There are 2 owner-reported speed control & cruise complaints for the 2018 Alfa Romeo Stelvioin NHTSA's database. These are unverified consumer reports and may not reflect confirmed defects.
THE FORWARD COLLISION WARNING SYSTEM ACTIVATED FOR NO REASON. AS I WAS STARTING TO ACCELERATE FROM A TRAFFIC LIGHT ON A CITY STREET IT CAME ON SUDDENLY AND RAPIDLY DECELERATED THE VEHICLE. LUCKILY NO ONE WAS BEHIND ME.
I BOUGHT MY 2018 STELVIO IN DEC 2017. I THOUGHT IT WAS ODD THE CAR NEEDED A SOFTWARE UPDATE ONLY ABOUT THREE DAYS AFTER HAVING IT - NOW AFTER RESEARCHING I'VE LEARNED MANY PEOPLE HAVE BROUGHT THEIR NEW ALFA ROMEOS IN FOR "SOFTWARE UPDATES" RELATED TO ALL THE SENSORS AND ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS. MY CAR CURRENTLY HAS ABOUT 5K MILES ON IT AND IN THOSE MILES I HAVE EXPERIENCED ON ABOUT 3 OR 4 OCCASIONS A WARNING MESSAGE ON MY DISPLAY THAT READS "GEAR SELECTOR MALFUNCTION" OR "AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION FAILURE". THE MESSAGE ALSO TELLS ME FOR BOTH ISSUES NOT TO SHIFT OUT OF "DRIVE". AFTER ABOUT 10 SECONDS THE ERROR WENT AWAY. I THOUGHT IT WAS A FLUKE BECAUSE DURING THAT MOMENT I NEVER FELT ANY DIFFERENCE OR EXPERIENCED ANYTHING STRANGE. HOWEVER, I WAS IN A COLLISION WITH A STATIONARY OBJECT (A METAL BARRIER POLE IN A PARKING LOT). I PUT THE VEHICLE IN REVERSE, THE VEHICLE INDICATED IT WAS IN REVERSE AND THE REAR CAMERA DISPLAYED ALONG WITH THE OVERHEAD PICTURE OF THE VEHICLE WITH THE SENSOR LAYOUT. I PROCEEDED TO BACK UP BY PUSHING THE THROTTLE AND THE VEHICLE LAUNCHED FORWARD WITH A HUGE AMOUNT OF FORCE. I STRUCK THE POLE. NO ONE WAS INJURED. NO PROPERTY DAMAGE OTHER THAN TO MY VEHICLE. INITIAL ASSESSMENT IS METAL BUMPER REPLACEMENT, RADIATOR AND COOLING. BUT AIRBAGS NEVER DEPLOYED. HOWEVER THE SENSORS NEVER INDICATED I WAS NEAR AN OBJECT EITHER WHILE I WAS CLEARLY IN REVERSE. AFTER RESEARCH I FOUND THERE HAVE BEEN A SLEW OF ELECTRICAL ISSUES AS ALFAS ARE DRIVE BY WIRE AND USE SENSORS AND SOFTWARE TO RUN THE VEHICLE AND PEOPLE ARE REPORTING BAD BATTERIES WHICH ARE CAUSING FAULTS. I BELIEVE MY FAULT HAS TO DO WITH A BAD BATTERY WITH LOW VOLTAGE AND MY SENSORS AND SOFTWARE ARE NOT UP TO DATE WHICH I SHOULD BE NOTIFIED ABOUT. I'VE FILED AN INSURANCE CLAIM HOWEVER I WOULD LIKE ESCALATE THIS INCIDENT TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE FOR MYSELF AND OTHERS AND TO PREVENT FUTURE OCCURRENCES.
Complaints are unverified consumer reports submitted to NHTSA. A high complaint count may reflect vehicle popularity, not defect severity. Data sourced from NHTSA public records.
Data synced from NHTSA on Apr 26, 2026