What was supposed to be a simple trip home turned into a terrifying ordeal on the A1 highway between Naples and Rome. Since June 27, the account of Imma Battaglia, a well-known figure in Italian activism, has been circulating on social media and in Italian media following the sudden breakdown of her Alfa Romeo Junior.
The car, which is less than a year old and has about 14,000 kilometers on the odometer, reportedly came to a sudden stop while traveling at 120 km/h. This incident has received significant media attention, putting Alfa Romeo in a situation the brand would have gladly avoided.
An Alfa Romeo Junior hybrid that loses all its power
Images posted on social media make it possible to identify the model in question. The presence of exhaust pipes confirms that this is not the electric version, but rather an Alfa Romeo Junior Ibrida equipped with a 1.2-liter gasoline engine.
According to the account published by Imma Battaglia, the trip was proceeding normally on the A1 Naples-Rome highway when an audible alert sounded. Moments later, a message appeared on the dashboard: «Engine malfunction: stop the vehicle.» The accelerator stopped responding. The engine lost power, and the car slowed down abruptly. The driver explained that the vehicle coasted to a stop at an emergency pull-off area.
«It’s a miracle we’re alive,» she says in a video posted a few minutes after the incident. She points out that the situation could have been much worse if the car had been in the center lane or the passing lane at the time of the breakdown. The incident occurred around 7:15 p.m., while she was traveling with journalist Roberta Savona.
A story that went viral in Italy
Very quickly, the story spread beyond social media. Several national Italian media outlets picked up the story, while the video racked up several million views. In her account, Imma Battaglia doesn’t just criticize the breakdown itself. She also points the finger at roadside assistance, claiming she had difficulty reaching the support services. The tow truck arrived just over an hour after the vehicle broke down, and the tow was reportedly only provided as far as the first highway exit. The activist then announced her intention to take legal action against Alfa Romeo as well as the roadside assistance provider Arval.
Alfa Romeo Apologizes and Launches an Investigation
Given the scale the incident had reached, Alfa Romeo quickly contacted the driver. According to the Italian press, the automaker apologized and stated that it wanted to understand exactly what had happened. The investigation is reportedly focusing on both the technical cause of the malfunction and the handling of the assistance response. For now, Alfa Romeo has not provided any official explanation regarding the appearance of the «engine malfunction» message or the reasons for the sudden shutdown of the hybrid system. We will likely have to wait for the vehicle analysis to determine the exact cause of the problem.
Even though this is an isolated incident at this stage, the media coverage of this breakdown directly affects one of the Italian automaker’s most important models. An Alfa Romeo Junior hybrid that came to a standstill at 120 km/h on the highway is exactly the kind of situation a brand wants to avoid, especially when the story goes viral within a few hours.
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This fits right into the pattern of problems at Stellantis. Alfa needs to figure out the cause as soon as possible. Today's cars are packed with so much technology and software that problems like this are almost inevitable. Still, it's frustrating and not a moment of glory for Alfa.
I’d had the same kind of problem with my Fiat Tipo 1.8 16v. A sudden loss of power on the highway. Back then, it was the Marelli airflow meter—which was total junk on the early models. But I still loved my beautiful Italian car…
From what I've heard, Bosch flow meters are also total crap, as we've seen in Mercedes and VW vehicles. I get the impression that, regardless of the brand, this part is more of a problem than a solution—just like the diesel particulate filter, for example.
These are standard parts produced by one or two manufacturers somewhere in Eastern Europe. "Cheap" is the purchasing motto.
It's not a question of price, because Bosch parts are just as much junk.
But come on, a Peugeot PureTech that breaks down at 14,000 km (half the engine's lifespan)—that's unbelievable!!! Who could have predicted that???
I had the same problem with my C3 Aircross 1.2L. It's the same old story with that PureTech engine.
Why did you buy this thing? 😱
Well, that's to be expected—the PureTech breaking down for no apparent reason shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone. It's pretty dangerous on the highway.
«According to the Italian press, the brand has apologized and said it wants to understand exactly what happened.»
That's what you call taking people for fools. We know what's causing the problem; it's been pointed out ever since Stellantis was founded.
In any case, this situation drives yet another nail into the coffin of the «bye Peugeot» Alfa Romeos.
But no, journalists keep telling us that the latest generation of PureTech is more reliable! I just can't believe you! Enough with the Stellantis bashing already!
@Potté
NO figures from the past three years contradict the restored reliability of the 1.2!
Until proven otherwise,
It's not just ONE case that makes a difference… or even ten!
That's false—as I've pointed out before, all the figures support Potté's position, and even today, none of the problems have been resolved, as can be seen everywhere regarding this ill-conceived engine, which is a complete fiasco. Changing its name won't solve the problems—the only solution is to get rid of it for good!
Alfa Romeo has long been known as a renowned automaker (and this is still true today with the Giulia and Stelvio).
Then Stellantis came along with its PureTech engines, just to ruin Alfa Romeo's reputation.
Since they’re such champions, they’ve also decided to kill off Abarth (an Abarth with no exhaust note—what a brilliant idea from Stellantis). Not to mention Lancia—they want to revive the brand while doing everything they can to ensure the Ypsilon doesn’t sell well (very few dealerships and no engines other than PureTech or electric motors with limited range).
Stellantis is a world champion!
It's kind of like a "run-over cats" column.
Finally, a breakdown involving the Alfa Romeo Junior—how many have been sold so far?
According to some, there must be tens of thousands of them!?
Tonales that catch fire make less noise… weird.
Fortunately, no one was hurt; let’s hope Alfa fixes the problem quickly before the naysayers start cawing too loudly.
But, given that there are tens of thousands of them out there, expecting zero breakdowns is unrealistic.
I don't really agree—that's just your opinion, based on your perspective. In Italy, it caused quite a stir because it happened to a well-known figure, so it was widely reported by the media. That's exactly why Alfa Romeo said they were investigating.
I love it.
A Peugeot 2008 breaks down without warning on the highway, which could cost the lives of its occupants and other road users.
Response from the Peugeot salesperson: «Fortunately, no one was hurt.».
Well, I guess we know why, after a decade of disasters, PSA still hasn't phased out this engine…
They forgot to mention the C3 that came to a sudden stop for no reason in a roundabout—and whose owner would have been left there with her children if the guy coming from the opposite direction hadn’t had thethe idea not to brake and instead flew over the roundabout—and luckily, his Yaris landed back on all four wheels without him getting hurt.
We could also mention the former PSA dealership, which caused a stir at the auto show over engines that break down or burn out quickly—as evidenced by all the wrecks stored in its outdoor parking lot.
Such a situation does a great deal of damage to Alfa Romeo's reputation as a premium brand, just like the Junior, which has nothing to do with either Alfa Romeo or a premium brand.
You still haven’t understood that sales of a cheap B-SUV can’t be compared to sales of D-segment cars like the Giulia and Stelvio, which are not only more profitable than the Junior but are also true premium cars. If we look at raw sales figures, Alfa Romeo as a company is doing better than Ferrari. Is that true? Draw your own conclusions.
Horrible!
My old Alfa 164 QV... just keeps on going.
My newer 156 GTA makes me smile...
Why should I buy this ugly moped car?
ALFA, what's going on?
I've said it time and again: the Puretech will be Stellantis's undoing, but apparently the group's top brass wants to carry on with this disaster until the very end.
As I write this, Stellantis stock is trading below €5—€4.85, to be exact. That’s nearly a 50% drop in one year.
Soon, a share of Stellantis could cost as much as an espresso.
But hey, you know, they're "experts"…
Now is exactly the time to invest in it, because when it goes back up… jackpot!
It's funny, but some people here were cheering about the Junior's sales figures a few months ago. It's always the same old "shut up" routine. They probably don't even drive Italian cars, for all we know 🤣
The Junior's relatively strong sales are keeping Alfa Romeo afloat—at least that's something.
That doesn't mean the Junior is a typical Alfa Romeo.
As for Italian cars, I've owned more than 10 (Alfa Romeo, Abarth, Lancia), and I still have three of them, so I think I have a pretty good idea of what they're like.
No, it didn't help save anything because sales are already at rock bottom... it's doing worse than the Tonale.
They just don’t understand that sales of a cheap, mainstream B-SUV can’t be compared to sales of true premium cars like the Giulia and Stelvio. Junior has no say in either Alfa Romeo’s production or engineering, and it’s only damaging their image.
Half a million B-SUVs produced at the Stellantis plant in Tychy: an Alfa Romeo Junior marks this symbolic milestone
For now, they were asked to sell it under a certain brand, and we all know how that turned out… the Junior was a huge flop, but we knew that full well going in, and since it wasn’t even made in Italy—let alone designed there—I completely understand why customers would look elsewhere, to more reliable brands like the Japanese ones.
The Junior barely reached 50% of its planned sales. It’s the least popular of the three, and they all sold so poorly that they had to lay off workers at Tychy.
And as for the «oil-bath belt» issue—it’s certainly a problem, but only Stellantis has faced a massive media uproar over it; All automakers produce cars with the serious problem of sudden stalling, but now everyone knows about it only because of Alfa…
Chinese cars may lose their driver's seat during Euro NCAP crash tests, but nobody knows about it.... I wonder why...