17th May 2008, 09:50
I've owned a 156 2.0 TS for 3 years (and 110,000 miles!) and it abandoned me (broke down while driving) only once. At some point I swapped with a colleague's BMW 323i for a weekend. Certainly a good car but it lacks a 'soul' and driving it is no fun. That's where Alfa's are unbeatable in my opinion: design and fun-factor. Alfa's are for people who like cars, and are willing to give in a little bit on reliability, practical usability, what-boss/friends/neighbors' think... stuff like that.
2 years ago I bought a 156 GTA Selespeed. Big smile on my face every time I take it for a drive. For most new cars, the enthusiasm wears off after a couple of weeks. Not with this one. Engine is wonderful and trouble-free. Problems have been minor: some squeaks, an intermittent electrical problem, and I have to check oil levels regularly. Minor issues compared to the thrill that driving this car provides.
23rd Mar 2009, 12:45
Never had a BMW but had Alfas for 16 years. Only one breakdown and that was a German Aircon Compressor. I have a 156 GTA since 2003 and what a hoot it is to drive, I just can't help smiling every time I drive it.
I fitted a Q2 diff recently and it takes it to another level, I really would recommend this mod.
7th Feb 2008, 10:35
Whoah, I didn't read that the original owner had any BREAKDOWNS - far from it is my guess. This is typical Alfa bashing that is STILL going on as a remnant of the Alfas of old. I'm guessing none of the posters of these comments have owned a modern Alfa?
I've now had 2 Alfa 156's among my 12 cars owned over the years, and both have been utterly reliable. The 156 GTA has now covered 62,000 miles and has NEVER broken down, neither did the 2.0 TS I bought in '99 and had for 3 years. Yes, they had work done under warranty, mainly suspension issues down to pot holes on our lousy roads in winter, but also down to the dealers very enthusiastic warranty claims policy - suffice to say dealers were only too glad to put as many claims as you like in with AR UK! How come all the problems were spotted by the dealers during servicing... hmmm.
Neither BMW nor Subaru are defect free - my brother in-law rejected his 320 after it broke down 3 times on the motorway in the first month - try telling him how reliable BMWs are! The dealers never found the source of the problem - pity the poor customer who they palmed that one off to.
Likewise, tell my colleague how reliable Imprezas are - thought electrical faults were reserved for "unreliable" Italian cars? - his STi has had a persistent problem with the charging circuit - sometimes he gets back to the car to find it doesn't have enough power to start the engine. That's a breakdown in my book!
Things go wrong with ALL cars, some people are lucky, some are not.