Alfa 156 Question

Debyaka

Hey there,
I'm gonna send my car in for a full service soon,
There is 34K on the clock, should i get the timing belt done now?
I need brake pads all round too any ideas whats all this might set me back at a independant dealers?
Cheers for any help lad(ie)s

testicle

The belt should be done at 36k, if memory serves, no harm in getting it done slightly early.

ismynametoolong

36 K for a timing belt change this seems very low mileage i though most cars now do 60K between belt changes . Although i would always recommend an early change especially with an Italian motor .If your going to an independent make sure the pads fitted are of good quality otherwise you will be plagued with a hard pedal squealing brakes and no confidence in the stopping ability .
I would recommed "Jurid" brake pads which are OE in many top brand vehicles and reboxed with the manufacturers name . Check with you local motor factors first for availability so you dont get fobbed off by the garage .

RicardoSmith

While I don't think you'll make the money back if you are selling it, it will help to sell it faster if the work is done.

gabgab

My mate just had is 147 done, he got chgarged approxamitely €150 for plugging it into the computer. I aggree with the rest of the lads re timing belt and on alfa's it is around 36k

Also its worth buying the parts yourself, the garage just put a margin on them, eg: €5.97 for a indicator bulb, no joke!! If the kick up a fuss take the business elsewhere,

cashmni1

I would agree to change the belt,early (no harm) but be careful that the dealer doesn't insist that the brake disks themselvs are gone. This happened to a friend of mine and the service cost him €900 (Alfa dealer).

BrianD3

Are you actually sure that you need new brake pads all round i.e. have you taken the wheels off and had a good look at the pad thicknesses yourself. 34k is low mileage to be getting out of a set of pads. If the pads are actually gone you must be a "nippy" driver

gabgab

Yeh I aggree, the garage will always suggest doing them so they can sting ya with the margin on the pads and labour....

Anyway, my mate got a timing belt and 4 pads for €300 from victor motors, but he's a bit of a spoofer so dunno what he actually paid!!

Cyrus

timing belt is going to cost a few quid prob 600 at least

try gerry at ti autos 01-8386567

better than a main dealer, nice guy and really knows his alfas

[DF]Lenny

I agree with the above post,had a couple of alfa's (including a 156) and T.I are a great garage..stay well away for Donohoe's on the Kylemore Road!

RicardoSmith

Wheres ti autos ?

bmoferrall

RicardoSmith wrote:

Wheres ti autos ?

Cowper Lane, just off Aughrim St., Dublin 7

I agree with above comments.
I've long since abandoned Donohoe's in favour of TI Autos. Gerry Campbell knows alfa's inside out (and is a nice, trustworthy bloke also); you will usually see one or two classics, in various states of repair, in his garage. Downside is that, because he's so popular, and virtually a one-man band, you may have to book a couple of months in advance. He's not exactly cheap but he won't make stupid mistakes and he won't take advantage of you.

bmoferrall

Debyaka wrote:

Hey there,
There is 34K on the clock, should i get the timing belt done now?

All depends on your driving style really (you didn't say what year the car is). If you have owned the car from new and are a sympathetic driver then it should last for the recommended 60K (or 3 years).

kyote00

As a 156 owner since 99 and with 80k on mine (and no trouble), I had the timing belt done at 52k .... as it coincided with a service.

Unless you have serious suspicion that the car has been flogged to death, I can't see why doing a change at 36k is needed.

Its fine to do it earlier but 36k ?

Follow the advice earlier about the alfa dealer on the kylemore road, the crowd in clontarf screwed up simple service items on my car so are not much better IMHO

galwaytt

kyote00....interesting you have an Alfa that long....from new? As you can see from my sig, I have a TT, and want to change it for a new Alfa GT. However, there being no dealer on this side of the country, I can't exactly access anyone who owns one, and want to do this before I commit, re: quality, reliability etc........last Alfa I had was in the 80's...so that isn't fair.......

What say you on them?

As for timing belt changes - simple. Look in the owner's handbook that came with the car......it'll tell you in there. 36k sounds very early, but some Fiats of old used to have 30k changes so you can never assume.

My wife was nearly conned into a timing belt change at 42k on her Scenic by the main dealer. What tosh. Book said (iirc..) 60k.

RicardoSmith

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=235740

BrianD3

On the topic of timing belt change intervals - IMO the change intervals specified by the manufacturers are little better than a "guesstimate" and they are often revised during the production life of a vehicle (probably due to timing belts which snap before the recommended change interval while the car is still under warranty)

There are many factors that can contribute to the failure of a belt and there is also uncertainty associated with them. They are in effect a glorified rubber band which can snap at any time or can last the life of the vehicle.

bloke

bmoferrall wrote:

All depends on your driving style really (you didn't say what year the car is). If you have owned the car from new and are a sympathetic driver then it should last for the recommended 60K (or 3 years).

bmoferrall - As I recall you've owned a couple of V6 alfas, like meself The V6 engine is ok to leave 'til 60k before doing the timing belt. The TwinSparks however seem to shred belts very early - probably because of the convoluted and tight path the belt takes, and the tensioners seem to have a tendency to seize also, ruining the belt.

Debyaka: Go to alfaowner.com and do a search for timing belt failure. It seems to happen quite regularly @ well under 60k on the T-Sparks. I have a friend with a 1.8 156 who had the belt go at ~42k. Alfa officially recommended an inspection @ 36k when widespread problems became apparent - but it's impossible to inspect properly without removing so most reputable garages will recommend a change at 36-40k anyway.

It's not cheap unfortunately. Would highly recommend Gerry in TI as have others in the thread. Not cheap but no dearer than the dealers, and you know he'll do it right. You should make sure the tensioners changed also and consider changing the variator - if it goes (and they do...) the belt will have to come off again to replace. Again search alfaowner.com for "variator".

hth

RicardoSmith

On any car where timing belt failure is known to happen, how it can it be a bad thing to change it more often?

bmoferrall

RicardoSmith wrote:

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=235740

Actually, Galwaytt is looking for a GT, not a GTA (I've decided to keep my car anyway)

bmoferrall

galwaytt wrote:

As you can see from my sig, I have a TT, and want to change it for a new Alfa GT. However, there being no dealer on this side of the country, I can't exactly access anyone who owns one, and want to do this before I commit, re: quality, reliability etc........last Alfa I had was in the 80's...so that isn't fair.......

What say you on them?

'Alfasudcrazy', who occasionally drops in here, owns a GT.
You'll find lots of info on Alfas in general here:
http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/index.php
GT's are mainly discussed in this section:
http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/forumdisplay.php?f=71

RicardoSmith

bmoferrall wrote:

Actually, Galwaytt is looking for a GT, not a GTA (I've decided to keep my car anyway)

Its interesting from a resale value. Lovely car, you'd be mad to sell it.

bmoferrall

RicardoSmith wrote:

Its interesting from a resale value. Lovely car, you'd be mad to sell it.

Cheers...I've got over my Skyline fixation (I think).
If I need more power/better handling I now know I can get this with the alfa, though it would be expensive. I reckon the GTA is a better long-term proposition, provided I look after it

bmoferrall

@galwaytt, try this link (also contains some useful sublinks):
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=292072&highlight=Alfa

kyote00

galwaytt:

I have had my 156 from new. Its the 2.5 V6 version so I have no plans to change. I have done 77k on mine.

I have not really had any trouble with mine. However the twin spark cars do seem to have issues with the variator and the mass air flow meter. The front brake discs are also likely to need changes on high mileage cars

The very early production runs had many small issues with rattle behind the dashboard.

The car is an excellent drive. The v6 versions like a 'sup' of petrol and front tyres.

The offical dealers are useless -- why ? My guess is they are over worked, lots of cars sold since 1999 and not many experienced alfa mechanics around.

Since about 2002, I have used the TI-autos and have always been very happy with the work done.

PS What about the new '8C spider' instead of the GT

Debyaka

Cyrus wrote:

timing belt is going to cost a few quid prob 600 at least

try gerry at ti autos 01-8386567

better than a main dealer, nice guy and really knows his alfas

Yea thats the guy who i've gone to before,
Charged €359 for Two new front shocks and, He really knows his stuff, I must drop into him soon for an aul chat!!

Thanks for all the help lad(ie)s

P.S. I am a little cruel to my brakes especially on my roadtrips to mayo!!