[lussoman]

Had a bit of hassle with the Spider and am thinking (yet again) of changing.

Is a 2014 facelift Sportiva worth paying the extra for?
I see that the old one came with full leather as standard, the 'new' one does not.
It'll be the 170 bhp petrol. Mechanically, old and new are the same aren't they?

My dad has an old style Collezione (non-muiltiair), so I'm fairly familiar with that, less so the facelift.

Anybody's thoughts would be most welcome.

 

[Nickhoughton567]

I would say fix the spider, sorry.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[lussoman]

:thumbup: Haha, they must be poor! :laugh:
I do have a few other options, and yes, sticking with it is one of them.
I've been saying that for about 3 years...

 

[symon]

The Giulietta will feel very light and agile compared to a 946 Spider.

And it is 100% GM free.

 

[lussoman]

:thumbup: That's more positive!
GM-free does appeal.

 

[Stingwray]

After having both from new you must go with the 2014 - much better car.

 

[jparkin486]

I'm going to risk being called a hieratic with my next comment!!!

I have a Jtdm-2 140 sportiva (bear with me!) And last year was looking for a V6 spider. Eventually test drove a couple of 2.2's and was a little disappointed in how they felt to drive. A bit heavy and dull. My diesel felt a lot faster accelerating and generally lighter on the road. So I'm sure a 170 petrol will feel a million miles away from your spider lussoman. Plus as u say the 2013 comes with leather. Red in my case :thumbup:

Please don't shoot me for bringing in a diesel to the fight! But using it as a comparison!!

Julian

 

[cue2]

After having both from new you must go with the 2014 - much better car.

With the exception of sticking an iPad right in the middle of the dash, ruining the design theme in the process. And yes, I have tried it for a couple of days with the new version.

 

[lussoman]

Thanks for your contribution Julian :thumbup:
I agree with your comments re the 2.2 Spider, I expect the G 170 to be like a go kart in comparison!
What I really don't get is why Alfa dropped the standard (for the Sportiva) full leather interior in 2014.
That's one of the few things I think the car really needs for it to feel 'right'.
It seems hardly anyone was prepared to pay for leather as an option on later models if AT ads are anything to go by.

 

[Stingwray]

My 2013 was anthracite with red leather and looked stunning, my 2014 was alfa red with no leather but the drive quality was so much better and I feel it lifted it from Focus class (sorry) to somewhere near BMW/AUDI. Both cars were 170 petrols. I also had a 2008 2.2 spider LE in 2011 and if I am honest it is probably the car I miss the most and I am contstantly searching Autotrader to be enticed back into spider ownership...

 

[JTD_Liam]

Normally I prefer the 2014 models as they feel a bit better screwed together & I don't mind the revised interior & DAB radio etc. However because the original Sportiva only got introduced in the last 12 months before the 2014 facelift, they seem pretty decently put together as well.

They also get (as you noticed) full leather, rather than the part-leather of the 2014 Sportiva Nav and whilst they don't have touchscreen, DAB etc, the 6.5" UConnect fitted to the Sportiva Nav is often more hassle than it's worth.

As you want the MultiAir 170 engine, there's no difference between the two models (unlike the diesels), so I'd say unless you can find a 2014 one with full leather (which is pretty hard, trust me, I've been looking) I'd go for the older one

 

[lussoman]

Interesting comments Stingwray.
I've had my Spider LE for five and a half years now, and I don't think there's a day goes by when I don't look at it and admire its beauty.
No disrespect to G owners, but a G just can't compete on that level.
One good thing about the facelift model is that they got rid of that horrible blue/grey dash.

 

[jparkin486]

Interesting comments Stingwray.
I've had my Spider LE for five and a half years now, and I don't think there's a day goes by when I don't look at it and admire its beauty.
No disrespect to G owners, but a G just can't compete on that level.
One good thing about the facelift model is that they got rid of that horrible blue/grey dash.

Got to agree there. I think the spider is one of the best looking cars ever. I have some pictures of a red one I test drove and still look at them and think I should have bought it!

My G has the blue/grey dash and almost everyone who sees it likes it! I'd only change it for a gloss white one.

Was hoping to get my hands on a 2016 facelift G soon but my company have extended the lease on mine until November now.

J

 

[jparkin486]

Dare I say keep the spider AND get a G??

That was my plan. A white G side by side with a white spider on the drive! (Plan didn't happen!)

 

[lussoman]

Dare I say keep the spider AND get a G??

That was my plan. A white G side by side with a white spider on the drive! (Plan didn't happen!)

It's a nice idea!
I've thought about my ('affordable') Alfa dream driveway a few times.
It includes the white Spider, a red Prodrive Brera and an Atlantico Blue GT Cloverleaf.
No Alfa dream would be complete without a Busso though, so probably one of the last GTVs as well.
I don't think there's room for a G, but maybe squeeze a top-spec 8C red one on there (with 18'' 5-hole alloys or the dark Sportiva ones).

In reality I can't justify having two cars never mind that lot.
I do a relatively low mileage as it is. But one can dream.

 

[Stingwray]

After monitoring the spider prices for what seems like ever, now is the time to px/sell as the prices seem to have risen recently and I do not feel it is because it is just the summer. I purchased my spider from a main dealer 5 years ago and to buy the same car now five years on they are the same price. In contrast there are some really good value G out there at the moment.

 

[lussoman]

After monitoring the spider prices for what seems like ever, now is the time to px/sell as the prices seem to have risen recently and I do not feel it is because it is just the summer. I purchased my spider from a main dealer 5 years ago and to buy the same car now five years on they are the same price. In contrast there are some really good value G out there at the moment.

I've noticed prices are a bit higher than where they were a couple of years ago - even the webuyanycar figure was about £500 higher the last time I checked.

You must have got an absolutely amazing bargain when you bought your Spider 5 years ago.
Mine was bought 5.5 years ago, also a LE, and also from a main dealer.
I paid £15.5k. Even Veloces are advertising comparable cars for 'only' £12.5k now.
I'm probably looking at no more than £10k privately (more like £9-£9.5k in reality), and maybe £7.5-£8k as a part-ex.
It's now done 49k miles, 1 previous owner, full history, cam chain done etc.
So a fair amount of depreciation, but as expected.

 

[Stingwray]

I paid £11995 for a black LE with 28k, as mentioned I wished I had kept it. Only sold it as I bought my other half a 12 plate personalised plate so she had to have a new car to put it on, in came a Mini Cooper s. Most expensive number plate I have purchased to date.......,

Back to the G, one thing to consider is that if you buy a 2014 you will have one years warranty left but if you buy a 2013 you will have two as there was a deal on the 2013 Sportiva that gave it 5 years warranty if I remember correctly.

 

[lussoman]

My Spider had done 21k, but can't get my head around the price difference of £3.5k for 7K fewer miles and just 6 months apart. Got mine from Benfield in Newcastle. If anything you'd think a northern dealer would be cheaper.
They'd just reduced the price by a grand as well, and I then got a further £500 off, but I did pay cash, no part-ex or finance.

I'll not put too much emphasis on the Alfa warranty - it was not fit for purpose on the Spider, unbelievable really.
Maybe they've improved things, I don't know, but thanks for that information about a 5 year warranty - it's certainly something to think about.

 

[Stingwray]

Mine came from a main dealer in Chelmsford - I did px a month old mito with 1k on the clock but the advertised price was 11995 regardless.