Faults:

Poor seals on driver and passenger windows (they had to be rectified at every service).

Periodically the engine had a problem in keeping constant revs when idle (the defect was always corrected by dealer).

At 40000 Km I had to replace the "lambda" probe in the engine. Most expensive repair I ever had to endure.

General Comments:

This car is a load of fun, and the many great reviews on this site testify to that.

It is also very secure. Two weeks ago while traveling at dusk on a motorway I hit an abandoned rear cover from a pick up truck. The car must have been doing 70 to 80 miles an hour and was suddenly flung at speed against the side rails. It then rebounded back in the middle of the road, but I was still able to keep it under control (whilst losing the bonnet and assorted pieces) and stop safely in the emergency lane.

I later found out that the first hit against the guard rail had managed to bend laterally the front part of the chassis by 3.5 cm, and yet the steering had responded beautifully to my efforts to get the car under control.

The story ends by saying that, after having cashed in the insurance, I went to my Alfa Dealer and bought another GTV (with the 2.0 JTS engine) with the recent 2003 restyled front and interior.

Faults:

Drivers and passengers windows required adjustment due to 2 little L-shaped brackets that determine the window stop position bending over time.

Dealer will charge min 1hour labor each door, the adjustments can easily be done yourself by lifting off the interior door panel to expose the adjustment bolts (in the top of the inner door frame). Simply loosen them and re-position the brackets 1/4in lower.

The car's immobilizer would not allow the car to start the car when the battery voltage dropped below 12.5V after it had not been used for 2 weeks. Replacing the battery meant the ECU needed to be re-calibrated (according to the dealer)

The fuses/relays under the cover on the left under the bonnet are seriously prone to corrosion, another electrical fault was down to badly corroded connections.

General Comments:

The car is fitted with the aero-pack and looks the business. The red leather interior is high-quality and still looks superb at 88k miles. It is a joy to sit in and drive, and literally can feel rooted to the road (especially with Goodyear F1's).

Med to high speed cornering is its forte, though some tramlining under braking, and understeer in low speed corners. You really feel the low speed bumps.

The 3litre engine is awesome.

Braking is merely adequate.

Main dealers sometimes appear to lack the most basic knowledge about the range.

Faults:

Some electrical problems (airbag light, wipers at low speed), noises at rear suspension.

Fuel mileage can go quite low if used in a sports way.

General Comments:

The car is absolutely stunning and drives better than expected. Easily tuned, it can leave behind cars such as Porsche Boxster and (if you dare) can go up to and above 160mph.

Definitely a great purchase, if you are willing to accept a lack of boot space, a consumption that is not exactly low and occasional electric problems (that can be solved easely by your dealer anyway).

Always take it with the 3years/60000miles extended factory warranty.