Alfa Romeo 145 Cloverleaf
Discussion
I had one for a couple of years. Excellent car. In my opinion as good as contemporary fords, vauxhalls, vws etc.. Although it will never be recognised as such.
Should you be lucky enough to find a decent one things to look at immediately are
1. Cam belt and cam variator. Change both straight away.
2. Wishbone bushes - lower ones wear and cause wear on the inside edge of the tyres. Go for polybushes if you can, although it can be easiest just to change the lower wishbones as getting the bushes out is a right faff.
3. Corrosion on the chassis.
Otherwise enjoy and please post some pictures.
Should you be lucky enough to find a decent one things to look at immediately are
1. Cam belt and cam variator. Change both straight away.
2. Wishbone bushes - lower ones wear and cause wear on the inside edge of the tyres. Go for polybushes if you can, although it can be easiest just to change the lower wishbones as getting the bushes out is a right faff.
3. Corrosion on the chassis.
Otherwise enjoy and please post some pictures.
I had a series 1 cloverleaf, took it to 137k miles and sold it in 2006- it's still going strong now! Fantastic car, not perfect (weird brakes, rubbish turning circle, hyperactive wipers) but brilliant fun. Made every journey special (especially when the wiper linkage failed whilst overtaking a lorry in torrential rain...)
As above - great fun if you can find a good one. Rust is definitely the main problem with most cars suffering from rotting floorpans.
They are not especially fast , but are great handling cars and with a few tweaks can really be thrown through the bends. I love mine :-)
I can't see them ever being a classic though so don't bank on making your fortune from a 145! The best place I've found on the internet to learn about these cars is http://forum.alfa145.com
They are not especially fast , but are great handling cars and with a few tweaks can really be thrown through the bends. I love mine :-)
I can't see them ever being a classic though so don't bank on making your fortune from a 145! The best place I've found on the internet to learn about these cars is http://forum.alfa145.com
Bit of blurb here on them tested against some contemporaries
http://www.alfa145.co.uk/downloads/Top_Gear_-_Alfa...
http://www.alfa145.co.uk/downloads/Top_Gear_-_Alfa...
Had a cloverleaf as a loaner for a day while my GT was in for servicing.
Great fun, very checkable and while I've no idea how it compares to the obvious competition I'd happily have a 145 long term. Watch out for the points noted above, watch out for the ones that have been horribly modified, buy it and have fun. Oh and post some pics.
Great fun, very checkable and while I've no idea how it compares to the obvious competition I'd happily have a 145 long term. Watch out for the points noted above, watch out for the ones that have been horribly modified, buy it and have fun. Oh and post some pics.
I had its bigger-bummed sister, the 146ti, for about 8 years. All things considered (parked next to the sea, run on a student/shoestring budget etc), it was a cracking little car. I miss it, still.
i don't think they'll ever get to pukka "classic" status: no "pedigree", no cult status. They'll be in 20 years what an Alfasud is today, perhaps?
i don't think they'll ever get to pukka "classic" status: no "pedigree", no cult status. They'll be in 20 years what an Alfasud is today, perhaps?
Jimbo. said:
i don't think they'll ever get to pukka "classic" status: no "pedigree", no cult status. They'll be in 20 years what an Alfasud is today, perhaps?
Not sure if I understand that statement, the Sud does have cult status and is pretty legendary in it's reputation, good and bad. The 145 has and will have neither, despite it being a thoroughly competent little Car. I regularly Rally against a 145 Cloverleaf and I can vouch for just how quickly they can be put down a twisty road, it seems to take punishment well too, though I do believe it regularly breaks wishbones and other bits. I last saw it parked high up in a hedge though, so may be it won't recover from that.
Rust seems to be the big enemy now, I'd love to find an early Series 1 with the alloy cam cover and tubular manifolds, only available in '96 and '97. The Series 1 for me is better looking than the later cars and I much prefer them with cloth seats, saw a couple whilst in Italy a few weeks ago, could be a good source of a rust free example. The other car of a similar ilk that I lust after is the 5 door Tipo Sedicvalvole, even harder to find and arguably a better drive.
Haha, I know you will keep her in fine fettle Philip
Despite me still swapping to ever more pricey and comfy cars I still have a hankering for some raw basic motoring fun.
Btw, did anyone else spot the 145 for sale some time ago with the V6 conversion? I was not cheap at mid to high teens I teem to recall.
Despite me still swapping to ever more pricey and comfy cars I still have a hankering for some raw basic motoring fun.
Btw, did anyone else spot the 145 for sale some time ago with the V6 conversion? I was not cheap at mid to high teens I teem to recall.
Can only echo what has been said above. Great fun cars. They'll need some TLC now, and thoroughly check the floors and sills for rust.
I had an early one (1996) and it always seemed to go better than my Phase 2 one (1999). Don't discount the 146Ti either, although it doesn't look as good I don't think.
I had an early one (1996) and it always seemed to go better than my Phase 2 one (1999). Don't discount the 146Ti either, although it doesn't look as good I don't think.
These are great cars.
I had my 1997 model from about 3yrs old until only a couple of years ago. I was very sad to see it go.
Mine was well looked after so the body and paint were still in very good condition. Much better than a lot of expensive similar aged German stuff to be fair! As said above, check the undebody as mine was starting to get a bit crusty. Shame really, as if i'd have undersealed it a few years before, that would probably still be immaculate too. Also, mine lived for a few years in Caithness where winters are particularly harsh.
The only thing that made me sell was the age and trying to keep on top of all the mechanicals that were getting increasingly hard to look after as a main daily driver. In hindsight, if i had the space, i might have kept it, as it was such a fun and now very rare car.
I had my 1997 model from about 3yrs old until only a couple of years ago. I was very sad to see it go.
Mine was well looked after so the body and paint were still in very good condition. Much better than a lot of expensive similar aged German stuff to be fair! As said above, check the undebody as mine was starting to get a bit crusty. Shame really, as if i'd have undersealed it a few years before, that would probably still be immaculate too. Also, mine lived for a few years in Caithness where winters are particularly harsh.
The only thing that made me sell was the age and trying to keep on top of all the mechanicals that were getting increasingly hard to look after as a main daily driver. In hindsight, if i had the space, i might have kept it, as it was such a fun and now very rare car.
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