Alfa Romeo Forum banner

New owner, my 1st experiences !

2K views 33 replies 5 participants last post by  woody 
G
#1 ·
Hi, just thought I would introduce myself. I am new to the forum and to Alfa's. I have just bought a 96 GTV 2.0 TS having sold my last car, a 94 SAAB 900s and wanting to put a bit more character back into my driving.

I am mad about bikes and previously owned a Ducati 996, that I sold to buy a new Yamaha R1. However, since reverting back to Jap machinery a large chunk of 'Italian Soul' has been removed from my life. Hence, I suppose I bought the GTV as I missed the Ducati somewhat. It is true that there is something charasmatic that the Italians build into their thoroughbred sports machinery that the rest of the world have never been able to capture.

I just love the GTV. That engine note is to die for, and the looks... It is a mini Ferrari!!. However, my first week of ownership nearly ended in disaster. I bought the car from a non-alfa main dealer and it was supposed to have had a full service to Alfa specification before I picked it up (62000 mile service). In addition, I also paid for new Cam belt & tensioner. When I picked the car up I noticed a knocking and occasional squeaking noise from the rear end so I took it to an Alfa specialist for inspection (ALFATUNE, St Helens). They confirmed that the wishbones had moved on the subframe and needed replacing. They also pointed out that the first sign of this happening is uneven tyre wear. I was then shown the rear tyres on my car, that were almost brand new right across their profile up until an inch from their inner most edges, where they were completely bald. I was told that this should have definately been picked up on a full service/MOT.

I subsequently took the car back to where I purchased it and the salesman was apologetic and booked the car in for 3 days later. Unfortunately, before the car went in, my girlfriend and I where driving in the rain and all of a sudden the back end of the car whippped round to meet the front whilst on a roundabout, with no provocation. We mounted the kerb at about 15-20 mph and ruined the nearside front alloy and tyre. We nearly went head on into traffic as well!!. After the accident, which appears to me to be soley down to the fact that the worn bushes/wishbones, causing the camber angle to be wrong and putting the full weight of the vehicle onto the bald section of rear tyres. Bald tyre plus rain = disaster. I stormed back into the dealer and explained what had just happened. I was really sorry and said he would get everything sorted and send the car to an Alfa dealer for a full inspection and for the suspension etc. to be fixed.

The car is going to be offroad for at least a week.......damn.

Cheers

Fly
 
See less See more
G
#2 ·
Hi Fly and welcome!

Sorry to hear about your bad luck. You are right you will love the GTV to bits I know I do
. The problem with the rear bushes and suspension setup has been mentioned here before. If I remember correctly the posts stated that you should get them checked out at about 60k and replace them as necessary but don't quote me
. Let us know how things get on Ok. Good luck and enjoy the car!

Drive safe

Carmelo
 
G
#3 ·
Hi Fly

The saleman may change his mind when he finds out how much the bill will be for the work, its been mentioned on here before and I think it was about £1000, be prepared for an argument!!!

wrinx
 
G
#4 ·
Thanks. I have been having a mooch and find this forum very useful. I just hope I can provide as much useful input to it as many of yourselves have.

PS. Is that £1000 bill for replacing the entire subframe and bushes? My wishbones have apparently moved to rest against the subframe but there appears to be no damage to the subframe itself.

Fly
 
G
#5 ·
When buying a GTV there are three things to look at if you suspect rear suspension wear. Firstly look at the car side on, on level ground - the car should be level front to rear but on many 1996 cars the rear squats noticeably with the front up in the air. Also as you mentioned listen for an intense bump from the rear when you go over a bump, this is harder to detect as all GTVs aren't the quietest over bumps. Thirdly look at the car from the rear, if there is too much negative camber and tyre wear on the inside then there are problems.

In my experience the 1997 and 1998 cars rarely suffer this problem.
 
#6 ·
Originally posted by Fly:[QB]Thanks. I have been having a mooch and find this forum very useful. I just hope I can provide as much useful input to it as many of yourselves have.

PS. Is that £1000 bill for replacing the entire subframe and bushes? My wishbones have apparently moved to rest against the subframe but there appears to be no damage to the subframe itself.

Fly[/QB]
This is the most common GTV problem and Bingy Bongy on this forum had this work carried out recently.The £1000 is for the entire subframe and bushes.If I remember correctly you should not have the problem again if you swap to the uprated V6 items,which is what Bingy did.
 
G
#8 ·
My GTV 2.0 Lusso just went through it's first MOT (57,000 miles) & needed the rear suspension bushes & swing arms replaced. Cost me £365, including MOT, which sounds reasonable to me. Got it done at Northgate Garage, Canterbury, who are lovely.
 
G
#9 ·
Thats spooky, our 1997 GTV to be is also replacing a Saab 900....One presumes having been MOT'd and serviced this has all been done, I'll have to get it cehcked out. welcome by the way....
 
G
#10 ·
Hi Fly

I bought an R1 3 years ago - put off the Duke by my mates 996SP (nicked) 996SPS (nicked) and 996 Foggy rep (nicked). I got sick of push starting him at fuel stops and him not turning up cos he'd broken down here or there......

The R1 was a revelation. More comfortable, quicker and I never even changed a bulb in 15,000 miles.

I sold it to buy a new 147, picked it up last week. The following day it broke down and went back to the dealer, parts not in stock........ How it reminded me of that Ducati 'character'.

Drove the 147 up to Snetterton yesterday and watched Emmett (on last years bike!) thrash the field. The journey felt a bit sterile cocooned in my 147 as the bikes flashed by.

I fear I'm not a convert to 4 wheels, italian or otherwise, I miss my R1 SO much.....

Might have a look round the Yam dealer next week...

147 anyone?
 
G
#11 ·
Thanks everyone for your help and welcome. I have been informed that the car has now been back to the MOT station and has passed the test again !!!!
I cannot believe it. They said the rear tyres were legal and did not mention anything about the suspension bushes. I have been told that the car is getting an indepedent geometry test today and if the results show that the car is unsafe then they will think about paying for the damage.

I don't really know what to do next but there is no way that car is safe the way that back end came round on me. Also, surely they could simply amend the camber before getting the geometry test done, hence it would pass. I do not trust them at all.

PS.This is thea main SAAB franchise dealer in Chester.

Thanks

Fly.
 
G
#12 ·
Thanks everyone for your help and welcome. I have been informed that the car has now been back to the MOT station and has passed the test again !!!!
I cannot believe it. They said the rear tyres were legal and did not mention anything about the suspension bushes. I have been told that the car is getting an indepedent geometry test today and if the results show that the car is unsafe then they will think about paying for the damage.

I don't really know what to do next but there is no way that car is safe the way that back end came round on me. Also, surely they could simply amend the camber before getting the geometry test done, hence it would pass. I do not trust them at all.

PS.This is thea main SAAB franchise dealer in Chester.

Thanks

Fly.
 
G
#14 ·
Just to give you all an update. I took some legal advice and also spoke to the Ministry Of Transport re:the MOT which they tell me should have failed for the rear suspension bushes alone !!

The same morning, the chief technician from the SAAB garage phoned and said he hid finished inspecting the rear suspension (the car hadn't even gone for a geometry test) and confirmed that the bushes had gone. I went on to tell him about my conversation with the Ministry of Transport etc. and he advised that the SAAB garage had agreed to pay for everything to be fixed, incl. a brand new front alloy wheel and tyre. He would not categorically state that they were the cause of my accident but agreed that it was possible.

Anyhow, the salesmanager phoned me back later that evening and advised that I would still have to pay for a set of rear tyres, if I wanted them fitted, as they WERE legal. I thought he had a damn cheek and told him so. It's the bleedin least they can do for their grease monkey nearly me and my missus due to his neglect. He said he would 'see what he could do.

The car will be off road for a further 8 days whilst everything is replaced and then the car will be geometry tested by an independent garage before being sent to an Alfa dealer for inspection.

I would advise anyone who thinks the bushes may be worn to get them checked asap as the incident I had was totally uncontrollable and without any prior warning. Seriously shat myself!!!

PS. Nice one Zeroseven, glad to hear from another avid biker. I tried leaving 2 wheels too but gave up after 6 months. Once it's in your blood and all that.... Which R1 did you have?, I have just bought the 02 model but have not ridden one prior. I love the bike but it does lack a bit of character compared to my Duke.

Cheers

Fly
 
G
#16 ·
Hi, also just bought a GTV, 97R 2.0l TS, and have noticed a clonking from the rear - more noticeable on the passenger side. As has been noted above, the car can have a crashy ride - are there any physical (as opposed to aural!) checks I can do before I take it back to the garage - not an Alfa main dealer (whether this is a good or bad thing I will find out soon enough).
And are worn bushes an MOT failure, as it was MOT'd before I picked it up - the car can be a bit squirmy under braking, and I don't want a repeat of the incident described above.
 
#17 ·
When I bought my 1999 GTV 2.0 TS (37k miles) in January, it had both the suspension clonk, and broken arial - the dealer (non-franchised) replaced both!

It also had a wining clutch, dodgy drivers mirror, and 'cloudy' paint on front bumper, they replaced the clutch and the mirror, and re-sprayed the bumper!

Also got a set of GTV mats thrown in and a tank of petrol - it pays to complain!
 
G
#19 ·
Why oh why do you guys not pay the money and take it to the experts to be checked? AN ALFA DEALER. All gtv,s and spiders can have this problem and if it is not picked up early it can be costly. BUT all you have to do is take it to the experts for an inspection, let them quote for a repair and take it to the supplier. Most car dealers would not argue with a technical inspection by an Alfa dealer.
 
G
#20 ·
<blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">quote:<hr /><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Originally posted by Fly:
<strong>PS. Nice one Zeroseven, glad to hear from another avid biker. I tried leaving 2 wheels too but gave up after 6 months. Once it's in your blood and all that.... Which R1 did you have?, I have just bought the 02 model but have not ridden one prior. I love the bike but it does lack a bit of character compared to my Duke.

</strong><hr /></blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">It was a 99 model. Only mods were Harris high titanium pipe and the usual Dynojet / K&H filter tweaks done at PDQ. Only thing I prefered on the 996 was it turned a little easier than my R1.

Loved it to death.
 
#22 ·
Me and Numan have disagreed in the past but I totally agree with him on this one. :) Never buy from a non-alfa dealer nor get your alfa repaired by a non-alfa dealer. Fly, I know this is of no help to you but maybe it may help someone else. BTW Fly, did you seek any advice about this car before you bought it?
 
G
#23 ·
Thanks for the advice guys - I think I've sussed it. I had a CD changer put in the boot ON THE PASSENGER SIDE!! Didn't have the clonk when I test drove it, so that explains it! Would disagree with Aisha on the always buy from an Alfa dealer, as I have saved £3k over what they were quoting me, for a good low mileage full spec, fsh model. Will certainly take it back there for its services though!!

On the subject of the jiggly ride, does anyone have any suggestions over a make of tyre that could reduce this - as my fillings can't take much more.

Loving the rest of the car though, (not the fuel bills;-))
 
#24 ·
We'll agree to differ Fly. I've had enough alfas and known enough owners to know buying from an alfa dealer is in most cases a better bet. Just because you saved 3k doesnt mean it was a better buy. But good luck with it anyway. Hope it goes well from here. :)
 
G
#25 ·
Thanks Aisha, I'm just glad that I've finally found a good Alfa resource site - AROC UK doesn't quite cut it for me, being only 25 years young, they seem a bit more into the historical side of Alfa's - not a bad thing as heritage is never bad (unless you're Skoda, and even they used to have a good pedigree).

I think I just got lucky with mine (so far)- it was a sportscar enthusiast type place. I intend to get to the next Alfa get together, so maybe you can give me your opinion on her then.

All I know is that £9,750 for a 42k, fsh lusso with sunroof, and metallic atoll blue is a pretty good deal, compared to the local dealer. Incidentally, I test drove a T reg at the Official place, and the paintwork was peeling off around the wing mirrors!! After 20k miles....
 
#26 ·
Are you going to "Phase II" it? Add in that chrome grille and colour-code those horrible black sill extensions and bumper bottoms.

And you'll need the later wheels and centre console, if you really want to go the whole way.

Ralf S.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top