Faults:

Worn out bushes.

Bad paint.

Worn out shocks.

Bad clutch.

Oil leaks.

Power steering R&P leaked.

As I bought the car, it was fine for about 10k kilometers, after that things started to break down one after the other - but mostly from mileage & time wear. There was no serious malfunction in the car (& hopefully won't be).

I took it as a project car, and so replaced almost everything about it.

General Comments:

The car has got a rebuilt 1.7 8v engine with 40mm carbs, 4 Koni sport shocks, all around poly bushes, vented discs at the front, omp strut brace, 185/60/14 tyres & rims, new paint job - Alfa red (the old red was dead), all around new bearings, shock mounts, clutch...

I liked it from the beginning because it is a unique car and cheap to buy, and I wanted a car to tune up myself, to match it to my specific demands.

This car is pretty amazing - it corners & grips like a leach, stops good for a 33, and goes like stink.

The engine with the carbs sounds like nothing I've ever heard - including sports cars.

Of course the materials inside are badly made, the driving position is bad, and the A/C doesn't work.

But... this is one hell of a car!

Faults:

Engine expired.

Rear door lock didn't work with central locking.

General Comments:

After listening to all the reports about old Alfas (33s in particular), I still went ahead and bought this one.

Boy did I regret it!

You'd think the fact it'd had only 2 owners and not done starship Enterprise miles that it would've been o.k, but oh no.

I thought at first that after it kept not starting the battery might be faulty, as putting a boost box on it seemed to get it going, but one morning it just wouldn't go.

A friend who used to service these told me that the spark plugs are near the ground due to the engine design, and as they get damp the engine won't fire.

We tried and tried starting it, and ended up towing it with a 4x4 to try and get it going, it wasn't having any of it!

Then it went into a local garage, who tried starting it, they got a bit worried when the engine caught fire!!

Time to give up and scrap it I thought.

Luckily it was only a 3rd car and intended as a bit of fun, so didn't affect me that much.

From when I actually did drive it, I can say that performance is great for a 1.7, handling was alright-not as good as I expected (and awful in the wet), despite new tyres, the driving position would suit an ape, and the engine sounded good, but I'm sure you'd be reaching for the painkillers after a journey.

All in all, one of my worst ever buys (and there've been a lot), not a very good car even when working, and as bad as all the rumours about reliability suggested.