Alfa Romeo 156 1.8 TS Lusso Review

Overall Rating

Styling inside and out,
Handling,
Responsiveness,
Engine,
Value for money.

Air con is a bit feeble,
Rear seats don't fold down so load space can be limiting,
Dealerships can be a lottery.

I bought my Alfa Romeo 156 1.8 TS Lusso new, some 2 years ago. At the time I considered Alfa, BMW 3 series and Audi A4. Having test driven them all I just fell in love with the Alfa - it is the best looking and best to drive in my opinion. To be fair the build quality is not as good as the Germans but you have to remember that the price differential is very significant so the Alfa is definitely the best value for money of the three as well.

I chose the Lusso which provides a wood effect steering wheel, console and gear stick, velour trim and a softer ride. I looked also at the sports version which has aluminium effect interior, sports trim and supposedly a sportier ride. I couldn't tell much of a difference in the ride quality and, in the 2 year old version I test drove, the trim inside was looking fairly shabby and cheap. The Lusso seems to wear much better and I think it looks much better also. The itnerior is still looking fine now and certainly doesn't look cheap and plasticky.

The 1.8 engine is simply superb. Okay performance isn't as good as the 2.0 (which is probably the best of the 156s), but is far from sluggish and I only really miss the difference when the car is fully loaded.

My only quibbles about the car are the air con -which is rather feeble even in the UK - and the boot space - I cannot understand why they didn't put in a folding rear seat; a trip to the DIY store for a couple of planks of wood is out of the question unless you have a roof rack.

I have found the car to be fairly reliable but have had a few minor problems. Based on other new cars I or my friends have had I'd say it is equivalent in reliability from new to a Ford or Peugeot but not as good overall as BMW or VW/Audi. However, given the much cheaper prices I'm very happy overall.

So what's gone wrong:

Squeaking front suspension - a very common fault supposedly fixed on new versions. Only noticable on speedbumps and an annoyance rather than a problem.

Wiper switch packed in in the rain. Luigi's spaghetti strikes again. Fixed under warranty.

Slightly erratic idling in the engine - again was a originally a software problem in the EMC supposedly fixed in new cars or with a simple update at the dealerships.

Uneven wear on front tyres caused by the wheels getting out of alignment. Fairly common on the Alfa 156 and my fault for not spotting it sooner - cost 2 new tyres and a minor adjustment to the alignment.

Squeaky, rubbing sound from rear brakes. Fixed by stripping and rebuilding them - the backing plate had worked loose.

When wet the failed lightbulb warning light has a tendency to come on or start flickering. The curse of Luigi's spaghetti again.

The battery has run down a few times. I think the cause was my small child turning on the interior light but I'm not 100% sure - it's happened a couple of times.

The paintwork picks up stone chips easilly. Apparently this is common in all new cars due to a switch from oil based to water absed paints for environmental reasons. I know of BMW and Audi drivers complaining of the same.

All in all fairly minor stuff and only 2 days in the garage in two years other than services.

Would I buy one again? You bet! Every time I drive it it still brings a smile to my face.

JG.

Members' Comments onJohn G.'s Review

• nikism on 28th Feb 2004

  I agree very much in the excellent design. In fact I orderd my Alfa 156 with leather upholstery. A BMW 316 or 318 is very poor design comparison. Mine came with superb Momo leather upholstering which looks fantastic. I didn\'t know that problem of the alignment of the front wheels. Thank you Alfa friend from Aberdeen. Next Monday its the first thing which I will do. One should be very carefull with Alfa Romeos when changing gears, or he will have to do repairs. Oh yes I like the Alfa 156. Certain friends made big eyes when they did see the Polare White Alfa 156. I was considering of ordering a Mercedes 200 Kompressor, but I would feel a very old man with a Mercedes.