Ok story time. About 10 years ago I was in a quickfit waiting for tyres when I heard the guys talking about this Alfa that keeps failing it's MOT. The owner didn't know much about it but had the brakes rebuilt but it still showed no operation on the handbrake. So he pulls the Alfa out the bay and it was a very nice black Alfa sud. So I'm stood talking to the guy and said it's really nice and is this the one with the dodgy handbrake. He said yes..... And I said....... "You know..... The handbrake operates the front wheels not the back?......". Mot guy burst out laughing and drove it back on the rollers. Passed that time 🤣

Italian cars of that era were like this - I had a mate with a penchant for FIAT 128's - yes not a fast car but the soundtrack from even the 1100 cc it was a riot

What a glorious vehicle. I loved these as a kid, such a handsome design and the motoring press absolutely adored them. Of course rust killed them way too soon, but the wonderful Alfasud will always have a special place in my heart 😍

Mine is still running and is turning 50 next year. This one looks a high spec version with a glove box and ashtrays. Luxury! It’s great to see another early 1.2 L still running.

" Family motoring, with Soul " you ought to copyright that statement ! Top job as so often, Ian !!

The red warning light came on when the engine was cold, or if it overheated. The handbook said something like 'drive gently when the light is on but when it's warm you can thrash it' In its day, performance was very good - I could out drag 2 litre Cortinas. I also liked that the exhaust 'farted' at pedestrians.😃

At the time this car was new, here in America, one couldn't understand why the British CAR magazine (year after year) lavished the Alfasud with praise and lamented it's cancelling as a huge mistake, especially for the NIssan Cherry/Alfa that followed it. Watching this video will help anyone learn why this car was just so fun and cool and why the Brits fell in love with it.

I own a South African Sud, one of the last built by Nissan in 1984. Very lucky to have spent 33 years in the Kalahari Desert. It has the Sprint Veloce engine, and an early close ratio box. It flies. Next on my wish list are the exhaust from that Sprint Veloce you tested. I am about to listen to that sound at the end. And trumpets. It’ll be loud but….😂

My favourite car too. I had a 1.3ti in silver and rust, the carb looked bigger than the engine. Those inboard discs still got wet but then took longer to dry out. It made a glorious noise, drove like a dream, and was falling apart around me…..superb fun for an impressionable young man. I loved it.

A person I knew in Hobart, Tasmania bought an Alfasud, 1983, 1,5 hatchback, 5 speed, cream colour, in 1988. He didn't have a garage and used the Sud in the city and on bush dirt and gravel roads. The car was very reliable and cornered flat and handled rough roads with ease. Great fun to drive. He owned it for many years and it still had no rust. Did have problems with electric front windows motors and after a very large number of kilometres, the gearbox needed an overhaul. He later bought a five year old Peugeot 306, another great car to drive, but the Sud had more character than the Peugeot.

A very affectionate review of a very lovable car. In period, for the engine capacity, the Alfasud was a fast car. And it behaved on the road in a way that nothing else so small with four seats and a boot could dream of. I imagine that these days, some nostalgic types are inclined to recall various Quadrifoglio Verde models as "the norm". But the norm was stuff like this. For me, the remarkable thong in era was simply how tidy the design of the car was, particularly on the early 1100 four-speed cars. They could have been cut by a child from a block of cheese: No creases, no scallops or weird air intakes. No spoilers or arch extensions. Just the shape of a car. And what a tidy shape! An excellent review.

Other than a very nice car to drive and to see, big credit to the owner who's kept it in such a fantastic condition after so many years in service. These Alfas have some of the best engine tune

I know someone who had one of these back in the late 1970's. it was a lovely car to look at with a great engine sound.

Great little car and I'm old enough to remember seeing them when there were some on the roads.

I had one in exactly this colour combo! It would top 60mph in second gear and handled like a race car. Great Italian feature was if you pulled the column stalks towards you, it flashed main beam and sounded the horn at the same time. Vauxhall copied it's looks, and exhaust note, for the MK1 Astra .. if you have ever noticed.

Had an '83 face-lift one in the late 80s. Surprisingly rust free at 5 years old. Still the most charismatic car I've owned to date. Incidentally Ian, struggling to restart the engine when it had cooled down a bit, the choke knob is hidden underneath the steering column, another Alfasud idiosyncrasy, along with the heater fan being operated by the wiper stalk 😉

I had a 33 loan car while my Spider was having its’ roof fixed by Lombardo in Ladbroke Grove. Same engine as the Alfasud and a pure delight.

not a million miles away from the fiat 128 3p we had when I was vey little in the styling department. Got to love it.

I owned a two door car in South Africa around 1976, base level spec and locally assembled. It was immense fun to drive. I had the best drive in my life with it on dirt roads in the back of beyond. I discovered it was possible to achieve astonishingly high average speeds because the handling was so, so good. You could just keep the engine way up in the power band and never drop out of it. Quite remarkable and exhilarating beyond belief. I remember it so clearly even though it was so long ago. The Sud did extremely well in saloon car racing too. It was a cheap car to race and took the other cars in its class of that time to the cleaners. Magnificent!

Reminds me of my Renault 14TL WJG46T that had a 1.2L engine that you had to work hard, but was a nice drive. It took me and 3 friends to the Cote D'Azur and back again over 3 weeks, and drove from Menton to Dunkerque in a day. It was a truly brilliant car,

I remember walking to school in the late 80s as a car lover and watching all the interesting cars drive past. Alfas, Lancias, Triumphs, Rovers, Talbot Sunbeam Lotus etc The Alfasud was one of my favourites but even by then they were quite scarce and generally pretty rotten.

as a kid i remember my neighbour had a orange one, beautiful cars!

Those of us of a certain vintage can remember when there were loads of Alfasuds on our roads. Alas they are all Iron oxide now, in fact on a warm summers night you could hear the sounds of Alfa Romeos' rusting on their drives and in their garages. Wonderful cars to drive and a very rare sight now. Thanks Ian.

In this video, Ian meets 1 of his hero's and isn't disappointed

This very same Sud was owned by a friend of mine. English from birth, he picked this exciting Italian car and made heads turn here in Munich. i remember an Autobahn trip at a top speed of 170 km/h!!!!

You made my day Ian. I love the Alfasud as well, my dad drove a 1974 ti model, in the same glorious blue as the one you drove. The exhaust note alone brings me back. What a treat!

I loved my 1.5Ti! The handling was amazing for the time and the sound was wonderful. Also it would pull the red line in top gear without any trouble, about 105 mph from memory.

Cut my teeth on the Alfa sud, sprint, 33 etc etc as an apprentice 30+ years ago beautiful cars sadly most have rusted away, good old days unlike a lot of the plastic junk that’s about today. Wonderful video bringing back great memories.Thank you 👍

Thanks for the memory Ian. I had 2 of these in the early 1980's BAA157R a white 1.2 which sported a full cloth sun roof and PUW88R a black 1351cc with a few modifications including a pair of twin choke Dell'Orto carbs (mounted on a cut down inlet manifold) on both ends of the engine. I really miss the wonderful sound they made.

A survivor of a car is that sud . Built in the year I was born. Thanks Hubnut enjoyed that

Had a 3 door 1.5 ti back in the late 80s. It made a lovely noise, it was comfy to sit in all day on long trips, and very chuckable in the twisties. Only drawback was the two or three previous owners had thrashed it to the verge of extinction so it spent quite a lot of its time dumping various mechanical components on several parts of the local carriageways. Pity I didn't have the funds to really get it fettled. I'd probably still have it now.

Lovely car, I could almost smell the petrol as I listened to you driving along there. I had an early 80's one & it was really at home on narrow, twisty Scottish mountain roads, working through that gear box...such fun. Once the rust got too unmanageable I switched it out for a Lotus Talbot Sunbeam. That was another car that was a pleasure to throw around & as most folk didn't know what it was they always got a surprise when you left them standing. Cheers for the memories & a thank you to the owner who let you drive it. Hope they continue to enjoy it for years to come.

My mother had two consecutively and I learned to drive in the first one. Those lovely door pulls would only last a few years. Just beautiful to drive and the tuned exhaust made such a great noise.

I had a 1979 Alfetta GTV in the early 80s. The gearchange was catastrophic and the handling wasn't up to much but it sounded great and just felt special. It's hard to explain but there just seemed to be a sense of occasion getting in it and driving it. It felt mechanical and inspiring.

When the first batch of Alfasuds was imported to Finland, it was winter time. They drove the cars out to the harbor storage flats from the ship. The wind blew snow and ice into the exposed timing chains and the next time the cars started, that caused carnage on many of them. I was told this story by a guy who worked for the organization back in the days.

very advanced car, looks great ,sounds great ,in UK we found them a bit too rusty probably why they didn't quite make it in terms of sales success,think how fantastic the Alfasud is compared to a Vauxhall Viva

It’s the Alfasud that got me hooked on Alfa Romeo - a pea-green ‘Sud Ti used to scream down our road when I was a kid, and the sound, and the tremendous styling got me intrigued. A local car dealership stocked Alfa, alongside Vauxhall, and as I also loved 1970s Vauxhalls, I also used to regularly visit and look at the various Giuliettas, Alfettas and Suds. A seat inside a GTV6 when I was 13 cemented my fascination for these cars. I’m currently on my third Alfa, and will buy another. They offer so much in terms of character, driving involvement, fun and exclusivity - there’s nothing in my opinion (and I have had BMWs, Audis and Mercedes) to match them in terms of pure motoring joy!

Went to the classic Italian car show at Chesham a couple of weeks ago hoping to see an Alfasud and pleased to report that I did. Can't remember the last time I saw one before that.

I owned a 1.3 super in Red. 5 speed close ratio gearbox. Lovely car to drive. Lovely soundtrack when driving; having the radio on interfered with that sound track of a raspy engine.

I read an article many years ago about how Hruska was given an office, an assistant, a coffee machine and the job of designing the car and a factory to build it in. He didn't like hatchbacks so the Series 1 didn't have one. When the bulkhead behind the rear seats was removed for the hatchback, stiffness was put back with an intrusive cross- member on the boot floor, something that was carried over to the '33. The boot was sized around a suitcase of Hruska's. It was one he used for two-week holidays and as the 'Sud was a four-seater he reasoned the boot should take four of them. The article had a picture of the boot with four dummy suitcases in place. Finally his test for vehicle stability was to pull the wheel sharply to one side at motorway speeds then let go...

My former boss had such a car. It ended up on its roof because the front wheel suspension broke off at the highway because of rust.... after only 4 years from new. He barely survived it.

Nice one Ian, this brings back memories. An old friend of mine had a hatchback version with the 4 round headlights if I recall back in the 80's and the engine was phenomenal for the capacity. I remember one occasion where a car of similar age from a certain brand with two letters (some years old for those days) tried to do the traffic light drag race and the little Sud just kept on revving without the need to change gear (and loose time) it was brilliant. Unfortunately that car caught the dreaded metal moth sickness that turned the body to lace so off it went to car heaven. I'd love to go back in time to relive those days. Many thanks for sharing. Hopefully I'll be at the social this weekend.

Parents had one of these in the early 1970s. It was so unreliable and rotten my dad would leave it at the end of the drive with the doors unlocked and the key in the ignition hoping that someone would take it. Mum once saw the shopping go straight through the rotten boot floor. It put him off Italian cars for good however he always said it was the best car he’s ever driven. They eventually sold it at 3 years old for an end of production Renault 16. 10 years later, it was seen driving around the town as a taxi, new vinyl roof and probably a replacement boot floor.

Superb video... Back in 1975 (at the age of 15) i convinced my parents to buy a new Alfasud 1.2 ti, we all loved that car and my love for the Alfasud began, then in 1981 i got my 1st Alfasud, a 1978 1.5 ti and throughout the early 1980`s i had a few more, i don`t think there`ll ever be an "ordinary car" that`s so engaging to drive..

GYF 722N was the reg of our '74 1.2ti that we bought in 1994 and then registered in NL as JL-VZ-71. We owned the car until March 2010 and the car is supposedly still owned by the guy who bought it of us. It was a lovely car, but a bit down on power compared to the later MkII 1.5ti and 1.5ti QV that I owned before, bought new. I no longer move in Alfa circles, but apparently 'our' 1.2ti still does.

The Alfasud is one of my favourite small cars of all time. Pity that there are so few left in the UK these days.

Had a Sud once. Magical and frustrating. With a hatch back and decent build quality, this would have been a world wide success. Roomy, good looking, fantastic handling for the era, good brakes (when not spoiled by leaking oil), good milage and really a refined drive despite a not too complex construction. But, we know the problems. It took too many years for Alfa to reach somewhat acceptable build quality and rust proofing. Meanwhile, the marked had moved on and the Sud struggled with an awful reputation. Still, a late 1.5 TI Quadrifoglio Verde is one of my all time dream cars!

I owned 2 Alfasuds in fairly short succession back in the early 80s. nothing else compared to the whole driving experience in the small family saloon class. the harder you pushed the 'Sud the more rewarding it became. superbly engineered chassis complete with that forward bulkhead acting as (amongst other things) a strut brace. not an easy car to work on compared to its piers (especially the front brakes) but a labour of love nevertheless. they had a strong tendency to split the exhaust pipe towards the front which was cured by fitting a short section of flexi-pipe, something most cars have as standard now. its such a shame they disolved so quickly in the British winters. so it has a little triangle of doom but a huge unswept area, oops lol

I'm reminded of James May's quote: "Italian cars: giving you the experience of speed, without the inconvenience of actually achieving it" (or words to that effect)

Happy happy owner of one these in 1974. Absolutely outstanding.

Your video reminded me of an incident, it happened in 1983-84,I was at the university of Arkansas USA . My newly formed friendship with a Kuwaiti guy took me for a ride in his glorious looking Alfetta 1.8 or 2.0 litre . On an abandoned road he went berserk and was touching 120 mph. my heart rate at that point was racing even faster.Thankfully the car remained glued to the road, but the steering was shaking violently. Anyway , some months later I purchased a 280Z -1978 my dream car. This beauty could touch 120mph without even blinking..

I do wish Alfa Romeo still made hatchbacks with boxer engines. Love the styling of this car, the original looked the best I think.

Had one as a student and love it. Perfect road holding like a go cart. Had the brake version. Sadly rust ended the adventures sooner as expected.

What an amazing car. Although I've driven plenty of non Italian cars, I always missed that feeling of the controls compared to Italian cars.

Thank you for giving me a nostalgia fix. An Alfasud ( 1983 1.3SC in Brown ) was my first Alfa. If you try those early ones back to back with their contemporaries the sophisticated Alfa shines even more! They did everything better than their competitors. Unfortunately that includes corrosion. Thanks again. You need an Alfa in your fleet. A 147 perhaps, a base model 155 or 156 wagon??? Glorious with many tinkering opportunities 😊

This car and the Sprint were my first exposure to Alfa Romeo when I was in my early teens, and obviously made an impression as I drive an Alfa today (my third). Nice review of a great little car.

Drove one just the once, in '77... Very impressed indeed, with a great driving position and very responsive, such that I felt confident with its handling almost immediately. Was driving a Mini then so its handling was every bit as good, well balanced but with an extra element of refinement...

Not seen one for years, remember them as a kid. 👍👍🇬🇧🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

I bought one new in 1975. The Australian ones came with an external rear view mirror and I got carpets thrown in by the dealer and they also put the seat belt mechanism from a VW Superbug in to it and seeing how well it went they did that to all that they subsequently sold.. Mine was red with black interior and I got red cloth inserts put in to the seats. I found that running the tyre with higher pressure in the front ones made a world of difference to the handling especially when I put the English Pirelli CN36's tyres on it. I remember going to the Bathurst 1000 race and on the way back a friend of mines brother got a lift back with me and he drove part of the way - he was impressed with it as he was driving at 90mph and it was rock solid.

great little cars Alfasuds. A mate had one around 20 years ago and they were rare in the UK then. I at the time had a Peugeot 309 1.6 petrol. His 1.3 went like the wind and I couldnt keep up with it lol. Someone near to where I live has an absolutely gorgeous Sprint that is one of the last ones made. I always love seeing it out when the suns in the sky. I recently saw another on the road and blurted out 'wow an Alfasud' to which my wife reply'd 'a what???' after explaining she said I was sad but I already knew that 🙂 As always Ian a great informative video. Thanks ever so much for sharing!

Not many left now the last time I saw Alfasud was at the Pondarosa on the Horse shoe pass near Llangollen on Good Friday last year a black Ti on a 82 X plate it was mint Witch was unusual because most of the rusted a way . The Alfasud a nice looking car Great video

Brings back the memory of driving down to Bristol from Leeds in my boss' 1200 alfasud using the fosse way. Hell of a trip from memory and it never missed a beat all day.

I had the Polistil model of the Alfasud in that exact colour back in the 70s. I've always had a soft spot for that car.

Another great review Ian. Marvellous!

Great job, Ian Thank you so much !

Absaloutly brilliant video Ian ❤👍 only the Italians know how to build perfection absaloutly amazing little car brilliant

Omg, i remember one of those in metallic snot green... always loved these! Wonderful find Ian!

I am always reminded of our family holidays in our Austin 1300 to Como. You’d see these Alfas and other Italian wonders being gunned around the lake at ludicrous speed and volume. I say ludicrous speed, but they sound louder than they are fast. Fun is the word that comes to mind.

Owned 2, a 1300 and a 1500. Amazing little car that was brilliant to drive.

Brings back memories, I had one back in the 80's. Absolutely loved it.

Brilliant video, again your ability to convert a driving experience into words is second to none.

Nice review, I liked the Sud back in the day, they went well for what they were. Just a thought, the Alfa was a boxer engine which is different to a horizontally opposed engine in that each piston has it's own crank pin rather than sharing the crank pin with it's opposite mate.

Cool little car! :) Looking forward to the catch-up this weekend :)

I had a 1980 one on a V plate in 1985 I paid the princely sum of £475 in orange unfortunately it's body was mostly P38 & P40 managed to get it through one MOT my dad thought I was a fool but I was only 18 and the co-op insurance was £109 TPFF but what a car it was and still missing it today

Loving the sounds. Fantastic. 😊

11:17 That exhaust sound!👍🏻 I loved it already when I was a kid and the GP of our village drove by in his bright yellow Alfasud.

Great! Spent many a school break as a spotty teen drooling over a ti version in the car park (that and an early Range Rover). A proper motor! Keep up the good work.

I remember the Alfasud 5M that I owned back in the day. I loved it always an experience. The 5 speed gearbox helped a lot

Great review Ian, What memories! I had a Alfasud 1.5 sc (The hatchback version) in the early 1980s not the Ti unfortunately but a fantastic car nonetheless. I have had many cars over the years but the Alfasud is the one I miss the most. These little cars really do have a sole that you fall in love with.

What a beautiful opening scene with the windmill in the background. A school friend's brother had a newer Sud, a 1300 or 1500, I can't remember, but it was ridden hard.

Took me back to my schooldays when a pale Green Alfa used to rasp its way past on my way to school. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Great memories of one I owned in 83-84 DRT 300T 1.3 Super. Learnt a lot about driving on the limit and body filler. Even suspension components had serious corrosion. Fab car.

Owned 4 of these, including a Cloverleaf and a Sprint. Loved each one!

Beautiful car that has an engine that sound's like music? So Italian. Thanks for letting us ride along!

9:24 "Watch out, duck!" Your trips up here to Lincolnshire must be rubbing off, Ian! 😋👍

OK so I've been on a road trip and am catching up. but this is utterly glorious

Thanks Ian, one of the prettiest little cars of the 70s . And what a minter too. 👍

Great fun, those and the sprints. They series raced them in Australia with straight pipes, made an awful noise. I looked after one with a rusty fuel tank and I tried to keep it going with a cascade of filters, but it beat me in the end.

Brilliant little car. I got to drive a leter Ti some (many) years ago and completely fell in love with it. I think the Italian term for "accelerator pedal" is "switch". only on or off.

Thanks for the video which brought back old memories. In 1983 I bought one of the last Mark 1 Sprint Veloce 1.5 models to be made. Paid £5,500 new (after discount) and kept it for eight years. Two twin-choke carbs. Instant response from the throttle. Fantastic car but it needed careful attention from the dealer which it didn't always receive. The only car to rival the Alfasud for handling after that was a Focus 1.6 Mark 1 Zetec. Of course the Focus didn't have the same character but, for me, it was perfectly reliable after my Alfasud experience.

My late Dad who was in the motor trade in the 70s worked at an Alfa, BMW and Simca dealership maintained until he died that the Alfasud was his favourite car he ever drove. Whilst it wasn't fast he always said it was great fun, dynamically it was in a different league to it's competitors, Escort Mk1, Marina, Hillman Hunter, HC Viva etc. Sadly as everyone knows they were made of tissue paper, the white one he had the boot hinges rusted through in 6 months, the blue one (the same is in the video) had surface rust on the wings by about the same age. But fully independent suspension, inboard disc brakes all round the stuff of exotica not a family car. I was so hoping to hear the inique rorty exhaust note and the video didn't disappoint

I remember at university, someone had a white 'Sud with the weirdest electrical gremlin (being typically Italian). When you turned your lights on, it electrocuted you through the stalk. Still better overall than my mk2 Fiesta though...

My next door neighbour had a 1.5ti in black loved it sounded awsome..got nicked doing 90 with a trailer behind happily bobbing around😮😅great video thanks

Hub now you're stirring my passion 😀👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

This is a really well taken care of Alfasud

My brother-in-law had one for a time - he went from an aged Anglia in need of restoration to a Sud which was dissolving by the minute - he loved it

"Italian Ape" driving position, according to Car magazine in the 70s. Still a great car, though. And that interesting exterior/interior colour combo strangely reminds me of Matchbox models.

Nothing more beautiful than an Alfa Romeo 🥰😍

A mate of mine had an Alfasud Ti 1.5 back in the '809s. He was kind enough to lend it to me when I wrote off my Datsun 180B. What a fun little car! It went much harder than a 1.5 should, and introduced me to torque steer. and the handling! Bellissimo!