Alfa 156

[The younger modder]

Okay so this isnt in any Fiat related but i know you lot on here are good with the technical stuff and have driven a range of cars

basically My dads after new car he currently has a renault Scenic 1.8 16v sport (very good car which we have had from new) and we have decided to keep that for mum and trade mums 54 plate arosa in for a new car for him

we went to look at a Seat Altea on an 05 plate yesterday (a bigger seat leon for those that dont know) it was a nice car for the money but then i showed him an Alfa Romeo 156, now hes always wanted one but never had one moistly due to apparent reliability problems

its a 156 1.9 16v twincam JTD (yep a twin cam turbo diesel) veloce got all the elctrics etc he wanted but only cloth interior but nice alloys etc and on a 54 plate ex reps company car hence 53k miles But at £7500 i reckon its a fair price, so i booked him a test drive today

we got in and dad noticed the airbag light was on the dash display :? but no beeping or anything so took it out and spent 10 miles getting through the 30 zones on our way to the 60 zone, now acclerating from 30-40 in 3rd was damn impressive for a 1.9 (makes my 206 gti 180 feel slow :evil: ) came to a set of lights and just after is the 60 zone so he accelerated away from the lights (didnt drop the clutch or anything daft)

as soon as it came on boost in second it went mad and started beeping like hell, the engine management light came on the dash and it put the car in limp mode saying "take to main dealer" on the main dash display, needless to say we limped it back to the dealers (we never even got to try it out)

now we took the keys back in and told the bloke and after telling him it all he said it would be to do with the airbag sensors, now i didnt believe this and he has called me back tonight to confirm it is the "boost sensor" which im guessing stops the turbo overboosting? its getting fixed in the morning and hes ringing us when its readdy for test driving again tommorrow afternoon

Now dad has fallen in love with the car and imust admit i quite like it myself but a few questions if people dont mind, to point out yes we could go look at other ones but the bloke is willing to do a good deal, it is 3 months full waranty covering the turbo aswell (alot dont) both parts and labour and they have had the car since new and he showed me the history file and its NEVER had any engine work just the usual tyre&brake changes

is this a sign of things to come? i have read numerous times that Alfas have greatly improved and they are o longer known for bad reliability?

Do i really let him buy a car which broke down on the test drive?

when is the cambelt/tensioner and chains due on these multijet diesels?

how serious is a faulty boost sensor? we havent had a turbo diesel for going on 5 years and that was an old vauxhall 1.5TD so the old school mechaical diesel so cant really go off that reliability

anyone on here had one of these and if so any oppinions on them? my dad only knows one person who had one and he slated it but to be fair he had the mk1 petrol V6 which is the one which has all the problems

cheers for any replys as always

wayne

 

[thepottleflump]

The cambelt normally needs doing at 5 years / 72,000 miles on the JTD but you'd best double check that with an Alfa dealer because the schedules have change for some models and it may need doing every 3 years / 36,000 miles.

Suspension can wear on the 156 and at 53k you'd be looking at new upper wishbones on both sides fairly soon if they haven't been done already. The bushes wear and become noisy. Not a particularly expensive or difficult job to do but factor £250 for a garage to supply and fit parts. £70 if you do it yourself (parts only).

Check front inside edge tyre wear. If the suspension is worn or out of alignment they go quickly there.

My Alfa 156 has been very good but I'd be wary of a car which broke down on a test drive, are there no others you can look at?

 

[Hellcat]

Best place to look is www.alfa156.net

Plenty of technical minded people there. The engine should be pretty solid, 53k is a good mileage for a 3 year old car. Means mostly long runs which is infinetly better for the engine than town driving. I'd check to see they've changed something then give it a test drive. Give it some stick and make sure it doesn't re-occour. The german bosch sensors can fail, as on any car, so don't write off a whole car due to one failure.

Is the engine a JTDm or a standard 16v JTD?

 

[ChrisUK]

Yes as said its nearly always Bosch sensor's that let the JTD/JTDm engine down (easy fix). Airbag light needs to be checked it usally comes on when the battery is left to go flat or disconnected (pain in the arse due to dealer needing to clear the light).

Also check tyres for even wear, I've seen and heard some horror storys with suspension alighment. Some poor bugger had a 05 plate 156 2.0JTS that went through a set of tyres every 5k! needed new bushes, wishbones and a 4 wheel alighnment abviously alfa didn't cover this on warranty .

£7500 seems steep!. For £6.5k I could get a 53/04 plate with similar millege and full leather etc. Try and haggle him down to about £6.8k.

 

[The younger modder]

As always you guys are helpfull , suspension bush wear/ wishbone wear i didnt expect on such a new car to be honet even at higher than usual millage so glad you have told me to check that, i will say that that one didnt have it listed in the history and nor did the one today and at the money you would do if you had had it done

thanks for the info on the cambelt changes its around what i was thinking to be fair, the bloke was going to check it out in writing for me but said he thought it to be around 100k like the Vag group cars but i thought this to be a bit OTT risky

hellcat funny you should mention this JTD/JTDm/JTD 16v business the first one in question was a JTD 16v, the latest one further down just listed as JTD and then a newer one is listed as a JTDm on boot but no 16v? are they all 16v? i asked the main dealer today and belive it or not they didnt know


Well today we went to Mangoletsi (main alfa delaler) and test drove a 1.8 16v petrol this time on an 02 plate but full spec with the full leather etc £4k so a fair amount cheaper although not as nice IMO

Dad test drove it with me in passenger seat and sales bloke in the back and to be honest it felt slow but planted on the road and it didnt feel that impressive so we got back the dealers and i said to the bloke i wasnt that impressed

for this last month i have been driving dads scenic which is a 1.8 16v and to be honest felt quicker so i grabbed the keys and test drove the alfa and after a quick drive i flicked it round in a junction and yet again we see that wonderfull dash display come alive

this just saying "warning oil pressure low" we assumed it to be the same problem as classic minis when flicking them about when the oil isnt full but i kept on

in traffic for the next 10 minutes so i found another junction and flicked it round and yet again the low oil pressure came on the display

then i really hammered it back to the dealers and bloody hell do you have to it needs the limiter in each gear to get anywhere with no cam kick or anything

Surprisingly smooth with it though and got to say one of the best bigger cars i have driven, the steering was spot on, it felt stuck to the road yet it was hammering down with rain, came back into the dealers and stopped and the dash display came on again this time saying "Brake fluid level low/handbrake on" now the bloke said this was because i had indeed put the handbrake on but if its going to do that at every set of lights i pull up to im going to be seriously pisssed off after a 300 mile stop start trip arent i

and it did NOT do it throughout the test drive nor when dad stopped at the dealers

So basically we have test drove 2 alfas in 2 days and broke both of them now should we buy one

?

Mangos have got a 1.9 JTD diesel in at £7k on a 54 plate but 7k miles more than other day and dads tempted to test drive that tommorrow, as he said hed usually leave these alfas well alone after these experiences but to be fair out of all the other cars hes looked at (A4's and the like) this is the only one that still feels useable and sedate yet sporty at the same time, the others feel bland and boring so far (although i have found an A4 Avant S line 1.9 TDi

)

its like a mate said do you choose the girl you really like shes like a model, the adventurous and wild in the bedroom one buts shes a bit flirty and your not sure you really trust her or do you choose the girl which has pure personality, which you could see marying always by your side and your confident shed never cheat on you

odd comparrison i know but i see where it goes (the alfa is quite clearly the tarty italian

)

wayne

 

[poggy]

I may be wrong, but the proper Veloce spec should have leather as standard. I can't remember the exact amount, but we bought a 1.9JTS (115bhp) Veloce 2004 (04) 30K miles about 18 months ago for a company car and I am sure we only paid £7,500 and that came with lifetime warranty (yes lifetime) but non transferrable warranty. Never had any trouble with it apart from a blown bulb and puncture.

I had a 2003 Selespeed 2.0 Veloce with everything on, Sat Nav, upgraded Sports seats, xenon lights etc and it was fantastic.

If you see the oil pressure light come on the petrol, walk away it's going to die. They can drink oil and if the previous owner hasn't been careful then the engine is damaged beyond repair.

The cambelt issue's apply to the petrol engined versions and is primarily due to the plastic tensioners falling apart. The replacements are metal and last a lot longer. I had my cambelts changed at 36K miles to be on the safe side and I think it was around £360.00 from memory.

They are a great car and I never found the quality to be lacking. The dealer network is currently getting a kick up the arse by the new CEO of the UK importers so things are improving. The good thing is that there are loads of specialists around the country who know there stuff and offer good pricing. The parts are also very cheap believe it or now, even if you buy them from the stealers.

Everybody has to own a Alfa at some point if you like cars.

 

[The younger modder]

Thanks for the reply poggy, to be honest the lack of leather is very disapointing on all 3 diesles in our price range (£8k limit) none have leather just the velour style cloth, when its something we have come to expect, the 51plate scenic has half leather, My arosa had full leather and my 206 has leather/alacantara and to be honest for the money i think they should have leather although in their diefence the Audi A4 Avant S line he looked at for £9k on an 03 doesnt even have half leather the odd thing is it seems to be the petrols mostly that have the leather found 2 1.6's with leather but wont even bother to test drive one of them

Were totally put off the petrols now as that one we drove is clearly an example of when you dont get a good one (our luck) i drove the scenic yet again this morning and it is by far quicker also nearly all the bad reviews the Alfas get are related to the petrols with the exception of the 2.4 jtd diesels which get slated by some, if we found a 2L veloce like you had then it would be tempting for the right price though, they seem a decent amount of power but not anything silly whereas the 1.8 was lacking severely and there seem no real advantages to it as the tax etc is still high

The problem is its got to be trade as he needs to part ex which is a shame as theres a very nice 2.0 Tspark veloce on the trader private , its got to be less than 60k miles so thats ruling a fair few out and an £8k maximum is ruling out a fair few other cars comparable to the alfas

wayne

 

[T14086]

I'd take a croma before 156 anyday

 

[JFL]

I'd take a croma before 156 anyday

You can get one of them, diesel, fully loaded for about 7k

 

[ChrisUK]

I'd take a croma before 156 anyday

Your mad :nerner:

 

[thepottleflump]

Loads of car for the money but it looks like a bus and you'll never be able to sell it again.

 

[T14086]

Loads of car for the money but it looks like a bus and you'll never be able to sell it again.

what the alfa?

 

[thepottleflump]

Never heard the Alfa called that before, heard the Croma called worse . They made it too high as some sort of weird crossover MPV/Estate car. Lower roof line would have made it more normal looking. If you keep your cars for many years then a great buy, if you sell every year or two no way.

 

[poggy]

You can get one of them, diesel, fully loaded for about 7k

And sell it the next day for £3K to a strange person with a beard.

 

[T14086]

I shaved yesterday

 

[JFL]

And sell it the next day for £3K to a strange person with a beard.

as with all fiats, you keep them longer so that the financial hit isnt so bad

its the same with most cars

 

[T14086]

Alfas have awful depreciation (your alfa is worth 32% of what you paid for it 3 years ago),poor relibility,poor build quality,high running costs & finding a dealer is getting harder & harder.

Give me the 'bus' anyday....ding ding hold tight please

 

[thepottleflump]

Alfas have awful depreciation (your alfa is worth 32% of what you paid for it 3 years ago),poor relibility,poor build quality,high running costs & finding a dealer is getting harder & harder.

None of that's been true for me, but let's not go there. What's the new Bravo like? Worth a look?

as with all fiats, you keep them longer so that the financial hit isnt so bad

its the same with most cars

I lost a small fortune on the Stilo.....ok car, bit like the Croma but not special. Jumping from Stilo to Alfa felt like much better. The whole package was much more accompished.

 

[The younger modder]

To be honest i think the Alfa's are surprsingly good build quality the 54 plate JTD veloce we drove 1st really surprised me, the fit and finnish is equal to many of the germans now and all the door shuts and 'tinyness' when closing the doors is gone instead its a reasuring thud,

the running costs are apparently good form what other owners have said and the 1.8 t spark was returning 33MPG when i was hammering it and people are dreaming if they think they will get more than that in other equivilents

Id actually be tempted by a 147 when i get bored of my 180 the only problem we have found so far is the apparent reliability BUT i think its just a bad 2 examples to be fair and please dont go telling me Fiat are amazing on reliability, they have as many problems as the next car although they do generally make up for it in value i would never buy a new one for the same reason as made about the Alfa

thanks for all replys

wayne

 

[jug]

i showed him an Alfa Romeo 156, now hes always wanted one but never had one moistly due to apparent reliability problems

anyone who believes the reliability lies doesn't deserve to own one. the JTD range are the most reliable cars to ever wear an alfa or fiat badge.

we got in and dad noticed the airbag light was on the dash display :?

airbag fault is very common. remember its still a fiat no matter how posh they make it look, so it will have the same faults as a fiat, including the airbag.

as soon as it came on boost in second it went mad and started beeping like hell, the engine management light came on the dash and it put the car in limp mode saying "take to main dealer" on the main dash display, needless to say we limped it back to the dealers (we never even got to try it out)

now we took the keys back in and told the bloke and after telling him it all he said it would be to do with the airbag sensors, now i didnt believe this and he has called me back tonight to confirm it is the "boost sensor" which im guessing stops the turbo overboosting? its getting fixed in the morning and hes ringing us when its readdy for test driving again tommorrow afternoon

not uncommon, check the alfaowner forum, its no big deal, but make sure you take a long test drive prior to purchase to make sure they havent done a reset in the hope it wont happen again for a few days.

they have had the car since new and he showed me the history file and its NEVER had any engine work just the usual tyre&brake changes

must be the only one

is this a sign of things to come? i have read numerous times that Alfas have greatly improved and they are no longer known for bad reliability?

improved? yes a hell of a lot. reliable? definately not, they're exactly the same as fiat, which you expect since its the same company using the same parts from the same suppliers and the same production methods.

Do i really let him buy a car which broke down on the test drive?

i would say no, not because the fault is serious, but because the garage obviously dont know the car very well or dont care enough, either way a test drive is testing the garage as much as the car if you are getting a warranty. if they give you a 1 year full warranty then maybe its a good deal, even though the price is still high, but a 3 month warranty is asking for trouble imo so with a 3 month warranty i'd want a good chunk of the price knocked off to cover future repairs.

when is the cambelt/tensioner and chains due on these multijet diesels?

its a 1.9JTD so there is no emergency on this engine, you can obey the 72k/5 year service interval for the belt. personally i'd go for 50k/5years.

how serious is a faulty boost sensor?

not serious at all, assuming that is the problem.

anyone on here had one of these and if so any oppinions on them? my dad only knows one person who had one and he slated it but to be fair he had the mk1 petrol V6 which is the one which has all the problems

the V6 didnt have all the problems, it suffered from a front heavy weight distribution, and the water pump impeller was a tw@t, but other than that the V6 had no real probs.

if you're going to get a 156 the 1.9JTD is the safest choice. all the common 156 faults are minor and easily fixed, plus cheaply fixed unless you use a dealer. the 156 range all suffer from niggling electrical faults and crap build quality no matter what age or model. its still a fiat, so you expect fiat issues, but you pay a fiat price so its fair. where else could you get a car like that for the same money?