Swap my seicento abarth for Alfa 146 ??

[cinqysporting]

Bonjourno gars,

I have been offered a straight swap with an W reg Alfa 146 for my W reg Seicento sporting Abarth. I love my Seicento and have had it for 2 years now and only replaced "consumable" parts, my wife starts back at work soon after being on maternity leave and while the baby seat does fit in the front seat its a bit of a squeeze as my 4 yr old has his booster seat in the back.......so something bigger is on the cards.I know 145/146s are not without thier problems and reliability IS an issue as i dont fancy a breakdown whilst on the early morning nursery run.The car has an invoice for cambelt change @ 65,000 (it has 79,000 on it now) but no record of the variator.......all the electrics seem to work fine, even the headlight washers.
If any of you guys have experience with 146s or know anybody who has, a few pointers would be appreciated, i suspect its going to be akin to all italians....ie....."fantastic car,only ever bought an air freshener in 100,000 miles".....to "avoid it like the Harman province..you`ll need deep pockets to keep it on the road"....
Anyway i`ve talked sh*te for long enough, so any comments very welcome,

Adam

 

[fingers99]

Alfas are generally a lot of fun, but do need a lot more looking after than a Sei.

 

[maddogmorg]

if it's looked after the 146 will (should) prove reliable, no more less reliable than any other car tbh. however it will require more work to keep it looked after as the engines tend to be more advanced than the small Fiat engines.

the Twinspark engines tend to use a fair bit of oil which needs to be checked often but as long as this is taken care of and the belts it should be alright. stay clear from any that have had a cambelt snap as often the top end is rebuilt only for the bottom end to go shortly after.

what engine is it? 1.6/1.8/2.0 Twinsparks or 1.6 8v/1.7 16v boxers? i'm guessing twinsparks, which is probably for the better.

 

[cinqysporting]

Thanks for that.......

its a 2.0 TS, it seems to have a bit of history to it, cambelt was changed 3000 miles ago, new wiper motor,exhaust etc.
No mention of variator or Clutch though !!!
Also i dont think the A/C works, the re-circ light doesnt appear to switch off ??
I`ve got a few days to ponder on it before he comes back of holiday.....

 

[FDF]

Get it checked by RAC /AA or mate who knows about cars.

 

[jug]

2.0 twinny 146 should be a top of the range Ti model? it will have a great spec, compared to your sei it will feel like a leap forward in luxury and performance. 146 has great handling with sharp steering (& "quick rack" on 2.0). w reg is one of the last made, the 147 started on y reg. get it!