Well it's gone... in a strange coincidence back to a village just 4mls from where I bought it... to a 23yr old farmer's son who's over the moon.
Went for £50 more than I paid 18mths ago but in better condition.
Sale image here...
s245.photobucket.com/user/SealgairC420/media/Alfa156Sale_zps4fc8ff37.jpg.html
So the figures which might be of interest were that in 18mths it cost £943 in tyres, servicing, MOTs, VED... everything bar fuel and insurance. So a whisker over £50/mth which I reckon is a bargain for the motoring pleasure.
It wasn't run on bangernomics either as I fitted quality tyres, expensive new battery and brakes all round when the time came plus a major all filters service at the start so it was always running in tip-top rather than minimal condition.
I've said enough in the past about how nice it was to drive but to sum up it was probably the most at one I've felt driving a car and allowed cross country progress that should never be fully discussed.
Totally excellent experience.
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It is pretty. Give you that. Very pretty.
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I had a 156 for a couple of months as a hire car. It was a 2.0JTS. Far more fun than my Passat at the time. I liked it. Never had the chance to get an Alfa as a company car - I wonder why they are never on any of the lists :-)
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Chirps and flickers though. Chirps and flickers. Power at the wrong end...
;-)
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Ahh but it was great in reverse.
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Nice car, I test drove a two litre petrol TS when my FIAT was in for a service.
I so wanted to like the Alfa as I needed more space but the lack of guts turned me away. It felt turgid after the FIAT Coupe.
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Odd. Almost the same power and performance on paper so it shouldn't have been like chalk and cheese. Mind you folks do say the 156 JTS was a better engine than the TS.... only another 15hp though.
It was interesting taking the buyer on a B-road test run. I really don't think he was prepared for the sporting nature of the 5cyl diesel and it was the feature every passenger commented on.
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Not really it was 220PS in the FIAT vs 150-something Alfa. The steering rack was about the same ratio though. Loved the directness. Driving a Volvo S60 after wasn't the hardship that others found as I was used to driving a real supertanker in the FIAT.
Last edited by: gmac on Thu 29 May 14 at 22:52
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Just to rub salt into the wound, you realise you will NEVER feel as at one with a car again !!! Sorry! Didn't mean to be horrible. Yes I did, you bad man, you let a red Alfa which was not destined for the scrap yard go...May a thousand, silver, four cylinder BMW's plague your driveway !!!
P.S. Who's 99 is that in the link ? Nice car, have you thought about seeking out a nice 99 turbo ? Real will it, won't it, oh Christ ! hang on the ignitions lit performance....
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Why did you move it on Fenlander?
I noticed in one of your posts you described the handling in bends with foot down as fairly similar to a rwd car. My embarrassing little Arna had the same (excellent) characteristic.
Ignore Humph with his chirpy stuff. I like a nice chirp.
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Humph is to cars what Nick Clegg is to politics.
Pushing against the tide insisting he's right and everyone including the 1923 Flying Scotsman is wrong.
Do trains push or pull?
Is an artic power plant and driven wheels in front or behind the weight?
Do you push or pull your suitcase?
Go-carts are toys not working tools. F1 is not real world, it's an experiment which requires development to include in the real world...
;-) Just teasing Humph, but you see where the real world sits...
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Do you push or pull your suitcase?
I carry mine. Because I can. }:---)
You could argue that trains are now more AWD than FWD. And that driving the middle axle of a tractor-trailer combo is more a matter of convenience than optimum dynamics, as indeed it was with the safety bicycle and the early motor car.
And remember, I have a RWD car too, just that I'm very seldom aware of which end is putting the power down. It's usually only the (lack of) tyre wear that gives the game away.
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Not sure whether to be glad it's gone or not, but glad you managed to sell it easily and painlessly, and for a good price.
Funny enough I encountered a late facelift 156 20V JTD joining the motorway this morning. It left my 320d standing. Couldn't keep up.
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Yours is the low phat efficient dynamics 320d though isn't it ?
You're giving away around 50bhp to the Alfa. I'd have been more amazed if you'd managed to keep up.
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163 plays 175. Not much in it. I think the Alfa had been messed with in fairness.
The 20v diesel only ever made 175 bhp in the 156 (200 in the significantly heavier 159.)
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For some reason I had it in my head the 156 being available with the higher output too.
Last edited by: gmac on Fri 30 May 14 at 15:26
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>> Why did you move it on Fenlander?
I thought he wanted an estate car.
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Did you advertise it here? or was there something questionable about selling to people that you 'know'?
When the BMW is too small for you please let me know:)
Last edited by: sherlock47 on Fri 30 May 14 at 15:14
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>>>Did you advertise it here? or was there something questionable about selling to people that you 'know'?
No rudeness intended and genuinely as it left me yesterday no known issues but the stress of knowing any totally unexpected disaster would loom large on the forum was too much.... bearing in mind some folks without the faith might have encouraged it to fail.... and it was a car known for issues with 162,000 + miles so a risk to many folks.
But now it's away with no comeback having been mechanic inspected for the buyer.
The BMW however could be on here in 2yrs because at its much lower mileage... and in truth with a better build quality and known longevity... I feel a "known" buyer would have a better chance of a good experience.
Last edited by: Fenlander on Fri 30 May 14 at 16:36
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>>>Who's 99 is that in the link ?
Mine... even then quite rare being the 2dr homologation special. Very raw days of petrol turbo. Nothing... nothing... nothing... oh hell we're ploughing straight on through this bend... sort of thing.... as you alluded.
Yep the absolute need for an estate car did it.... amazing I lasted 18mths. I buy/sell "stuff and often didn't buy things with a sure profit in them because I had no way of getting them home. Also daughter at uni and finally we do smallcraft boating with loads of kit to carry. The last two holidays and uni run needed both cars which will now all be covered by the capacious BMW.... and 6cy remember not 4... it's a very nice engine and almost silent after the Alfa.
Last edited by: Fenlander on Fri 30 May 14 at 00:03
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Ah yes, carrying stuff...that's why (going back Fen's small car thread) I started looking at 850s/V70s as my second car after the Punto. There was a share of car salesmen had a hard time getting their head around the idea that a 'young fella' wanted to swap a small hatch for a family-sized load lugger!
Then came the fateful day when I tried a Forester Turbo automatic while my then local garage (who were Subaru specalists) were servicing the Punto. Lets just say Volvo disappeared off the 'I want' list on the spot :-)
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There was a moment about five years ago when I was keen on buying an XJS and having done some thinking and some research went to see a quite nice looking specimen for £950. It would have been one *hell* of a fun way to blow £950...
And I spent a happy hour crawling over it.
And then I opened the boot.
And went to buy a Legacy estate.
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Because the boot wasn't big enough? Or because there was something (or someone) unpleasant in it?
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It was my intention to report on the Autotrader experience but once the 156 went and I was fully occupied with the RWD experience it slipped my mind.
The ad for the Alfa was £9.99 for 2wks as it came into the under £1000 deal. I've not used them to sell since it was a weekly magazine only and a guy would come round to take the photos for you so the online flexibility to upload own images and create the advert was a massive improvement. Also you can go in and edit the advert which I did several times to increase appeal.
Like Ebay you can see how many ad views you've had and the first 24hrs produced about 60. By 48hrs I was up to 160 views but still no calls. I was quite taken aback I'd got to almost 300 views before anyone phoned around day three.
That was the eventual buyer and I only received one more call on day four and by that time the buyer was due to view a second time with a mechanic. By the time I took the ad down late on day four there had been almost 400 views.
Thankfully using the free Telesafe number I didn't get one canvassing call.
So it resulted in a sale but I've never had so much "interest" with so few actual enquiries generated. Just the old Alfa thing I guess.
Despite my support for Ebay as a selling medium for smaller stuff there is still something a little dodgy feeling with vehicle sales on there so had it not sold I would have just reduced the price for a second period on Autotrader.
I didn't get one reply from the ad placed on the Alfa forum.
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Alfa Romeo 156 - Alfa sold and gone. - Runfer D'Hills
