Alfa's any good?

Wrong Forum, post in the 'Should I buy an Alfa' forum.

dmck wrote:

Folks,
The missus wants to buy a 2001 Alfa Romeo 1.6 TS, 8,500 ono (bit pricey for me), usual spec, 31k on the clock,car looks ok on paper, i have heard very bads things about the Alfa Romeo's, in your opion is this substatianted? I am trying to steer her in the direction of a second hand Focus. What do you think?

Ta

I'd agree it's too pricey. The Focus is an excellent car, certainly much more practical than a 156. You're clearly not happy with the Alfa. Surely this is enough to make up your mind?

For what it's worth - the Alfa 156 is in my opinion an excellent car. Regarding reliability, you hear a lot about them, and there can be no smoke without fire. However, when we did a poll here of people who had actually owned an Alfa, almost 80% said they would buy one again. Personally I never had a problem with my 156, or with any of the 5 that my company ran at that time. I've never had a Focus, so I cannot comment on them reliability wise (this rule does not seem to apply to Alfas - if you know someone who heard that someone else's grandmother's dog was once hit by an Alfa, this is enough to loudly proclaim how crap the cars are)

Let me put it this way: if your wife is passionate about cars, wants the best second hand deal on the market, wants one of the best looking saloon cars ever made, and is willing to spend a bit more on servicing, she should buy the Alfa 156. Otherwise she should buy the Focus.

If you do decide on an Alfa, you should get an 01 1.6 for about 7500. There isn't much difference in the cost for bigger engine size, so if you can take the tax & insurance, go for the 1.8 or 2.0. The diesels are deservedly more expensive.

Have a search of this forum for common problems with the 156 so that you're not buying blind.

Oh, and enjoy the Focus !

eoin_s wrote:

The 1.6 actually tends to have a higher resale value than the 1.8 and 2.0 litre engines, even though their list price is lower when new. This is probably because they are rarer, and only came out in 2000.

In Ireland the 1.6 is cheaper to tax, insure and fill at the pump than the 1.8, 2.0 or 2.5 so demand for the 1.6 tends to be higher.

ds20prefecture wrote:

legions of ill-informed VW and BMW fans droning on about how unreliable Alfas are. That's one helluva smear campaign, and it's really hit the resale value of the 156. As a result, it is the best used purchase on the market.

the fact is that the 156 was flavour of the month 6 years ago, and that they have numerous weak points and aren't exactly in short supply, that's why it is the best used purchase on the market, not because of any smear campaign!

oh gawd, not another......here goes......

I have had 156 (99) from new. No issues, done 80k miles now. Know about 5 other 156 owners. Only one had gearbox problem. I also know a Passat and Golf owner who has regular engin e warning lamps (about every 3 months)

Some facts now:
- variator is a real issues. Check if it has been changed
- wishbones on suspension are prone problem which only causes a squeky sound when goes over bumps.
- V6 is heavy on juice and front brakes (discs and rotors)
- MAF unit seems to cause rough idle on some cars (check it also)
- Dealers are sh*8te

IMHO, the 1.8 is probably a better option than 1.6

On my third Alfa. 1st: 156 1.8TS Lusso. 2nd 156 2.0TS Sportivo. 3rd (current ride) 147 1.6TS Lusso. No problems at all with any of them that I would let put me off buying another. Dealer - Michael Barrable - hasn't given me any reason to complain. They gave me a discount on a new 16" Alloy and tyre when I hit a nasty pot-hole in the 2.0 TS.

Of the 3 the 156 2.0 was my favorite - loads of power - nice trim and often brought a smile to my face due to it's lively performance - gave a few 318s and 1.8T Golfs a run for their money.

My advice is buy from a garage if over 2 years old for peace of mind and a guarantee. If possible from a main dealer as I've seen some terrible work by some non-dealers on a friends 156 - drives fine but some covers and cowlings not properly replaced in the engine bay and although the dealer said it was "fully serviced" it had an old oil and air filter.

Keep an eye on the oil level though - they tent to be thirsty !!

ZEN

alias no.9 wrote:

Here's the best bit, I got it for €4500 cash with a 6 month warrenty

The best bit indeed. About the same price as a same year / same mileage Nissan Micra 1.0

Happy motoring...

Tiger Jim wrote:

The Alfas are great to look at and drive, but the Focus is a great car to drive too. Jezza Clarkson has a 1.6 one and he loves it. I have a TDCi and it is quick enough to keep up with most Alfas.

Clarkson is an idiot. The Focus is still an excellent car. The 156 is a better car in some, but not all areas. The Alfa would be the enthusiast's buy.

dmck wrote:

Folks,
The missus wants to buy a 2001 Alfa Romeo 1.6 TS, 8,500 ono (bit pricey for me), usual spec, 31k on the clock,car looks ok on paper, i have heard very bads things about the Alfa Romeo's, in your opion is this substatianted? I am trying to steer her in the direction of a second hand Focus. What do you think?

Ta

stay away from them unless of course your a wealthy mechanic with a lot of spare time

ds20prefecture wrote:

Regarding numerous weak points, I believe they have no more than most. i.e. Front wishbone bushes are weak, the timing chain interval was halved from 70000 to 35000 miles and ... ? Variator issue is not critical - it causes a diesely sound when cold.
Compare to, say, and Audi A4 of similar vintage:
Coil packs failure on 1.8T, mutitronic gearbox failure, waterpump failure on some models (1.6, 2.0 and v6 petrols)
.

You cannot argue that a 156 is more reliable than an A4, can you?

............and you would accept that reliability on 156's is below average?