Three Good Reasons not to buy an Alfa Romeo

Sonnenblumen

Here goes:

1. Reliability (lack of to be more precise)
2. Depreciation (no car loses more money as fast)
3. Build Quality (keeps rattling even after ignition has beeen turned off).

skibum

Speaking from experience?

junkyard

It looks to me you have some kind of death wish coming on here "Alfabashing" that said I think they're sh*te too so here goes.
Styling and design isn't great tbh, they're stuffy inside with very little room.
A lot of the componants seem to be made out of old chewing gum.
The dealers must be laughing all the way to the bank when you see how much they charge and how often you have to use they're services.

Lex Luthor

I am getting sick of these Alfa Romeo threads...."should I buy one?" BLAH BLAH BLAH...

Look there are enough threads and forums out there for you to consult if you want to buy one.

If you have to post here, then you obviously want one but are worried about the potential pitfalls of buying one. If you have your doubts, then don't bother.

SUCK IT UP, BABY....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

junkyard

skibum wrote:

Speaking from experience?

I've had a few of them over the years and wasn't long getting them out of my system. I remember patching up the rust on the new ones back in the 80s BEFORE they were put in the showrooms! Can you believe that, new cars rusting even before they were sold. So I think I have enough experience of Alfas so some poor sod won't make the same mistake I made.

Lex Luthor

junkyard wrote:

so some poor sod won't make the same mistake I made.

1000's of poor sods out there ignoring your advice......

junkyard

They'll learn sooner or later, everyone's entitled to make a mistake.;)

Sonnenblumen

Lex Luthor wrote:

1000's of poor sods out there ignoring your advice......

I know nobody who owns an Alfa Romeo and there are no rules on these boards that prevents anyone from reasonably seeking advice, exchanging information or simply expressing an opinion.
If the content is not to your liking, well that's tough, if it offends you and you have just cause well make a complaint.

On the otherhand you may wish to take some of your own medicine and "Suck it UP".

John R

Is another bloody Alfa great/shoite thread necessary? The last one is still on the first page of the board.

One thing Alfas are unquestionably the best for is pointless mesageboard arguements.

awhir

hey alfas are ****y made and bad engine but they look very cool there 1 of the best looking car desingers out there


and leave me alone about the spelling to lazy to look them up

Wolff

So sonnenblumen since you know noboby that owns one you are basing your opinion on what exactly

1) Air
2) A little Birdy told me
3) I overheard it in confession

An opinion is one thing - an ill informed opinion is an ugly thing to behold.

mike65

Right thats it, Sonnenblumen you've been tempting fate for a few days now with the Alfa bashing. Its completely needless, you are clearly either a muppet or a troll so its up to you, keep off the subject or get banned.

Mike.

skibum

Wolff wrote:

So sonnenblumen since you know noboby that owns one you are basing your opinion on what exactly

1) Air
2) A little Birdy told me
3) I overheard it in confession

An opinion is one thing - an ill informed opinion is an ugly thing to behold.

Thats what I was hinting at

cjt156

OK so we're basing the argument on the fact that 1980s cars used to rust. Yep, excellent point!

I'll be sure not to stop off in 1983 the next time I'm in the market for a new car.

neacy69

mike65 wrote:

Right thats it, Sonnenblumen you've been tempting fate for a few days now with the Alfa bashing. Its completely needless, you are clearly either a muppet or a troll

seconded

Sonnenblumen

Hey Mike - OK fair enough, I've done my bit and thanks to all share the same view.

But I must say you'd be doing society a bigger favour waving your banning wand at people with Sigs that refer to a winner in Special Olympics as a 'retard'.

Lex Luthor

awhir wrote:

hey alfas are ****y made and bad engine

what constitutes a bad engine in your opinion?

lomb

Lex Luthor wrote:

what constitutes a bad engine in your opinion?

belts snap on them on a regular basis. alfas solution was to half the belt change intervals:rolleyes:

alfas also have the problem that they are front wheel driven with huge torque steer out of the better engines.

buying an alfa is like buying a 20 year old italian supercar. ur gauranteed to lose all your money in a short while and suffering this indignity with unreliablity.

Wolff

lomb

your right of course how many alfas have you owned - except my alfa has never let me down, is not unreliable, neither has my brothers 3 alfas - one after the other

but im only basing my opinion on my own personal experience and his.

indeed have had a lot of cars Audis, Bmws, Mazdas, mitusbishi,hondas and I can safely say they are all good cars but none hold a candle to the alfa in driveability terms.

But again am only basing that on personal experience

overdriver

My cycle repair man has had a string of them, and claims to have no problems. they must be doing something right, if people keep buying them.

Did you look up carsurvey.org?

RoundyMooney

Ah jaysus.

Not again...

neacy69

Sonnenblumen wrote:

But I must say you'd be doing society a bigger favour waving your banning wand at people with Sigs that refer to a winner in Special Olympics as a 'retard'.

:eek: who was that- sonnen blumen quick call the president :eek:

junkyard

Ask any car dealer what they think of Alfas and they'll all give you the same answer.....a can of worms....a warranty nightmare.....a depreciation disaster. We can't all be wrong. I personally wouldn't say they're the best car to drive or handle either. I think people are blinded by Alfas being from the same stable as Ferrari......so are Fiats.:)

cjt156

Nobody said they were the best car to drive. I said you won't get the grin factor off many other cars in the price bracket, although I can't remember which thread that was.:rolleyes:
Why people get the bug for these cars is precisely because they're not Toyotas; lots of fun and the risk of extra maintenance vs years and years and YEARS (....snore) of efficient, trouble-free, uninspiring transport. But hey, if that's what you want from your car...Oh Jebus, I can't be ar$ed.
I've got 155bhp of Italian metal outside & its a toss up on whether I fork out for an extra 20bhp from a remap or save the money for the timing belt that's due soon, why the fcuk am talking to you people...

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

Sonnenblumen wrote:

Here goes:

1. Reliability (lack of to be more precise)
2. Depreciation (no car loses more money as fast)
3. Build Quality (keeps rattling even after ignition has beeen turned off).

spot on and so true...

Anan1

junkyard wrote:

Ask any car dealer what they think of Alfas and they'll all give you the same answer.....a can of worms....a warranty nightmare.....a depreciation disaster. We can't all be wrong.

To be fair, asking a car dealer what they think of a particular car is only one step up from asking a taxi driver. The concerns of a dealer are completely different from those of an owner, and most car sales people (Junkyard excepted of course!) know little more about cars than your average Joe Soap.

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

mike65 wrote:

Right thats it, Sonnenblumen you've been tempting fate for a few days now with the Alfa bashing. Its completely needless, you are clearly either a muppet or a troll so its up to you, keep off the subject or get banned.

Mike.

ah that a bit harsh... id say something if what he said was untrue.

prospect

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

ah that a bit harsh... id say something if what he said was untrue.

I don;t think it is harsh.
There is a sticky for Alfa Related threads, and it should be used.
Also, anyone who posts a thread that has no merit is clearly a troll.
Thread should be deleted imo.

Anan1

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

ah that a bit harsh... id say something if what he said was untrue.

If he was in any way able to support his assertions then he might get a little respect. People keep asking him why he thinks that, whether he has any personal experience of Alfas, etc, and he appears unable to respond. There's nothing wrong with hating Alfas, but there's a lot wrong with not being able to discuss ones stated opinions in an adult manner.

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

Anan1 wrote:

If he was in any way able to support his assertions then he might get a little respect. People keep asking him why he thinks that, whether he has any personal experience of Alfas, etc, and he appears unable to respond. There's nothing wrong with hating Alfas, but there's a lot wrong with not being able to discuss ones stated opinions in an adult manner.

but all that he has said about Alfas is true... every motoring magazine and journalist says the same...

that like asking somebody to support his assertions that the sky is blue...
its blue for everybody to see...

Eoin

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

but all that he has said about Alfas is true... every motoring magazine and journalist says the same...

But not every owner strangely enough. Anyway, aren't there any Gardai threads around for you to "contribute" to?

prospect

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

but all that he has said about Alfas is true... every motoring magazine and journalist says the same...

Well, I own one, and can tell you everything he says isn't true. In my personal experience, but I am sure that counts for less than what little bits of information you have memorised from various articles you have read.

Anan1

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

but all that he has said about Alfas is true... every motoring magazine and journalist says the same...

that like asking somebody to support his assertions that the sky is blue...
its blue for everybody to see...

Can you support his assertions? Or are you just blowing hot air?

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

wow... its getting hot in here... relax boys, no need to throw the toys out of the cot. I'm only speaking from my personal experience of owing two if the buckets( yes i know how could i be so stupid to buy a second one but i wanted so much to like them).
i know why ye are so passionate about them... i was too and it made me so irate, that here was a car i likes so much and they turn out to be useless...
so chill out lads, you ll be able to sell them on.

all calm again... good.

Eoin

prospect wrote:

Well, I own one, and can tell you everything he says isn't true. In my personal experience, but I am sure that counts for less than what little bits of information you have memorised from various articles you have read.

Well, actually one of them was true - the depreciation. Some people got stung - myself included, but other people get to pick up a LOT of car for very little money.

I really don't know why I am bothering adding to this thread... But I sold mine after about 2 years of driving it. I lost a good bit from depreciation, but when I got it, insurance was an issue so I had to go for the 1.6 which commands a higher resale price as it is rarer, and didn't come out till 2000. I really should have gone for an earlier 1.8 and it would have worked out cheaper in the long run.

Anyhow, despite this I did not have one problem in the two years. I had to replace some bulbs relatively often (one might go every 3-4 months or so), but no more regularly than on the VW Golf which preceded it. There were a few little creaks from the interior, but less than I am currently experiencing in my BMW of the same year.

Would I buy one again? Definitely, but would make sure that someone else takes the hit on the depreciation first. The diesel 156s were in my budget, but didn't want to take another hit, though as the Alfa/Fiat diesel engine is supposed to be a class leader, maybe it will hold it's resale value better.

Anan1

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

wow... its getting hot in here... relax boys, no need to throw the toys out of the cot. I'm only speaking from my personal experience of owing two if the buckets( yes i know how could i be so stupid to buy a second one but i wanted so much to like them).
i know why ye are so passionate about them... i was too and it made me so irate, that here was a car i likes so much and they turn out to be useless...
so chill out lads, you ll be able to sell them on.

all calm again... good.

Where did you get yours serviced? What went wrong?

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

Anan1 wrote:

Where did you get yours serviced? What went wrong?

www.grandoncars.com
the first one was second hand. electrical components in the engine keep shutting down the trip computer, never could get it fixed so sold it back to garage with the problem... no doubt they sold it on as well.
second one was new. and the grinding from the gear box was horrific... told that all this was normal.... until the gearbox virtually dropped out of the car... even the courtesy car they gave me(for about 6 months) used to misfire and on a wet a day she would cut out.

Anan1

Grandons are complete cowboys. I had a Delta integrale serviced with them once, and got it back with a puddle of fuel sloshing around under the rear seat. The problem with Alfas in this country is that most of the dealerships are complete & utter wasters. If you can find a good service agent (such as TI Autos or Alasta) and have the car serviced properly, then ownership is a completely different experience.

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

Anan1 wrote:

Grandons are complete cowboys. I had a Delta integrale serviced with them once, and got it back with a puddle of fuel sloshing around under the rear seat. The problem with Alfas in this country is that most of the dealerships are complete & utter wasters. If you can find a good service agent (such as TI Autos or Alasta) and have the car serviced properly, then ownership is a completely different experience.

i had no problem with grandons... my problem was with the two cars i had.
the second alfas was new...spanking new.

but listen as far as i can tell you will defend alfa to the end... no point...because you have your opinion and just wont listen to other peoples experiences

Eoin

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

but listen as far as i can tell you will defend alfa to the end... no point...because you have your opinion and just wont listen to other peoples experiences

This appears to go both ways.

prospect

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

i had no problem with grandons... my problem was with the two cars i had.
the second alfas was new...spanking new.

but listen as far as i can tell you will defend alfa to the end... no point...because you have your opinion and just wont listen to other peoples experiences

Your experiences of 2 cars out of MILLIONS manufacturered! :rolleyes:

By your rationale:
My dad had a Nissan Primera in 1994, brand new, and after less than 2 weeks the engine had to be replaced.... Also a colleague has a current primera, and it is awfully troublesome, constantly in the garage.
So, ALL NISSANS ARE CRAP, dont ever buy one....

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

Are they, never had a jap car and have no experience of owning one so i couldn't comment but as you speak from you personal experience's of Nissans i will consider your words if i ever think of buying one.
thanks again.


oh by the way
this thread isn't about Nissan's. Maybe you should start one if you feel they are as bad as the Alfas

Anan1

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

www.grandoncars.com
the first one was second hand. electrical components in the engine keep shutting down the trip computer, never could get it fixed so sold it back to garage with the problem... no doubt they sold it on as well.
second one was new. and the grinding from the gear box was horrific... told that all this was normal.... until the gearbox virtually dropped out of the car... even the courtesy car they gave me(for about 6 months) used to misfire and on a wet a day she would cut out.

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

i had no problem with grandons... my problem was with the two cars i had.
the second alfas was new...spanking new.

Unless I'm missing something, you're completely contradicting yourself here. Which is it?

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

but listen as far as i can tell you will defend alfa to the end... no point...because you have your opinion and just wont listen to other peoples experiences

Any chance of an example to back up this assertion?

\m/_(>_<)_\m/

Anan1 wrote:

Unless I'm missing something, you're completely contradicting yourself here. Which is it?

Any chance of an example to back up this assertion?

your missing something.

any way, I'm out of here... too many disgruntled Alfa drivers...looking for someone to blame...
well its not me, remember i had one of them... i knew how ye feel.
i was lucky enough to get rid of mine.

Anan1

\m/_(>_<)_\m/ wrote:

your missing something.

Any chance you could tell me what before you run away?:)

Vegeta

Anan1 wrote:

Unless I'm missing something, you're completely contradicting yourself here. Which is it?

I don't get it what is he contradicting himself on??

Anan1

Vegeta wrote:

I don't get it what is he contradicting himself on??

I asked him what dealer he used and what problems he had with the car. He said Grandons, and listed off problems the dealer couldn't or wouldn't fix. I then said that in my experience Grandons were useless, to which he replied that he had had no problem with Grandons.

prospect

I am begining to suspect that \m/_(>_<)_\m/ and Sonnenblumen are the same person, and that their respective car ownership history are all makey-uppy.

I wouldn't really waste my energy on them Anan1.
If he/she/they have really had a bad experience with Alfa, thats unfortunate for them. Thanks for letting us all know, now lets all go about our business.

Anan1

You're probably right Prospect, I was just curious to see what he'd do when I cornered him.;)

Vegeta

Anan1 wrote:

I asked him what dealer he used and what problems he had with the car. He said Grandons, and listed off problems the dealer couldn't or wouldn't fix. I then said that in my experience Grandons were useless, to which he replied that he had had no problem with Grandons.

oh i get ya now

miju

well \m/_(>_<)_\m/ you should really learn how to change gears properly , i've actually never heard of ANY car alfa or not that's brand new and has had the gearbox fall out of it

oh wait , i have didn't britney spears have a prosche or something that had the gearbox ripped out of it from her not being able to drive properly LOL

alfa's are a great car IMO and most people who "alfa bash" have little or NO experience of an Alfa

to the OP , you've actually admitted you've never owned an alfa or know anyone who does so you can't actually base your opinion on anything whatsoever but suppose that fact doesnt enter that feeble little brain of yours.

your clearly trolling and should be banned