2005 Alfa Romeo 147 GTA from UK and Ireland - All Comments

I had to take it to the dealer because the stupid useless dealer I brought it from steam cleaned the engine and got water on the coils. NOT the cars fault.

147 GTA.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS.

I have only had my GTA for about 3 weeks, but I am very happy with it.

There is a lot of information out there, and it seems it is either very positive or very negative. Basically everyone is BIASED.

From my relatively short ownership I believe the truth lies somewhere in the middle. While the car is not a fantastic drive, it isn’t rubbish. There is certainly scope for improvement, but that is the case for most cars. What you have to realise with the 147 is that it is not a hot hatch in the same way as the Clio or Civic are. It is more of a muscle car.

Your conventional hot hatch is designed to provide a good balance of everyday usability and performance. The majority of this performance is extracted from decent suspension and brakes. These allow you to maximise the power on tap. These cars will usually have more power than there standard brothers and sisters, but most will still only do 0-60 in around 7 seconds.

What you have with the Alfa is a different sort of car. It has not been designed for performance. It has been designed to be a baby supercar. As a result it won’t be practical in everyway or the best drive. It has some compromises.

The main issue is of course the handling. The electrics do a very good job of countering this, especially in the dry. In the wet they do struggle - As noted by a controllable amount of understeer! Over the last few weeks I have gotten used to its behaviour and it does feel better. There is a surprising amount of grip there, but it takes a while to feel confident to use it. I think it is the quick steering which causes this. Because I’m not used to it, it does feel a little unnatural.

The other issue is the turning circle. I test drove one and the dealer said the turning circle is fine. YOU ARE A LIAR!!! It is not the end of the world, but it is a pain. I cannot get into my driveway without taking a couple of swings. I have never had to do this before. Even with big cars and vans. Tight car parks such as supermarkets car parks can also be difficult to navigate. Some times you need to back up a bit to get a wide enough swing on those 90 degree turns. You then get the feeling everyone thinks you can’t drive.

Lastly the fuel economy. Trust me it is bad. I average about 20mpg and honestly I don’t drive it hard that often. I can get 99mpg on the motorway (going down hill with the throttle released) and usually average about 33mpg on motorway runs. I am thinking about getting the LPG conversion done, as the cost of LPG is half that of petrol. In other words it would be like having a 40-50mpg 3.2 V6!

Anyway I am thrilled to bits with it. I will update this review over time - Maybe do another one when I have a had a better chance to get to know it. I would happily recommend the car to anyone who wants a fun alternative to an Evo or Scooby (Brilliant drives, but seriously naff). Like I have said, you will have to compromise, it is not to everyone's taste, but it has really character and makes you smile!

A truly excellent report - unbiased and gets the point of this site completely.

The 147 GTA is an acquired taste, and I test drove one and was hooked - as you say it is not as complete a package as other hot hatches, but is in a different league of desirability.

It really is like a supercar hatchback, but more like a supercar than a hatchback-utterly engaging, intoxicating, impractical, scary maintenance, depreciation etc etc.

One thing you have is my respect; only a true petrolhead would buy this in favour of the competition. The 147 GTA is a deeply desirable car, but you have to be committed to own one.

I chickened out two years ago and bought a motorbike instead-but I have moved house since and one of my neighbours owns the actual car I test drove (red 04 plate, black/brown leather). Every time I see the car, I get strong feelings of elation from the experience I had driving it, strong regret for not buying it and a sense of relief that I kept the money!!

This has to be one of the best cars of all time-not as a complete package - but as a true drivers car, a total classic and a car worthy of carrying the Alfa badge.

I think what haunts me is that emotion I got from the GTA, was the same I got from a Maserati GT. Other people compare it to Golfs and R26s. WRONG!!

If you think of it as a practical, budget (!) Ferrari or Maserati, it makes perfect sense.

I am so jealous!!!

U P D A T E.

It has been over a month and a half now and I'm already about 2,000 miles in. It is beginning to feel better as I get used to its characteristics.

The main thing now is I have found a lot more cornering grip. I can now take corners pretty fast with relatively minor understeer. It took me a while to get used to it and at first I always felt that if I pushed too hard it would just understeer. That isn't really the case though.

I did a long trip to Nottingham a few weeks ago and it was a great car to use. You rarly have to change gear because of the torque, it takes no effort to overtake and the seats don't destroy your back! I also got over 26mpg which is quite reasonable.

What I have found is that it can become unsettled on bumpy country lanes. These used to be my favourite Sunday playground with my old Clio 1.8 16V as it was great in these conditions. The alfa isn't. All that really means is that you wouldn't want to go over 60 for fear of hitting a rut which throws you into the bushes. The observant of you will realise 60 is the national speed limit anyway.

The thing is though that a car such as a clio 182 or 197 will be able to go fast before reaching the point of becoming unsettled. What I am now considering is uprating the suspension to coilovers and adding a Limited slip diff. These should help to improve the stability of the car at higher speeds, especially on poor surfaces.

The last point I have is about traction and traction control. Now the weather is getting quite poor it is difficult to get the power down. I have got full wheelspin in 3rd without trying which can be a bit iffy at 60-ish mph. Off the line is also not great. The power is there, but you can't use it. Still when summer comes around again the grip should come back.

I also turned off the traction control and it doesn't really make much of a difference around town and on the motorway. If anything it is a little better to drive. I think it puts to rest the "clouds of smoke" rubbish from top gear. I think you'll only get that on a track.

I can't believe anyone places any stock in Top Gear's comments. It's an entertainment show with a car theme, not a serious review provider. The only presenter who knows anything about cars is May and they never let him test anything interesting.

The other two are great entertainers, but that's it. Like the programme as a whole really.

An Alfa GTA is an individual choice, and needs no justification to others. Enjoy it!

Is it not called the Jeremy Clarkson show now?!

Fifth Gear is now actually better for car nuts; their Fiat 500 test was a case in point - Top Gear just raced a kid on a BMX somewhere and made no relevant comments about the car, whereas Fifth Gear actually did a full in-depth road test, which was great.

Top Gear is appealing to a wider audience in the name of entertainment, but is not about cars now...

Still jealous, by the way!

Keep safe...

My 2004 GTA is a step up from the hot hatches of most manufacturers and is a potential classic. I couldn't convince myself to spend the money for a new one some 4 years, deciding instead to wait until low mileage examples came on the second-hand market. I haven't been disappointed with the GTA's sensational performance and fantastic looks (as distinct from a Golf GTi, which is a great car, with a tired design).

My only criticisms of the GTA are the poor turning circle (which I can live with), and the fact that the car is rather too low to the ground, causing a lot of 'bottoming out' in driveways, speed bumps and the occasional rough suburban streets. Any advice from readers about solving this problem would be much appreciated.

I have now put over 9,000 miles on it and aside from a slightly didgy electric window switch it hasn't missed a beat. What a superb car this is. It gets as much attention as a supercar (and none of it seems to be negative either-I.E no-one makes hand gestures at me!).

I a looking to change jobs soon too so will hopefully be getting more money and a company car. This means the GTA can retire to a weekend toy and also means I can consider a limited slip diff (£480) and a remap (£250) to give it 275bhp (or so) so it is even more insane!

"the car is rather too low to the ground, causing a lot of 'bottoming out' in driveways, speed bumps and the occasional rough suburban streets. Any advice from readers about solving this problem would be much appreciated."

Chances are you undertray is sagging so this could be worth checking.

I understand the reason why you never get negative responses from people to your GTA. This is because it is the prettiest late GTA, shows considerable taste and dedication to motoring, and does not have the awful wide boy with spoilers image of other sporty hatchbacks.

It is a genuinely tasteful 'supercar' hatchback for the connoisseur, and deserves some respect. It marks you out as true petrolhead who knows about cars and style.

Still jealous...!! Nuts to the 2009 road tax cost..

Note: original specification GTAs most respected, most revered and hold their value far better than modified cars. Don't *&%^ with perfection - if you have a good Alfa, leave it well alone or you will regret it.