GTA Turbo pros and cons
- Thread starter R4gene
- Start date
Awesome car. Pros are it is very quick with great torque and a very comfortable ride. Watch out if you are importing from the UK as rust is an issue in the engine chassis. Only really issue I had was overheating when idling some time for a photo shoot and subsequently installed a bigger radiator with twin fans. Other issue was the flywheel sensor giving up the ghost at Bathurst and had to flattop it back to Canberra for $1000 cash. I prefer the turbo over the normally aspirated GTA despite the turbo lag - just have to be careful especially in the wet going through a corner or roundabout. Only sold mine as I needed the garage space for my new Alpine A110 otherwise would have kept it.
The GTA seems to be quite underrated in the Alpine group, and least expensive to purchase. I have brought over and complied 2 turbos and an NA between 2004 and 2006. I still have my first turbo and bought another turbo recently that had been hibernating, to sort out and hopefully sell in a few months.
My original car I used as my daily for some years and now has 285K on it, having put on 125K myself. My engine is a little tired and I will be putting a modified engine and rebuilt gearbox in it in the next year or so. The original turbo is torquey as the turbo is quite small and spools up early, boost pressure dropping off a little over 5000 rpm. As mentioned rust on the suspension and other underbody metal parts in the UK RHD cars can be mild to catastrophic. None of the cars I have played with have had much, but I have seen many photos of English cars in terrible condition. Off the top of my head there were 343 RHD Turbos and 180 NA RHD cars produced, so not so many around. A few thousand were made in LHD. Somewhere around 20 GTAs in Australia, all privately imported.
The cars handle well, and have a stiff chassis. I think the turbo ran about 14.3 quarter mile when new. Like others I would also recommend the turbo, given the larger scope for more power being more easily achieved, although a newer ECU might be in order, there are a couple of people in the UK that have been successful in modifying the original engines and ECU to 300 Hp.
There is an occasional back seat that I can fit into with the front seat in my driving position. Luggage capacity is not huge, and many keep their space saver spare in the front rather than next to the engine where it was originally mounted. Many of the parts are from common Renaults, like the discs and some suspension parts that are from an R25. Parts with a 77 prefix are Renault, 60 is specifically Alpine.
Maybe 50 RHD cars had air conditioning fitted, but all the cars seems to have most of the pipework in place and could be retro fitted with air with some effort and dollars. In Qld in summer I admit the large windscreen makes it somewhat warm to drive without air but I didn't find it unbearable.
It will be a very long time before I will sell my original GTA, and unless you are at a French car day you are unlikely to see another on the road. Generally it could be serviced by any old school mechanic, but better to be caring for it yourself given the hourly rates charged now.
My original car I used as my daily for some years and now has 285K on it, having put on 125K myself. My engine is a little tired and I will be putting a modified engine and rebuilt gearbox in it in the next year or so. The original turbo is torquey as the turbo is quite small and spools up early, boost pressure dropping off a little over 5000 rpm. As mentioned rust on the suspension and other underbody metal parts in the UK RHD cars can be mild to catastrophic. None of the cars I have played with have had much, but I have seen many photos of English cars in terrible condition. Off the top of my head there were 343 RHD Turbos and 180 NA RHD cars produced, so not so many around. A few thousand were made in LHD. Somewhere around 20 GTAs in Australia, all privately imported.
The cars handle well, and have a stiff chassis. I think the turbo ran about 14.3 quarter mile when new. Like others I would also recommend the turbo, given the larger scope for more power being more easily achieved, although a newer ECU might be in order, there are a couple of people in the UK that have been successful in modifying the original engines and ECU to 300 Hp.
There is an occasional back seat that I can fit into with the front seat in my driving position. Luggage capacity is not huge, and many keep their space saver spare in the front rather than next to the engine where it was originally mounted. Many of the parts are from common Renaults, like the discs and some suspension parts that are from an R25. Parts with a 77 prefix are Renault, 60 is specifically Alpine.
Maybe 50 RHD cars had air conditioning fitted, but all the cars seems to have most of the pipework in place and could be retro fitted with air with some effort and dollars. In Qld in summer I admit the large windscreen makes it somewhat warm to drive without air but I didn't find it unbearable.
It will be a very long time before I will sell my original GTA, and unless you are at a French car day you are unlikely to see another on the road. Generally it could be serviced by any old school mechanic, but better to be caring for it yourself given the hourly rates charged now.
Biggest thing is fitting anti intrusion bars in the doors, and should probably have a catalytic converter fitted as they are built after 1986, but most didn't get done from what I have seen. Originally the fuel filler had to be made smaller so only unleaded could be put in, but that is all you can buy now so I don't see it as a problem.
Strictly the rear seat belts need to be upgraded from the lap belts that are fitted originally, if you want to call it a 4 seater, but this is not often queried. All the rest is fine and just normal roadworthy items need to be checked for registration.
Strictly the rear seat belts need to be upgraded from the lap belts that are fitted originally, if you want to call it a 4 seater, but this is not often queried. All the rest is fine and just normal roadworthy items need to be checked for registration.
Agree all Alan said but you also need to put in child safety restaint anchors based on my experience. Why I don't know - I would not have a little kid in the back ready to chuck everywhere if it happens to get car sick!
Forgot about that Barry. Been a while.
Anchorages for the top of the rear seat belt sash are already there in the
roll over bar.
roll over bar.
Correct Steve K. Just need to remember they are there.
Catalytic converter is not required, nor a different fuel filler, just "unleaded fuel only" sticker. But you do need child restraint anchors. And you would most probably get away without door intrusion bars (depends on the engineer).
Every new car sold in Australia after 1986 had to have a catalytic converter fitted, so my take on this is that if you bring in a newer than 1986 car not fitted with a converter, it needs one fitted to be compliant in with the ADRs.
Similar with the door anti-intrusion bars, that I know 1982 Fuegos had fitted specifically to pass ADRs, but quite possibly the fibreglass door may well pass whatever the test is without, I just don't want to put a door up to be tested.
The narrow fuel filler is now optional.
Similar with the door anti-intrusion bars, that I know 1982 Fuegos had fitted specifically to pass ADRs, but quite possibly the fibreglass door may well pass whatever the test is without, I just don't want to put a door up to be tested.
The narrow fuel filler is now optional.
Thanks everyone for your input 
.
For those who have experience with these cars what are common issues I would need to keep an eye on, particularly for a car that hasn’t seen a lot of regular use.
As with most cars the cooling, brakes, tyres and fuel system will be closely looked at but are there particular issues or weaknesses ?
.For those who have experience with these cars what are common issues I would need to keep an eye on, particularly for a car that hasn’t seen a lot of regular use.
As with most cars the cooling, brakes, tyres and fuel system will be closely looked at but are there particular issues or weaknesses ?
I bought a GTA Turbo recently that has been sitting for many years. (I will hopefully have this for sale in a few months.) Most of my knowledge is from 2004- 2010 when I had my Turbo as my daily transport and did about 125000Klms in that time. That car now has 285000Klms on it. The engine is a bit tired and second gear synchro a bit slow, but it is still a nice car.
The fuel in the car recently purchased has separated out somewhat and a thick material has coated the bottom of the tank and migrated down the fuel lines. Flexible brake hoses can constrict inside with age and cause a one way valve effect which causes the brakes to drag. Goodridge makes a set of braided hoses for $200 plus fitting. I was surprised how much this lifted and shortened the brake pedal movement in my original car. The speedos can be intermittent, but generally repairable.
Aftermarket aluminium radiators from Winner Racing seem to fit and work OK and are not expensive. A second radiator fan is not a bad addition. Fuel pumps are probably due for replacement given their age, along with checking the spray patterns of the injectors. Air conditioning is a rare option, but interestingly most of the pipework is already fitted to all the UK GTAs, or has been on all the ones I have looked at. The electric window winders can be slow, sometimes because of a high resistance switch, sometimes the motor itself. I believe they are the same/ similar to the R25 except the left on the R25 fits the right on the GTA and vice versa.
Generally, these RHD cars have come from the UK and can be badly afflicted by rust on chassis components because of the salt laden winter roads there. I have seen photos of some English cars where parts of the main frame, suspension arms, crossmembers and the like are so badly damaged that replacement is the only fix. The four UK GTAs that I have played with have only had some minor surface rust in a few places that has been easily treated.
Have a look at this forum. Although not very active now, there is a lot of information available.
The fuel in the car recently purchased has separated out somewhat and a thick material has coated the bottom of the tank and migrated down the fuel lines. Flexible brake hoses can constrict inside with age and cause a one way valve effect which causes the brakes to drag. Goodridge makes a set of braided hoses for $200 plus fitting. I was surprised how much this lifted and shortened the brake pedal movement in my original car. The speedos can be intermittent, but generally repairable.
Aftermarket aluminium radiators from Winner Racing seem to fit and work OK and are not expensive. A second radiator fan is not a bad addition. Fuel pumps are probably due for replacement given their age, along with checking the spray patterns of the injectors. Air conditioning is a rare option, but interestingly most of the pipework is already fitted to all the UK GTAs, or has been on all the ones I have looked at. The electric window winders can be slow, sometimes because of a high resistance switch, sometimes the motor itself. I believe they are the same/ similar to the R25 except the left on the R25 fits the right on the GTA and vice versa.
Generally, these RHD cars have come from the UK and can be badly afflicted by rust on chassis components because of the salt laden winter roads there. I have seen photos of some English cars where parts of the main frame, suspension arms, crossmembers and the like are so badly damaged that replacement is the only fix. The four UK GTAs that I have played with have only had some minor surface rust in a few places that has been easily treated.
Have a look at this forum. Although not very active now, there is a lot of information available.
View forum - General Discussion • www.renaultalpine.co.uk •
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