I’m now going on week 3 with my Ghibli, which is a recent build (build date 5/14). I thought it’d be worthwhile for others to hear about my experience with a later Ghibli, presumably after many of the initial problems were resolved. To make a long story short, I have had no significant issues at all with the car. As far as I can tell everything is working as expected, and none of the issues reported by others are apparent in my car (SAT antenna, A/C, paint defects, windows not raising, etc.). I have the B&W system, so have not had the premium sound issues others have reported.
I am coming off a 2008 BMW 550i, which I was very happy with. Compared with the BMW, here’s how I’d rate the Ghibli:
- Overall experience: Ghibli. As has been pointed out on another thread, this is an emotional decision, and the car is delivering on my expectations. I am finding it much more fun to drive than the BMW, and appreciate the overall attention to the more sensual issues in the car that you just don’t get with a German car.
- Build quality: tie. The BMW was also flawless 2 weeks in.
- Seats: Ghibli, by a mile. The seats are important to me; on trips of an hour or more, I would get excruciating backaches in the BMW, no matter how I adjusted the seats. Lower back support with the Ghibli seats is much better than with the BMW, and I have made a couple of long trips already with no back ache at all. The ventilation on the Ghibli seats is also much better than it was on the 550.
- Interior overall: Ghibli. Everything about the interior that I care about – the look, the feel, the smell, the ease of use, is better with the Ghibli. I don’t care that the switches are the same as Chrysler’s; they work perfectly well, arguably in some cases better than the BMWs (e.g. the turn signal, which on the BMW has an annoying habit of turning itself off after 3 flashes, regardless of how you configure it with iDrive).
- iDrive vs. UConnect: UConnect wins by a landslide. I hated everything about the iDrive, especially the control via wheel. The touchscreen on UConnect is much easier to use, and much less of a distraction. It is hard to compare on functionality because the Ghibli has a 7 year lead on the BMW, but with respect to ease of use I think the comparison is fair and I’d take the Ghibli in a second.
- Engine/acceleration: tie. The BMW did not have the slight lag that others have noticed with the Ghibli, but it also did not have the same fun factor that you get with the Ghibli exhaust note and tuning.
I’m mostly writing this for the benefit of people who may be considering a Ghibli but who are put off by the build issues others have noted. Back in the 80s I had an Alfa Romeo 164L, which I bought about 6 months after it became available, as I did with the Ghibli. There is no comparison in the build quality between the two cars; with the Alfa I had a list of 20 issues within a week or so of delivery, and have none with the Ghibli. I’ve had 2 BMWs in the interim, and so far at least, would say the build quality for the Ghibli is far closer to the BMWs than to the Alfa.
If anyone has questions, please don’t hesitate to post here or message me…
I am coming off a 2008 BMW 550i, which I was very happy with. Compared with the BMW, here’s how I’d rate the Ghibli:
- Overall experience: Ghibli. As has been pointed out on another thread, this is an emotional decision, and the car is delivering on my expectations. I am finding it much more fun to drive than the BMW, and appreciate the overall attention to the more sensual issues in the car that you just don’t get with a German car.
- Build quality: tie. The BMW was also flawless 2 weeks in.
- Seats: Ghibli, by a mile. The seats are important to me; on trips of an hour or more, I would get excruciating backaches in the BMW, no matter how I adjusted the seats. Lower back support with the Ghibli seats is much better than with the BMW, and I have made a couple of long trips already with no back ache at all. The ventilation on the Ghibli seats is also much better than it was on the 550.
- Interior overall: Ghibli. Everything about the interior that I care about – the look, the feel, the smell, the ease of use, is better with the Ghibli. I don’t care that the switches are the same as Chrysler’s; they work perfectly well, arguably in some cases better than the BMWs (e.g. the turn signal, which on the BMW has an annoying habit of turning itself off after 3 flashes, regardless of how you configure it with iDrive).
- iDrive vs. UConnect: UConnect wins by a landslide. I hated everything about the iDrive, especially the control via wheel. The touchscreen on UConnect is much easier to use, and much less of a distraction. It is hard to compare on functionality because the Ghibli has a 7 year lead on the BMW, but with respect to ease of use I think the comparison is fair and I’d take the Ghibli in a second.
- Engine/acceleration: tie. The BMW did not have the slight lag that others have noticed with the Ghibli, but it also did not have the same fun factor that you get with the Ghibli exhaust note and tuning.
I’m mostly writing this for the benefit of people who may be considering a Ghibli but who are put off by the build issues others have noted. Back in the 80s I had an Alfa Romeo 164L, which I bought about 6 months after it became available, as I did with the Ghibli. There is no comparison in the build quality between the two cars; with the Alfa I had a list of 20 issues within a week or so of delivery, and have none with the Ghibli. I’ve had 2 BMWs in the interim, and so far at least, would say the build quality for the Ghibli is far closer to the BMWs than to the Alfa.
If anyone has questions, please don’t hesitate to post here or message me…
