Stellantis is in hassle proper now. Gross sales for all of its American manufacturers are down, and the corporate is on the hunt for a brand new CEO. You get a greater image of issues on the dealership degree. Over at manufacturers like Jeep, sellers are sitting on stock they will’t appear to promote. Sellers for Fiat and Alfa Romeo are in even worse form. An ideal instance of that is an Alfa dealership in Northern California that solely has six new automobiles on the lot.
Despatched to us by way of tip by a reader (h/t to Antonio Otero!), Alfa Romeo of Marin is situated in San Rafael, California, close to San Francisco. It’s considered one of simply three Alfa Romeo dealerships within the Bay Space; the opposite two are in Livermore and San Jose. Not very superb in the event you want service, or in the event you’re considering shopping for a brand new one.
You see, Alfa Romeo of Marin has simply six new automobiles in its stock. And once I say new, I imply “new,” as simply considered one of them is a 2024 mannequin. There are two 2022 Giulias, two ‘22 Stelvios, one ‘23 Giulia and a single 2024 Tonale. Why so few automobiles? Gross sales might have one thing to do with it. Alfa gross sales had been down throughout the board in Q2 of this yr. Its prime vendor is the Stelvio with simply 1,866 offered thus far this yr, and that’s down 32 % from 2023.
I referred to as and spoke with a member of the gross sales group and was advised that the explanation the seller has so few vehicles is as a result of they merely don’t have the room. The salesperson mentioned they’re attempting to filter this stock to allow them to get newer vehicles. Nevertheless, once I requested about fashions just like the Tonale, I used to be advised the one within the stock is about to be offered and so they don’t anticipate to get one other one anytime quickly. That conflicts with what I used to be advised about them clearing out the previous stuff, particularly because the Tonale is Alfa’s freshest providing.
The seller’s major enterprise appears to be supercars, one thing you’ll discover when wanting on the seller’s used automotive stock. It’s each more healthy and prettier than what’s new in inventory, stuffed with vehicles like Lamborghini Huracans, Uruses and Bentley Continentals. The seller may be getting out of the enterprise of promoting the Italian model, and so they’re not alone.
Digging via Alfa proprietor boards, I got here throughout a thread from February detailing how the most important Alfa dealership in Northern California, Alfa Romeo of Stevens Creek, despatched out emails to house owners saying they wouldn’t be accepting any extra service appointments. Positive sufficient, in the event you go on the lookout for the Stevens Creek web site it’s gone, and so they’re additionally listed as closed on Yelp. A couple of house owners within the thread detailed different Alfa sellers in different components of the nation which have closed, like Alfa Romeo of Fort Price, which closed in January. If extra sellers proceed to shut, hundreds of individuals are going to be left questioning what to do when or if their Alfa must be serviced, and it might scare new house owners away from even contemplating the model.