Can i count on a alpha romeo 156.?
I am thinking to buy a used 1999 reg. Alpha Romeo 156 but am not sure whether they are good and reliable cars or not. i've always been a fan of Japanese cars and had Toyota, Honda, twice had a suzuki and now again have a toyota and none of them have never let me down. can any one guide me in buying the alpha 156. thanks
Answers:
To go from supremely reliable and well-built Japanese cars to temperamental, shoddy bits of sh*it like Alfa Romeo will drive you to insanity. Don't do it.
Italian cars are bloody rubbish. Fiat are stil regarded as tripe, Alfas as unreliable, temperamental, poorly-built, highly-strung poseurs vehicles, and Lancias aren't even inported into the UK anymore as they just won't sell.
In the name of all that is sacred, stay Japanese. Toyota, best built and most reliable car in the world, bar none.
I heard an amusing 'hospital' analogy of Italian cars once:
Fiat is still hoping to be discharged from hospital soon, Alfa is still in the operating theatre seriously ill, and Lancia is on a trolley in a corridor.. somewhere..
you can count on it turning heads.just hope it doesn't break down while their turning..Alfa's are definately a mechanics car.if you like to tinker and are willing to put in the research on the engineering of an Alfa.then they make a great weekend car or a "toy".i wouldn't count on it as my daily driver.
there's a reason alfas and fiats..etc are no longer sold in the states.they're junk.stick with a japanese car mate
my dad had one for years and it never broke down despite traveling atleast 450 miles a week, but he used to service it regularly. I warn you now that you cant take it to any old garage to service or repair it, a specially trained alfa romeo technician has to come plug a laptop into it with custom software to diagnose the car, my dad once had a service and a section of exhaust replaced and the bill came to nearly £900 ! the service is expensive because the twin spark means 2 spark plugs per cyclinder, that means 8 special spark plugs every service. Hope this helps
yes you can count on it.
.. to break down when you least expect it to.
can anybody count on an Italian made cat that doesn't cost more than $100K or that is hand made? I don't think so. Even Maserati's have horrible reliability ratings. Ferrari and Lambo's are only driven infrequently, nice sunny days. not as commuter cars. Think before you spend My friends that have invested in Italians, have said they should have bought cases of Chianti because at least they would be worth something in 5 years.
If you have grown up with Jap rubbish then a 156 is wasted on you.
Let someone who appreciates fine handling and real power who drives for pleasure rather than nescessity, and who is a member of the RAC buy it. If you drove any of the above the way an Apha should be driven, you would a) have walked home as the engine would have blown itself to bits, and b) stuck it through a hedge .
It is no good comparing day horse with racehorse.
Why not buy a grey Toyota Carisma, and a caravan.
The simple answer is NO if you want a reliable car in the same mould spend a little extra and go for a mazda zx2 good mpg cheaper tax good bird puller and quick off the mark. Better still go for a Vauxhall Calibra 2:0 ltr sports coupe,slick quick lean bird pulling machine and reliable
Colin Goodwin, Autocar writer, friend of TVs James May, and general car person, runs one. He says he's very happy with it, but then he's a bit of a grease monkey, so would know how to fix problems.
I know people who've had good an bad ones. Honest John, the telegraph motoring agony aunt, recommends that people avoid the V6 and Selespeed models because they are prone to known faults. Check that the cambelt has been changed if the car's done more than 40,000.
I think they're smashing looking cars, which are very well specified and great fun to drive. Be careful of colour and wheel choice though, this makes a big difference to value on the newer models.
They're about the only saloon car I can think of which manages to look fantastic in bright red.
Go for a late model 2.0 Twinspark in a high spec, in a dark metallic or, of course, bright red with pale leather.
A 156 would be a driving experience whilst it was going unfortunately that will not be a regular occurrence.Nice to look at but not in the same league as Jap or german vechs.
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