I've had Fredo my Alfa 147 GTA for about a year now and just recently he has caused a few problems. The question is whether to keep this car or get something new.. In this video I make a decision.
My experiences have taught me love for a car can be over very quickly when it keeps breaking on you. And all cars reach that point eventually. Even the "reliable" japanese ones.
@@OggyGTA Well i like how most alfas look but a car has to be trouble free for a long period of time to really make me love it 😉
2 года назад
I do really feel very identified with you, as I’m another mid-aged idiot passionate for cars who tries to fix his “toys” with not so much success. I finally purchased my Busso (a GT, as GTAs are ridiculous expensive in Spain ) after seeing your face of joy driving Fredo. Somehow it’s thanks to you I have that silly smile on my face every day I drive her, feeling her sound, handling…. It’s really a pity you’re selling it, I’d rather prefer more content on the GTA and you enjoying bloody Alfas!
I have consulted with the guys at JS Motors and we have a consensus. A photo shoot with bikini models would greatly increase the value of the 308. as well as getting you a spot in the Daily Mail. Love You, Jack! Bret
Another cracking video Jack! When I was 17 I worked at wingrove a Citroen deal in Newcastle upon Tyne and the foreman had a BX Gti in red I absolutely loved that car!
In the '90s we had two of the then brand new 156s, a 2-litre followed by a V6. The sidelight bulbs used to take 40 minutes to get out and 40 minutes to put in. I wouldn't have minded if it had been a one off but they would blow about one every 3 months. Later I had a 2000 ex demo 3-litre 166, which kept draining its battery. I found it was turning its parking lights on all by itself overnight. The dealer tried lots of things but the only cure was to leave the headlights switched on. That cut out the parking circuit and as the headlights went off with the ignition off there was no longer any power drain. Got to love Alfa electrics!
Having once owned a Citroen BX GTI, I would advise you not to bother, it spent more time off the road than it did on it! Finding a good one would be a challenge though.....
I haven't seen you trying a Swedish car, so it would be interesting if you could find a good example of Volvo 850 R or T5R from the 90's, preferably the estate version as they raced in the BTCC.
Having owned a 147 in the past I remember having to change those bulbs almost yearly, so after a while it’s a really easy job… Having said that consider yourself lucky that you’re not on Xenons, because on my current GT V6 project the xenons come standard and to replace that bulb it’s a bumper out, headlights out job… Speaking of V6 it’s the only reason I bought mine as a weekend car and hope to keep it as long as I can.
I do see your point on changing the 147 but that engine sound alone would have me making excuses to keep the car. It will be one of those cars that once its gone you will forever be wandering why did I sell that. I've done it myself too many times over the years. As to the replacement whatever you choose I look forward to seeing the videos and as with all your other cars its always entertaining to see your experiences with the cars.
I had the same issue with my Alfa gt 1.9 it’s this summer. The garage fixed my air on but unfortunately did not tighten up my positive terminal on my battery. Managed to tighten this up but the terminal was worn. In the end I filed the lugs down cleaned the connections. Really good connection now no issues. Love your videos
You have made your RU-vid bed Jack and it looks comfy. Chopping and changing your cars and enjoying the variety looks like a lot of fun 👍🏻. I on the other hand got seduced by the mk2 scirocco. ( current 17 years) And although I fancied another models, couldn’t find the will to move on. Always have a smile on my face. I will regret not owning an MR2 mk2, and of course an Alfa…. Glad your gta issues are over for now and a sale is imminent.
Personally I'd fix'n'flip the Merc and keep the Alfa. However in light of the circumstances I understand the need to sell it. Have you ever considered a Fiat Abarth 124 or 500?
If you're going to go for the BX GTi make sure it's the 16 valve head version that has about 35 brake more than the 9 valve but I would also suggest (staying with Citroen) the XM executive car which had a 3.0 V6 and a 2.0 turbo petrol engine (friend of mine had the 2.0 turbo and it was fast!) that are interesting as they have that hydro gas suspension system used by Bentley which does give a shall we say unusual ride quality! Love the channel by the way.
I love that Alfa, I have a 156 and a 159 sportwagon, (the best looking estate car ever made, imho). Alfa’s are great drivers cars, You don’t get that smile on your face with most other cars. My advice, keep the Alfa, (there’s a reason that they are worth strong money and I cannot see them going down any time soon), sell the money pit Merc, however, the Merc is likely a great car for RU-vid videos, I can see it giving you loads of content for your channel and I’m looking forward to watching you pour your attention into it, (although it’s gonna be very costly), plus, I’ve always loved the big Benz cruisers…., choices, choices…!.
The moment you talked about wanting something a little bit different my first thought was a BX19GTi. I had one back in the mid 90s, it was a lot of fun and different from the normal hot hatch crowd. Damn near fell of my chair when you suggested the same.
MIL or EML engine lights self heal after 20-40 mins of acceptable tolerance emission levels on ECU For example a rough start from a poor engine crank start, a weak or bad battery which would put on the EML could reset either around an hour into a drive or once stopped and re-start
Hi Jack I have just started watching your channel, what a breath of fresh air you are, I used to be in the car trade when alfa romeo were at there height (1981),get another alfa, gtv 6 was my favourite, and what a monster of an engine, keep up the amazing work, your a cool guy .(pete)
A time warp Citroen BX would be awesome Jack! I can still vaguely remember the original TV advertisement; bright red GTI blasting across rough desert terrain, wheels pogoing madly, all the while the vehicle seems to majestically float undisturbed ahead of its dusty wake …I think that’s the one?!
Sad reality of the youtube game, having to let go of a car you like, but it's also a plus for the both owner and viewers to get to experience different cars. Will miss the GTA, hope it gets into good hands. I'd love to see a BX, anything French and quirky, doesn't even have to be hot or warm. Also '98-'02 Saab 93 turbo, really funky interior, strong engine, great exterior imo.
I’d steer clear of the SAAB 9-3. I had a 2002 model (last of the hatchback version), and frankly it was a heap. The body / front bulkhead flexed, so the handling was rubbish, it torque-steered, the turbo blew and disintegrated requiring an engine rebuild and every engine sensor failed in turn. A very costly, cramped, and unsatisfying to own car. Oh, and it was going rusty too. Classic 900, maybe, if you can find one without interstellar mileage, or maybe a 9000. Replaced by an Alfa 156, which was sublime!
@@simonhodgetts6530 Damn that's quite unexpected story. I was looking to buy a 9-3 and test drove about 5. First one was the best, also a 2002 3 door hatch. I actually loved it on the short test drive but the AC was broken and we walked away. Subsequent ones were even worse mechanically and unloved so we kept holding off hoping a nice one will emerge. 5 months on, we gave up on the Saab and are now in talks to get Lancia kappa ...but that's broken too :)) Bought my series 2 156 in 2007. 2.5, love it to bits, far more reliable than its reputation.
@@simonhodgetts6530 the problem with the 9-3 is that GM’s accountants got involved and the car was based on the Vectra chassis, which wasn’t up to the job. I had a 9000 Turbo, which was a hoot, and although the chassis was shared with Fiat, was still a proper SAAB. Superb interior, comfortable seats and really hot heating.
@@British99 agreed - the 9000 was probably the last of the ‘bullet-proof’ SAABs - don’t forget too that SAAB shared their rust proofing knowledge with FIAT/Lancia when the Delta was sold in Sweden as the 600 series.
You have a patience of a saint sir, how long before you get a reliable but deadly boring Honda Civic ? But definitely one of best interesting vlogs on ‘the Tube. Thx.
Love the idea of you getting a BXGTI Jack! How about some other quick and weird stuff from planet Citroen... CX Turbo, ZX Volcane or 16V (rare as hen's teeth) or go for full on bankruptcy and find yourself an SM! Look forward to seeing what you choose.
Nice result. Good job you found the issue before that loose connector caused sparking and potentially damaging voltage spikes. Shame you're selling it. The car looks and sounds superb.
Haha, watching Jay Emm hold that umbrella made me choke on my tea. Unexpectedly brilliant :) Changing a bulb is always one of those jobs which takes 2 mins or 2 hrs and is often dependent on which side has blown. Tried changing the drivers side headlight on my e90 a month or so ago (after doing the passenger side previously which was easy). Ended up having to take it to the garage because I just could not get the bulb mounting to secure in the headlight itself. Very annoying! It did make me feel better though when my garage admitted it was a bitch of a job :)
Plenty of old Maserati's going for cheap which with your Italian heritage and want for huge youtube following , will achieve both. Good luck in your decision.
Never underestimate what a dodgy battery or battery connection can do! Wife’s 2008 Yaris had an engine warning light issue & then would go into limp mode. Codes read & it said throttle pedal issue. Codes reset, problem still occurred. Throttle pedal replaced, didn’t fix it. Problem was the battery that despite being fairly new & testing ok it was faulty. Replaced battery and no problems since, and it’s been several years now.
BX GTi - Fabulous idea. Always loved the BX, certainly the peppier ones (had a 19TZi which was as rapid as the original GTi and had a better power-to-weight ratio than a Golf GTi of the era) and have hunkered after the body-kitted 16V ever since.
Someone's going to get a good car. The ride/handling equation is tricky with the GTA because of the big F/W weight imbalance, and it's slightly unusual amongst hot hatches of the era in having a McPherson rear, which limits how far it can be lowered without totally wrecking the geometry. The powerflex bushes may well be part of it in this case. Otherwise getting the right spring/shock combination is the key. I've currently got the KW2 package in mine, and it works pretty well. It's still important to get the shock settings right if you want a good ride, though.
Had a Citroen BX gti, they are fun in a totally different way to most cars, very floaty and not much power but fun to hustle if you can cope with that,
A supercharged XKR would give you lots of RU-vid content Jack. I used to work on the principle that the next car needed either more horsepower or more cylinders. So went from 996C2 (320hp) to X100 XKR (400hp) to 996 turbo (DMS remap 450hp) to X150 XKR (503hp). Then ran out of money to take it any further, lost confidence in the Jaag due to several mechanical and electrical issues and went back to 911s.
@@casualagent7250 until Maserati reduce their parts prices so they correspond with the cars value they will never make sense as a used buy. The Gran Sport is an awesome car but it costs as much to run as a 550 which is worth 3 or 4 times more. If Maserati reduced the parts prices of older cars the residuals would improve, but they are greedy.
@@benzinapaul7416 Thankyou mr benzina, nice explanation. You would like to think car companies would appreciate & see their older classics still on the road. My (oldish) 2007 S type Jaguar 🐆 .....so far so good
Airflow sensors of Italian cars: They are an absolute pain in the ass. On my Mareas they were failing many times. Even leaving me stranded. Once I replaced one with a used one of an Alfa Romeo 147. It was exactly the same and it worked for a few months. The Marea of 1999 had a different type of bolts than the 2000 model. I even bought both kind of bits. Somewhere in my cellar I must still have them. The problems ended finallly when I bought very cheap after market sensors on Ebay. They worked for years until I had to dump both Mareas.
I have a 2007 GT with the wonderfull Busso 3.2 V6 which share almost everything with the GTA and changing the side light bulb is impossible without removing the headlamp assembly which can only be done by removing the entire front bumper assembly...what a great bit of design!
BX GTI is a fine idea, but there's a cutoff where the spaceship cluster and dashboard was replaced by normal dials, avoid that. Also, I remember as a kid walking past an almost new BX where the owner just started it up and was waiting for the car to become fluidborne. Then this just happened and the car almost rose up like the spaceship that it is, while starting to drive at the same time. However, it would be sad if the GTI doesn't have this and instead has McPherson normal suspension. An even better idea? A CX Loadrunner 6 wheeler.
I've had the same sort of issue with my w211 estate. Random 'Convenience features Disabled' messages that made no sense. I was convinced that a module had failed but that didn't make sense either so I reverted to the 'What did I do last' scenario. The answer was that I had disconnected the battery to charge it off the car. I had totally discounted loose battery connections as I was sure that I would have checked something so basic. As a last resort, I checked anyway and found that the positive lead was only finger tight. Rectified and all the error messages magically disappeared and battery charge voltage settled right down. Gave myself a stern telling off.
My suggestion: Find a mid to late 80's Merkur if you can. I don't believe they were sold in the UK sadly, but having driven them here in the US, they were a great but mostly unknown car and shouldn't be too much money if you can find one. Certainly unique to RU-vid. Good luck with whatever you go for, love your channel!
Can do relate to the 147 bulb replacement issue. If frustration I gave used the Italian tap method on the headlight and it came good. What about a Renault Cleo Sport?
For akward designs Try changing a bulb on a hyundai tuscon, you need very childlike hands to get inside the back of the headlight,not sure if the later ones are better so not just italians who do odd things.on a different note that alfa sounds nice lets be honest no EV is going to get us excited like petrol engines do.
I ran a sunbeam lotus as my daily driver when I was 19, (52 now)never let me down apart from a clutch failure so much Quicker than the official figures it would embarrass most sports cars of the day,made me feel special every time I got in it😊
If you’re looking for something with another wonderful engine but with work to do, why not something a bit older like a Audi B5 S4 or RS4? The 2.7TT engines were fantastic when on full boost. You’ll not be short of work to do on the rest of the car especially at the age they’re at now. Not the best handling of cars but they can be significantly improved with various cost effective upgrades like stiffer rear ARBs and rear diff LSDs. Looking forward to seeing the next chapter with all the woes and challenges it’ll no doubt bring!
nice cameo from Jayemm....standing with an umbrella not knowing what you're fiddling with........having watched all the cars you've gone through its hard to pick an alternative ..how about an Ro80 or RX7/8 or a renault 5 ....PS good luck with the garage (with house attached) hunting
That is a nice car but I too like swapping cars and appreciate your dilemma. I’ve just bought Audi TT and I’m really impressed with it, it’s only 200hp Manual but road holding , performance and finish are really good, plus it has adequate leg and headroom for my 6’2” frame. May be too reliable though for RU-vid viewing 🤔 look forward to new project
I recently sold my 147 GTA which I had as my daily for the last 12 years. For something totally different I’ve replaced it with a Honda S2000. It’s a very different car to drive but very exciting at much more reasonable speeds.
A Citroën BX would be really nice in my opinion. It's a car people no nothing about and there is very little about it online, but it is so pretty and cool.
I suggest another Alfa Romeo, a 1978 Sprint Veloce 2.0 (previously called Alfetta GT). Same body style as the later GTV with the V-6 but more character and less plastic. I had one in the 1980s - great car, the handling is on another level.
Honestly, I miss my 306gti six. Put some Kumho v720 tires on it and it's brilliant. With a pod filter on the intake it lost a bit of low end torque, but it reved much freer in the top end. Seriously a fun car and one to consider as it isn't very popular on RU-vid. Now that the prices are going up, get one while you can still afford it 👍
The design of the + clamp is pish. I used to get air on the B roads and the car would cut out in the air then when you land run fine. Also, the security nubbin in the middle can usually be removed with a cheap slot and a violent tap from a hammer. My door card had the same issue with the window switch never did get it sorted. What annoyed me was savage chassis flex
Not sure what prices are like in the UK, but what about one of the hot Meganes as a replacement? Some of those are very potent, and the chassis has a good reputation.
red bx gti 4x4 on c&c at the minute....commented on your last video about it then rememberd it was this one you mentioned it lol....pity about the alfa seems great value
On a battery swap, I always clean the terminals and connectors and use a dab of dielectric grease. You won't be back in there for 5-8 years, so do it right once.
Jack, sell it. You never seem to have really bonded with the Alfa, unlike the Influenzo which engages with its recalcitrance. The Alfa just seems to niggle. It’s a holiday romance and it’s time to move on!
What about a Honda C-RX... Lots of fun in a cute lightweight package... Enough power to be fun, but not so much that you can't use it all on the road...
I think if I were in your situation and we’re looking to replace a special hatchback with something along the same lines, I’d be looking at an early Mk1 Focus RS?
@@danjones6279 There was no question in the wording used, it was a suggestion covering his opinion. A question would be worded along the lines of, 'Why not buy a mk1 Focus RS?'
Jack, have you considered a B7 RS4 avant? Last of the V8 manuals, and they’re great fun, practical and there isn’t much good quality content on RU-vid about them (other than a quick pistonheads video from a few weeks ago)
If you want to go French... try an Alpine GTA Turbo. Buy a good one now and it will make money over time all day long as the forgotten sports car, and the turbo lag and steering feedback will make you smile from ear to ear. Ask Jayemm he has driven one. Its an early 911 turbo without the badge snobbery (but you will need to be handy with French electrics ).
Next up idea? What about a Masa 3200 GT, Jack. Cheap(ish), misunderstood and just for the beautiful boomerang taillights. Plus some Ferrari DNA too of course.
