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[cam2502]

looking at an alpha romeo 156 2.0 t-spark mangoletsi.
it is a v reg with 96k on clock and appears in good nick. cam belt changed 10000 miles ago.
need to know of any faults i should look out for or any major problems common to these cars, and also how much you reckon its worth?
 a quick response would be appreciated guys.

[joshwyatt]

156's can be very expensive to repair if things go wrong, a favourite is electrical items which often can't be fixed easily like some Omega gremlins. You can put it on par with an Omega for comfort. If it's been looked after then go for it...but if you have any doubts avoid. Looks good, well I don't think it does, but most people seem to like it's looks, but it's not the most reliable car. I wouldn't want to pay much over £1000 for it...£1250 tops, and it'll be worth nothing in a few years. Personally, it's a car I'd avoid.

[Elite Pete]

Make sure the variator was changed along with the cambelt

[cem_devecioglu]

yep.. good summary above..

variators are expensive and known illness for Alfas..

good, responsive car (specially 2.5 and 3.0 V6 models) but parts and repairs are expensive..

[lozzy]

i dont think i could trust an alfa some of them dont look to bad

[cam2502]

appreciate your comments guys. cheers

[Grumpy]

looking at an alpha romeo 156 2.0 t-spark mangoletsi.
it is a v reg with 96k on clock and appears in good nick. cam belt changed 10000 miles ago.
need to know of any faults i should look out for or any major problems common to these cars, and also how much you reckon its worth?
 a quick response would be appreciated guys.

In case you didn't know, 'Mangoletsi' is just the name
of the Alfa dealer in Knutsford Cheshire, not a suffix
that denotes a trim level such as 'Ghia' on Fords.

They like to stick their name on the back of any cars
that they sell. I used to get my spares from them
when I owned an Alfa 33 1.7IE. That was a fun car to
drive. It was a bit tinny and tended to rust well  ,
but that's not what you worry about when you
buy Alfa's. There's just an indefineable pleasure you
get from driving them that can't really be logically explained  :-/ .

[redelitev6]

Guy at work has the 2.4 diesel version,looks great ,goes very well,but constant niggly problems and, as has been said very expensive parts ,also the dealer doesn't seem to keep a big stock of parts meaning long waits for bits to get shipped over, have to admit though -it is a good looking car 

[Plomien]

It will eat oil faster than petrol

[Grumpy]

Guy at work has the 2.4 diesel version,looks great ,goes very well,but constant niggly problems and, as has been said very expensive parts ,also the dealer doesn't seem to keep a big stock of parts meaning long waits for bits to get shipped over, have to admit though -it is a good looking car 

That goes with the territory when you buy an Alfa.
They're like that quirky friend that you never know
what they're going to do next. They make an Omega
look like a paragon of virtue 

Electrics? Would they work or not and which bits?
When I used the central locking I never knew which
door would open or not and let me in. It was like a
mystery tour wondering which side of the car I would
be getting in today 
Speedometer or Rev counter? Which one would work
today so that I could judge my speed?

Would the waterpump be leaking today or would
it have mysteriously fixed itself again?

Would the fuel tank filler pipe be leaking or would it
have settled itself again?

Would the valve lifters on the Boxer engine fill straight
away or would it sound like a load of marbles in a tin
box for ten miles?

They're certainly full of niggles, but each day is like a
voyage of discovery; you never know what it's got
in store for you next.   

I've owned a lot of cars, but for all its foibles it's the
only car that brought a huge grin to my face whenever
I got in it to drive it 
I've tried to analyse why that is... but I can't; it's just
one of those weird things that Alfas do to you that
you end up accepting at face value.