which car?...
 

a friend is thinking of buying a bmw 5 series.

i constantly recommend the alfa romeo gtv but it seems to fall on deaf ears.

what do you guys think?

http://www.patkirkltd.com/mazda/mazd...528_silver.JPG


<a href="http://bestcars.gdo.kiev.ua/alfaromeo/alfa-romeo_gtv_05.jpg"><img src="http://bestcars.gdo.kiev.ua/alfaromeo/alfa-romeo_gtv_05.jpg" width="620">
(click for the bigger pic)</a>

I tend to like to stay away from whatever the popular car is, so if where you are is like here, BMWs are everywhere. Fine, it's nice if you want to be the status quo (of rich bastards!) but that Alfa looks nice though. Stylewise, I'd go for the Alfa. I don't know how it handles, how the interior is, and if the mechanics are better than they used to be.

If he wants a BMW, nothing like an M3 baby!

two different cars

yes i know... it is why i posted. :)

that alfa romeo looks to have had a few modifications, but it's the only good pic that i could find at the time.

here is a more accurate one...

http://www.newcars.nl/fotos/alfa/gtv.jpg

Go for the Alfa!! it´s a sweet car, I have a 156 tspark myself, nothing special, but if you compare it to the cars in the same pricerange it´s a sure winner.

IMHO the only BMW's worth buying are M3, M5, M Roadster, and Z8.

I'm not jealous. really, I'm not jealous...

*cough*

where about in the UK are you? (just out of curiosity...)

Great cars! But what about the new 7 series?

I would suggest the top-level M3 from BMW. The straight-6 has gobs of torque, the steering is as responsive as you could want from a production car, and the throttle is by-wire and variablely sensative. In addition you can toggle the traction control and other driver aids.

For £38.000 you can have a fantastic, comfortable, classy road car that can be taken to the track without any compromises. If you saw the special on the BBC with Tiff Nielson (former Gran Prix driver) when he test drove the M3, he was very impressed with its excellent showing in all catagories. The cross-country ability of the car is outstanding and I'm pretty sure you'll never be disappointed on the open road. (I can hook you up with that video if you'd like, drop me a line).



...also, the "telephone dial" wheels on the Alfa are just hideous, they bring back horrible memories of underpowered late-80s 4-banger 911s.

They are totally diferent cars meant for diferent markets.
What his budget?

Except the M5

The M5's biggest drawback is its massive weight.. 2 tons dry & not including driver/passengers.

the m5 is going after a different market than the m3. obviously.

alfa SUX mad ugly

Fuck BMW and Alfa go for YUGO:1orglaugh

where does he live? (country)

I was wondering that too...

In US, it's BMW 5-series without a thought... Alfa would be viewed as a mini-cooper or something 'cause noone knows what the hell it is...

In Europe, it's different... BMW's are not that highly praised I guess...

most italian cars are known for their, might we put it, as being finicky at best. the germans are much better on reliability. but the the japanese build some of the better cars. my choice for a sports car : zo6 vette. yes AMERICAN !!!!!!!!!!!! & IT WILL & DOES KICK THE BEEMERS ASS!

lane... england :)
jammyjenkins... manchester :)

:1orglaugh


ydg... i'd guess about ten thousand pounds by looking at the cars.

thanks for the feedback guys. it isn't my decision but i love the mighty italian Alfa Romeo and would recommend it to anyone, even though it never seems to rub off on other people. :(

damn, why doesnt he get a british car then?


everybody thinks foreign brands are always better... you get less value for your money

speaking strictly of straight line performance - from road and track:

M3 0-60 = 4.7, 1/4 mile = 13.3
M5 0-60 = 5.0, 1/4 mile = 13.4
Z06 0-60 = 4.7, 1/4 mile = 13.1

doesn't exactly kick the M3's ass in that respect.

AND IT STILL CORNERS PLUS IF YOU CHIP IT, IT RUNS 12.50'S

I've always been a fan of Alfa Romeo's, but I just can't like this one. Looks like it got mixed with a Huyndai.. goo (Alfa Romeo, please forgive me for saying that sentence).

Anyway, there's a lot of BMW's out there, but not a whole lot like that one. That is one phat beamer. :)

My :2 cents: ...

Mustang Cobra smokes all 3 of these. Not as classy, but twice as nasty on the road.

the 'chip' argument holds true for the M3 as well. if all you care about is straight line performance, it would be silly to purchase any of the cars above.

of course the M3 handles very well too.

Ok.. The second Alfa that's posted, the blue one, looks MUCH better than the red one. Someone failed miserably on the modifications on the red one.

Like someone said though, you can't really compare these two cars. Are you going for a car where you sit on the ground and have a bumpy ride, or are you gonna sit like the king in the beamer?

from the same source:

SVT Cobra R: 0-60 = 4.8, 1/4 mile = 13.2

definitely more straight line bang for the buck. not exactly blowing the others away though (without mods).

see a close resemblence?

<img src="http://bestcars.gdo.kiev.ua/alfaromeo/alfa-romeo_gtv_05.jpg" width="620">



or



http://www.ner.org/adpics/GILLES-INTEGRA.JPG

See, that's what I was talking about! Fugly! :)

very true. the easiest cruiser is the 94 chevy impala super sport. still one of the best cruisers around. its called the " vagina car" ugly on the outside but its sure nice when you get inside. LOL! serious.

british people don't seem to like british cars. :1orglaugh

british cars in terms of "eliteness" are aston martin, bentley, caterham, rolls royce, lotus, tvr, and jaguar are all expensive as sin even for an older car, whereas a german bmw or italian alfa romeo can be picked up for less. yeah, they're a complete different kind of car and it is like comparing apples to oranges, but i hope you can see what i mean... they're all above the average Fiat Tipo. :)

Z06 doesn't stand a chance against an M3 on a road course. Stop light to stop light, slight advantage.

1) SVT has limited potential.. 4.6 is an overweight lossy hog.

2) What those numbers don't include is 60-0 time.. M3 has a huge edge in balanced braking power, which means more speed into the corner which means faster lap times.

Heh. I have £1500 to spend on a car. Any suggestions? ;)

uh, i'm not arguing for or against the car. i am close to purchasing either an M3 cab or a 911 cab, so my mind is already set. i have a huge passion for sports/gt cars. just laying out some numbers.

60-0 times:

Z06 = 118 ft
M3 = 112 ft
M5 = 129 ft
SVT = 123 ft

I have the 540, go with the BMW. Fantastic ride IMO

Got a good M3 Cab picture? I luvz the convertibles.

Cheers,
Backov

hang on...

here's a couple pics i already had up to show some friends:

http://207.240.40.4/uvlight/images/N...aybe/bmw01.jpg
http://207.240.40.4/uvlight/images/N...aybe/bmw02.jpg
http://207.240.40.4/uvlight/images/N...aybe/bmw03.jpg

http://members.roadfly.com/loki/e46m3_faq.html

all you need to know before purchasing a m3. read up :thumbsup

personally I love that alfa romeo, but the 5 series and the alfa are completely different cars, what is the purpose of these cars for? decide then buy it.

5 series- proper 4 seater, rwd, conservative. solid car

alfa- flashy, fwd, not a good four seater, but more fun to drive than 5 series and italian...

and forget about what other people think, you're the only one thats going to be driving it!!!

I've got a car for sale... it does 0-60 in 4 flat, corners like a dream and stops on a dime... oh and it can be chipped for another 50hp...

it's only a 2 seater tho.

selling your lotus?

hey quiet, 911 conv. are pretty nice, had one for about 6 years before the clk430 conv. don't know how the new 996s drive like but the older ones are pretty ruff and bumpy.

<img src="http://webizca.com/fun/911ar.jpg">

92 911 america roadster