Would I be mad to buy an Alfa?

NIMAN

I am considering trading up an 01 Golf to something a bit newer maybe this summer.

I have owned the Golf for approx 6/7 years now and never had any bother with it. Have also owned Toyotas in the past, again with no bother.

I have always wanted to own an Alfa, but the old legacy of Italian cars breaking down still concerns me.

So would I be mad to buy an Alfa from maybe 2007/2008?
Would I be better sticking with a slightly older but more reliable VW or Toyota?

dgt

You never buy an Alfa with your head

A decent well looked after example will serve you well

Parts ain't cheap but worth it

kyote00

It is becoming very hard to buy a good 156 or 147 in Ireland. While there are many for sale, most are on to third or fourth owners with the usual loss of service history and poor maintenance record....

Buy very carefully.

unkel

If you're happy owning a Toyota or a Mk IV Golf and reliability is very important to you, I think it is safe to say buying an Alfa would be a mistake

Dilbert75

My driving history has been:

• Opel Kadett 1.3
• Opel Vectra 2.0Di
• Ford Fiesta 1.25
• Skoda Octavia 1.6
• Alfa Romeo 156 1.8

I spent the first 13 years of car ownership knowing that what I drove would be reliable and economical and, by and large, it was. I've had the Alfa for just over a year. I'm the 4th owner, have had some problems due to previous owner neglect / maintainence neglect (particular thanks to Mr. Fireman for the dodgy catalytic converter). But, unlike in the past where I drove to get places, now when I drive I love it. Try putting a price on that.

Jimdagym

No disrespect to the op, buts it's laughable how so many people view alfa's as some sort of monster that lives in the garden and steals all your money and eats your dog.

They are selling cars for decades!

Dilbert75

And there is evidence of that opinion in this thread - even though I have read posts by, and very much respect the opinions of, both Kyote & Unkel, I very much disagree with them. If I went out to buy a 8 year old Skoda Octavia, I'd probably find there were proportionally just as many which have been poorly maintained and which have had the holes driven out of them as I would Alfas. And more of them would have been used for towing trailers of blocks & farm animals. There's just a smaller pool of available Alfas, so you do have to work harder to find one.

Don't petrol 157s of that vintage (2007 or 2008) have a GM engine?

Dilbert75

RoverJames wrote: »

Don't petrol 157s of that vintage (2007 or 2008) have a GM engine?

159's, you mean?

Indeed

dgt

RoverJames wrote: »

Don't petrol 157s of that vintage (2007 or 2008) have a GM engine?

Apart from the 1.75TB they are GM units...

unkel

Dilbert75 wrote: »

And there is evidence of that opinion in this thread - even though I have read posts by, and very much respect the opinions of, both Kyote & Unkel, I very much disagree with them.

I'm actually a bit like yourself. I started off with several nearly new Japanese "reliable is most important" cars until I switched to cheaper older and more powerful stuff mainly with V8 petrol engines

I feel the OP might be different though. For me reliability isn't everything and the only thing of importance the OP mentions is reliability. I would like to recommend everyone an Alfa, but I won't...

@RJ - most modern Alfa engines are from FIAT (diesels) or Opel (petrols). A sporty Alfa petrol with an Opel engine wouldn't interest me much. It was a sad day that they said goodbye to the Busso engine

eth0

dgt wrote: »

Apart from the 1.75TB they are GM units...

Where does that yoke come from then? fiat?

galvo_clare

NIMAN wrote: »

So would I be mad to buy an Alfa from maybe 2007/2008?
Would I be better sticking with a slightly older but more reliable VW or Toyota?

If you fancy it, go for it. I had a range of German saloons and I fell in love with the 156 in 2000. Bought one, kept it two and a half years and don't regret it.
You may never buy another one, but you'll remember it with affection.

NIMAN

Thanks for all the replies folks.

Of course I would like a reliable car, wouldn't we all? No one wants to buy a car thats going to cost them. But I do realise that you could buy a Lexus that gave you nothing but bother, and an Alfa that never let you down.

But generally some brands are more reliable than others.

I do love driving and thats the reason why I have always thought about owning an Alfa. My Toyota was an MR2, so I honestly didn't buy that for reliability, it just turned out that way. Never blinked in over a decade of ownership.

I can honestly say that when the time comes to change the Golf I will more than likely end up in another one, or a Toyota. But there is a slim chance that I might just take the plunge with an Alfa. And if I do, what model would you Alfa owners recommend for a 07/08 model? Open to any suggestions.

Tea 1000

NIMAN wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies folks.

Of course I would like a reliable car, wouldn't we all? No one wants to buy a car thats going to cost them. But I do realise that you could buy a Lexus that gave you nothing but bother, and an Alfa that never let you down.

But generally some brands are more reliable than others.

I do love driving and thats the reason why I have always thought about owning an Alfa. My Toyota was an MR2, so I honestly didn't buy that for reliability, it just turned out that way. Never blinked in over a decade of ownership.

I can honestly say that when the time comes to change the Golf I will more than likely end up in another one, or a Toyota. But there is a slim chance that I might just take the plunge with an Alfa. And if I do, what model would you Alfa owners recommend for a 07/08 model? Open to any suggestions.

Hold on - you had an MR2 and got rid of it for a Mk 4 Golf? Oh dear... you need to be reminded of what driving is for, and it's not to get you to a destination!
Newer Alfa's are quite reliable. Post face-lift 156's and 147's are good and there doesn't seem to be any hassles with the 159. I'd go with the diesel in the 159 simply because I don't like GM much, and Fiat group engines would be much more interesting and more reliable. I'd go for the 1.7-and-a-half litre Alfa petrol if it fell into budget.
If it must be Toyota or VW then get a GTi Mk5 or a Celica or something that actually copes with corners rather than just goes around them.

Tea 1000

Tea 1000 wrote: »

..................... I'd go with the diesel in the 159 simply because I don't like GM much, and Fiat group engines would be much more interesting and more reliable. I'd go for the 1.7-and-a-half litre Alfa petrol if it fell into budget.
.............

I like your thinking, a GM engined Alfa seems all wrong.

alias no.9

dgt wrote: »

Apart from the 1.75TB they are GM units...

Thought they were GM blocks with redesigned Alfa heads?

dgt

eth0 wrote: »

Where does that yoke come from then? fiat?

Fiat unit for Alfas

alias no.9 wrote: »

Thought they were GM blocks with redesigned Alfa heads?

They get the engines, strip them and rebuild them to their specs. Seems expensive to me....

pcardin

Jimdagym wrote: »

No disrespect to the op, buts it's laughable how so many people view alfa's as some sort of monster that lives in the garden and steals all your money and eats your dog.

They are selling cars for decades!

pub education does job very well you know... :pac:

alias no.9

dgt wrote: »

They get the engines, strip them and rebuild them to their specs. Seems expensive to me....

ouch :eek:

Redsoxfan

If looking at 07/08, think about a GT, which while a bit long in the tooth, is generally reliable (from personal experience), and is a more engaging drive than the 159. Alfa and Toyota are chalk and cheese however, so be sure to get plenty of test drives in.

ZV Yoda

I've been driving an 02 Alfa 166 2.0 TSpark for the past 4 years. Absolutely love it. I bought it 6 years old with one owner. I got it for a small fraction of what they cost new. You'd pick up an '04/'05 facelift model today for less than 5k.

Hasn't been any trouble to own, a pleasure to drive and one of the nicest interiors of any car I've ever sat in. Not too many of them around, so they're quite unusual.

Heavy enough on petrol, but I only do about 5k miles/yr. They use a bit more oil than other cars, but aside from that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one to anybody. Don't be fooled by the old wives tales about Alfa's. Just go out & drive one.

Without question, my next car will be another Alfa.

NIMAN

Tea 1000 wrote: »

Hold on - you had an MR2 and got rid of it for a Mk 4 Golf? Oh dear... you need to be reminded of what driving is for, and it's not to get you to a destination!
Newer Alfa's are quite reliable. Post face-lift 156's and 147's are good and there doesn't seem to be any hassles with the 159. I'd go with the diesel in the 159 simply because I don't like GM much, and Fiat group engines would be much more interesting and more reliable. I'd go for the 1.7-and-a-half litre Alfa petrol if it fell into budget.
If it must be Toyota or VW then get a GTi Mk5 or a Celica or something that actually copes with corners rather than just goes around them.

I drive a Golf now because of the arrival of a few little 'uns, thats the only reason I don't drive the MR2 (still own it btw, couldnt get rid of it). Tried to get car seats into the MR2! No Good.:rolleyes:

Same goes for a Celica. Love them too and my bro is selling his, but bucket seats no good for car seats.

Mr Benevolent

Have mine about 3 months now, no complaints tbh. Will be moving onto something else fairly shortly - 140hp in a 1300kg car doesn't feel like enough power.

alias no.9

Confab wrote: »

Have mine about 3 months now, no complaints tbh. Will be moving onto something else fairly shortly - 140hp in a 1300kg car doesn't feel like enough power.

You're not revving it hard enough.

unkel

alias no.9 wrote: »

You're not revving it hard enough.

+1

The 1.8 is not slow but you need to keep it going.

markens2

Spend 2000 on a really nice v6 166 and use the rest of the money for petrol. I sold mine a few weeks ago and I am tempted to buy it back. Amazing car.
It gives a great feeling in the special parts. Drinks like Shane McGowan but worth every second.

smash

kyote00 wrote: »

It is becoming very hard to buy a good 156 or 147 in Ireland.

I got a lovely 03 147 with FSH and less than 40k on the clock.

Unfortunately it suffers from a few parking dings because other people don't give a shít about opening their door onto my car.

bohsfan

I would not go so far as to say that Alfas are unreliable. However, they do require someone to regularly maintain them. Timing belts have a shorter life than in most cars, and oil levels need to be watched. Regular oil changes and servicing is also recommended. If you are on for that, then they are a great car (I have a 156, so speaking from experience).

However, if you buy an Alfa and are not aware (or ignore) all of the above- then yes, there is a strong likelihood that something will come a cropper. However, that's not really the cars fault...

I had a VW Passat until the floods late last year took it away. I then got myself a 00 156 which had been really well looked after. These days I love getting in and driving my car.

Mr Benevolent

alias no.9 wrote: »

You're not revving it hard enough.

I definitely am revving it hard enough. Max torque is at 3900rpm and I'm regularly touching 6500 at changeup (an an isolated road with no traffic, obviously). It's not slow at all, just not fast enough for me. A subjective thing really. Had lots of fun with it on the Sally Gap. Great roads, fantastic scenery and very good lines of sight for going fast safely.

smash

Confab wrote: »

Have mine about 3 months now, no complaints tbh. Will be moving onto something else fairly shortly - 140hp in a 1300kg car doesn't feel like enough power.

Celica?

You need the 190!

Confab

Confab wrote: »

............ It's not slow at all, just not fast enough for me. .................

Can't see an MX5 making you happy so

Mr Benevolent

RoverJames wrote: »

Can't see an MX5 making you happy so

An MX-5 is about 20% lighter with the same torque, plus it's RWD. I'd say it'd make a fair difference. I admit I probably will keep wanting to climb the power ladder, but insurance costs will restrict me for the next few years. It's probably 2-4 years until kids arrive so I'd like to enjoy quickish cars while I can.

eth0

NIMAN wrote: »

I drive a Golf now because of the arrival of a few little 'uns, thats the only reason I don't drive the MR2 (still own it btw, couldnt get rid of it). Tried to get car seats into the MR2! No Good.:rolleyes:

Same goes for a Celica. Love them too and my bro is selling his, but bucket seats no good for car seats.

Are the seats the only problem? I always thought it was a matter of political correctness - people don't want to be showing up at the school gate in some mad fast yoke while all the parents are standing around in small-engined large SUV's yapping on about how they got it for safety reasons and how it has more airbags and wankel engine powered pre-tensioning seatbelts than it has horsepowers

unkel

Confab wrote: »

It's not slow at all, just not fast enough for me

I had that exact realisation about 12 years ago when I was considering to buy a Rover 620ti. 200BHP, turbo, but only a 2l 4 pot engine so you needed to keep the revvs up to get the performance out of it

Just like you, I decided it was not fast enough for me. And I decided I did not want all the power to come from turbos or silly RPMs all the time. I bought a car with a large N/A V8 petrol engine. You should consider one too.

NIMAN

eth0 wrote: »

Are the seats the only problem? I always thought it was a matter of political correctness - people don't want to be showing up at the school gate in some mad fast yoke while all the parents are standing around in small-engined large SUV's yapping on about how they got it for safety reasons and how it has more airbags and wankel engine powered pre-tensioning seatbelts than it has horsepowers

Yes its simply the seats I'm afraid.

The 2 rear seats in the Celica are not suitable for the 2 car seats I am currently lumbered with.

Plus trying to get them into the rear with no back doors would be a right pain.

Nothing to do with safety. Or what others might think. Couldn't care less.