Brera - Tempted...How good / bad is it...
Discussion
Hi
I have to get a car for work etc and have been plowing through all the usual suspects... Having owned a 145 cloverleaf a few years ago I've found myself considering Alfa's again! SO much more soul than the German offerings....
Anyway, I'm going to need a diesel as I do pretty heavy mileage. I do really quite like how the Brera looks so that ticks the right boxes. It doesnt need to be the sharpest driver in the box, I've got bikes to get my speed kicks and little 205 GTI for when I feel like battering the B roads and track etc. So I'm more concerned with how it'll be day to day, on the motorway and maybe trawling off to Europe once or twice a year. How have people found it?
Also, heards that Alfa have had a rough year this year with sales so any ideas what sort of deals are out there etc?
Finally, actually sat in a GT at the weekend and really liked it, should be driving one this weekend. Any comparisons between the GT and the Brera? I love the front of the GT, not quite so keen on the back... Inside was lovely...
So there you go... Any advice is most welcome!!!!!
I have to get a car for work etc and have been plowing through all the usual suspects... Having owned a 145 cloverleaf a few years ago I've found myself considering Alfa's again! SO much more soul than the German offerings....
Anyway, I'm going to need a diesel as I do pretty heavy mileage. I do really quite like how the Brera looks so that ticks the right boxes. It doesnt need to be the sharpest driver in the box, I've got bikes to get my speed kicks and little 205 GTI for when I feel like battering the B roads and track etc. So I'm more concerned with how it'll be day to day, on the motorway and maybe trawling off to Europe once or twice a year. How have people found it?
Also, heards that Alfa have had a rough year this year with sales so any ideas what sort of deals are out there etc?
Finally, actually sat in a GT at the weekend and really liked it, should be driving one this weekend. Any comparisons between the GT and the Brera? I love the front of the GT, not quite so keen on the back... Inside was lovely...
So there you go... Any advice is most welcome!!!!!
I love mine. It's comfortable, quick, rides and handles well, looks great and the interior is very special - especially if you don't go for black and grey. Downsides, I'd like more supportive seats (like the GT), rear legroom isn't great (but I hardly ever carry passengers), and the economy is not brilliant (but getting better).
Personally I'm not a fan of the GT, but lots of people are. It's certainly much better value than the Brera but don't forget it has the interior of a 147 and the chassis of a 156 so it should be....
I would try both and see which floats your boat.
Someone will be along soon to contradict everything I've said.
Personally I'm not a fan of the GT, but lots of people are. It's certainly much better value than the Brera but don't forget it has the interior of a 147 and the chassis of a 156 so it should be....
I would try both and see which floats your boat.
Someone will be along soon to contradict everything I've said.
Try both GT and Brera for sure - the 147 facelift interior is decent, and the 156 chassis preferred by many on smooth roads to the 159/Brera item, plus the Brera/159 platfor is much more portly. I suspect you'll find the Brera the more complete high-quality car, and the GT the more sporty old-school Alfa. I'd be happy with either!
jwyatt said:
the 156 chassis preferred by many on smooth roads to the 159/Brera item
It does work well on smooth roads, but unfortunately round here (near Halifax), we haven't got any!!
My Sportwagon used to do it's best to leap into the nearest field at the first sign of a bumpy B-road where as the Brera just soaks it all up unbelievably well, so I suppose a lot will depend on where you live and drive regularly.
jwyatt said:
I'd be happy with either!
I suspect that will be me too! I'll pop down to the local alfa dealer in Reading to see what they have and try and get a run in a Brera. I have seen that Veloceo's in London are doing the GT with a good spec for 19K brand new which seems a decent saving and only a couple of grand more than I have seen used ones. I havent got any feel for what the Brera could cost or what kind of deals there may be.
Are the dealers any better? Or is that a stupid question...? I always used to use Black and White garage in Cold Ash near Newbury for servicing etc and always found hem to be good...
I owned a GT for 2 years & i've had my Brera for 4 months now.
I far prefer the GT & as soon as i can move the Brera on, i shall be getting back into either a GT or a 159.
The GT was more practical, a more comfortable drive & more economical. The Brera has a better chasis, better build quality & better brakes. The later V6's are not a patch on the original Arese Alfa unit, i cant really comment on the other engines.
For me, the Brera has been a huge, & very costly, disappointment.
Best advice though, is haggle hard for a long test drive, ideally over a couple of days. They're keen to shift a few at the moment so it should'nt be a problem.
I far prefer the GT & as soon as i can move the Brera on, i shall be getting back into either a GT or a 159.
The GT was more practical, a more comfortable drive & more economical. The Brera has a better chasis, better build quality & better brakes. The later V6's are not a patch on the original Arese Alfa unit, i cant really comment on the other engines.
For me, the Brera has been a huge, & very costly, disappointment.
Best advice though, is haggle hard for a long test drive, ideally over a couple of days. They're keen to shift a few at the moment so it should'nt be a problem.
Wombat Rick said:
pwig said:
...I am waiting for Cirvy to be round in ..
5..4...3....2...1....
5..4...3....2...1....
He's been!! He came 11 minutes before you did....
And he's back....
Hopefully you will all please note that i was'nt too harsh in my comments regarding the Brera, maybe i'm mellowing slightly.
I've been driving round in a 159 2.4 for the past couple of days, now that car does make sense
cirvy said:
Have you noticed the Brera bargain in the PH Classifieds?
I had actually...! But its the V6 and I really think I need the diesel... How times change!!!!
Pwig... Take it you are an Alfa dealer? Any inside knowledge on how much I should look to pay if I went for a well spec'd diesel Brera? Cheaky I know!
As for the 159 I'd like to love it but to me it looks a bit like a 156 with a new front grafted on, albeit it is a nice front... I'd like to see on ein metallic black with red leather...
Twit said:
cirvy said:
Have you noticed the Brera bargain in the PH Classifieds?
I had actually...! But its the V6 and I really think I need the diesel... How times change!!!!
Pwig... Take it you are an Alfa dealer? Any inside knowledge on how much I should look to pay if I went for a well spec'd diesel Brera? Cheaky I know!
As for the 159 I'd like to love it but to me it looks a bit like a 156 with a new front grafted on, albeit it is a nice front... I'd like to see on ein metallic black with red leather...
We have a well specced Brera Diesel in light blue if you are interested?
pwig said:
We have a well specced Brera Diesel in light blue if you are interested?
That the one at Perry's?
I have seen that one on he website. I have a view of what would look nice - black with red leather and telephone dial alloys... But I do need to drive one to see what its like!!!!
Hi there, I ran a GT JTD for 2 years and changed to a Brera diesel in July.
I would say that most of the comments are fair, you will always get different opinions on what people prefer but here are mine anyway:
Looks
Personally I prefer the look of the Brera, as cirvy said, it is more exotic looking, and definately gets more attention. Part of this may be that is is still very new and rare so many people have never seen one on the road! The GT is still a very pretty car though, especially from the front!
Interior
The Brera is streets ahead in style and build quality. There is no escaping that ,despite the facelift, the dash in the GT is from the 147 which is 5-6 years old now and is starting to look it. Build is far better and quality of materials massively improved in the Brera, real aluminium for example instead of silver plastic! The glass 'Sky View' roof is fantastic, with the shade fully open it makes the cabin very light and airy whereas the GT can feel a bit gloomy unless you have a light coloured trim.
Engine
The 2.4 JTDm is fantastic, very smooth and powerful and, being a 5 pot, even sounds vaguely like an old quattro! Economy is not as good as with the 1.9 in the GT, (low to mid 30's compared to 40ish), but it is half a litre bigger with 50bhp more so I think it's still reasonable. The 1.9 is a good engine, pretty smooth for a 4 cyl diesel and even sounds ok, but up against the 2.4... no contest!
Brakes
I was never impressed with the brakes on the GT, I found them spongy and a bit unresponsive. The Brera has 4 pot front callipers and vented disks all round and the difference is huge!
Ride/Handling
Both my cars have been on optional 18's. On the Gt in hindsight this was a mistake! They look great but they ruin the ride and seem too heavy. I would say 17's are the best compromise of looks/performance. The Brera needs the 18's visually but even with them the ride is excellent, much better than the GT, very well dampened, comfortable but still well tied down. Both cars handle well, but the Brera again has the edge, it feels more planted at speed but in tight corners you do feel the weight at the front a bit more.
Practicality
No contest, GT wins hands down! The back seats in the Brera are useless for anyone other than kids or Douglas Bader! They really shouldn't have bothered with them at all and just made the boot bigger and fitted some locking boxes like in the Spider. The boot is a fair size in the Brera, but the lip is high. The GT has plenty of room in the back, (I took 2 near 6 footers from Liverpool to Goodwood in the back of mine with no complaints), and the boot is not only bigger but easier to load as the lip is nearly a foot lower!!!
Reliability
Hmmmm, my Gt was virtually faultless for 45k/2yrs with only a couple of minor niggles like a misted rear light and stiff seat operation. However I am on my 2nd Brera in 4 months!!! The 1st car was so unreliable I rejected it and have only had my replacement for 4wks/1.3K. Saying that the dealer service was brilliant although others such as cirvy have had shocking service from there dealers so it's patchy by the sounds of it!
Price
The GT is something of a bargain, there seem to be some very good deals around which should get you a well specced diesel for circa £20K. The Brera is dear in comparison, like for like at rrp you're looking at £5-6K more for a diesel Brera over a GT. The spec is better admittedly, SV has std leather, (£1,200 on GT), Parking sensors, (£250 on GT), folding mirrors and glass roof, (neither available on GT), but even so you do pay more for the bigger engine, better brakes and general improvement in quality.
You may get a good deal on one though, especially an ex demo, as I don't think sales have been great.....
Overall I love the Brera and I'm glad I switched, it is a 'better' car but you do pay for it. I would easily have another Gt aswell, so you won't go wrong with either of them. Have a drive in both, as cirvy says for as long as you can, to get a proper feel.
I've got a feeling which one you'll end up with......
I would say that most of the comments are fair, you will always get different opinions on what people prefer but here are mine anyway:
Looks
Personally I prefer the look of the Brera, as cirvy said, it is more exotic looking, and definately gets more attention. Part of this may be that is is still very new and rare so many people have never seen one on the road! The GT is still a very pretty car though, especially from the front!
Interior
The Brera is streets ahead in style and build quality. There is no escaping that ,despite the facelift, the dash in the GT is from the 147 which is 5-6 years old now and is starting to look it. Build is far better and quality of materials massively improved in the Brera, real aluminium for example instead of silver plastic! The glass 'Sky View' roof is fantastic, with the shade fully open it makes the cabin very light and airy whereas the GT can feel a bit gloomy unless you have a light coloured trim.
Engine
The 2.4 JTDm is fantastic, very smooth and powerful and, being a 5 pot, even sounds vaguely like an old quattro! Economy is not as good as with the 1.9 in the GT, (low to mid 30's compared to 40ish), but it is half a litre bigger with 50bhp more so I think it's still reasonable. The 1.9 is a good engine, pretty smooth for a 4 cyl diesel and even sounds ok, but up against the 2.4... no contest!
Brakes
I was never impressed with the brakes on the GT, I found them spongy and a bit unresponsive. The Brera has 4 pot front callipers and vented disks all round and the difference is huge!
Ride/Handling
Both my cars have been on optional 18's. On the Gt in hindsight this was a mistake! They look great but they ruin the ride and seem too heavy. I would say 17's are the best compromise of looks/performance. The Brera needs the 18's visually but even with them the ride is excellent, much better than the GT, very well dampened, comfortable but still well tied down. Both cars handle well, but the Brera again has the edge, it feels more planted at speed but in tight corners you do feel the weight at the front a bit more.
Practicality
No contest, GT wins hands down! The back seats in the Brera are useless for anyone other than kids or Douglas Bader! They really shouldn't have bothered with them at all and just made the boot bigger and fitted some locking boxes like in the Spider. The boot is a fair size in the Brera, but the lip is high. The GT has plenty of room in the back, (I took 2 near 6 footers from Liverpool to Goodwood in the back of mine with no complaints), and the boot is not only bigger but easier to load as the lip is nearly a foot lower!!!
Reliability
Hmmmm, my Gt was virtually faultless for 45k/2yrs with only a couple of minor niggles like a misted rear light and stiff seat operation. However I am on my 2nd Brera in 4 months!!! The 1st car was so unreliable I rejected it and have only had my replacement for 4wks/1.3K. Saying that the dealer service was brilliant although others such as cirvy have had shocking service from there dealers so it's patchy by the sounds of it!
Price
The GT is something of a bargain, there seem to be some very good deals around which should get you a well specced diesel for circa £20K. The Brera is dear in comparison, like for like at rrp you're looking at £5-6K more for a diesel Brera over a GT. The spec is better admittedly, SV has std leather, (£1,200 on GT), Parking sensors, (£250 on GT), folding mirrors and glass roof, (neither available on GT), but even so you do pay more for the bigger engine, better brakes and general improvement in quality.
You may get a good deal on one though, especially an ex demo, as I don't think sales have been great.....
Overall I love the Brera and I'm glad I switched, it is a 'better' car but you do pay for it. I would easily have another Gt aswell, so you won't go wrong with either of them. Have a drive in both, as cirvy says for as long as you can, to get a proper feel.
I've got a feeling which one you'll end up with......
Edited by brerasv on Tuesday 21st November 16:26
Edited by brerasv on Tuesday 21st November 16:27
Twit said:
pwig said:
We have a well specced Brera Diesel in light blue if you are interested?
That the one at Perry's?
I have seen that one on he website. I have a view of what would look nice - black with red leather and telephone dial alloys... But I do need to drive one to see what its like!!!!
No
Thanks for that, good too hear that someone is pleased with their Brera! I am popping along to the Alfa dealer in Reading on Friday, they have a V6 which I can drive, dont't have the 2.4 diesel as well as a 159 which is in the diesel form so I'll be able to drive both and at least feel what the engine is like. Going to be a bit difficult to get a feel for the Brera as this one will be 4 wheel drive etc.
On balance I much prefer the looks of the Brera, though I saw a 159 in metallic black and red leather the other day and that too looked pretty cool. So plenty to think about. On Saturday I'm sizing up the opposition - Audi S3 and TT - much much prefer the Alfa looks butwe shall see...
On balance I much prefer the looks of the Brera, though I saw a 159 in metallic black and red leather the other day and that too looked pretty cool. So plenty to think about. On Saturday I'm sizing up the opposition - Audi S3 and TT - much much prefer the Alfa looks butwe shall see...
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