Cheap Alfa GT, bargain or money pit
Discussion
Keep seeing an Alfa GT, 1.9 jtd, advertised for sale on Facebook. Never paid them any attention before it piqued my interest, but it looks quite nice in the photo's. It's a 2004 model with 180k miles on it, and the price is down to £800 now. Has 12 months MOT as well. Never had an Alfa before, but Alfa ownership is a bit of a rite of passage apparently? I don't even need another car, but it looks like a cheap, economical, stylish shed. Am I made for even thinking about it? Is it likely to be a total money pit?
mjb1 said:
Never had an Alfa before, but Alfa ownership is a bit of a rite of passage apparently?
Consider it as more of an itch that needs scratching, and like most itches, the more you scratch, the bigger the scabs get.ps. I've had three, two from the glory years of the rusty '80's, and one from the late Naughties...
Evanivitch said:
Maybe, but at that mileage they might have last been changed 5k ago or 100k?mjb1 said:
Maybe, but at that mileage they might have last been changed 5k ago or 100k?
Certainly, but unless you've got history is would go in fully expecting to need to do that work.They also eat front tyres on inside edge, tend to have squeaky front bushes regardless of age, and the Electric windows tend to slowly edge their way down the frameless window (but can be reset).
The 1.9 diesel is a popular model and sold well as it is the widely used FIAT engine. Personally I had the 2.0JTS and would consider the diesel a poor choice.
WarnieV6GT said:
It will be a nail. A smelly tractor one at that. Don't waste your money, if you fancy an Alfa just because, then get a decent one, preferably a petrol one at that.
This, dont waste money on a tractorif you want an alfa buy a V6 petrol or something, you may go bust along the way but its going to be much more fun than buying a diesel
No experience specifically but it does tick a lot of the potential 'wallet hoover' boxes
- Alfa
- 14 years old
- 180k miles
- Diesel
- It's on facebook
All those usually combine well and end up in tears at bedtime, irritability, insomnia, broken marriages, AA refusing to cover, neighbours complaining of an abandoned car, hair loss, weight loss, car criminals laughing as they walk past, anonymous referrals to mental health services etc
- Alfa
- 14 years old
- 180k miles
- Diesel
- It's on facebook
All those usually combine well and end up in tears at bedtime, irritability, insomnia, broken marriages, AA refusing to cover, neighbours complaining of an abandoned car, hair loss, weight loss, car criminals laughing as they walk past, anonymous referrals to mental health services etc
WarnieV6GT said:
It will be a nail. A smelly tractor one at that. Don't waste your money, if you fancy an Alfa just because, then get a decent one, preferably a petrol one at that.
+1Lots of decent petrol Alfas about at the budget rather than buying a diesel variant with starship miles.
Don't do it ... I made the same mistake, albeit with lower mileage.
Within 6 months I had spent more on it than I paid for the car :
New clutch / DMF
New injector (plus others returned)
Front lower wishbones
EGR valve removal after failure
New driver's door handle
New passenger door handle
New water pump (and therefore cam belt)
Plus brakes / tyres all round, but I was expecting those.
Don't get me wrong, I loved my GT. Beautiful car to look at and drive, but don't buy a cheap one. Get one that's been looked after by an 'enthusiast' who knows all the common issues and has had them rectified.
Within 6 months I had spent more on it than I paid for the car :
New clutch / DMF
New injector (plus others returned)
Front lower wishbones
EGR valve removal after failure
New driver's door handle
New passenger door handle
New water pump (and therefore cam belt)
Plus brakes / tyres all round, but I was expecting those.
Don't get me wrong, I loved my GT. Beautiful car to look at and drive, but don't buy a cheap one. Get one that's been looked after by an 'enthusiast' who knows all the common issues and has had them rectified.
lord trumpton said:
No experience specifically but it does tick a lot of the potential 'wallet hoover' boxes
- Alfa
- 14 years old
- 180k miles
- Diesel
- It's on facebook
All those usually combine well and end up in tears at bedtime, irritability, insomnia, broken marriages, AA refusing to cover, neighbours complaining of an abandoned car, hair loss, weight loss, car criminals laughing as they walk past, anonymous referrals to mental health services etc
I admit they still look good, but as above it's an Alfa very much in its twilight years based on age and mileage. £800 is probably still overpriced (depending on actual condition).- Alfa
- 14 years old
- 180k miles
- Diesel
- It's on facebook
All those usually combine well and end up in tears at bedtime, irritability, insomnia, broken marriages, AA refusing to cover, neighbours complaining of an abandoned car, hair loss, weight loss, car criminals laughing as they walk past, anonymous referrals to mental health services etc
At that price, view it as a large quantity of spare parts that happens to be assembled into a car. If it runs and drives, great; as soon as anything expensive fails, though, it reverts to a pile of parts.
A neighbour has an 05 GT with the same engine, it's his daily driver and hasn't been particularly troublesome. But as you'd expect with a nearly 13 year old car it has needed odd fixes here and there: turbo hoses, injector seals, suspension bits, that sort of thing. The difference is that his is a lower mileage car that's been looked after. Expect more aggro from an £800 high miler being flogged through faceache!
A neighbour has an 05 GT with the same engine, it's his daily driver and hasn't been particularly troublesome. But as you'd expect with a nearly 13 year old car it has needed odd fixes here and there: turbo hoses, injector seals, suspension bits, that sort of thing. The difference is that his is a lower mileage car that's been looked after. Expect more aggro from an £800 high miler being flogged through faceache!
These are fantastic cars, so really the only ones for sale are those that need a fortune spent on them.
If considering a long term hold, you can quite easily get on top of the engine and clutch (which is the same Fiat licensed unit used by VX, Saab, Cadillac), but you will constantly need wishbones, drop links and handbrake cables - just like the 147/156, which this basically is.
I would spend a little more and get one from an enthusiast who is on top of the issues.
Short runs will choke the Jtd up though, although the JTS is utter (utter) s
te so if short running go for the V6, which is a Busso unit, just slightly down on GTA tune, its not the washing machine style GM lump from the 159/Brera.
If considering a long term hold, you can quite easily get on top of the engine and clutch (which is the same Fiat licensed unit used by VX, Saab, Cadillac), but you will constantly need wishbones, drop links and handbrake cables - just like the 147/156, which this basically is.
I would spend a little more and get one from an enthusiast who is on top of the issues.
Short runs will choke the Jtd up though, although the JTS is utter (utter) s
te so if short running go for the V6, which is a Busso unit, just slightly down on GTA tune, its not the washing machine style GM lump from the 159/Brera.I'd say for £800 it's worth a punt. Give the owner a call/visit and see what the situation is. They may even just want it gone so you may get yourself even more of a bargain with a cheeky offer at the time. If it lasts the 12 months it's got it's MOT for then you've got yourself a great buy.
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