E30 325i or Alfa 155?

[Paul_TVR]

Due to having classic insurance on my other car I need to own a everyday car as well, I've been looking at E30 's again as I had a 320i 1988 for many years but gave it to a friend last year. The MR2 I replaced it with had so much rot it was eBay time, that's now gone and thinking of a 325i or a Alfa 155, I've been offered a very clean Alfa 2.0 twin spark for £700 on a 1996 'N' just wondering how the 2 would compare, is it possible to pick up a half decent E30 for that money? last year when I gave my car away E30's were fetching next to nothing now the prices have gone up a bit it seems.

[Cloggy Saint]

I love the look of the 155 but would never own one. There's something about older Alfas that i just don't trust!

[dazleeds]

the alfa should be a decent car power wise and will no doubt shift
but i think youll spend a lot in maintenance on any alfa tbh

i have been theere done that and theyre great cars for fun but bloody expensive to keep em going

whereas the 325i is a lot easier to work on a lot cheaper to maintain
and will be a lot more solid than the average alfa

[Paul_TVR]

That's what I was thinking, maintenance I'll probably do mostly myself whatever car I go for, my last E30 needed a fair bit welding but was still a solid old car, to which my friend can testify having put it backwards into a Armco and nearly rolling it lol. The Alfa has a galvanised body so hopefully won't suffer with much rust, the car I've been offered is more or less spotless actually. I do prefer the RWD though, keeps me ready for when things get out of shape in the TVR lol. I think I'll keep my eye's open for a 325 to see what comes up in the next few weeks if nothing comes up in budget I'll go with the 155.

[Andy335Touring]

I've always liked the look of the Alfa but like said above it's wronge wheel drive and i'd guess some of the parts prices would be scarey

Talking of cars i like, you mentioned TVR have you got any pics ?

[DaveD]

I had 2 alfa 75's (an automatic 2.5 and a 2litre twin spark)...had the first for 5 years and had no trouble at all, the twin spark was excellent but got killed at a roundabout after9 months ...but they were rear wheel drive and rear gearbox...i would have another alfa

[Andy335Touring]

...but they were rear wheel drive and rear gearbox.

My bad, i thought they were FWD nastyness

[ed325i]

I have been toying with the idea of a touring car rep alfa 155. What about the 2.5 v6 one with the wide body



ED

[Paul_TVR]

This is the Griff as requested lol



here's some of the Alfa I'm considering


the 155's are FWD.

and finally while adding pics here's some of what my mate did to my old 320i

[/img]

[Andy335Touring]

cheers for posting the pics, the TVR looks lovely, nice colour too

[kirils]

i had the same ideas in my mind couple months ago, e30 or alfa 155... here the alfa was a bit more expenceive, ass i read they handle like a go cart, but again wrong wheel drive, really cheap plastics, and they do seem a bit fragile, so i bought a 320i and i think that i made the right choice

[Paul_TVR]

No problem Andy, the TVR is a nice car good fun too so I don't need something crazy for my other car, but would still like it to be interesting. I will have another E30 at some time anyway suppose could pick the Alfa up as it's the right price then wait for a good 325i to turn up at a later date.

[Andy335Touring]

Have you had the griff long ?

Which model(engine) is it ?

How do you rate it over all, power, handling, reliability, running costs, etc ?

I bet it's fun in the wet with all that grunt

[Gwynleym10]

...but they were rear wheel drive and rear gearbox.

My bad, i thought they were FWD nastyness

155's are front but older 75's are rear wheel drive rear geabox (last RWD ALfa)

Both 155 / 75 don't rust bit just fall off!

I would have thought a alfa 75 3.0V6 would be more of a comparison with a 325i than a 175. If you can find a nice 75 then I think you are onto a winner! Never liked 155 maybe 156 though...

[Car-Nut]

Paul,


I had an alfa 155 2.5 v6 not a wide body though in 1998 I had nothing but problems with electrics luckily my brother owned L-M international then so it was handy for repairs. I now have a E30 325i se for my daily runner as well as an e39 m5 which I replaced my Tuscan with.

I love the 325 though its great ....... :O)

It also did 31.7mpg last week !!

[DaveD]

[/quote]I would have thought a alfa 75 3.0V6 would be more of a comparison with a 325i than a 175. If you can find a nice 75 then I think you are onto a winner! Never liked 155 maybe 156 though...[/quote]


I had both my 75s written off ...one killed by a hit and run driver on a friday afternoon whilst parked (found him ,no tax ,no insurance ,failing to stop Guess what £250 fine) and the other hit by a truck stationary at lights on a summers afternoon...i loved them and nearly went looking for a 3litre but thought that i had killed 2 another one might have killed me

[Paul_TVR]

Andy I've had the Griff about 4 years now, it's the 500, got to have the big one don't ya lol as for rating the power is great, I did put it in for a rebuild with balancing and cam and induction mods but in the end went for a standard setup again due to money issues lol,in the wet it can be a real handful, it will spin the wheels if you look at the throttle lol although saying that on the track day at brands I was more or less the only car out when the heavens opened, was still fine really but I've had it nearly kill me a few times in the wet on the road. main thing with the Griffith is to uprate the suspension as the standard setup is really lacking, mine has fully adjustable shocks and uprated springs, poly bushes and a few other bits then set up with plenty of negative camber and change the toe on the rear to make it more predictable.

it's only ever let me down once but I've still spent a fortune on it, I didn't buy too wisely though and should of had the car checked out better before I bought it, I ended up putting right everything on the car and it's cost a small fortune also was unlucky with the car being hit by a uninsured driver after owning it a few weeks too. general running costs are ok, it does more to the gallon on a run that most considering it's got a 5 litre V8 in it, insurance isn't to bad either. Although got to say my old S2 TVR was great, never broke, did over 30+ to the gallon and had a great sounding V6 in it

[Conan]

Always liked the 155 - even if it has got a large ass

maybe one a little like this would fit the bill

[Speedtouch]

Recently bought myself a bog-standard 1988 (F) 325i SE for £700 to upgrade from the £800 1987 (E) 320i SE I bought last year (which seemed a bargain at the time). Absolutely chuffed with it so far - everything works bar the front fog lamps (both bulbs blown - some twat must have driven around with them on all the time!!), and it goes great. I soon hope to make it run even better as I've ordered an E30 Zone chip for it. Just had the cambelt replaced at my local garage - just £92.66, which blew me away (included a change of antifreeze). Thoroughly recommended!

[fuzzy]

i like the alfa 155,and to be honest that was going to be my first choice for my cossie engine conversion but i was told they had an odd layout that would cause problems so i went for the e30 instead

[Paul_TVR]

Now that alfa looks like fun I've been checking the local paper and autotrader, ebay etc but any other tips where I might find a good 325 then?

Paul

[Simon13]

sadly most 325's have been abused, but don't give up there is still the odd good car out there.

Milege is no issue as long as there is history and the car drives as it should.

Remember they are an old car now and will require some fixing and tinkering at the weekends!

[Paul_TVR]

The 320i needed a bit of messing about with, and even though I left it stood for a year with no use it didn't take much to put it back into use, I don't mind a bit of tinkering as long as there isn't a big rust issue as don't fancy having to get the Mig out at every mot lol.

Might even consider getting one that needs a bit of work as a little project, although already have a couple of projects on the go so can't really justify another lol, maybe one with MOT and tax that can be done as work in progress lol.

[onslow]

I have had both in my motoring history.

a 1.816v widebody alfa 155 and a narrow body v6 and now on the 325.

the 1.8 was great fun to drive really sharp turn in with the quick rack steering. made a nice noice but even with low miles and good service history it went bang in a big way twice! the 2.5 was made an even better noise and lasted ok.

BMW is great entry into the rwd world for me but its not nearly has much as good in the twisties imo (stands back and waits to be destroyed!)

In terms of cost of running and projects you will find alfa parts very hard to get hold of and very expensive in comparison with the bm

[Paul_TVR]

Looks like the Alfa I was thinking of going for is no longer for sale as the owner has decided to keep it, I'll keep looking for a E30 but need to pick something up fairly quickly really, I think it'll be a case of seeing what turns up. Went round to my garage today and got my old mini out, looks like it might live again so I could be driving that until I get something sorted, it's not exactly a great car for everyday use though as it's running a full race head and compression is so high it struggles to start when hot.

[onslow]

you can buy my e30 here if you like!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... %3AIT&rd=1

[Paul_TVR]

you can buy my e30 here if you like!

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... %3AIT&rd=1

Unfortunately it's a bit far from me and a auto, other that that it's perfect lol, I've had a look into a 535i sport but still think the 3 series is the way to go, got a heavy drinker already so think a 3.5 as well could be a mistake lol.

I've heard the 8v alfa is better really but some people really rate the 16v as well.