From an early age, I've always hankered after cars that dare to look a little bit different and had always fancied an Alfa Romeo.
Having now reached an age where I've owned several cars, Ford, Vauxhall, Citroen, Renault and Ford again, I decided the time was right to be that bit decadent and treat myself to an Alfa.
The model I've bought is the 2.0 TS Selespeed Lusso, just over a year old with 3500 miles on the clock which is absolutely stunning in black with light grey Momo leather upholstery. Having paid just £12000 for it (best part of £20000 new with the extras it's got), they're are plenty of bargains to be had in the used car arena, and you'll get a lot of car for your money.
Having owned a fully specced up Ford Focus 2.0 Ghia previously (full leather, air con, traction control, cruise control etc etc) I really wanted something with a comparable spec.
The Alfa doesn't just compare, it blows it away, the equipment on the car includes;
1. Momo Leather upholstery 2. 16" alloy wheels with 205/55/R16 tyres 3. Dual zone climate control 4. Bose Hi-Fi System 5. Traction Control 6. Cruise Control 7. Electric windows all round 8. Electric/heated mirrors 9. Heated front windscreen 10. CD/Radio with steering wheel mounted controls 11. On-board computer
The design and style of the car are unquestioned, stunning looks are combined with practicality, particularly on my 5 door version with `hidden` rear door handles to maintain the looks of the 3 door. The car has the 16" Sport alloy wheels, the only drawback being the wide tyres do increase the roadnoise slightly.
To drive the car is a dream, the front wheel drive and wide tyres giving fantastic road holding - and there's nothing quite like flying round a bend at speed! The only other car I've driven that manages this is my mum's old shape Mini Cooper. What is noticeable is the hard suspension and responsive drive, particularly compared to the Focus, but all the much more fun for it!
The Selespeed gearbox is a revelation. It's a 5 speed manual box but with no clutch and a sequential gearbox. Changing up a gear is a push forward on the lever, down a gear is a pull down on the lever. Alternatively, you can use the paddles mounted on the steering wheel. This takes a few days to get the hang of, but wow, when you do it's fantastic. You learn to change gear at the perfect rev level, and because there's no clutch you continue to accelerate virtually eliminating the 'lag' between changes.
Under drawbacks I've listed petrol consumption - my computer is currently reporting an average of 27.8 mpg (bearing in mind that this is a 150bhp car idling away in rush hour traffic I don't suppose I can have too many complaints) and does compare favourably with the Focus I previously owned (about 28.5 mpg). Insurance is slightly more of a bugbear, engine size and performance are comparable to the Focus, however I appear to have leapt from group 8 to group 14 (at another £200 a year).
Whilst the car has amazing looks to begin with, there is plenty of scope for modification, with literally thousands of styling websites out there. So far the most adventurous I've been is to change my orange side indicators for clear ones, well worth the £20 it cost.
In conclusion I would recommend that, if you are reading this because you are considering an Alfa 147, then consider no more. Buy it, you won't regret it!!
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Great review and yes I have a great time in my manual 2ltr Lusso with all the toys as well those 17" super sports wheels just add to the already brilliant looks.
karen5416 11.06.2004 18:40
Hi, welcome to ciao, great first op : ] x
Nikki.Hellen 09.06.2004 17:35
Excellent first review, really enjoyable. I'm looking forward to more from you. Nikki
Jun 9th, 2004
exceptional by (8%):
very helpful by (69%):
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