ALFA ROMEO 33 1.7 IE 5dr (1990)

Cheap second hand

Depreciation, good for buyers, bad for sellers. I was a buyer haha, worked in my interests. Nice cheap decently kitted out Alfa Romeo 33 for half the list price, at about two years old. Course that was about 12 years ago and it's probably worth nothing at all now. I sold up when it was about ten years old. The repairs were just getting a bit much. I think the gearbox was about to go as well.

The main repair I kept having to do myself was paintwork. It chips pretty easily, and we all know that leads to rust unless you sort it. Don't be fooled by garages though you can do it yourself, just buy a rust proofing kit.

It had loads of little faults over the years, but I spose that's the sort of thing you have to weigh up when you choose either an Audi (pricier, less depreciation) or an Alfa that might have things go wrong but costs half as much up front. Having said that, the Alfa Romeo 33 might have been the last to be shaky, I've heard better things about the more recent ones.

Other problem to bear in mind, which never bothered me that much cos I'm quite short, is the silly driving position. The offset pedals will annoy a lot of people, and the low headroom and generally poor dimensions inside can be a challenge.

Point is though, like the others in the range, the Alfa Romeo 33 is just a big fat laugh. It's loads of fun to drive, you can chuck it all around and it's got lots of poke and control, handles well, fun on the motorways and round the lanes. I don't regret it at all.