Lancia Beta Coupe - worth a punt or genuine danger zone?
Discussion
As above really. I fancy a classic Italian coupe to partner my 155, and the Beta 2000ie Coupe seems to fit the bill, but obviously there's the dreaded 'rust issue'.
I keep hearing conflicting evidence. One main buyer's guide says the Coupe, especially in Series III guise, was actually quite well built and doesn't suffer too badly with rust. Then I'll go on Carsurvey and look at user reviews, and they'll all say that they fizzed away like alka-seltzer.
I know the main rusting culprit was the Berlina, and that the Spyder suffers because of the way it was made (standard coupe sent off to Zagato, roof crudely cut off and the old panels hammered down into the well for the hood from above without applying rustproofing). I also understand the HPE suffers because of water ingress around the hatch, but the coupe seems OK.
Does anyone know anything to sway my mind one way or the other, or shall I bottle it and get a GTV 2.0i or a Fiat Coupe and have done?
I keep hearing conflicting evidence. One main buyer's guide says the Coupe, especially in Series III guise, was actually quite well built and doesn't suffer too badly with rust. Then I'll go on Carsurvey and look at user reviews, and they'll all say that they fizzed away like alka-seltzer.
I know the main rusting culprit was the Berlina, and that the Spyder suffers because of the way it was made (standard coupe sent off to Zagato, roof crudely cut off and the old panels hammered down into the well for the hood from above without applying rustproofing). I also understand the HPE suffers because of water ingress around the hatch, but the coupe seems OK.
Does anyone know anything to sway my mind one way or the other, or shall I bottle it and get a GTV 2.0i or a Fiat Coupe and have done?
As above !
Try asking here
http://www.betaboyz.co.uk/forum/
for informed advice. I know the automatics have a poor repuation, but a manual in good nick is a great car.
Try asking here
http://www.betaboyz.co.uk/forum/
for informed advice. I know the automatics have a poor repuation, but a manual in good nick is a great car.
nc107 said:
As above !
Try asking here
http://www.betaboyz.co.uk/forum/
for informed advice. I know the automatics have a poor repuation, but a manual in good nick is a great car.
And surely no true Italian car fanatic would ever contemplate an automatic unless:Try asking here
http://www.betaboyz.co.uk/forum/
for informed advice. I know the automatics have a poor repuation, but a manual in good nick is a great car.
1) it was a big Maserati of some description.
2) they really, really wanted a V12 Ferrari badly enough to buy a 400A
3) they were disabled, in which case it's perfectly acceptable and understandable. But I'm not. So it isn't.
ETA>> I've just had a look on the Betaboyz website. The buyer's guide makes them seem rather tempting, no more difficult to look after than my 155, rust aside (but so long as you keep it waxoyled and garaged it doesn't seem too bad).
However, a number of owners on Carsurvey note problems with the electronic choke. I had intermittant problems with this pesky little device on my old X1/9 (given that they're both products of the Fiat empire I'd assume they're the same unit), and it was one of the things that made me want to sell it. I couldn't help but think that it would be better off with a conventional manual choke. Obviously earlier Betas have this, but those are the models without such essentials as factory rustproofing (for what it's worth) and plastic wheelarch liners.
Edited by Twincam16 on Tuesday 26th January 12:48
RicksAlfas said:
Doesn't the automatic choke mechanism unbolt from most carbs?
Or you could stick a pair of something beastly on it.
Can't imagine if you are prepared to run a Beta that the choke is the deal breaker!!
That's what I'm worried about though - are they seriously unreliable and ruinous or have I only read extreme opinions about them? On one hand, you have the owner's clubs saying that actually they're perfect, nothing ever goes wrong with them and they've had their name slandered. On the other hand, Clarkson and co seem to like setting them on fire and the owners' testimonials on most review websites tell tales of motoring hedonism followed by long stretches of garage woe.Or you could stick a pair of something beastly on it.
Can't imagine if you are prepared to run a Beta that the choke is the deal breaker!!
I want to be able to jump in it and use it on a regular basis, not end up leaving it mouldering away in the garage after something goes wrong and I never get around to fixing it.
That said, of the modern equivalents, the rear seats of the GTV are small enough to be pointless (I want a four-seater), and the best insurance quote for even the lowliest normally-aspirated 16v Fiat Coupe is just silly.
Are there any Italian four-seater coupes out there that are cheap to buy, insure and run?
In my experience as a long lived Rover owner (sorry...) and obviously, with the MiTo too - the reality is nearly always in the dead centre from what you read on the net. Take the postive and negative and the truth is almost always "it's OK, but it's not perfect"
People only tend to post on forums if they're ecstatic or something broken
People only tend to post on forums if they're ecstatic or something broken
dwilkie said:
In my experience as a long lived Rover owner (sorry...) and obviously, with the MiTo too - the reality is nearly always in the dead centre from what you read on the net. Take the postive and negative and the truth is almost always "it's OK, but it's not perfect"
People only tend to post on forums if they're ecstatic or something broken
I think that's a very fair point!People only tend to post on forums if they're ecstatic or something broken
TC - At least you want to use it regularly, so that will help as old cars don't like sitting around. I'm not sure how much solid Betas go for these days so not sure what your budget is.
You can get solid 105s for £5,000'ish e.g.
http://www.classicalfa.com/cars/ALFA%20ROMEO%20200...
and four cylinder Alfettas for a fair bit less:
http://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/classic-car-pa...
75s are good value too, but not a coupe.
Can't think of anything else. Classic Fiat coupes will be pricey and I would imagine bits are harder to get than Betas!
RicksAlfas said:
dwilkie said:
In my experience as a long lived Rover owner (sorry...) and obviously, with the MiTo too - the reality is nearly always in the dead centre from what you read on the net. Take the postive and negative and the truth is almost always "it's OK, but it's not perfect"
People only tend to post on forums if they're ecstatic or something broken
I think that's a very fair point!People only tend to post on forums if they're ecstatic or something broken
TC - At least you want to use it regularly, so that will help as old cars don't like sitting around. I'm not sure how much solid Betas go for these days so not sure what your budget is.
You can get solid 105s for £5,000'ish e.g.
http://www.classicalfa.com/cars/ALFA%20ROMEO%20200...
and four cylinder Alfettas for a fair bit less:
http://www.classiccarsforsale.co.uk/classic-car-pa...
75s are good value too, but not a coupe.
Can't think of anything else. Classic Fiat coupes will be pricey and I would imagine bits are harder to get than Betas!
Never driven an IE - hopefully its less complicated than the nasty half and half job thats on the VX. Bodywise I wouldn't fret too much, they dont hide their rust very well so pre purchasing checks should reveal any horrors - sills, rear suspension turrets and around the rear bumper are places to check.
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