Buying Alfa Romeo 147?

[X-PAC]

Im looking at buying an alfa romeo 147 1.6 twinspark on a 51 plate , does anyone have one? If so what are they like. Ive heard that there very unreliable is this true, and if i buy one will i have everlasting problems with it?

[Krypton]

according to top gear mate, alfa romeos are the most break downy car ever.
on the upside, after owning one according to top gear, you will be a true petrol head

[jimdollar]

Maybe it's my age but I would rather take the bus than own an Alfa Romeo, they are really poorly made, the timing belts often break before they are due to be changed and the electrics jeez, if you simply must buy one make sure its ultra cheap and dont even drive it far till you know the cam belt has just been done, hope this helps, Jim.:coffin:

[hippopig]

why would anyone buy an alfa?take off those rose tinted glasses and smash them.....they are ugly tempremental and most dont evn have the no plates in the middle

[yamar1]

Im looking at buying an alfa romeo 147 1.6 twinspark on a 51 plate , does anyone have one? If so what are they like. Ive heard that there very unreliable is this true, and if i buy one will i have everlasting problems with it?

enough said,, shit.:burnout:

[ggpanos]

Im looking at buying an alfa romeo 147 1.6 twinspark on a 51 plate , does anyone have one? If so what are they like. Ive heard that there very unreliable is this true, and if i buy one will i have everlasting problems with it?

My father has an Alfa 156 2002 model ( all hardware are same with 147). He has done 200.000 KM and until now the has change one1 lamda sensor. The drivers door opening handle has a spring that also has brake down. There is also a problem with the central dash LCD (most car brands have this problem). No other probs ! :D:D:D

[armpower]

In this thread i've read a lot of bullshit about 147.
The 147 it's not poorly made or assembled and it's not a unreliable car as someone write here.
People often speak without any knowledge and top gear is not a reliable source for evaluating reliability.
The 147 doesn't suffer a timing belt failure as common problem, respect the Alfa Romeo' time table (5 years or 60000Km.) and the timing belt never break down.
The old time table was 120000Km and 5 years but people often forgot to change the timing belt after 5 years and in some cars the belt break.
The complaint about electrical issues are on normal level , like many other car of the same category.
147 compare well with it's competitors about reliability and take the handling and driving experience on top levels.
I'm repairing car as daily job and there are a lot of other top named car that suffer poor reliability (A3,Golf V).
Buying a second hand car is often like playing a russian roulette, so check the car accurately.
Hope this help, and excuse me for my bad english

[coolweb66]

+1 take care of the timing belt, otherwise, 147 are reliable

[Badger-]

As said above make sure the cambelt is changed but get an alfa specialist to do it they need to be done properly can cause problems if not. Keep an eye on the oil as well.
I`v run an alfa gtv for the last 50,000 miles in that time the only problems ive had are 1) Clutch slave 2) Windscreen wiper control box.
Not atall bad for a 13 year old car with 179,000 on the clock.
If you want some more advice have a look at
Alfa Romeo Cars - The site all Alfa Drivers need to join! (http://www.alfaowner.com)

[landrovertdi]

never had problems with timing belt and i have repared mani of 147 petrol

[Liteace]

In this thread i've read a lot of bullshit about 147.
The 147 it's not poorly made or assembled and it's not a unreliable car as someone write here.
People often speak without any knowledge and top gear is not a reliable source for evaluating reliability.
The 147 doesn't suffer a timing belt failure as common problem, respect the Alfa Romeo' time table (5 years or 60000Km.) and the timing belt never break down.
The old time table was 120000Km and 5 years but people often forgot to change the timing belt after 5 years and in some cars the belt break.
The complaint about electrical issues are on normal level , like many other car of the same category.
147 compare well with it's competitors about reliability and take the handling and driving experience on top levels.
I'm repairing car as daily job and there are a lot of other top named car that suffer poor reliability (A3,Golf V).
Buying a second hand car is often like playing a russian roulette, so check the car accurately.
Hope this help, and excuse me for my bad english

They are shite Mate, they are

made of shite steel so they rot like mad
shite quality alloy engine components (head, water pump) so constant head gasket problems
the wiring in a f**king nightmate (all the sensors fail after about a day & give you all sorts of false warings)
if its got a cam variator that will last about 3 days and then it'll sound like a diesel
the only good thing about them is that they are quite a large car so they can hold a lot of water when you want to put the hosepipe in it just before you weigh it in at the scrapyard

[jimdollar]

I so agree, they are total junk.:wink:

[mattydr67]

Hi guys
I have an Alfa Romeo 147 1.6TS 88Kw 2001.
Most of you said a lot of shite about this car and a lot of you haven't it yet.
A lot of what you said about this cars are true others not.
What can I say is that its engine is a littel bit diffrent than others and of course it's need much more attention.
I mean with this car you can't drive it like on other, you need to wait a time when you start the engine and wait when you turn off the engine too.
You must to drive a littel bit spotive and you must to have a can with oil everytime in your trunk because it eats maximum 1L/1000Km and 10-12L of gasoline/100Km average.
But you know its your decision if like to buy this kind of car because when you drive it you feal better than in other cars.
Its like you have a beautifull girl, I mean you must to spend much more money if you want to go out with her.
I have this car but I bought it for my wife because I think its a model of car for women.
For me I will like an 159, Spider or......a Brera because I can't dream on C8 Competitione.
Recently I bought for me a Mercedes C220CDI 2003 and I can't tell you to buy one.
All depend on you, what car do you like to drive how much money do you have and of course how much money you can spend for repairs and parts.
Good luck

[dik]

If you buy it good luck on finding anyone willing to do repairs on it, I for one will never work on one again, every job done has had to be done again for free when it fails again in a few months

[Meat-Head]

every job done has had to be done again for free when it fails again in a few months

Simply tell the punter it is a tempary repair, therefore you are unable to offer a comreshensive warranty, pay up or ~~~~ off.

[Oily]

They are shite Mate, they are

made of shite steel so they rot like mad
Think your talking out your arse mate.Bodies are galanised so can't rot!

shite quality alloy engine components (head, water pump) so constant head gasket problems
The head off my Audi must have been out the same material then,same can be said of any car

the wiring in a f**king nightmate (all the sensors fail after about a day & give you all sorts of false warings)
Wiring is done by Bosch so can't really pin that one on Alfa

if its got a cam variator that will last about 3 days and then it'll sound like a diesel
Slight exaggeration.Decent oil with every service should see you right

[Liteace]

"Bodies are galanised so can't rot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The head off my Audi must have been out the same material then,same can be said of any car!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wiring is done by Bosch so can't really pin that one on Alfa"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You forgot to mention the cam variator, if you know what one is

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha

IM TALKING OUT MY ARSE, he says. Have you got a labrador and a white stick or have you only been a mechanic for a few days

[Oily]

"Bodies are galanised so can't rot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The head off my Audi must have been out the same material then,same can be said of any car!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wiring is done by Bosch so can't really pin that one on Alfa"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You forgot to mention the cam variator, if you know what one is

Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha

IM TALKING OUT MY, he says. Have you got a labrador and a white stick or have you only been a mechanic for a few days

Is that meant to be some sort of 'comeback' :rolleyes: if it is it's a poor effort
If you read my post properly,i've mentioned about the variator,it's you who needs the white stick.
And for your infomation i've been fixing cars for the last 20 odd years.
You should get your facts right and not post utter shite next time.

[Liteace]

Is that meant to be some sort of 'comeback' :rolleyes: if it is it's a poor effort
If you read my post properly,i've mentioned about the variator,it's you who needs the white stick.
And for your infomation i've been fixing cars for the last 20 odd years.
You should get your facts right and not post utter shite next time.

oooooohhh, hit a nerve have I

"i've been fixing cars for the last 20 odd years"

have you, you cant be a very good at it if you like Alfa's

[Liteace]

Sorry Mate, Ive just looked and seen where you’re from, the last time I went there, about 8 months ago they still had horse and cart and trams. You have obviously seen an Alfa (probably nicked) driving along and gone “wow wow wow, look a car” that’s why you like them

[Oily]

oooooohhh, hit a nerve have I
Not really,i just can't stand people who post about a subject they know nothing about.

"
i've been fixing cars for the last 20 odd years"

have you, you cant be a very good at it if you like Alfa's

What a pathetic statement,how old are you,14??
Every car has their problems,here are some i've had and had to repair:
BMW 318: snapped cam chain,bent valves etc,rear beam axle bushes,bottom wishbones.
BMW 320,water pump,car idled erracticly unless i switched the heated rear screen on??auto gearbox stuck in 3rd gear,cost ?550 for a new control box.
Audi A4,head gasket,cambelt tensioner,air conditioning control unit broke,diff bearings whining,top and bottom wishbones

Do you understand what i'm trying to say??

[Oily]

Sorry Mate, Ive just looked and seen where you?re from, the last time I went there, about 8 months ago they still had horse and cart and trams. You have obviously seen an Alfa (probably nicked) driving along and gone ?wow wow wow, look a car? that?s why you like them


Oh dear,having to resort to personel remarks,how sad :ciao:

[Liteace]

Im only joking with you, lighten up, my missis is from oop there. I still dont like Alfa's though

[Oily]

Im only joking with you, lighten up, my missis is from oop there. I still dont like Alfa's though

Didn't see any 'smilies' with your statement :dontknow:

Let's just agree to disagree about the Alfa's

[Meat-Head]

Whoa hang on boys, you will end up getting this thread closed.

Yes agree to a point that Alfa's are crap. BUT

1) Body rot, my own vechile has a galvised body, and in a former life
some that had an accident (main dealer for you) and fillered it
6 years old it's just dust.

2) To be fair M-H-M know more about other cars than Alfa's.

Have worked on cars wich have been 1 yo and got problems, lol cool

[Liteace]

Thing is, We have for the last 10 years a 96 Golf Tdi with 301000Klms on the clock, (it had 123.00 when we got it) the missis drives it everyday, its as sweet as a nut & keeps on going and going. All the electrics on the engine and the ECM are Bosch, so maybe the wiring loom is as well (I don’t know who makes wiring looms). We also have an 86 yes 86 Toyota liteace that is me works van, well I say van more like a shed on wheels, I wouldn’t like to guess how many Klms that’s done, I’d say aprox 700.000Klms, again a little bit of corrosion bit of a hum in the diff, it doesn’t get looked after and again that is as sweet as a nut. I had a Honda up the workshop that had cooked itself due to water pump problems (it had does 212.000Klms) it cooked so much it didn’t run and the inner and outer plastic timing covers melted, took off head got it skimmed and crack tested put it all back together and it ran like new, no piston slap no smoke, we also had a Alfa 1.400 16V that cooked as well (but didn’t melt anything) due to water pump, that did run (only on 2 cylinders) so again took head off skimmed and cracked tested, put it all back together and it ran again on 2 cylinders, checked compression on 2 & 3 and nothing (thought oh ~~~~, pistons) pumped air down plug holes and it was leaking out of exhaust and inlet, took cams and tappets out, still the same, took the head off again and the head had warped that much that the 8 valves on 2 & 3 was not closing properly. I called the guy that does the skimming and asked him if loads had been taken off the head, he said “no, if I had of done I would have told you or stopped”. I also have another the same that’s been owed from new by an old boy, low mileage regular oil changes (I also use good oil unless the customer requests otherwise) and that has the good old diesel rattle due to cam variator We do loads and loads of head gaskets over here due to ambient heat and all the steep hills that are never ending, ive never had in 24 years a head like that before that warped so much the valve don’t close. So what’s that down to ???

[Oily]

I use to be a cylinder head technician mate,i've seen all types of heads warped,from VW 6 cylinder LT's through to the cast iron lump that is the 1.8 Ford down to 3 cylinder Daihatsu's

Does your mate check the cams run true in their journals?You have to check the cams aren't 'rocking' in the journals,usually high in the middle and rock at each end.If bolted down without checking this results in the cam bending,sometimes forcing the valves open,if run like this results in premature wear and sometimes to a snapped cam.If the head is warped as bad as you say then skimmimg the face only fixes one problem,you also need to cut the valve seats as these warp too,regardless of who makes what head

[smirnoff_rules]

lol ... wot a great thread ... l have been in the trade 28 years and l hate them with a passion ...even more that Renaults lol .. but if u like them thats fine , l love discos and alot of people in the trade hate them ..

its all about wot u like at the end of the day ..



l hope u find wot your looking for m8

[Liteace]

I use to be a cylinder head technician mate,i've seen all types of heads warped,from VW 6 cylinder LT's through to the cast iron lump that is the 1.8 Ford down to 3 cylinder Daihatsu's

Does your mate check the cams run true in their journals?You have to check the cams aren't 'rocking' in the journals,usually high in the middle and rock at each end.If bolted down without checking this results in the cam bending,sometimes forcing the valves open,if run like this results in premature wear and sometimes to a snapped cam.If the head is warped as bad as you say then skimmimg the face only fixes one problem,you also need to cut the valve seats as these warp too,regardless of who makes what head

The cams ran fine in their journals, I bolted the cams in with no valves or tappets after removing the head, and they turned no problem with no tight spots, looked like a valve guide or seat problem, its running and has been for the last 4 months (the famous Alfa head is the one in me pic) I have a head on the shelf (dont know what its off) that has been warped to the extent that the cam rocks back and forth with no cam caps on, so yes I have seen it before but not when the seats or guides go out of line,
anyway they make me :puke:

[Meat-Head]

slightly more off topic, but slightly relevant, the word on the street is that a Hillman Imp will overheat and worp the head because the radator is behind the lhr wheel and fills with shit.

[armpower]

Liteace if you don't like Alfa it's not a problem.
But please don't post rubbish about this car.
The variator problem issue is a common problem also in Mercedes and other car' manufacturer.
For example Bmw' valvetronic or vanos failure generate a big and loud noise, and the engine won't start again.
We can laugh for weeks about German' reliability.
Have you seen what great material and engineering skill Audi put in the 2.5 V6 Tdi masterpiece ? :)
301000Km on a Golf Tdi?
Have you seen Tipo's TD with 500000Km?


Bye bye

[Liteace]

Im not posting rubbish, I think they are shite and so do alot of other mechanic's, I’m talking from personal experience and im entitled to MY personal opinion as we all are. We don’t have many problems with other makes, the odd few but mainly ware and tear items, we have loads of problems with Italian and French shite cars. We also have loads of BMW’s over here and ive heard 1 with a noisy vanos

[Oily]

Speaking from experience,i worked in a BMW/Merc specialists and not one of the mechanics(apart from me) owned one,what does that tell you?

You can bang all day about what car has what problem but EVERY car has their own set of problems,period

[armpower]

Liteace you have your personal experience like other mechanic's here.
For example here mechanic' are happy (for a working point of view) about poor reliability of a well know german brand with 4 rings on the front.
I don't know how many Alfa there are in your country.
Here there are a lot of Alfa 147 (also 156,159,166,etc.) but for a working point of view, the reliability is good and compare well with other cars' makers.
By the way it's a never ending talking about what brand is better and what is bad.Many people many opinion. :)

Bye bye

[dik]

Found a picture of the latest alfa model
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.http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3542/3490114918_8e828f122c.jpg

[Liteace]

another thing i dont like BUT again this is my personal opinion, so please dont get upset, this is not a personal attack on anyone but i dont like horseradish either, I think that Pic of the latest alfa model is actually transporting horseradish to the Alfa factory, it may not be, im not sure

[Oily]

Found a picture of the latest alfa model
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.http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3542/3490114918_8e828f122c.jpg

Does it not come in Red?

[dik]

Does it not come in Red?
Not sure mate, but they do a twin shit version
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http://www.inbetweeness.org/apublicinconvenience/images/double_toilet_anand.jpg

[armpower]

You are wrong, it's not a twin shit it's a twin stage turbo powered engine at full throttle.

[komix]

I have the Alfa 147 1.6 ts PACKAGE AR37203 2005г
25000km on the cam belt broke, very big damage
30000km on the broken generator
35000km on the knock on the cranks
but otherwise all is well ... all is well