benji106
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 09:17 AM |
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Alfa Romeo, am I mad?
I need to get myself a new tintop after the cambelt went on my clio bending the valves. I am currently borrowing the parents 206 but need to start
thinking about buying a new car in the next month or so.
I have a budget of about 3k, and have been looking at the Alfa Romeo 156, for my budget i could pick up a 2002 model quite easily. I am restricted to
a 1.6 for insurance reasons.
I know this car has some issues but its so damn sexy, does anyone have any experience of living with one? I know the cambelt needs to be changed every
35k or so, and to make sure they had the work done on the bonnet catch and brake pipe as i understand there was a factory recall, any other issues?
I am fairly mechanically competant but dont have the time to be fixing it every other day. how easy are they to work on? what should i look out for on
a test drive?
Any help gratefully recieved
Cheers
Ben
-Everything in excess-
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Mr Whippy
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 09:24 AM |
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I change all my cars timing belts by then, regardless of make.
have you phoned up for an insurance quote before getting all exited?
Fame is when your old car is plastered all over the internet
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benji106
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 09:37 AM |
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yeh have checked online for insurance, they want to bend me over of course, but no more roughly than for the other cars ive been looking at.
-Everything in excess-
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gazza285
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 09:45 AM |
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You are mad. I haven't had any recent Alfas, but that's because I won't have another. I got attatched to them in the '90s and
found then fun to drive, a nightmare to work on and impossible to weld back together. Add that to the depreciation and find out why five year old
motors are cheap.
DO NOT PUT ON KNOB OR BOLLOCKS!
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benji106
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 09:49 AM |
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I feared i might be a little mad, its a head vs. heart thing
-Everything in excess-
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MonkeyHunter
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 09:57 AM |
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I got a 156 at the beginning of the month, and its great, it's a 2.5 V6 though. I think the 1.6 is a little under powered personally, but the
insurance is not cheap on these, as you have discovered.
I havent encountered any problems yet, exept from a slightly binding caliper.
The build quality is not as bad as some would lead you to expect, however the paint is so thin that im surprised it's still there after
it's rained.
I got the car from: http://www.autolusso.co.uk/ nice blokes, and I would recommend. I understand they stick all the part ex's on ebay, which is
where I got mine from. They have a bit of a bad rep from a few years back apparently, but were spot on when I dealt with them.
Cheers,
Scott.
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Pdlewis
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:00 AM |
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I went through the same thing in January and the heart won over the haed and im glad it did coz its an awsome car (147 JTD 2005) its so nice to drive
and i do 2 - 3k a month with not 1 problem :-)
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martyn_16v
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:20 AM |
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I'm just trying to deal with the fiance's 147 (01 2.0 TS) after it blew itself up. I hate the thing, it looks nice sitting still which is
good as that's all it seems able to do. The bottom end crapping out is the most recent in a string of problems, mostly electrical 
Alfaowners forum isn't too inspiring either, the answers generally run along the lines of 'they all do that, put up with it',
'oh yeah, a litre of oil every 500 miles is normal', and 'take it to the dealers'
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zxrlocost
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:24 AM |
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Basically if you buy one it will break down every month and have at least 4 fiddly things go wrong per 10 days
Is that what you wanted to hear?
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PLEASE NOTE: This user is a trader who has not signed up for the LocostBuilders registration scheme. If this post is advertising a commercial product or service, please report it by clicking here.
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clockwork
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:39 AM |
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They do look good
A lot of car for the money but after hearing the woes of a friend of mines, I really would caution against it. He bought a 2.0JTS.
His problems:
ECU kaput, needed new one (all sensors were fine).
Drivers Airbag Light constantly on
Front Bushes at 40K
Seized engine. (They can drink oil, he obviously didn't check often enough).
They look a damn site better than the mondeo I bought :-(
Small sample size I know, but then I only know one person with one.
Still looks good though.
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benji106
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:41 AM |
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ok how about a lancia delta intergrale, the car ive wanted since I was about 8
I guess ill look at something more reliable/sensible/boring then, I just dont have the time or money to throw at an alfa, knowing my luck it would go
bang after a week just like the clio
-Everything in excess-
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mookaloid
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:43 AM |
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I am running an Alfa GT - had it a year now. I think it's great, I've had a few minor problems but nothing I can't live with.
The car will be no less reliable than say a vauxhall or something French and nobody thinks twice about buying those.
So if you want one go and buy one... you only live once and you haven't lived till you had the Alfa Romeo experience
Post a picture or two up when you have it
Cheers
Mark
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
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trogdor
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 11:58 AM |
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it all depends if you get a good one, some will last well and others won't. THough with alphas you have to look after them, they don't
tolerate neglect well.
its amazing the difference even the same model cars can have, my dad had a 405 turbo diesel and so did his partner, my dads has been perfect for its
450,000 miles that it got through, all its ever needed was a new radiator as it would over heat in hot weather and a new alternator. was a shame it
got written off by some pr**k driving his mums car illegally round an asda car park and writing off about 10 cars in the process.
however my dads business partner had no end of trouble with his 405, to the extend that he got rid of it.
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Mr Whippy
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 12:00 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by mookaloid
The car will be no less reliable than say a vauxhall or something French and nobody thinks twice about buying those.
ehem...
Fame is when your old car is plastered all over the internet
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Ketchup
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 12:44 PM |
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2.0 twin spark lumps are well known for blowing rods out the side of the engine, if they are run on the min of oil for even short periods, the damage
will already be done, and it will just be a matter of time before the bottom end lets go.
The 1.6 is more reliable generally speaking, in my experience you dont really get the rot problems like the alfas of old, and they are really quite
nice to drive, a bit different.
if you want something that you wont need to work on, get an avensis or something... but wheres the fun in that? 
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Alfa145
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 12:48 PM |
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I owned an Alfa for 9 years never had a major problem with it but I did look after it as neglect is not a thing Alfas like.
I now run a Peugeot Company Car ( not my choice ), brand new, only had it 2 months and it has had more problems that the Alfa ever had in 9
years.
With any car you takes your chance. I would own an Alfa again tomorrow if I could but I would never buy a Peugeot, or a Ford, or a vauxhall based on
the past problems I've had.
In the words of Clarkson "You're not a true petrol head till you've owned an Alfa"
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mookaloid
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 12:59 PM |
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quote:
Originally posted by Mr Whippy
quote:
Originally posted by mookaloid
The car will be no less reliable than say a vauxhall or something French and nobody thinks twice about buying those.
ehem...
what? did I say something?
"That thing you're thinking - it wont be that."
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clockwork
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 01:10 PM |
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Maybe some truth afterall
<smug but boring>mundaneos came top</smug but boring>
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hughjinjin
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 01:27 PM |
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hi, I'm a mechanic in a small Alfa specialist garage and see a lot of 156s. Most of the very early ones are starting to get a bit tired by now
and believe me you don't want a neglected Alfa!
A 2002 model should still be ok for a few years yet, as long as its been looked after. There aren't really any major issues with them apart from
the engines which will not stand abuse/neglect. If the cambelt/tensioner is not replaced regularly then they WILL fail. If the engine uses oil then
don't touch it, contrary to what lots of "experts" say they don't all use oil, ones that do have generally been overheated.
The timing variators can rattle quite alarmingly as well but I've yet to see one actually fail but its as well to change it whwn changing the
belt/tensioner/guide, which must ALL be changed at no more than 40k intervals.
Apart from that(!) they are no more unreliable than anything else out there.
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whitestu
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 01:48 PM |
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Go for it
I've had loads of Alfas and all have been great fun.
They are as easy as anything else to work on, and all mine have been dead reliable.
Stu
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owelly
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 01:55 PM |
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I have a 156 and as long as you ignore the numpties on Alfaowners and you can look after it properly, you'll have no bother. Probably.
http://www.ppcmag.co.uk
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zetec
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 03:26 PM |
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We had a well serviced 3 year old GTV. Variator rattled like a diesel, the trim was a bit flakey, then the airflow meter failed, rear suspension
bushes were on the way out, the gearbox was notchy when cold and then one of the ignition coils went. Never more pleased to see the back of a car as
the new owner bought it! We have had several cars with 120,000 miles or more which were all far more reliable...even my Focus handled better and feels
bullet proof after the Alfa.
" I only registered to look at the pictures, now I'm stuck with this username for the rest of my life!"
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Hellfire
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 03:29 PM |
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A few of our Reps had 156's... they were so much trouble we no longer have them on our list - sadly!
Gorgeous looking car and drive well, but the grief... 
Steve
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chockymonster
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 03:30 PM |
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I had an older 75.
I loved it, mechanically bullet proof, it still ran even after I'd parked it on it's roof
PLEASE NOTE - Responses on Forum Threads may contain Sarcasm and may not be suitable for the hard of Thinking.
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panichat
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| posted on 27/4/07 at 03:57 PM |
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If you like cars...
...buy one that excites you - driving is meant to be a pleasure after all. If it breaks down a lot you become good at fixing it and make contact with
lots of similarly afflicted people on message boards. Gradually you iron out all the issues just in time for the onset of senility and the blessed
relief of death. You leave it to your favourite child in your will who sells it cheap to someone for banger racing.
Dave
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