RE: Alfa Romeo Mito: PH Carpool

RE: Alfa Romeo Mito: PH Carpool

Monday 6th February 2017

Alfa Romeo Mito: PH Carpool

A Mito isn't bad going for a second car, but things haven't been perfect for this PHer...



Name: Ethan Burrell
Car: Alfa Romeo Mito Quadrifoglio Verde
Owned since: July 2016
Previously owned: Renault Twingo 1.2

Noise and performance from here impresses...
Noise and performance from here impresses...
Why I bought it:
"I won it on BOTB.... only joking of course. I wanted something that would be good on a back road, reasonable to run and insure and still be comfortable to drive on the daily grind. I test drove a number of the Mito's competitors including a Skoda Fabia vRS, Ford Fiesta ST and Clio RS 200, however none of them drove or sounded nearly as nice (in my opinion). Moreover the Mito still has that Italian design and charm about it that the others just don't have. The interior is of a much higher quality than the rivals also, if you ignore the rather average UConnect system that is. Oh, and the adage about not being a proper petrolhead until you've owned an Alfa might have swung it for me."

What I wish I'd known:
"That the DNA system allows you to reduce traction control but not turn it all the way off, which is a little disappointing. Granted it does let it slip and spin a lot before it intervenes, and on the road you'll never really have a problem with it, but if you plan to do track day (as I do) then this is something you might want to think about."

Things I love:
"I love the way it drives and can fire round a corner, I love how comfortable it is with the TCT gearbox in traffic, I love the pops and cracks it does on up shifts and how quickly it revs to the redline. I love how it can put so much personality and drama into a quick blast, I love the noise of the engine (it sounds so much better than you'd think) and I love how quickly it can get to 60 from the line - it's the closest thing you can get to an Italian supercar in a hatchback. Well, I think so. All these things make it a very exciting car to drive and it puts a huge grin on my face when I look out the window and see it on the drive."

... quality issues in here less so!
... quality issues in here less so!
Things I hate:
"While modern Alfas aren't nearly as unreliable as previous models, this does not mean new Alfas are without fault - here goes...

"When you wash the car or have it sitting in the rain for a while the rear brakes have a tendency to become so stuck that when I try and reverse of my drive it will jerk the car to the point of it killing the engine; as I'm sure you can imagine when it first did this it unnerved me quite a lot! There is a work around however: build the revs to 1,200-1,500 rpm and leave the drive at some pace, which solves it.

"The key sometimes won't unlock the car from time to time; you can be within breathing distance of the driver's window and the car will remain locked for some time.

"In Natural mode the steering is way, way, way too light on a fast road; it's OK around town, but if you're just cruising on a back road the steering feels really overassisted and indirect. Dynamic mode fixes this but it something to note.

"The car features daytime running lights in the form of two yellow bulbs above the main headlight, which can be deactivated. When the headlights are off all is well, however turn them on and the driver's side DRL turns off and gives a warning light! I'm really not sure why this happens.

Fuel consumption not great either...
Fuel consumption not great either...
"The car has a tyre pressure warning system, but you can't see what they are from in the car. Why have it and not let me see it, but instead just trust the system? It seems very silly. Also when you go to top them up don't expect the low tyre pressure light to clear - I had to take it to my local garage for it to be cleared.

"The interior fan intake vents are not fine enough to stop leaves getting in and clearing them out of the bonnet when you clean the car is not enough - leaves can still get in and stop the interior fan from producing any air; this means that no heat enters the cabin and in winter this is more than annoying. Moreover when the fan contains leaves it makes an unholy amount of noise. My car is under warranty (not worth the paper it's written on) so I took it to my Alfa garage who did fix it by clearing the leaves but they will charge you for it. I don't know about you but if a part doesn't function - like the fan not blowing air - it should be covered under warranty, but I digress. Just something for the hopeful Mito owner to look out for. I do still love the car but it does like to test me!"

Costs:
"The car is much cheaper to insure than its rivals; at 18 with one year's no claims and with 12,000 annual mileage (and no black box), it costs the same as my Twingo did at 17. Parts are relatively easy to find, I'd stay away from the dealer network though as you'll leave very empty handed. As for running costs, it isn't very good on fuel, though given so many car companies appear to lie about mpg that shouldn't really come as a surprise.

My commute consists of 50 per cent average speed camera'd A-roads and 50 per cent city start-stop traffic and I get 30-40mpg, not the claimed 52. A full tank at current fuel prices is around £45-£55 and gets approximately 320 miles, which is more than I initially expected to pay but you come to terms with these things. Tyres are around £120 each for Pirelli P Zero Neros."

The Mito will be staying for a little while though
The Mito will be staying for a little while though
Where I've been:
"So far I've been to MITCAR and the NEC Classic Car show but much more is planned including European road trips, track days and more events of course! I was on the list to come to the PistonHeads Sunday Service at Goodwood but sadly something else came up and I couldn't attend."

What next?
"I plan to own the car for another 18 months and replace around my 20th birthday with something rear-wheel drive, but I guess we'll see where time takes us."


Want to share your car with PHers on Carpool? Email us at carpool@pistonheads.com!

 

Author
Discussion

PistonBroker

Original Poster:

2,406 posts

225 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Great stuff.

Just a couple of observations;

The brake disc issue isn't exactly unique to Mitos, you will find it happen on other cars. I had an NC MX5 that was a nightmare for this, for instance.

You have to reset the tyre pressures from inside my Tiguan after you've topped the tyre pressures up. I'd be surprised if that isn't what the Alfa dealer did and if there isn't a procedure detailed in the owners manual.

Keep on enjoying it!

supacool1

365 posts

178 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Tell me do you know if the pollen filter is installed? This could be why you are getting leaves and debris in the cabin and fan...?

Boydie88

3,283 posts

148 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Was going to look at an early one of these this weekend as a second car... sounds like it won't fit the bill of reliable second car very well. Shame because I do love the styling compared to other similarly priced small hot hatches.

AlexHat

1,327 posts

118 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Boydie88 said:
Was going to look at an early one of these this weekend as a second car... sounds like it won't fit the bill of reliable second car very well. Shame because I do love the styling compared to other similarly priced small hot hatches.
I have a 2011 version of this car which aside from the front top mounts has been utterly reliable (if you don't include the stop start system intermittently not working). All I've needed to change has been serviceable items and fuel.




3yardy3

270 posts

113 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Clarksons review on the Grand Tour highlighted the small gap you have to gain access to the car, this will fix that smile

Jackspistonheadsaccount

85 posts

99 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
I also own a MiTo, mine sucked leaves into the cabin. Plus I wish I went for the 1.4 turbo, the twinair just lacks power

spodrod

224 posts

149 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
I had one of these in the same colour and I loved it. Lots of character and really good fun.

The rear brakes do tend to stick more than other cars; I just made sure I left it off with the car in gear after using it in the wet or washing it.

Couple of things that bothered me...

It would hit the rev limiter before the red line.
It was absolutely abysmal in 'Natural' mode. The steering was so light and the throttle response was dreadful. I only ever drove it in 'Dynamic', which annoyingly had to be selected every time the car was started.

C.A.R.

3,967 posts

187 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
I've never liked the MiTo's looks - compared to the Alfa's of old it's just not handsome (like a 147 / 156 / 159 at least). It also looks a bit too bubbly, not masculine like its' predecessors.

I didn't realise it had 167bhp though - which is respectable but for the gearbox - an automatic?! That's the real tradegy here; an 18(?) year-old petrol head driving an automatic. I hope your next RWD venture has at least 3 pedals, maybe you can earn petrol head status back!

scottmelvin96

14 posts

145 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Is this only available as an auto. Would be great as a manual?

Alfabromeo

3 posts

151 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Hey bud, not overly familiar with the mito cabin but in my Giulietta you can reset the tyre warning by holding down the warning button on the dash.

Big_E

6 posts

104 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
supacool1 said:
Tell me do you know if the pollen filter is installed? This could be why you are getting leaves and debris in the cabin and fan...?
I don't know unfortunately, being as i bought the car for an Alfa dealer i would assume so!

Big_E

6 posts

104 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
C.A.R. said:
I've never liked the MiTo's looks - compared to the Alfa's of old it's just not handsome (like a 147 / 156 / 159 at least). It also looks a bit too bubbly, not masculine like its' predecessors.

I didn't realise it had 167bhp though - which is respectable but for the gearbox - an automatic?! That's the real tradegy here; an 18(?) year-old petrol head driving an automatic. I hope your next RWD venture has at least 3 pedals, maybe you can earn petrol head status back!
The manual version of this car is no longer available, plus if like me you live in a city the auto is lovely to drive. Moreover the auto is quite engaging and gives the car a very muscly feeling as it seems to always have power no matter where you are in the rev range. Also, as Clarkson said, you can't be a petrol head until you've owned an Alfa - he never specified if it was auto or manual!!!

Big_E

6 posts

104 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
scottmelvin96 said:
Is this only available as an auto. Would be great as a manual?
The older versions are but not the newer ones, the auto is a great gearbox though - fast and smooth and genuinely engaging.

Big_E

6 posts

104 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Boydie88 said:
Was going to look at an early one of these this weekend as a second car... sounds like it won't fit the bill of reliable second car very well. Shame because I do love the styling compared to other similarly priced small hot hatches.
Mechanically I've had no problems - just small annoying problems. Still love driving it though.

Big_E

6 posts

104 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Since writing this I have had another problem, I've had the rubber spliter trim piece from underneath the front bumper fall off - it has fallen off the car on its own accord. As someone who is prettified of damaging his car I take speed humps very slowly and avoid kerb mounted parking. One end is screwed on and the rest is stapled on - VERY stupid design.

I've rang Alfa Romeo of Nottingham who have told me that it is a common problem however i've found articles saying otherwise.

Squadrone Rosso

2,740 posts

146 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Considering it shares a platform with the Punto & previous generation Corsa, and is getting really long in the tooth, it still soldiers on. Soon to be dropped though. Hope it's replaced frown

Rear brake sticking? Standard on every rear disc car I've had.

Leaves in the cabin? It has a pollen filter so this shouldn't happen (assuming they remembered to put one in at the factory..lol).

Gearbox isn't an auto. DCT like DSG etc. Nice box too.

Did you mention Skyhook? I take it the adaptive dampers are still fitted?

Better quality interior.....lmao.

Overall, it's still my pick of the current Alfa range as they still haven't replaced the Brera or GT.

Big_E

6 posts

104 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Squadrone Rosso said:
Considering it shares a platform with the Punto & previous generation Corsa, and is getting really long in the tooth, it still soldiers on. Soon to be dropped though. Hope it's replaced frown

Rear brake sticking? Standard on every rear disc car I've had.

Leaves in the cabin? It has a pollen filter so this shouldn't happen (assuming they remembered to put one in at the factory..lol).

Gearbox isn't an auto. DCT like DSG etc. Nice box too.

Did you mention Skyhook? I take it the adaptive dampers are still fitted?

Better quality interior.....lmao.

Overall, it's still my pick of the current Alfa range as they still haven't replaced the Brera or GT.
Yep it has the adaptive dampers - they're an ace bit of kit.
As for the pollen filter, i'm not sure personally i've never checked but i do hope so.
And the interior is very well put together.

Glad you like it smile!

Mike1990

962 posts

130 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Nice car for an 18 Year Old for sure!

Didn't realise they still made these Mito's, as they are getting on abit now, still a smart looking Hot-ish Hatch inside and out, i remember going for a blast in one about 4 years ago, felt quicker than the book figures suggest, was pleasantly surprised.

The Brakes sticking issue, my Corsa VXR does that, its pretty annoying!

spodrod

224 posts

149 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Adaptive dampers are indeed clever; I had a couple of issues with them sorted out under warranty. As the author says, the dealers are useless.

Mine was a 2012 and a manual;


daydotz

1,741 posts

160 months

Monday 6th February 2017
quotequote all
Always thought they share many bits with the 500 abarth they recently facelifted the mito