belief that alfa romeos are unreliable, is indeed outdated

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Far better than Alfa Romeos reputation would lead you to expect

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Had the AA out to it once due to a ignition coil which stopped working but a simple unplug and plug back in cured it but so far so good.

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Owned from new adn no problems so far despite Alfa's reputation!

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I've not had a car that I've been this attached to before. It looks good, goes where you point it and is just real fun to drive. The only downside is the ride quality is a bit bumpy but I still love this little car. It's different in a good way.

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Excellent performance, great styling and a fantastic brand image.

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A very good car - stylish, reliable, ample performance and quality accessories. Also good support from franchised dealer.

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I describe it as my little monster...

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Alfa Romeo MiTo owner reviews

“The Alfa Romeo MiTo is an upmarket supermini, but it can’t compete with the MINI hatchback or Audi A1 for design or driver involvement”

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