{"id":6782,"date":"2026-08-14T13:39:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T13:39:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6782"},"modified":"2026-08-14T13:39:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-14T13:39:10","slug":"my-alfa-romeos-dashboard-is-falling-apart-and-the-warranty-wont-cover-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6782","title":{"rendered":"My Alfa Romeo’s dashboard is falling apart and the warranty won’t cover it"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Q:<\/strong> I own a 2019 Alfa Romeo Stelvio SUV covered by a Mopar MVP MultiCare Plus Service Contract. This policy expressly provides protection for interior and exterior damage.<\/p>\n

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The dashboard in my vehicle is currently separating from the air vents, resulting in a significant gap. The interior section of my policy covers reconditioning, repair, or replacement of surfaces damaged due to normal wear and tear, including loose seam stitches, rips, and tears.<\/p>\n

Despite these terms, Mopar has denied my claim. It says the specific part number is on an \u201cexclusion list.\u201d However, my policy documents make no reference to an exclusion list by part number, nor do they list the dashboard as an excluded item.<\/p>\n

I have escalated this to Alfa Romeo, a division of Stellantis, which also owns Mopar. Alfa Romeo issued my policy. It agrees that the dashboard should be replaced under the policy terms. However, the representative has been unable to secure an agreement from Mopar to authorize the repair.<\/p>\n

The cost to replace the dashboard exceeds $14,000. Given the explicit terms of the policy and the absence of any referenced exclusion list in my contract, I\u2019m trying to get this covered. I have written a letter to Stellantis North America Customer Experience but have received no response. Can you help me?<\/p>\n

\u2014Jay Catelli, Swampscott, Mass.<\/em><\/p>\n

A:<\/strong> Mopar should have fixed your dashboard. If your MVP MultiCare Plus Service Contract explicitly covers \u201cinterior surfaces\u201d and \u201cwear and tear,\u201d and your dashboard is doing a slow-motion separation, then it\u2019s an open-and-shut case.<\/p>\n

Service contracts\u2014often called extended warranties\u2014are usually one of two types: inclusionary or exclusionary. An inclusionary policy lists exactly what is covered. If the part isn\u2019t on the list, you are out of luck. An exclusionary policy covers everything except what is specifically listed as not covered.<\/p>\n

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If you have an exclusionary policy, you read the fine print and checked the list. The dashboard wasn\u2019t on it in your case.<\/p>\n

Then Mopar claimed that even though the dashboard isn\u2019t listed as an exclusion in your contract, the part number is on an internal exclusion list.<\/p>\n

Come on. You can\u2019t be bound by a secret list of part numbers that you never saw and didn\u2019t sign.<\/p>\n

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You did an excellent job trying to resolve this yourself. You kept a thorough paper trail. You contacted the dealership, which agreed with you. You contacted Alfa Romeo, which also agreed with you.<\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

In fact, an Alfa Romeo representative told you she tried to reason with Mopar, but Mopar insisted the part was excluded. It is rare to see two divisions of the same parent company\u2014Stellantis\u2014bickering like this over a customer\u2019s repair.<\/p>\n

When you hit a wall with the normal customer service channels, you can usually appeal to a higher authority. I list the names, numbers and emails for the Stellantis executives on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org.<\/p>\n

You sent a certified letter to the senior vice president of North America Customer Experience at Stellantis. That was a smart move. But when you didn\u2019t hear back, you contacted my team.<\/p>\n

You were looking at a bill of more than $10,000 for a problem you paid good money to insure against. That is enough to make anyone\u2019s blood boil\u2014and apparently, your dashboard melt.<\/p>\n

My advocacy team contacted Stellantis on your behalf.\u00a0 A few days later, you received a call from Stellantis. A representative said the company reviewed your case and reversed its decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cStellantis informed me that they reversed their initial denial and acknowledged that the leather dashboard should have been covered under the plan,\u201d you told me.<\/p>\n

The company approved the full cost of the dashboard replacement. It\u2019s nice to see Stellantis standing behind its product, even if Mopar had to be dragged to the finish line. Next time, let\u2019s hope the dashboard\u2014and the warranty\u2014hold together a little better.<\/p>\n

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy, a nonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at chris@elliott.org or get help by contacting him at elliottadvocacy.org\/help.<\/em><\/p>\n

Read more Inside the booming business of California\u2019s extra-virgin olive oil<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

His car’s dashboard is defective, he has a warranty but the company says his specific part is on a secret exclusion list.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6781,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\nMy Alfa Romeo’s dashboard is falling apart and the warranty won’t cover it - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6782\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"My Alfa Romeo’s dashboard is falling apart and the warranty won’t cover it - Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"His car's dashboard is defective, he has a warranty but the company says his specific part is on a secret exclusion list.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=6782\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Next City Digest\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-14T13:39:10+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/13065d40d633843429ac57d4e5c06f9b\"},\"headline\":\"My Alfa Romeo’s dashboard is falling apart and the warranty won’t cover it\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-14T13:39:10+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782\"},\"wordCount\":739,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/e7aafc3769af441c3e23f723ce5770b4.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Business\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/nextcitydigest.com\\\/?p=6782\",\"name\":\"My Alfa Romeo’s dashboard is falling apart and the warranty won’t cover it - 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