Alfa Romeo 147 2.0

I bought my Alfa 147 after much deliberating over which car to get. On my shortlist was a BMW 3 Series, a Peugeot 307cc, a Ford Ka Convertible, a Toyota MR2, and finally if I found enough money a Vauxhall VX 220! I decided on the Alfa after taking it for a test drive, and reading through the spec book you can pick up from any dealer. This car is fully loaded! And it was so good to drive my mind was made up instantly.

Unfortunately, ...
...I know Alfa Romeo don't have the best reputation in the world but I wouldn't have any hesitation in recommending the car to anyone. It is absolutely fantastic, full of toys, sounds brilliant, is really comfortable, easy to drive and, of course, it is one of the sexiest cars around!  ... more

I bought my Alfa 147 after much deliberating over which car to get. On my shortlist was a BMW 3 Series, a Peugeot 307cc, a Ford Ka Convertible, a Toyota MR2, and finally if I found enough money a Vauxhall VX 220! I decided on the Alfa after taking it for a test drive, and reading through the spec book you can pick up from any dealer. This car is fully loaded! And it was so good to drive my mind was made up instantly.

Unfortunately, as I wanted so many extra's on the car I decided to buy it from an independent importer, (but thats another story) and to cut a long story short I ended up waiting 7 months for delivery.

Now I have my car and boy, was it worth the wait!

To look at, this car is stunning. From the front you have the long bonnet with the front grill and the number plate off to one side. It is stylish, unusual and very sexy! From the back you see the wheel arches, the suspension, the exhaust.. and all boast of a very powerful, hot car. And of course you have 150bhp under the bonnet!

As with all cars it is worth paying the extra for the metallic paint, or if you really want to go for it you can get iridescant paint. I have seen a 147 with this and they look stunning. The metallic paint is fine though and still gives the car a shimmering look.

Moving inside, as standard this model comes with...
Dual Zone Climate Control - you can set the temperature to be up to 7 degrees different from the driver side to the passenger side
Single CD Player
Radio/CD Controls on the Steering Wheel
6 Airbags
Cruise Control
Follow Me Home Lights - set the headlight to stay on for a specific period after the engine has stopped, so you get in the house safely!
ABS
EBD (Electronic Brake Distribution)
Traction Control - that you can turn on and off as you wish
Electric Windows (front and back in the 5 door model)
Electric Heated Side Mirrors
Luggage Net in the Boot
Height Adjustable Drivers Seat
16" Alloys
Power Assisted Steering
Central Locking with Remote Control (you also open the boot this way!)
Electronic Stability Program with ASR (Anti Slip..something)
Tinted Windows.

The dual zone climate control would be very useful if there were ever more than 1 person in the car, but as I am in on my own most of the time, it is just really a toy to play with! It does, however, heat the car up extremely quickly (or cool it down I imagine although being winter I haven't tested that yet)
The electric heated mirrirs are great. When it rains, turn them on and in minutes you can see out of them again with no rain drops distorting your vision.
The Climate Control is probably the most useful 'as standard' feature on the car for me. Using the motorway a lot in quiet times, I just set the speed, press a button and sit back and relax!

On my car as extra's I got
Comfort Pack (leather seats, third inertia rear seatbelt, third rear headrest, front arm rest)
Winter Pack (Automatic rain sensor, automatic pollution sensor, automatic condensation sensor)
BOSE sound system with subwoofer
10 CD Autochanger
17" Super Sport Alloys

The comfort pack, although pretty useless, of course adds the leather seats and it has to be worth getting it just for that! They are really comfortable and just add that touch to the car. They also don't get as cold as I imagined leather seats would. The front arm rest is pretty pointless as it gets in the way when you are driving so you never have it down!
The winter pack is really worth adding in this country! The automatic wipers are brilliant. Just turn them on and you never have to touch them again to adjust speed etc. The condensation and pollution sensors are also pretty good, although you don't notice when they are doing anything! I have never had to demist the car, and I do notice that whenever I am in a traffic jam the climate control switches to recycling the air in the car so I am not breathing in car fumes.
The BOSE sound system and autochanger and the best bit I added to my car! If you want to sound fantastic as well as look the part, then get this. And turn up the tunes!
** One point to note about this nowadays though is that with the sub fitted you cannot have a handsfree system for your mobile that uses the cars speakers as it is too loud!
The 17" Alloys are just an addition to the car looking good! I only got them added to make my friends jealous, and it has worked. It is the first thing most people notice.

Now on to the driving experience...
Well, theres not a lot to say here! On my first trip up the motorway I just sat and enjoyed the experience. I had the cruise control on, the automatic wipers were clearing the rain from the windscreen, and the 11 CDs the car has (10 in the boot but still keep the 1 in the car!) were playing away. All I had to do was steer!

The suspension is firm, but the drive is quite smooth on motorways and around town driving. The only thing I will say against it is that it has quite a lot of wind noise. You don't notice it too much at high speed though, as the noise of the engine drowns it out! The engine, by the way, sounds brilliant!

The petrol consumption of the car isn't brilliant. I am, at present, averaging about 25-28mpg. I do however, spend a lot of time sitting in rush hour traffic travelling at 5mph in 2nd gear! On a good motorway run, you should get 30+mpg from it. Don't forget though it is a 2ltr, 150bhp car!

So, in conclusion, I know Alfa Romeo don't have the best reputation in the world but I wouldn't have any hesitation in recommending the car to anyone. It is absolutely fantastic, full of toys, sounds brilliant, is really comfortable, easy to drive and, of course, it is one of the sexiest cars around! 

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