j4ckos mate

what are they like
lad in the office wants one,

will he be paying for the mechanics christmas doo ?

Matteeboy

I know two people who have had one.
Both couldn't get rid of them fast enough.
A mate also hired one in Italy and although initially impressed with the looks, he was soon green with envy at the Mazda 3 Sport we had as a hire car.

They look nice but I wouldn't touch one with an overstyled but underengineered barge pole. Or any Alfa (bar the 8C) for that matter.
They used to be good. Now they aren't.

stilover

He should get one cheap. Alfa's lose money faster than pretty much most other cars. I think the Mito may well turn out to be the exception.

A couple who live in the Village I grew up in have always had Alfa's. Infact they've had the same 2 for about 15 years. So they can't be all that bad.

joey_turbo

iTrader: (26)

He'll be in there so much, he'll certainly get an invite.

HankScorpio

I had a 2.0 selespeed and had no problems with it in a year. Great car but the selespeed didn't suit my style of driving so wouldn't have another of those but would certainly have an Alfa.

I did sell it a couple of months before the warranty ran out as it would have been worth buttons after.

The Brera's seem to be holding money not too bad tho and they look even better than the 147.

Andy M3

I have a 2004 156 1.9 M-Jet Lusso - the 147 shares the same chassis. Currently on 53k miles, had no running issues as such - the airbag light is on more often than not though, and from time to time it will register a fault with the glow plugs, but these are quirks rather than faults, and I call them Alfaism's.

Anyway, IMO you pay your money, you take your chance. I have had colleagues with Audi's, BMW and Mercedes all have their fair share of very expensive issues etc etc.

My advice would be avoid selespeed, and if you get a petrol, ensure it has FSH and has had a cambelt service. They are 3 years or 36k, which ever comes first. Diesel is 72k and 5 years IIRC. If you go for diesel the later M-Jet examples have lovely engines.

HTH

p1doc

i have a 2007 alfa147 sport as my second car for work-great looking nothing has fallen off-except when i hit the deer last year lol-goes well 280mm front discs!! just had discs replaced under warranty 400miles on a tank and everyone thinks it is classy
martin

Dunk

iTrader: (1)

I've had my 156 2.4 JTD for 2 years and done 55k of the 109k its now done. Paid £6k, still worth £2k, cheap fun motoring. IF you can accept a quirk or two you'll love it, if you expect no squeaks, rattles or a rogue warning light or two it's probably not for you.

D

greenonedave

I have had my 147 JTDM ( 16v ) lusso for the last 10 months, done 13000 miles in that time ( now at 44000 miles and its been very good, average 46 mpg, lovely interior and I really grown to like the car. I had a small gear linkage issue that was resolved quickly and under warrenty by my local dealer,They are know for the connector under the seats to come undone and give a airbag light warning ( easily cured )
The 150 bhp diesel engine is quite nippy and grunty.
The lusso has all the extras that make it a little bit special.
If you go for a petrol Alfa beware, Selespeed gearboxes are know as being fragile, Petrol need cambelts changed at 36000 miles, Full service history is a must ( as is a warrenty )They are different but, sometimes that makes something more desirable. And yes I would have another one.

my06 ppp silver

iTrader: (2)

i had a 156 a couple of years ago, had trouble with the electrics (a bulb would always blow somewhere) changed the speakers and every wire was a diffrent colour??? had to replace a key once as well + had to wait 6 weeks to recieve it from italy.Despite all of this though, when it did go, acted sensibly(family man and all that)got a mondeo tdci (yawn)but always missed the alfa and its relentless ability to wind me up with its charecteristics. look if your mate is going to get one get a 147 gta (autodelta if poss) 3.2 in russo red with bodykit, quad tailpipes. fast as **** (ahem, in a straight line)

falkster

As with any cars there are good and bad ones. Ive had a 156 for work and did 40k in it before it was sold for a grand (only paid 1700 quid for it). Then moved onto to two 147s and for a 54 plate car with every extra and only 20k on the clock, you'd expect to pay a bit more than 3k.....got 3k for it after driving it for a while.

Never had a bit of bother with either 147 or 156.....just maintain them and they will look after you.