Luxury sedans are often synonymous with high ownership costs, especially when it comes to maintenance and repairs. But one Italian-built four-door upends that stereotype in 2025 by delivering premium refinement and surprisingly sensible upkeep compared with many rivals. While its competitors can come with hefty service bills and expensive parts, this luxury sedan’s maintenance profile keeps long-term costs more manageable, a rare combination in a segment known for costly ownership.
Part of what makes this model stand out is how its engineering and service network help mitigate common luxury-car cost pitfalls. Owners report fewer major issues than many European rivals, and routine servicing tends to stay within a reasonable range compared with similarly equipped sedans from higher-cost brands. That doesn’t just lower the total cost of ownership, it also makes the ownership experience far less stressful over time.
For buyers who want premium comfort, evocative design, and upscale driving dynamics without the typical luxury-brand maintenance penalties, this Italian sedan offers a compelling proposition. It proves that a luxury badge doesn’t always have to come with luxury-level upkeep.
In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from various manufacturer websites and other authoritative sources, including the EPA, RepairPal, J.D. Power, and Cars.com. Depreciation data in this article were sourced from CarEdge.
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The Alfa Romeo Giulia saves you thousands in maintenance
The Italian that’s cheaper to maintain than German rivals
Alfa Romeo does not have the most impressive reputation when it comes to longevity. The brand has been plagued with sub-par reliability for decades, but most owners put up with it because Alfas are just that special. However, some of the brand’s current vehicles shake off their bad reputation. The Giulia actually scores quite highly when it comes to reliability, but almost more impressively, it could save you thousands in maintenance costs.
Reliability and maintenance costs
- Reliability score: 81/100 (J.D. Power)
- Average ten-year maintenance costs: $7,241 (CarEdge)
The 2024 model year of the Giulia was awarded 81 out of 100 for quality and reliability by J.D. Power, putting it among the most reliable cars on the road. The 2025 and 2026 models haven’t been rated yet, but changes over those two years have been pretty minimal, so you can expect them to be equally sturdy.
Usually with luxury sports sedans, especially ones with some exotic DNA, feature ten-year maintenance costs that sky-rocket well above the $10,000 mark. CarEdge estimates that over ten years, you’ll spend $2,449 less maintaining a Giulia than you would the average luxury sedan. They also estimate that there is only a 19 percent chance that it will need a major repair, which is any singular repair that costs more than $500. This is nine percent better than the average luxury sedan.
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The Giulia’s key rivals are much more expensive to keep running
German sports sedans will cost you much more
Credit: BMW
If you’re shopping for a luxury sports sedan, you’ve probably also at least looked at the Giulia’s German rivals. While a lot of these cars have great pedigree, plush environs, and enough power to keep up with the Italian, they will cost you a decent amount more when it comes to long-term maintenance.
Compact luxury sedan 10-year maintenance
Model
10-year maintenance costs
BMW 3-Series
$14,345
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
$10,734
Audi A4
$9,646
Cadillac CT4
$9,637
Genesis G70
$7,221
Lexus IS
$5,891
The above show the top competitors to the Alfa Romeo, with most of them being from Germany. Many of these models cost thousands more to maintain than the Giulia, with the BMW 3-Series being the worst offender. This is par for the course for BMW, though, with most of their models having some of the highest long-term maintenance costs in the luxury segment.
Two models on the table that compete better with the Giulia in terms of maintenance costs are the Lexus IS and the Genesis G70. The Lexus is a fantastic luxury car, but doesn’t really compete with the Giulia when it comes to sportiness. Even now that the V-6 is standard in the IS, it still doesn’t really feel like a true alternative. The Genesis is more of a direct competitor, but it is still a fairly young model, so CarEdge is predicting ten-year maintenance costs.
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The highest cost of ownership on a Giulia is depreciation
Buying used is the wisest choice
Credit: Alfa Romeo
While the Giulia definitely undercuts a lot of its rivals when it comes to maintenance costs, depreciation is an area where it does pretty poorly. Because Alfa is perceived to be unreliable and expensive to maintain, people are willing to pay much less for them on the used market. If you’re looking to dodge some of these costs, buying used is the best way to go.
Alfa Romeo Giulia depreciation
Years of ownership
Depreciation
1
49%
3
59%
5
62%
7
67%
10
76%
According to CarEdge, the Giulia depreciates more aggressively than most of the cars on the road. It does its steepest depreciating in its first year off the dealership floor, dropping almost half of its value instantly. This means that buying a new Giulia is probably not the wisest financial decision. However, buying one used can net you a pretty big discount.
You can buy a three-year-old Giulia from anywhere between $23,000 and $32,000 on the used market right now. This, of course, excludes the 505-horsepower Quadrifoglio model, which holds its value a little better. That essentially means you’re getting a slightly used luxury sports sedan for the price of a brand-new Corolla. Even if you factor in some reliability hiccups, that still feels like a pretty good deal.
