1989 Alfa Romeo 33 1.7 IE review from Australia and New Zealand
"Great performance for a reasonable price"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Clutch slave cylinder went at 120,000kms - the clutch was never the same after that.
Starter motor went at 140,000.
Minor problems:
Speedometer needle was always moving around making it hard to know how fast you were going. Indicator arm wouldn't return back to position after rounding corner - even after replacement.
General comments?
For all the things I'd heard about Alfa Romeo this car performed fantastically and didn't burn a hole in my wallet.
It has a great direct feel when driving and I usually drove everywhere with the windows down to hear the engine's great sound.
The performance was lifted quite cheaply with a bigger exhaust and sports air filter. It drove sedately on normal rpm range (2000-3000rpm) but you could also push it to 4500-5000rpm on each gear for more sporty driving.
The steering/handling on this car was very precise and you could really throw it into corners.
I had the car serviced regularly by an Alfa enthusiast rather than an Alfa dealer and this made a big difference in terms of cost (and the 33 responds well to regular service). I would recommend future 33 owners do the same.
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| 1989 - 33 Alfa 1.7 QV 1.7 petrol Affordable fun and Italian style! |
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| 1988 - 33 1.7 IE 1.7 flat four 'boxer' Really good fun, practical |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Year of manufacture | 1989 |
| First year of ownership | 2000 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2003 |
| Engine and transmission | 1.7 petrol Manual |
| Performance marks | 7 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 7 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 7 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 6 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 114000 kilometres |
| Most recent distance | 142000 kilometres |
| Previous car | Holden Camira |
| Date of Entry | 14th June, 2003 |