GTA as a daily drive?

Hi guys,

first post! I'm looking into getting a GTA n/a (atmo?) as a regular drive. I would welcome any comments on running costs, things to look for that go wrong and general info. Are the engines generally reliable and are replacement parts cheap?

Any help would be gratefully received!

Cheers,

Andy

PS. Anyone got one going cheap?

If you search through everybody previous posts, you will find all the problems listed, but yes, the atmos are the most user friendly

The only problem youll get, are the same with all carbed cars. Atmos normally only start second time round, and sticking butterfly on the autochoke, but thats about it!

Nicely understressed engines that can be driven hard all the time, and not suffer from the electrical and heat related problems of the turbos.

Stephen still has a J plate atmo for sale at the mo.

Mmm not sure I completely agree...yes the atmo engine may be reliable and unstressed (and fast), but parts for non engine related items are expensive if you compare them to your average modern day knock about. electrical problems appear to be widespread and difficult/expensive to fix, but you are buying a car that was, in its time, virtually a supercar from a respected manufacturer. Having said that you will get an immense amount of pleasure from the car and the attention it attracts, and they are easy to drive and live with(although clutch and steering are heavy compared to modern cars), just be prepared for above average bills at service/repair time.
My advice would be to buy a very cheap and economical run about (Fiat Panda anyone???) and a turbo (if you have the space) and get the best of both worlds....the flutter and urge of the turbo is intoxicating. If you are only buying one car and want a GTA, bear in mind that they are all at least 12 years old and join the AA just in case!!!!!

Sorry, I meant just engine wise on the above thread, and I think I get used to the high prices associated to parts on thecars! I have a friend with a 996 Porsche who was moaning that a GT3 front panel was £600, and was amazed the standard GTA item is over £1000!

Rule of thumb with a GTA is buy it if you could afford to run and maintain a £50000 equivalent car..!

Thanks for the info so far! Slightly conflicting views, but I get the gist of it.

My dilema is this as follows. I currently have a Lotus Elise, which is great fun in the summer but I ran it last winter and it's just not really practical as things are starting to degrade. To stop the "rot" I've decided to garage it over the winter and run something else over the winter. At first I was thinking hatchback or something, but it's not really for me. The wife runs my old Impreza Turbo for ferrying the kids around and I'd like to keep that for holidays and trips away. So I started looking at coupes like porkers (968s, 944) so there is still a degree of practicality for shoving the kids in the back for day trips. However I've always liked GTA's and A610 (even with the Eldorado connection!) and I got to thinking about these.

Now I'm sure some of you will think it sacrilage to run a GTA over the winter, but I'm quite willing to do the maintenance work myself and given a nice car it is an incentive. The turbo's are nice but I figure the atmos are great VFM if the electrics work. I was a bit surprised that they were carbs as I've not had much experience with carburetor cars!! Got a lawn mower with carbs and had plenty bikes in the past with carbs.

I figure a could pick up a cheap GTA atmo, run it regularly maybe take it off the road over the summer to do major work on it and have a car that will not loose much monery or even appreciate in value.

Am I unrealistic?

Cheers,

Andy

Transmission + Gearbox

I run a GTA as a daily driver, and have found them more reliable this way. Like most cars GTA tend to seize up if not used regularly..you will see many posts about rear bushes, calipers, driveshafts, suspension..all parts which will degrade if not used regularly.

The point I was making for parts is, some of the more obsure parts can have collossal prices, ie body panels, headlamp glasses, and Renault now acts more as an agent than a stockist for the parts so every part has an indefinate wait which can become frustrating, so some of the time you can end up paying over the odds for secondhand parts just to get your car back on the road.

As I was saying about being able to afford to run a £50000 car, even Porsches and BMWs etc have good pattern parts backup from places like ECP or German & Sweedish, with good prices and stocks..but there is nothing like this really for Alpines.

..but they are no more unreliable than any other car, the main engine and box is very strong and the body will last forever and you will have a far more interesting and exciting drive than most other cars.

[stephendell]

I can do you a cracking deal on a very late 1992 'J' Reg Atmo if you don't mind fitting the (brand new!) headlamp glasses yourself

Has been sitting in my garage for 9 months but still has tax & MOT

Also happy to take you out for a spin in my 1990 Atmo if you like.

Stephen

Hi Andy,
I recently bought a 1988 GTA atmo and have been running it as my only car for just over a month now, doing about 300 miles/week. I would definitely recommend it, I've had no problems so far (touch wood!) and am really enjoying the driving experience. I used to have an old 944 but there wasn't enough room in the back for my 12 year old daughter, let alone my 18 year old son! The back of the GTA is significantly bigger, even adults can fit - just!
I've found running costs to be really reasonable. I insured it with Tesco for £250 fully comp (I didn't want a limited mileage classic policy), I had a full service done at an Alpine specialist (Roadspeed) for £250 (it would have been £150 but for some remedial work on the wipers) and I'm averaging about 30 mpg (quite a bit of motorway cruising in that).
I bought mine via ebay.
Go for it!
Clive

Thanks for all the information guys! I'm based in Nottingham, are there any Alpinists in the area?

Cheers,

Andy

Hi Andy

I'm in North Leicester, so if you fancy a look/ride in a turbo PM me.


Lee

Lee.

thanx for the offer! I'm south Notts based so I'll PM you and see if we can meet up.

cheers,

Andy