Buying an alfa-need help

I think you are just too tight for cash to own an Italian car, you can't buy one on a shoestring. I had an Alfa GT, and I had a few issues with it, nothing major, but it was all covered by warranty, not me. The problem is not so much that it will break, every car does, but the parts I think might be hard to find. This car is also pretty high mileage. Save your cash and buy or lease a new Alfa Romeo when they come to NA.

 

If you don't have a local Alfa shop, then your dad is right -- Italian cars without service are trouble.

Of course, Japanese cars without service have troubles too. (But you junk those after five or six years, so you don't notice as much.)

I've been driving Italian cars for 30 years. But when my parents were involved in my car buying selection, I had ... a Chrysler Imperial. (At least I learned parking in tight quarters from that. ) My dad was a Mopar fan -- his house, his rules.

Get an education, get a good job, and then make your own decisions -- once you have the finances (and educational tools) to do so.

But forget the Fiatized garbage that they keep not sending to the US via G.M. -- they're just Camrys in Italian shoes. Look for the classics: GTV 2000, etc.

But the 20-30 year old Alfas aren't really "daily driver" cars for students. The calc prof won't accept "was rebuilding my Webbers" instead of homework.

A well maintained Italian car can be reliable, but you have to have the funding for comprehensive maintenance. Otherwise, you have lots of little issues to deal with as they crop up.

Back after college, I discovered that nobody sells an Italian car when it's running perfectly. It takes a pretty big service to make a used Italian car "right". But back then it was still "Alfa", not Fiat. So instead of dealing with someone else's issues, I bought a new one. I still own it.

 

I agree, the latest Alfas (and yes, I drove the V6 Brera) are very sanitised, not fun to drive, no passion, overpriced. And the engines are modified GM's and Opels.

 

Have to agree with all others here.

I understand your POV, as I drove an Alfa Spider Veloce during college. I loved that car. (Edit: earned the money to buy it, insure it, and maintain it myself)

But YOU aren't buying the car. Your PARENTS are buyinbg the car. If I was buying my child a car, they better be happy with what we agree upon or they are going to be getting a pair of reeboks from costco and a bus pass.

(yes it's a negotiation, but I think your out of luck on this one) from a parents POV the risk of a car breaking down and leaving you stranded is the biggest issue.

College goes by very fast. Then buy whatever you want.... within you own budget!

I don't think you can win this one. Sorry.

 

I baught my first Alfa during College, i had worked my ass off during the summer and made sure i hade more than double the amount of money that car cost, and that was even after i had dumped close to 2k in repairs. The car ran fine and never gave me problems, very reliable but eventually with the cost of school rising and other factors i sold it.

At the moment i drive a boring honda, but i can use it in the winter and it doesnt need a tbelt change at 30kmiles, i just put gas and go, its alot less stress when you have finals to deal with.

 

I've got a 95 164Q and let me tell you that 24v 164 can be a great and reliable car, BUT you need to get a great car to start with. It sounds like you have found a good one so keeping it in good shape will cost less then bringing it up to snuff. with that said when I bought my Q It was is great shape with only a couple minor things needing to be done (steering rack boots and new exshaust) and I still spent $2k on the car in the first year doing all the work myself. The best thing you can do is hold off on the alfa for now. Get a dependable car that will be cheap to drive (24v 3l runs on premium gas and gets about 20mpg not too bad but far from cheap). Save your cash until you have twice what the car costs and you will be just fine.
Almost forgot. I drive mine every day, but I do have a POS back up car just in case. There's nothing worse that having to wait a few weeks for a part and not having a car to get to work. Again get a cheap car for now, and keep it when you get the alfa for the just incase times

 

You've got 2K.

Earmark the 2K for maintenance.

Save what you need for the car, itself.

 

I've had my AlfaGTV6 for a bit over two years and I've loved every day of ownership.

That being said, please consider what you'd be getting into.

At $6500 you'd be paying a premium price for a 164 and since it's being sold by a member of the alfabb, I'll assume it's in near perfect condition. Even with that, unexpected problems WILL pop up from time to time. having a good mechanic nearby who knows the ins and outs of the 164 is essential. Things that may be simple in other cars such as changing the starter are far more difficult than you would think. Maintenance expenses can add up very quickly. My GTV6 was in very condition when I bought it and I've still had to dump a bunch of money into it. For example a few months ago I was having problems where the car would jerk as if running out of fuel randomly. $300 repair. A month earlier, I had to redo most of the fuel system since a leak had developed which was leaking fuel onto the engine. A couple new injectors, new hoses and a few miscellaneous parts later and I was up to $1300 in repairs. So we're looking at $1600 in unexpected expenses over the course of two months "just because". Granted, this was an exceptionally bad two months, but the point is that these problems just all of a sudden happened with no abnormal driving conditions or other interference. Parts are becoming increasingly rare and therefore more expensive every week.

Unless you have an Alfa mechanic nearby and are able to put up with maintenance and unexpected repairs which can end up being quite costly, I'd advise against geting an Alfa. The flipside is that they are very fun cars and even though they may be a bit finicky I wouldn't sell mine for any price.

If you can swing it, I'd suggest always keeping around $1000-$1500 around for "emergency" repairs. If that's too much right now, then wait a couple years until you can swing it. When you get one it'll definitely be worth it!

 

I have an Alfa 147 1.9 M-Jet and i love it.
Almost 10.000 km with not a single trouble. 164 suffered of some electrical problems, but engines are good.

 

Without seeing pictures or anything, I can tell you that $6,500 is probably too much for it. Don't buy it. Go back to the AlfaBB and look for a better deal. The LS is an expensive model. Get an early model S or an L.

Unless you're a mechanic, and a damn good one at that, I agree with DGS, an Italian car without service is trouble, especially a 164 of all things. A 1750 Spider might not be as bad. Although, on second thought, SPICA can be hard to deal with..

And, not to burst your bubble but $2,000 isn't really a budget for an Alfa. I put more then that into my Milano last year. Granted, it has almost twice the miles the 164LS you're looking at has, but still. Generally, Alfas require more frequent maintenance then other cars. That's true for almost all European cars. And, that maintenance is genrally more expensive. You can find parts on the internet, but who in Boise is going to be able to work on it? Look (or ask) around, see if you can find an Alfa mechanic.

I'm not saying don't get an Alfa, not at all, but I am saying that you should rethink the 164LS, find either a cheaper 164 or another Alfa. You also need a lot more then $2,000. Insurance alone will probably end up costing you half that in a year. And, bytheway, if you do get an Alfa, feel free to make the drive to SLC to join the Alfa club here.

 

There are two good Alfa mechanics in Salt Lake. PM me if you want more information.

 

I absolutely hate it when people sight unseen declare that someone is paying too much for a car. A nice, low miles 164LS sold here in Chicago for $8,500 last year. It was on Ebay, and there were multiple bidders pushing the price up. Believe it or not, there actually is a market for pristine, well kept Alfas.

 

Eh, I don't mean to piss you off or anything, it just seems a bit much for a 164. I don't know if you've noticed but people seem to go crazy over things on Ebay.