Alfa Romeo 156 2 Litre Twin Spark "Lusso"

[Bluehawk]

Not been on here for a little while...
But on Monday Evening added a new car to the driveway...

To replace my MG TF, Behold my

1999 Alfa Romeo 156 with 86,000 Miles

2 Litre 16v Twin Spark Engine
Creme/Beige MOMO Leather Interior
Original Alfa Romeo Audio with 6 Disc Changer in the boot
Optional 17" Alloys in VGC...

So here she is,
Needs a proper clean and Polish and I think she will be pretty sweet... I know it's nothing special, but it's a big upgrade for me, as I've only been driving 10 Months and previous cars were a 1992 Polo & a 1.6 MG TF... Could be worse at the age of 21... I could have a Corsa "D"

[Bluehawk]

Like I said, It's nothing special...

But really enjoying it so far, only thing letting it down in my opinion is the soft suspension... It literally feels like you're floating around.

Managed about 500 miles in it so far... I'd like to tweak it to make it my own, but frankly I can't think of anything worth doing to it!

[Bluehawk]

DMN said:

Fit the GTA intake mod, it replaces some of the tubing prior to the airbox with a much less restrictive pipe and makes the car sound amazing. The pipe you need does not cost the earth either.

GTA intake mod ay? Sounds interesting, I was originally going to change it over to the Twin Cone induction kit i've got laying around in my garage

But might investigate this option first!

[Bluehawk]

Update: Now representing the "PH MASSIVE"

[Bluehawk]

Thanks for all the comments guys, shame I missed out on the guy above waffling about a Corsa? Obviously got removed/edited before I saw it... Evidently people can't take a bit of banter.

Good to see a few people here like the 156.

Paul S4 said:

Helpful advice...

Thanks for the advice, I will bare all that in mind

SebringMan said:

I have to ask two things though. What is your MPG like (via a tank to tank method) and has the timing belt been done within the last 36k via someone reputable?

I usually fill the tank just after it drops below 1/4, so don't really know what I can get out of a full tank, but MPG is typically working out at 25mpg... Mostly due to the stop start driving on the Work run, however longer runs seem to be around the 30mpg mark.

Cambelt was done at the 72,000 mile service (2013), and service book is stamped by an Alfa Specialist all the way through the car's history. Car is just about to tick onto 90,000. So I should be okay until next year with regards to that.

Hopefully I have found myself a good one that won't run up too many big bills!! But based on my current history, I change cars every 5 months so might not own it long enough to find out

Edited by Bluehawk on Wednesday 10th June 09:03

[Bluehawk]

A Little Update on the Car... Approximately 2000 miles into ownership and I've got my first problem:

I now have an engine management light on, very bad throttle response (and loss of power) and a rough idle... Spoken to an Alfa specialist who believes it could be down to the throttle body.

Will plug it in when I get home and see what error codes are showing... Wish me luck

[Bluehawk]

waynedear said:

Have you tried unplugging your maf, (mass air flow) it should be a connector on the r/ h side of the engine bay, half way between the air filter and the throttle body, it's a free check, unplug and see if it makes a difference.
One of my GTV's used to flash up eml and perform rubbish, I sorted it by wiggling all the wires behind the centre console until the eml went out, it was a dry joint in the loom for the throttle pot

Thanks all,

Where abouts under the centre console are we Talking?

I've plugged my car in and fault code "P0100 - Air Flow Meter"... Unfortunately it's a fairly new MAF installed in December.

Diagnostics are showing the MAF is reading air flow, but not showing a Voltage output... Currently unsure if that's due to the MAF being broken or whether it could be a wiring problem between the MAF and ECU...

Let the fun and games begin!