147 GTA advise please
Discussion
Is that £500 a year with you doing the work, or getting a garage to do it? £500 a year inc labour is very optimistic.
I have a 3.2 GT which is pretty much the same car. To come clean, I also have a 156 GTA SW, and a 166 3.2 - I like the engine. I got the GT at 35k miles for buttons with a blown up engine, but otherwise in good order. I rebuilt it myself - new pistons, liners, loads of valves, belt kit, everything.
After the rebuild, the engine has been utterly reliable for 5 years. It’s needed servicing, but that costs £87 in parts, most of which is the oil. Stuff that’s gone wrong?
- Last year the alternator regulator packed up. £60 part, hideous job. If the entire alternator needed replacing it’s almost engine out. Thankfully it was just 4 hours on my back extracting the reg and putting a new one in.
- Supension. The weakness of 156/147/GT suspension is legendary. Every year I’ve needed to do something. Rear hub bushes, rear transvers arms, one of the upper arms. Every one of these being a few hundred quid at a garage. I’ve bitten the bullet this year and put KWV3s on.
- Cam belt - every 4 years, not 5. The lumpy inlet cam is hard on the belts.
- Engine - they are strong, but at 80k miles a hard driven 3.2 may well be suffering from head gasket issues and exhaust valve burning. The first clue is a slightly rough idle. The manifold cats are the likely root cause, getting rid of them costs £750 in bits and the engine out...
- Rear bank lambda sensor? Engine out, well, as good as out.
- ARB knocking - subframe out
- Front brake hard pipes, done properly, not bodged ... engine out.
Don’t let me put you off, when sorted with a Q2 and decent suspension, these are epic cars. But don’t underestimate their ability to chuck a 4 figure bill and then do exactly the same the following month.
I have a 3.2 GT which is pretty much the same car. To come clean, I also have a 156 GTA SW, and a 166 3.2 - I like the engine. I got the GT at 35k miles for buttons with a blown up engine, but otherwise in good order. I rebuilt it myself - new pistons, liners, loads of valves, belt kit, everything.
After the rebuild, the engine has been utterly reliable for 5 years. It’s needed servicing, but that costs £87 in parts, most of which is the oil. Stuff that’s gone wrong?
- Last year the alternator regulator packed up. £60 part, hideous job. If the entire alternator needed replacing it’s almost engine out. Thankfully it was just 4 hours on my back extracting the reg and putting a new one in.
- Supension. The weakness of 156/147/GT suspension is legendary. Every year I’ve needed to do something. Rear hub bushes, rear transvers arms, one of the upper arms. Every one of these being a few hundred quid at a garage. I’ve bitten the bullet this year and put KWV3s on.
- Cam belt - every 4 years, not 5. The lumpy inlet cam is hard on the belts.
- Engine - they are strong, but at 80k miles a hard driven 3.2 may well be suffering from head gasket issues and exhaust valve burning. The first clue is a slightly rough idle. The manifold cats are the likely root cause, getting rid of them costs £750 in bits and the engine out...
- Rear bank lambda sensor? Engine out, well, as good as out.
- ARB knocking - subframe out
- Front brake hard pipes, done properly, not bodged ... engine out.
Don’t let me put you off, when sorted with a Q2 and decent suspension, these are epic cars. But don’t underestimate their ability to chuck a 4 figure bill and then do exactly the same the following month.
Edited by rxe on Sunday 18th November 21:21
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