Alfa 145 Cloverleaf?
Discussion
mechsympathy said:
A small question for the PH collective: A friend is interested in getting one of these, as they appear to be really good value (she's got £2500).
Are they any good? And what should she look out for?
Amazing little car to drive, superb in fact. Only problem is the Alfa build quality but I'd have one.
Hi Mech,
We've got a 145 Cloverleaf.
I have had a host of Alfa and Fiats, used to work for the group.
As with most non-Toyota mass produced cars, the build quality can vary greatly. Similarly, there are very few badly built modern cars. If in doubt, avoid early examples of new models.
Being an Italian car, check out the electrics they can be very tempremental. Get the car checked out, if you are unsure, try the AA or similar.
These are great cars, the 2.0 engine is operatic at high revs., probably one of the best of its kind ever built. Handling can be a bit choppy, check out the suspension on older cars. This area would be my main criticism of the car, but my other car is an Elise so I tend to be sensitive on such matters, this is a family hatch after all.
Our car is a 1996 P-plate, and I have known the car from new. It's only done 40k miles and has not exhibited any mechanical or build problems whatsoever.
The main problem with Fiats and Alfas has been the dealerships. This is not always their fault, but they are the main interface to the customer. Fiat group has done alot of work to improve its production systems, but the organisation has not realised the key role of the dealerships and customer service. Most of my immediate family bought Fiats when I was with them, they all said the same thing "loved the car, hated the customer service wouldn't buy again".
This anecdotal evidence appears to be confirmed in the JD Power survey results.
Sorry to ramble on, but the bottom line is if you find a nice clean car with FSH and no obvious faults then there should be no problem. Find a good independant to service it, better still an Alfa specialist.
If you simply want to go from A-B, buy a Toyota. If driving means more to you than that, go for the Alfa.
Regards, Neil
We've got a 145 Cloverleaf.
I have had a host of Alfa and Fiats, used to work for the group.
As with most non-Toyota mass produced cars, the build quality can vary greatly. Similarly, there are very few badly built modern cars. If in doubt, avoid early examples of new models.
Being an Italian car, check out the electrics they can be very tempremental. Get the car checked out, if you are unsure, try the AA or similar.
These are great cars, the 2.0 engine is operatic at high revs., probably one of the best of its kind ever built. Handling can be a bit choppy, check out the suspension on older cars. This area would be my main criticism of the car, but my other car is an Elise so I tend to be sensitive on such matters, this is a family hatch after all.
Our car is a 1996 P-plate, and I have known the car from new. It's only done 40k miles and has not exhibited any mechanical or build problems whatsoever.
The main problem with Fiats and Alfas has been the dealerships. This is not always their fault, but they are the main interface to the customer. Fiat group has done alot of work to improve its production systems, but the organisation has not realised the key role of the dealerships and customer service. Most of my immediate family bought Fiats when I was with them, they all said the same thing "loved the car, hated the customer service wouldn't buy again".
This anecdotal evidence appears to be confirmed in the JD Power survey results.
Sorry to ramble on, but the bottom line is if you find a nice clean car with FSH and no obvious faults then there should be no problem. Find a good independant to service it, better still an Alfa specialist.
If you simply want to go from A-B, buy a Toyota. If driving means more to you than that, go for the Alfa.
Regards, Neil
Neil has said it all.
I had an early one from 1996-99, and swapped it for a facelift model in Sept 1999, which my wife now drives.
Fantastic cars, bags of room, bags of character, one of the finest 4 cylinder engines ever made, and yes, one of the worse dealer networks anywhere. But they are improving!! (They only had one way to go mind you!).
Find a good independant, and you will be fine. Make sure there is proof the cambelt has been done recently. Needs doing every 36,000 ideally, and it's not particularly cheap.
I had an early one from 1996-99, and swapped it for a facelift model in Sept 1999, which my wife now drives.
Fantastic cars, bags of room, bags of character, one of the finest 4 cylinder engines ever made, and yes, one of the worse dealer networks anywhere. But they are improving!! (They only had one way to go mind you!).
Find a good independant, and you will be fine. Make sure there is proof the cambelt has been done recently. Needs doing every 36,000 ideally, and it's not particularly cheap.
I have just traded in my P reg 146ti at 118,000 miles due to the high cost of maintainance.
I bought it June '01 at about 79,000 miles and when I first had it I was doing 24K a year.
I loved the fact that it was an Alfa (there's something about Italian cars) but I think the suspension/wishbones were all getting a bit worn by the time I sold it, (I wasn't too sure about the handling especially in the wet!).
Also, there is the the cost of ownership, especially if you're doing high mileage - it has cost me over £3k in the time I had it due to the fact it was "getting on a bit" in Alfa terms and the cost of Alfa servicing!!
The final straw was when I had it serviced (about £850) and was told that it needed a bit of work on it to get it through it's MOT (probably another £1k & not through a main dealer either!).
I did seriously consider a 147, but the cost of servicing had made me very wary and in the end I bought a Mazda3 2.0l Sport(12,500 service interval, first service £90, group 8 insurance and 3 years breakdown cover!).
If you know a friendly garage who knows Alfas or you don't mind spending the money on servicing then go for it, as I said earlier, there is something about Italian cars.....
>> Edited by tifiona on Friday 18th June 22:32
I bought it June '01 at about 79,000 miles and when I first had it I was doing 24K a year.
I loved the fact that it was an Alfa (there's something about Italian cars) but I think the suspension/wishbones were all getting a bit worn by the time I sold it, (I wasn't too sure about the handling especially in the wet!).
Also, there is the the cost of ownership, especially if you're doing high mileage - it has cost me over £3k in the time I had it due to the fact it was "getting on a bit" in Alfa terms and the cost of Alfa servicing!!
The final straw was when I had it serviced (about £850) and was told that it needed a bit of work on it to get it through it's MOT (probably another £1k & not through a main dealer either!).
I did seriously consider a 147, but the cost of servicing had made me very wary and in the end I bought a Mazda3 2.0l Sport(12,500 service interval, first service £90, group 8 insurance and 3 years breakdown cover!).
If you know a friendly garage who knows Alfas or you don't mind spending the money on servicing then go for it, as I said earlier, there is something about Italian cars.....
>> Edited by tifiona on Friday 18th June 22:32
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