1998 Alfa Romeo 164 2.5 TD European Review

One clever man who likes powaaah, steaks and punching people once said that you are not a real petrolhead until you’ve owned an Alfa Romeo. Seeing how Alfas are either considered terrible, unreliable crap by sane and rational people or totally revered by devoted fans, I assumed there has to be something about them. Maybe it really is that fabled “automotive soul” everyone talks about.

When I drove modern Alfas, I tended to lean towards the “they’re crap” crowd. The Mito is just a Fiat Punto that’s been made worse and more expensive, while the Giulietta can be a hoot to drive, but you want to douse it in gasoline and light on fire every time you need to use it as transportation. It’s like someone did the first 90% of development and then decided to have some chianti instead of finishing the rest. Which is probably what happened.

Read more
  • SCE to AUX Competition for the 2027 Rivian R3, but 2 years early.
  • Akear GM shock will skyrocket when Barra retires.
  • Mike Bradley Driveways, parking lots, side streets, railroad beds, etc., etc., etc. And, yes, it's not just EVs. Wait until tractor-trailers, big trucks, farm equipment, go electric.
  • Cprescott Remember the days when German automakers built reliable cars? Now you'd be lucky to get 40k miles out of them before the gremlins had babies.
  • Cprescott Likely a cave for Witch Barra and her minions.