Alfa Pages

[GaryUK]

After a funeral in London had a shot of my cousins 1995 import 260bhp(standard) WRS. Absolutely astounding I WANT ONE. One seriously seriously seriously fast motor. The brakes were as impressive if not more so than the acceleration and these are the standard calipers and discs(not drilled or grooved) .

Never driven a P4 but a 33 with equal power would be put to shame in the twisties.

[Wizz]

I saw one just the other day. It's so serious and raw-looking. ^^
Actually, the same day, I saw the new Alfa Romeo GT, WOW! A truly beautiful car!
I'm so envious of you, getting the chance to drive one.
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//Wizz
Alfa 33, 1.5 IE (1992) (Series 3)... now with 1.7 IE

[Pimp_Dudu]

i've driven one also...didn't really impress as much as the GTA i drove.Firstly the fact that i'm a crazed alfa fanatic probably had its share...but i noticed that even though the impreza has the 4x4 advantage, it really isn't that much faster compared to the GTA. I like the design, the brakes, the suspension and the accelartion of the GTA much more then the Impreza's. The impreza i drove was a 96 model, and of course the GTA was a 02 model so u really cant compare them both. But still jsut because its blue and has golden rims dont mean it can outrace the Alfa...And frankly i do believe that if u got an 33 with around 230-250 Hps u could easily win an impreza.

[Ben_nz]

'Ere, can one of you English lot explain the pronunciation "Impretza"? It dunnt 'ave a 't' init, does it? Every time I 'ear a Bri'ish chap say "Impretza" I wonder if 'e's bonkers or if 'e just didn't notice ain't nuffin but a zed in between the 'e' and the 'a'.

I've driven a friend's Impreza WRX STi, and it was certainly a rocketship once the turbo was boosting. It would go exactly where you pointed it, could zig-zag between lanes, through chicanes etc in an instant with no body roll. And if you put the right exhaust on one, it's one of the best-sounding modern four cylinder non-Alfa engines.
But it looks a bit overdone, tacky and ricey, every boy racer has one and every car thief wants to steal one. On normal city roads you'll never get to rev your WRX right up and explore its limits, cos you'll be going too fast and running out of space. They're too expensive (for me) to buy, run and insure, but most importantly they're clinical perfection as opposed to charm and 'cuore sportivo'!

[bobbber]

Certainly...

Pizza, Nazi....
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Fiat Bravo 165 Sport

[Ben_nz]

[Pimp_Dudu]

well goog chaps dont live in finland, for here the letter Z does not exist...or at least no one can pronounce it. IBISSA, PISSA, IMPRESA ETC.
Btw, funny how from a gary telling us how nice it is to drive a subaru we end up discussing language...Just shows u how awfully boring all other cars except alfa are

[ad]

Gary,

Surely it was a WRX?
I have an Impreza Turbo and when I first drove it I too was totally amazed at it's all round performance.

Yes, the brakes fade if you use them to extreme, the interior is pretty plasticky and bland, the headlights are rubbish but the handling, roadholding and mountain of torque from the motor more than makes up for these failings.

Actually, if you add to the above its throbby flat four layout and the fact it doesn't originate from an obvious eurobland manufacturer, it's not too far away in concept from the Sud (1.7 8v) sitting next to it in me garage.

Ad.

[GaryUK]

No it was a WRS a 1995 import and it looked OK (as good a Scooby can get) no boy racer stuff except for some nice alloys and the standard but huge 'picnic' table on the boot (like the Mk1 Sierra Cosworths). I didn't experience any brake fade and for the power it has available it's still easy to drive in the town. I didn't really explore its limits, as I don't know the backroads round Shenfield/Upminster but as I say it was very very impressive.

I prefer the looks of the older type, the new ones look crap like a Toyota (Corrola?). And yes the interior was tacky but the bucket seats were simply sublime though if you were fat you just simply wouldn't fit in them. The sides are deep and hugged me like a glove. That good infact that I'm going to try and source some from a scrappy get the welder out and fit them when I get my Sud.

Never driven a GTA but with all that power just going through the front wheels the Scooby would thrash it in the twisties. 220bhp is reckoned to be the maximum useable power you can put through front wheels after this it's wasted as the wheels just spin.

[loui]

I did a promotional track day with Subaru last year and the highlight was to driving the entire Impreza turbo range on the track at Knockhill. It's a very capable car on the limit. Top day out. Expensive for Subaru. One of the other drivers went off road and did about £3000 worth of damage. The Pro drive was the best of the bunch. Same spec as the others just slightly stiffer suspension, made a lot of difference on the circuit

At the same time I was babysitting a friends 1995 WRX chipped to 300 bhp. Uprated brakes. Didn't use it very often. Everytime it passed a petrol station it wanted some. Wanted even more with the aircon on. Had a lot of time to compare it to my 33.

Decide I prefer the 33 althought I want some of that raw power. Think the engine would happily fit into a 33

[sudman]

Heh I'm pretty certain its a WRX... can't seem to find anything relating to a WRS on the net anywhere, and being in NZ we get a huge amount of these things imported used from Japan. They're as common as mud!

They're OK cars, I found them a bit understeery when I drove one, but lots of power, although they do get put to shame by the Mitsubishi Evolution range, of which teres also heaps here..... the seats though are so, so nice! Hard to come by here cheaply, often set you back between 800-1000NZD a set

As for putting an EJ20T (the WRX engine) into a 33, this has been done by a guy called Tony Rigoli in Aussie, a pretty well known tuner especially when it comes to Subaru's.... currently holds the record for the worlds quickest quarter with a WRX wagon running an 8.85sec quarter. Theres a small bit of info relating to it out there as well.
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Just because it's old... doesn't mean it can't go fast!

[loui]

Liking the sound of that.
If my brains in the correct gear
The mechanicals are straight forward. WRX engine and box, converted drive shafts, prop shaft, P4 back end. Heavy brake upgrade. Strengthen the shell.
That only leaves the nightmare of electrics, plumming, turbo, fuel delivery etc. Anyone know the where abouts of pictures of the 33WRX

[Dnavey]

that 33 built by rigoli was for sale for 16000 bucks a while ago
i saw a couple pics looked ok...big front mount at the front kinda spoiled the alfa look..looked too ricey but apparently had alot of balls..

might be in perth actually because the place where i got my suspension done had a 33 with a wrx motor come in for a suspension upgrade..i can only assume that its the same one because i doubt there are many people who have done this...

[sudman]

I dunno if I'd put the EJ20T into a P4 and expect the rear diff/transfer case etc etc to last....

A 2WD one would be a better option IMO, although trying to put power to the ground would be an interesting excercise!

I thought about doing the conversion to my Sud when I'm finished studying, but I think I'll go the quad cam route instead (if I still own the car) as it would be a shame to go tearing a Sud apart to fit a Jap engine, no matter how mcuh power it has!
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Just because it's old... doesn't mean it can't go fast!

[Serpent33]

Hi guys, like to add. My friend, an ex privateer racer, owned a 33 QV, a Nissan 200SX, a suped up WRX which did 280km/h top speeds. He said his slowest car was the 33. But the most enjoyable was also the 33.
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Each time I speed I say, "Dear lord, make me fast and accurate..."