Alfa 147 Diesel - Any owners experience?

[Mr Gear]

Hiya,

I'm thinking of replacing a Corsa with an Alfa 147 Diesel. They are great value at the moment, and seem to be pretty practical. Does anyone have any ownership experience of one?

I imagine they are fairly reliable since they use the widely-available Fiat 1.9d, but if you have any stories of them rusting to pieces or catching fire, I want to hear them!

Cheers

[OperationAlfa]

Mr Gear said:

Hiya,

I'm thinking of replacing a Corsa with an Alfa 147 Diesel. They are great value at the moment, and seem to be pretty practical. Does anyone have any ownership experience of one?

I imagine they are fairly reliable since they use the widely-available Fiat 1.9d, but if you have any stories of them rusting to pieces or catching fire, I want to hear them!

Cheers

No horror stories. Great cars and like you say the 1.9 engine is fantastic.. there is the 8v version (120BHP) or the 16v (150BHP) Both good, but the 16v does go well.

Timing belts need to be done every 4 years or 60K even though service manual says 72K or 5 years. Many snap prematurely. So this is a preventative measure.

Front suspension is made out of chocolate so you'll get about 20K out of your top wishbones. Lowers can go too. ARB's/droplinks can go too which give a knock over light bumps and speedbumps.

Test drive one. You will know if the top wishbones are shot as the car will squeak over speedbumps.

Great cars and highly recommended. If I were you, I'd got for the 16v...

J

[Mr Gear]

Thanks, good tips. Keep 'em coming!

[1878]

OperationAlfa said:

No horror stories. Great cars and like you say the 1.9 engine is fantastic.. there is the 8v version (120BHP) or the 16v (150BHP) Both good, but the 16v does go well.

Timing belts need to be done every 4 years or 60K even though service manual says 72K or 5 years. Many snap prematurely. So this is a preventative measure.

Front suspension is made out of chocolate so you'll get about 20K out of your top wishbones. Lowers can go too. ARB's/droplinks can go too which give a knock over light bumps and speedbumps.

Test drive one. You will know if the top wishbones are shot as the car will squeak over speedbumps.

Great cars and highly recommended. If I were you, I'd got for the 16v...

J

Going by my experience (GT rather than 147 but assume close enough) wishbones at an indy come in £120 per side for non-Alfa parts, £165 for genuine. I went for the cheaper as the Alfa ones haven't exactly proven themselves to be the most durable! You'll know when they are on the way out when bumps cause a squeak

Also, surely advice on cam belt should also inc replacing water pump at the same time?

Take a look at Alfaworkshop or Autolusso websites to get a feel for Indy service prices. Then add about 50% for dealer.

[scottb147]

I had the Ducati Corse 147 for 3 years from new. They had a 170hp version of the 16v unit with the Q2 LSD. Went well!
Not sure if all 16v's have the 6 speed box, but I preferred the longer ratios on the 120hp loan car when my one was in for a service.
I was getting about 40 mpg from the 170hp motor. Top wishbones and front anti-roll bar were changed under warranty.
The 147 Ti is also worth a look, sure it was available with the 150 engine, they looked great in red and had nice wheels.
As long as the belts are changed and the suspension seems OK, you should be fine.

[E31Shrew]

Wifey has a 57 plate 147jtd. Great little car with 30000 miles. Couple of issues. Clutch replaced at 29000 so a tad premature. Also the door handles are prone to breaking on the outside which seems to be a known issue. Bit hacked off that the clutch was knackered at such a low mileage, but otherwise it's been great.

[Mr Gear]

Cheers all. I'll report back if I buy one!