1995 Alfa Romeo 146 L 8v Boxer

Summary:

Likeable, practical, sparky if you ask it to be and great value

Faults:

Clutch at 72000 - silly me not to check.

Wheel bearing at 105000 miles - doddle to fix.

Headlining wearing badly.

Drivers window channel droopy.

Remote central locking useless - but not really a worry.

Odd fuse or warning light.

Heater fan only works on setting 4!

General Comments:

The Boxer a bit under-powered, but still goes well if you boot it (great sound then!)

Handling has that wonderful Alfa feel, but a little understeery on windy roads.

Brilliantly stable on motorways (not always an Alfa trait)

Styling remarkably un-dated.

Thirsty (22mpg in town, 30mpg on a run)

Find a good independent to look after it.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 2nd February, 2006

1995 Alfa Romeo 146 ti 2.0

Summary:

Good Car

Faults:

ABS light keeps flashing up now & then.

Also the brake wear indicator light flashes up regularly because the wire which connects to the brake pads has been torn.

A hole in the exhaust.

General Comments:

The Car is Fun to drive around country lanes.

Not so fun on long motorway journeys as seats are a little hard.

Gearbox is very good.

The 2.0ltr engine sounds good, with 16v twin-spark, it sounds good not tinny.

The sporty look and elegant metallic shape makes it look more modern than other cars of the same age..

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 15th September, 2004

1995 Alfa Romeo 146 1.7 16v

Summary:

Fun and stylish but hard work

Faults:

Rear baffler disintegrated at 70k miles.

Electric sun-roof faulty (intermittent)

Electric rear windows faulty (intermittent)

Dry joint in flasher relay (re-solded myself - saved £140)

Hazard light relay blew (£150 to fix)

Heater temp set cable snapped (fixed myself - approx £400 saved)

Radiator rusted, courtesy of previous owner not using coolant (£600 with 60k service)

Speaker cover stays have all snapped off.

Thermostat/temp sensor seems to have gone as car won't choke.

General Comments:

Apart from above, the car has been good. No mechanical faults resulting in a breakdown. The faults mentioned above have all been of the annoying rather than critical variety.

That brings me to my next point. Dealer costs are outrageous. My local AR garage wants £90 plus VAT per hour of service. So any electrical glitches end up costing a bomb. An example is the heater cable, AR quoted me 3 hours labour costs (you do the math) just to get the dash off. So the bill would probably have been in the region of £400 - £375 labour, £25 parts).

Anyway, enough gripes. The car is a joy to drive. The engine is the sweetest sounding I've heard (although a bit gutless below 2500 rpm). Comfort is good, although the driving position would suit an ape better than me (short legs and long arms).

I doubt I'd buy another AR unless I was totally convinced the electric gremlins had been sorted.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 10th December, 2003

1995 Alfa Romeo 146 1.6 Boxer

Summary:

A stylish four door car, with performance to boot

Faults:

Nothing so far, touch wood.

Though I have a feeling that the left CV joint may need replacing.

General Comments:

I hope to buy this car's replacement, the Alfa 147.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 22nd March, 2000