Alfa 147 - am I too fussy?

[Horsepower27]

Hi All.

Was looking for a 147 last summer, financials forced me to put it back.

Now back in the hunt and looking for something under £2k (won't be doing more than 5k miles a year so don't want to take the depreciation hit as it ages)

I fancy a 2.0 TS in red with supersport alloys + leather seats, trouble is they are quite thin on the ground, have looked at one in the last month of looking but walked away due to lack of history and too many dents/scratches.

I know for the price I can't be too fussy but am becoming increasingly impatient and thinking about looking for other colours/spec.

I don't need one now as much as I'd like one but should I hold out and maybe wait till the end of time or look for a defferent one? Even found myself eyeing up a Lexus IS200 tonight!

[crostonian]

You will be looking a while with such a tight brief, however sods law dictates that as soon as you opt for an alternative your ideal car pops up in the classifieds!

Any 147 under £2k is going to have some form of weakness whether it be cosmetic, lack of history, odd colour combo or low spec however if you are willing to compromise in a couple of areas then you should be able to find the right car.

I would look for a car with Full History with a recent cambelt change first and foremost, luckily most 2 litres had leather but I would try and think of some other exterior colours you like. With regard to Supersport alloys you can usually pick a set up off ebay or alfaowner for under £200 and annoying little dings and scratches can be repaired quite cheaply so don't let these put you off.

Oh and don't be tempted by a Selespeed even though they have a very high spec as standard.

[johnvthe2nd]

crostonian said:

Oh and don't be tempted by a Selespeed even though they have a very high spec as standard.

or, you could buy the selespeed from the chap below for the good bits, then you could buy a lower spec 2 litre with a proper gearbox ..

[Copperpot]

From what i've seen when buying mine, I'd actually say that a 147 over £2,000 is too much. Unless it had very low mileage. These aren't cars that hold prices well & people struggle to sell them.

So for 2k, you can be extremely fussy i reckon.

as well as checking for the cambelt, it'd be worthwile to make sure the variator has been replaced because if it hasn't & it needs replacing, the cambelt needs to come off so it's pretty pricey, (Variator trouble seems very common on the 147)

it'll make a diesel sound upon start up for a second or two if the variator is on its way out. I'm sure other symptoms too.

[edward1]

I wouldn't say they are hard to sell unless we were lucky (always a possibility). We sold my wifes 147 1.6TS for 2k on an 03plate with 70k on the clock with full documented history. The first person to view called within a few days of placing the add on here and bought. It was the easiest private sale I have ever experienced. I would say if I were buying I would be looking for the level of history and standard of car that we sold. Very clean interior, always had mats so no wear to carpets. Drove like new, bushes, drop links wishbones etc had all been done. In my opinion someone has got a good car for the money.

[crostonian]

Cambelt and variator change should cost no more than £250 with a specialist. I too would agree that they are not difficult cars to sell, however I only have experience of selling nice ones and there certainly are lots of pups out there.

[Patrick1964]

I just bought a 54 plate 2.0 with leather, dual climate & supersport alloys. It came with just over 50,000 miles, full specialist history (cambelt @36k but the variator will need doing this year). Two owners, 4 months tax & mot for £1825. Keep looking, I'm sure you'll find the right car.