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The Italian leather smell is to die for and the looks speak for themselves.
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?itok=hsH5GeYX[/img]Whats not to like about that,
Had a Alfa Brera for a few weeks as a courtesy car whilst our Audi was away being fixed,was a heavy old beast up front but went like stink and was a nice up front.
^^ that looks like you'd be sitting inside Lady Parts 😯
Don't like that at all.
Anyways, fix the Alfa, still not too sure what it needs fixing in the first place.. 😐
Whats not to like about that,
1. Red leather
2. It's an automatic
3. It's probably a diesel
Happy to help! 😉
Looks like a man with no taste designed your car,,,,
Some cars can pull it off ....
Even alfas.
How ever that has failed on so many levels.
Looks like an amstedam whore house sofa.
Anyways, fix the Alfa, still not too sure what it needs fixing in the first place..
The steering rack is worn to near MOT failure.
Just to say, mine is manual, and exactly the same interior as that Brera above, except with Black leather.
^^ But, but, buuuutttt.
How come the racks gone ?
Man, I is soooo cunfused.
Thought you had this checked out pre purchase, and scoured the forums n stuff...
Seems like, well strange for the rack to go.
😐
I did. They found some play in it from purchase I just didn't tell you lot. MOT's not until next Jan, so I have a few months and of course addition wear is dependant on miles.
BUT, my extended warranty was £400 - so if I can get it done for free now, and not pay for a new warranty next year I'll be £400 better off, so if thats the case I may as well get it done early. Plus, while its drivable I don't need to pay for a tow truck...
Whats not to like about that
I'm not looking to be 'orrible, but you are asking - everything!
It looks like a set of dead animal lungs, stitched together and inflated.
I hope you never need the airbag; I fear a nitrogen-filled set of sheep intestines will whack you in the mush.
Whats the rack made of that its worn to near mot failure. Gruere ?
You know how" worn " a rack as to be to fail mot right..... It like be like driving by proxy using letter sent by royal mail to change direction before it fails an mot.
Look at any land rover on the road .... 1948-2015 😉
Also , youll probably find your warrenty doesnt cover "oh its a wee bitty worn i want it changed"
Ps i know a landy has recirculating ball power assisted steering not a rack. But free play at the wheel limits are the same regardless for mot.
Well then I'd get it done now if it's That Bad.
And, you know, I'd get a second opinion on the wear too.. Just in case someones pulling the loose bit in yer trews.
Glad to hear, in other words, the cars going well though.
And, you know, I'd get a second opinion on the wear too.. Just in case someones pulling the loose bit in yer trews.
This has occurred to me, but thanks.
You know how" worn " a rack as to be to fail mot right..... It like be like driving by proxy using letter sent by royal mail to change direction before it fails an mot.
I don't, no. I was shown - with the car in the air - the amount of wheel movement before the rack was engaging. It was about 4" side to side.
As bikebuoy intimates, I have a friendly garage behind my house, so I'll pop it in for a 2nd opinion.
Obviously things like this can make one nervous, as my wife drives the car also. I don't want either one of us to find we are suddendly going straight on at a corner at speed.
A "stuck" rack happened to me once before in an XR3, luckily I was merely turning at some lights in town so just cam to a slow halt in the middle of the road.
Aye we know the dangers all too well, but a second opinion on this kinda thing really should be without question.
We, yes we, don't want anything nasty to happen to you.
Anyway, were you on the A3 late Sunday night heading back to London ? Around Waterlooville/Petersfield ?
4" seems a lot, I'd have thought that would be very noticeable when driving... I'd get the credit card out for that.
Anyway, were you on the A3 late Sunday night heading back to London ? Around Waterlooville/Petersfield ?
Nope. I was accompanying 12 craft beers on the sofa for dads day.
Oh, Alfa like yours with 2 MTB's on the roof heading North back to Town, did wonder if it was you but glad I didn't hoot and wave 😆
Was it wandering all over the place ?
Weeksy, no not that I can tell. It's not the sharpest to turn into a corner, but it isn't bad by any means bearing in mind it has a diesel lump up front and standard spec wandering bushes.
Buying an Alfa for 7k and spending 4.3k on it, doesn't seem like much of a deal to me (TunerGuy). OP you'll always be spending money on an Alfa, the cars are a labour of love and money. You are stuck in a hole now as without fixing the car it will be worth very little. Skodas are very good products now, I do feel your pain as my Mrs has ruled a Yeti out. If it where me I would find some other cars/brands you like and run them past the wife, it's my view the Alfa will be an ongoing cause of pain.
Fix the 159 - you know it makes sense. It's a car you love to drive which will only feel even better once it's had some TLC.
Tomorrow the new Alfa "Giulia" is unveiled to give you something to save up for 🙂
You'll always be spending money on an Alfa, the cars are a labour of love and money… ...Skodas are very good products now…
Sorry that's just not true with modern Alfas, they don't take any more or less looking after than other cars of a similar type.
Skodas have definitely improved over the years but I wouldn't say are a step above Alfa in terms of build quality and reliability, there are things that were far better on my last Alfa than my current Skoda - paint finish on the Skoda is piss poor, rust is far more of a problem, timing chains on the tsi engines frequently fail and the air con compressors seem to be viewed as consumable.
Sorry that's just not true with modern Alfas, they don't take any more or less looking after than other cars of a similar type.
Tell that to Kryton....
or my mate who had to scrap his...
I only know 2 people who've owned Alfas... both have ben nightmares...
It's not a good stat, doesn't prove much... but tells me not to buy an Alfa.
He seems happy with his car?
Without knowing your mates or seeing what cars they bought they could well have bought dogs and driven them into the ground. A friend of mine just had to have a new engine in his wifes Polo GTI (2 years old, 20k) shit happens, doesn't mean I wouldn't buy a VW.
Having owned a good few Alfas over the years (without issue) I'd say they're pretty reliable if you're sensible.
Kryton57 - MemberI have to spend £1500 on a new steering rack.
jamesfts - MemberHe seems happy with his car?
Not that happy LOL.
Whatever you do, dont go for one of these lease deals you end up totally screwed over and it costs a fortune.
weeksy - Member
Sorry that's just not true with modern Alfas, they don't take any more or less looking after than other cars of a similar type.
Tell that to Kryton...
Well, to be fair, its only had new pads, an EGR blank (choice) and a service, in the six months since I bought it. I did change the tyres from the shitty ones that were on it, again thats a matter of choice.
In general I'm very happy with it.
Back to the PAS - googling the symptoms reveals I have none of them, except the demonstrable play when moving the front wheels when the cars is of the ground. The PAS fluid is on the minimum mark, but I never checked it before so it could have been that way for ever for all I know - there certainly no fluid on the garage floor.
Maybe I should just drive it until a more obvious symptom appears.
4" of play at the wheel ..... You would not/should be able to drive it if that was the case
Strikes me as praying on alfa fear! Get second opinion.
For Kryton
[url= http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/general-alfa-discussion/27374-recommended-alfa-romeo-specialists-north-london.html ]CLICK[/url]
It's not a good stat, doesn't prove much... but tells me not to buy an Alfa.
As came out in a previous thread on here, current Alfas have a lower warranty incidence rate than their VAG rivals - I know it's not what the media want to publish but there are a lot of myths about a lot of cars out there still. It's not that long ago that TG did a eulogy (of sorts) following the demise of Saab - it essentially said most of the stuff that they (& others) had spouted over the past decade was a load of old guff.
I know 3 people who have had Boxsters - 2 were nightmare, money-pits.... tells me not to buy a Porsche.... 😉
All the stuff about Alfas having dodgy steering racks is rubbish based on random internet forum postings like this one.
I think the leather looks ace btw - though not in red - but I have a Corrado VR6 with leather in it too. It's available from all sorts of brands, even Skoda these days I should think.
Whats the deal on the Octy VRS for £200pm? ie whats the deposit and mileage ?
[url= http://www.simpsonsskoda.co.uk/new-car-offers/june-octvrspch/ ]Details here, FunkyDunc[/url]
I was tempted by the Simpson's offer, but £6800 for two years' motoring seems quite alot, especially when its way more car then we need for nipping to the shops, over a choked M8 or the occasional long journey down South. I did test drive an Octavia as a result - the 1.6 TDCi. It was very mice but.... just... a bit plain. So I bought a 1 year old Honda Civic 1.6 dTec. Feels a lot more sporty, frugal as **** on diesel and looks... well, different. Innit.
Ah its not that cheap.
£7k for 2 years on a very low mileage.... no chance!
Currently pay £330 per month for BMW 320d Touring (no estate tosh) fully insured & maintained 12k miles 
You lot are heathens , Alfas and red leather interiors are a given unless its a Red Alfa which should then have a tan leather interior to be perfect.
I suppose the Red leather clashes with your Tartan travelling rugs and velour tissue box 😉
Well, I've just come back from that second opinion. This was from the local Garage at the back of my house, I know the chaps so you think they wouldn't piss on thier own doorstep.
There verdict is, there is nothing wrong with the rack, track rods or no play in anything. Regarding the atypical 159 steering rack problems he basically said [i]"If you're worried keep an eye on the fluid & floor, if it starts grinding or the steering gets heavy, pull over. But basically, stop worrying and if it breaks get it fixed"[/i]
Shrugs. The other advice was from an Alfa specialist with a national reputation. One wonders who is right and why they'd tell me it was a problem.
The guys behind you are right, I think we all said pretty much the same thing didn't we... Just enjoy it and drive it like an italian (with shades on obvs)
8)
yes please keep driving it with that italian tuning style of yours.. looking forward to seeing that smartly dressed ray ban chap with a sooty complexion
Lol, that only happens on DPF regen. Lovely smooth non smokey drive in M25 traffic back to London last night including a 5 min stop by J19, 47mpg.
My 86,000miler Subaru was due its MOT so I took it in and it failed on brakes. The rears needed a good service (down to 43% power) and I'd fitted one of the front calipers not quite right (cough, first time issue). £65+VAT later and my 86,000miler is GO-GO-GO. It does 33mpg on the motorway and has NO diesel car gubbins to worry about. It also sounds very nice.
Its been to France/Germany/Belgium last Summer and NY's. It aint the fastest to 60 but is a brilliant thing.
If you do 8,000miles a year why not buy a bigger petrol that doesn't have a turbo and isn't a VW/VAG?
Why don't more people in the UK buy Subaru's? Why do people get so hooked into chasing mpg and believing that BMW/VAG offer the ultimate quality and reliability 😕
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I'd fitted one of the front calipers not quite right
How? Theres usually only one way a caliper can be installed.
Why don't more people in the UK buy Subaru's?
Because they have all the charm of a red dog shit bin inside?
I'd like to, but what I want is probably out of range of what I'm willing to spend (the proceeds from the sale of the Alfa so approx 5k). When I change I want:
Leather + Aircon + Auto for cruising luxury, space for a bike in the back seats folded, fun to drive.
I had a go in a Volvo XC60 R Design 2.4d mapped to 240bhp the other day and that fit the bill quite nicely. Expensive though.
I have an issue with work in that becuase I'm paid a car allowance, I'm supposed to have a <5yo car. At the moment it helps fund the nursery bills though...
Because they have all the charm of a red dog shit bin inside?
and therein lays the problem. You don't look at the interior when you are driving. You look outside but people like a lovely feel dash/etc of say the MKIV Golf when the MKI Focus (horrible interior) was a far better steer/drive etc.
Bigyin- its quite along hose and when I'd put the caliper/up behind the shock spring to enable me to take off the disc I'd twisted the hose whilst refitting. I hadn't noticed this at the time. First time I'd ever changed pads and discs so it was a lesson.
In 16,000 trans-Europe/etc miles its cost me one battery, one bulb, discs and pads (£70) and £80 for the brakes.
[i]THEN buy the 330 Touring auto I will want[/i]
I bought a 330D Auto Touring a couple of weeks ago.
It's the only car I've ever owned where you genuinely get pushed back in your seat by the mid range acceleration. 370lb of torque is quite addictive pulling away from roundabouts etc.
Cost slightly more than your budget and is older than the age limit, though.
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How much money / mileage was that wwaswas? Isn't it a 5? Thats ideally what i'd buy.