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Dantino · Last edited by Dantino on Tue Jan 13, 2015 4:42 pm; edited 1 time in total

Hello, a couple of months ago I bought an Alfa 33 S 16v in good conditions.
Im very happy with the car, it has 165,000 kms on the clock (100,000 miles) and it runs ok. It's a 2wd, and after some tender care it drives much better than when I got it. It's white, has a sunroof and A/C (not working now, but I hope I'll fix the A/C before summer ends)
I never had an Alfa before, but after driving a 146 2.0 ti of a friend of mine I decided that I wanted one if I could find a budget Alfa in reasonably good conditions.
I like the car, the problem is that spare parts are scarce and good mechanics for this car are scarce too, the few ones that could accept the car for a job ask you an arm and a leg, they charge you the same than for a job on a new Alfa, I understand it perfectly, the time of work is the same but new Alfas are expensive cars in this country (also their labor) and if you want a good mechanic it cost you a lot to keep an old car running.
These cars were expensive when new (25,000 u$) and in few years depreciation was terrible, after 5 or 6 years a used 33 cost was the same or even less than a Fiat Uno of the same year. Very few remain on the roads, almost all battered cars and some used parts are sold on the net sometimes. And many suffered of bad mechanics ("It's a strange engine, an opposed 4, you should better take it to an Alfa mechanic" or "I never saw such an engine, but I will try to fix it" and the results were a nightmare)
I hope I'll be able to keep the car running, I do almost all the repairs, only those beyond my possibilities are left for the mechanic. I really like the car and I'm very happy with it.
Alfa Romeo importers were always a problem here, since 1980/1 when the first Alfa importer began ( I was a young boy then and I worked with that importer for some months).
Then no more cars were imported from 1982 on until the early 90s, and the importer then was the local Sevel company, a Fiat and Peugeot manufacturer that didn' care too much about the car once they had sold it. About 10 years ago Fiat bought Sevel and continued to import Alfas, but Alfa spares were always difficult to get, now you can get the parts for new Alfas from the Fiat company, but prices are high and after so many years that the brand suffered of poor reputation not many new Alfas are sold, Alfas always depreciated more than other brands of a certain prestige.
Alfas here are for car lovers. I intend to keep my car, give it the best possible care and enjoy its lovely engine and driving...!

eagle3 · Alfa 33 Joined: 11 Nov 2007 Posts: 402 Location: France

Hello and welcome.

Much of what you say applies to Europe. Stocks of Alfa 33 parts have been emptied out of dealers stores. It's just too old a model to worry about for them. Not many left here either. Most are getting scrapped.

Important thing to check are the timing belts/tensioner pulleys. If you don't know when it was last done that should be a priority.
_________________
Alfa33 QO 1984
Alfa33 1.3i.e. 1994

Dantino · Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 12:06 am Post subject:

Thank you for the advice, Monsieur L'Aigle.
I talked to the former owner about that point, a very if not the most important thing to do. The car was owned by an Alfa fan, he also has a 1980 GTV and he traded in the 33 for a 155 6 cylinder, he is a member of an Alfa Romeo club. He has the records of the car and he assured me that the belts, tensioners and spark plugs were changed at 150,000 kms so the car has only 15,000 kms on that service.
In December 2013 I almost bought this car but somebody offered him the trade in for the bigger Alfa and when I decided to buy the car it was already gone. In September 2014 I saw the car for sale on the net, it was the same car.
What had happened? The man who got the car wanted it for his wife (I don't want to be macho but I'm afraid that this model is not the best suitable car for a lady who is learning to drive) and it wasn't easy for her to drive, it had erratic idle and erratic pick up, it almost wasn't possible to keep a steady pace. The man tried to convince me that that was because of the sporty nature of the car ("It's a ravage car, you always have to accelerate it, it's a race car" he said). But I knew that something was wrong in the car and I decided to buy it anyway, it has original paint and has no rust at all (no salt on the roads here, there's no snow).
It was not an easy drive home, my daily driver is an old Honda Accord, smooth as silk, and it seemed that the man I bought the car from was right: under full throttle the car was very fast but difficult to drive. Besides that when I contacted the insurance agent to keep the insurance with the same company because it had a good price he told me that he knew the seller and that he fell in love with the car but that he was scared about the price of the parts and the difficulty to find a good mechanic.
Some days later the car refused to start, there was spark in the coil but not in the spark plugs, I changed distributor cap and rotor to no avail. The problem was in the coil, the spark couldn't jump through the resistive rotor. I tried with another coil and it started instantly, and I also found that the coil support was not properly tightened to the car's body. I bought a Bosch coil and after that the car runs like a champ and purrs like a kitten at idle, pace is steady, and a pleasure to drive. After that I almost don't drive the Honda...

paulhide · Posted: Mon Jan 12, 2015 5:21 pm Post subject:

That last sentence has made me smile... Smile

_________________
Owner's Club 33 Registrar. Now from P4 & S2 1.7 QV
http://www.alfa-pages.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=5188

gritsop · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 10:34 am Post subject:

Welcome to the forum and happy Alfa motoring!

In here you willl find helpful people who are always willing to help fellow Alfa 33 owners.

Parts availability is an issue but searching around usually gets result.

Best regards from Greece.
_________________
Thanassis Gritsopoulos
1991 Alfa 33 1.4 IE
2001 Alfa 147 1.6 Distinctive

http://www.alfa-restoration.co.uk
Parts Shop: www.alfa-restoration.co.uk/shop

Dantino · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 4:25 pm Post subject:

Mr. Thanassis Gritsopoulos!

Thank you very much for your words...!
I really appreciate your help, and I know about you even before I bought the car, because in Alfa-restoration Uk there are many articles explaining very well the maintenance of the 33, with many photos that are a precious help showing your work on your car. A picture is worth a thousand words, and you illustrated it very well.
Your work helped me a lot before buying the car to have an idea about it, and after buying the car it also helped a lot to fix some things that were slightly overlooked...
You are a fine gentleman and I am very happy to have contacted you.
Many thanks again. 20140202_155306_Richtone(HDR)

gritsop · Posted: Tue Jan 13, 2015 7:44 pm Post subject:

Hi Dantino

Thanks a lot for the kind words! I am really glad that i have helped a fellow 33 owner who lives on the other side of the world .

I would be happy to help and discuss via email for your 33.

Best regards
_________________
Thanassis Gritsopoulos
1991 Alfa 33 1.4 IE
2001 Alfa 147 1.6 Distinctive

http://www.alfa-restoration.co.uk
Parts Shop: www.alfa-restoration.co.uk/shop