159 3.2 V6 Q4 Sportwagon on my driveway
Discussion
The nice man from Alfa Romeo dropped off my demo car on Monday.
Good news - he's not able to come and pick it up until next Monday so it's mine for a full week.
Bad news - I've got the flu and have only managed 50 miles or so in it so far and, I have to say, it doesn't look as good as I'd hoped (although colour - Silver - and standard 17" wheels don't do it any favours)
I plan to update this post as I get to drive the car more (for those that are interested)
Good news - he's not able to come and pick it up until next Monday so it's mine for a full week.
Bad news - I've got the flu and have only managed 50 miles or so in it so far and, I have to say, it doesn't look as good as I'd hoped (although colour - Silver - and standard 17" wheels don't do it any favours)
I plan to update this post as I get to drive the car more (for those that are interested)
Frankly, I was amazed.
They appeared on my company car list a month or so ago. I contact the lease company and ask them to arrange a test drive. 2 days later, Alfa fleet demo department write to me telling me that they'll drop a car with me on the 19/2 and pick it up again a week later.
No questions asked. Alfa must be very keen to improve thier image with fleet managers and/or sell more cars...can't see them selling many new 159 3.2s....
They appeared on my company car list a month or so ago. I contact the lease company and ask them to arrange a test drive. 2 days later, Alfa fleet demo department write to me telling me that they'll drop a car with me on the 19/2 and pick it up again a week later.
No questions asked. Alfa must be very keen to improve thier image with fleet managers and/or sell more cars...can't see them selling many new 159 3.2s....
hear what you're saying but 2 things are putting me off the Alfa right now-
1) it feels a bit heavy and the performance feel blunted as a result 2) it looks a little too conservative
knowing that both of those things are going to be sorted within 6 months of my car arriving would leave me with a slightly sour taste I have to say
VW have dropped an R32 off this morning on demo which shows what how 4WD 3.2 V6 should go!
Don't get me wrong, I like the Alfa, I just don't think I can love it enough to tolerate it's shortcomings (unlike the previous Spider where the pros outweighed the cons)
1) it feels a bit heavy and the performance feel blunted as a result 2) it looks a little too conservative
knowing that both of those things are going to be sorted within 6 months of my car arriving would leave me with a slightly sour taste I have to say
VW have dropped an R32 off this morning on demo which shows what how 4WD 3.2 V6 should go!
Don't get me wrong, I like the Alfa, I just don't think I can love it enough to tolerate it's shortcomings (unlike the previous Spider where the pros outweighed the cons)
I bet it does shift, but not really like for like though is it?!!!
[/quote]
5 family hatch, circa £25k, 4wd, 3.2V6....they're not exactly miles apart
interesting;y, Golf is actually bigger in the back seat than the Sportwagon...which is a key thing when a toddler is booting you in the back as you drive along
took the Golf out last night actually - it's very clinical but it's an awesome point to point car...DSG is superb IMO and the sound is spine tinglingly good
having both cars simultaneously is really useful actually - it highlights their respective strengths and weaknesses
i have to say that I agree with the reviews for both cars - the Alfa IS too heavy but lovable and the Golf is briliant but I think you'd get bored with just snapping through the gears out of every single bend up to stupid speeds
To be honest, I'm not impressed with the 159. Shouldn't be surprised really but all the reviews are on the money for me about the car - it's too heavy, too soft and too slow. It's not a bad car, but in V6 guise, it's up against cars that are dynamically way superior. Rick picked me up on comparing the 159 to an R32 earlier suggesting that they were aimed at different markets. Maybe, but I am seriously considering both as they both satisfy my requirement for something that is quick, well equipped and big enough for the family.
I was prepared to allow for the Alfa not being quite as good as something like the R32 or 330, thinking that what it lost in that last 10% of dynamic quality it more than made up for in character. However, that equation just doesn't add up for me. Maybe having access to an R32 at the same time as the 159 did the latter no favours. Alternatively, maybe it truly illustrated the gap in ability. The R32 absolutely murders the 159. Not just in the way it goes (which you'd expect) but in the way it stops, changes direction, SOUNDS, and generally responds to the driver's inputs. I am absolutely flabbergasted that EVO rates both cars as 4/5.
Hear what you're saying about the R32 being no looker but I have to say the silver Sportwagon looks extremely bland in my eyes - even my mother in law said it looked like an old man's car (I'm 33). (Although my wife absolutely hates the R32 to look at).
Like the reviews have said, the 159 makes far more sense with smaller engines where it's up against cars like the Passat or Accord. Sadly, for me, the 159 V6 Sportwagon's nearest rivals are not BMW Tourings but instead cars like the Passat 3.2 Estate or Accord 2.4 Estate. (And that's absolutely not what I'm looking for).
I think that the weight reduction and TI spec will start to solve the problems but, for me to consider one seriously it'd have to be a 156 GTA equivalent.
I'll try to cover some of the major positives and negatives.
Build and refinement - pretty good (although bonnet catch was already broken).
Interior - nice, especially with black leather and aluminium interior, dials look excellent, seats rather to soft but comfortable
Performance - can only be described as lazy....takes a while to get into it's stride and then gains speed briskly...but never feels genuinely muscular
Economy - I expected Oliver Read and but got George Best and Gazza along as well....17mpg and I've not just been booting it everywhere as a) it's not that type of car and b) my son has been on board for big parts of the test. I don't pay for my fuel and I'm not a lentalist but that kind of consumption is just plain inconvenient....I'd be spending 3 times as much time on forecourts as I currently do for gawds sake and thats already too much. For the performance on offer, sub 20mpg is just rude!
Noise - felt a little too muted most of the time except, strangely, when you're just pootling along on the motorway and tickle the accelerator when you can heat the V6 burbling rather nicely
Gearbox - not very good at all....action was very sloopy (my car had 900 miles) and ratios feel poorly spaced
Handling & Roadholding - plenty of grip but feels ponderous. Disappointed with how light the car became at high motorway speeds...how can the car feel so heavy when throwing it around bends yet so light on a wet motorway at 100 clicks?
Space - boot is a nice shape and size but the passenger compartment is a major dissapointment...in the front the transmission tunnel makes it difficult for driver to get left leg comfortable when cruising and in the back legroom is very poor - there's more room in the back seat of the Golf
I do plan to take a trip to my local dealer to seak out a black one with 18" wheels just to make sure that I'm not being influence too much by the bland silverness of my car. However, I think another Alfa is not on the cards for me for the next lease term (3 yrs). Maybe the 159 GTA will have appeared by then and it'll be worth another look but for now, I'll just look back on my 'Spider-years' with fondness and continue on in the German wilderness.....in all likelihood a 3 Series Tourer will be next for me
I was prepared to allow for the Alfa not being quite as good as something like the R32 or 330, thinking that what it lost in that last 10% of dynamic quality it more than made up for in character. However, that equation just doesn't add up for me. Maybe having access to an R32 at the same time as the 159 did the latter no favours. Alternatively, maybe it truly illustrated the gap in ability. The R32 absolutely murders the 159. Not just in the way it goes (which you'd expect) but in the way it stops, changes direction, SOUNDS, and generally responds to the driver's inputs. I am absolutely flabbergasted that EVO rates both cars as 4/5.
Hear what you're saying about the R32 being no looker but I have to say the silver Sportwagon looks extremely bland in my eyes - even my mother in law said it looked like an old man's car (I'm 33). (Although my wife absolutely hates the R32 to look at).
Like the reviews have said, the 159 makes far more sense with smaller engines where it's up against cars like the Passat or Accord. Sadly, for me, the 159 V6 Sportwagon's nearest rivals are not BMW Tourings but instead cars like the Passat 3.2 Estate or Accord 2.4 Estate. (And that's absolutely not what I'm looking for).
I think that the weight reduction and TI spec will start to solve the problems but, for me to consider one seriously it'd have to be a 156 GTA equivalent.
I'll try to cover some of the major positives and negatives.
Build and refinement - pretty good (although bonnet catch was already broken).
Interior - nice, especially with black leather and aluminium interior, dials look excellent, seats rather to soft but comfortable
Performance - can only be described as lazy....takes a while to get into it's stride and then gains speed briskly...but never feels genuinely muscular
Economy - I expected Oliver Read and but got George Best and Gazza along as well....17mpg and I've not just been booting it everywhere as a) it's not that type of car and b) my son has been on board for big parts of the test. I don't pay for my fuel and I'm not a lentalist but that kind of consumption is just plain inconvenient....I'd be spending 3 times as much time on forecourts as I currently do for gawds sake and thats already too much. For the performance on offer, sub 20mpg is just rude!
Noise - felt a little too muted most of the time except, strangely, when you're just pootling along on the motorway and tickle the accelerator when you can heat the V6 burbling rather nicely
Gearbox - not very good at all....action was very sloopy (my car had 900 miles) and ratios feel poorly spaced
Handling & Roadholding - plenty of grip but feels ponderous. Disappointed with how light the car became at high motorway speeds...how can the car feel so heavy when throwing it around bends yet so light on a wet motorway at 100 clicks?
Space - boot is a nice shape and size but the passenger compartment is a major dissapointment...in the front the transmission tunnel makes it difficult for driver to get left leg comfortable when cruising and in the back legroom is very poor - there's more room in the back seat of the Golf
I do plan to take a trip to my local dealer to seak out a black one with 18" wheels just to make sure that I'm not being influence too much by the bland silverness of my car. However, I think another Alfa is not on the cards for me for the next lease term (3 yrs). Maybe the 159 GTA will have appeared by then and it'll be worth another look but for now, I'll just look back on my 'Spider-years' with fondness and continue on in the German wilderness.....in all likelihood a 3 Series Tourer will be next for me
Edited by alfaspiderman2 on Saturday 24th February 13:45
Gassing Station | Alfa Romeo, Fiat & Lancia | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff