RE: Alfa Romeo 156 GTA: PH Used Buying Guide
Discussion
An Alfa 156 GTA was one of the very few cars I didn't buy when going to view it.
Back in around 2007 I took the family on a 300 mile round day trip to Leeds to test-drive a red ca. 2002 GTA saloon on teledials. It was a private sale and parked outside on a terrace house street. It drove well, but had a few city dings and scrapes. What really put me off was the vast pile of invoices for work done, most of it by Mangoletsi. Under normal circumstances, you would have been reassured by bills from a respectable marque expert, but there were just so many! It seemed to have spent half of its life in dock for something or other (mainly electrical). I just couldn't bring myself to buy it: the vendor was almost too honest!
A bit later I found a mint, tiny mileage blue GTA Sportwagon locally, but the price was too high for me, so had to pass. I ended up with a Subaru WRX so never did get a 156 GTA.
Back in around 2007 I took the family on a 300 mile round day trip to Leeds to test-drive a red ca. 2002 GTA saloon on teledials. It was a private sale and parked outside on a terrace house street. It drove well, but had a few city dings and scrapes. What really put me off was the vast pile of invoices for work done, most of it by Mangoletsi. Under normal circumstances, you would have been reassured by bills from a respectable marque expert, but there were just so many! It seemed to have spent half of its life in dock for something or other (mainly electrical). I just couldn't bring myself to buy it: the vendor was almost too honest!
A bit later I found a mint, tiny mileage blue GTA Sportwagon locally, but the price was too high for me, so had to pass. I ended up with a Subaru WRX so never did get a 156 GTA.
JBT said:
Oooofff... some car p0rn on this thread!
I've never tried a GTA but do own a 156 2.5 V6 - fitted a Wizard catback a few weeks ago and I'm like a dog with two appendages every time I start it up in the morning.
I was wondering what running a 2.5 vs. a GTA is like in the real world - performance, running costs etc. Has anyone ever owned both and how different do they drive / feel? Rxe, I think I remember you owning a 2.5 as well as a GTA (apologies if that's not true).
Any 156 is at least 13 years old and many have crumbling underpinnings to show for it - mine certainly did up until this summer. The repairs felt like they were akin to me taking a wing mirror to my mechanic and asking him to put a 156 on it...
I had a 2.5 saloon and now have a GTA Sportwagon. Running costs are about the same. Both need the rust to be nipped in the bud (my 1998 2.5 spent four years at Whitstable before I bought it in 2012 and it was rotten...though I did get two years fun out of it before the underseal that was holding it together fell off)...I've never tried a GTA but do own a 156 2.5 V6 - fitted a Wizard catback a few weeks ago and I'm like a dog with two appendages every time I start it up in the morning.
I was wondering what running a 2.5 vs. a GTA is like in the real world - performance, running costs etc. Has anyone ever owned both and how different do they drive / feel? Rxe, I think I remember you owning a 2.5 as well as a GTA (apologies if that's not true).
Any 156 is at least 13 years old and many have crumbling underpinnings to show for it - mine certainly did up until this summer. The repairs felt like they were akin to me taking a wing mirror to my mechanic and asking him to put a 156 on it...
The GTA bodykit is the main issue if it gets damaged...
The 2003 Sportwagon I bought in spring 2015 for £4,500. It needed underseal scraping and all the surface rust treating...thankfully I got to it before it became extensive. The previous owner had kept it unused in his garage for three years till he could bare to part with it...so that was three winters it had missed.
The front wings rust where they meet the bumper (only the GTAs, the regular 156 wings are fine)...I mig welded the perforations...and treated everything, still perfect after nearly four years.
I didn't get on with the GTA initially, the ride was too crashy for Kent crappy road surfaces. I have a 166 and still prefer the 166 overall as a car.
Instead of selling the GTA I did all the upgrades..stainless exhaust manifolds, KW coilovers, ecu remap. It is now a much better car to live with.
Yidwann said:
I never knew they did an estate version of this? I bet that is a rare thing now!
There are about 100 Sportwagon GTAs in the UK. They sold about 100 originally and numbers have been kept up by Japanese imports (mostly selespeeds) and some from Republic of Ireland (like mine which started in RoI but the Irish 1500 euro annual road tax drives them over to NI and then to mainland Britain).
I do have a 2.5 saloon (with Wizard catback). We’ve had the 2.5 since nearly new and the running costs have been trivial. Cambelts, suspension fixing, er, that’s about it. 3 years ago I pulled it apart and put B6s on with Eibach springs, Eibach ARBs and an lsd which had sharpened the handling immensely.
The 3.2 is more likely to bust things like the gearbox if you are using the power, and it is more prone to cooking the head gaskets - though none of my 3 have done this. If they’re looked after, both engines are reliable.
As above, it’s the GTA unique bits that are expensive. The front wings were allegedly made by sticking standard ones in another press, and there is a crappy little bracket spot welded on to stop it flapping about - of course this goes rusty in about 10 minutes.
The 3.2 is more likely to bust things like the gearbox if you are using the power, and it is more prone to cooking the head gaskets - though none of my 3 have done this. If they’re looked after, both engines are reliable.
As above, it’s the GTA unique bits that are expensive. The front wings were allegedly made by sticking standard ones in another press, and there is a crappy little bracket spot welded on to stop it flapping about - of course this goes rusty in about 10 minutes.
Had a silver one of these for a few months back in 2011 which I loved but didn't really look at too many and consequently had to do a lot of work to. Silver not the best colour for these either imo. Great cars but mine was a money pit and I soon had to get rid of it as fuel costs were hurting me on my commute. One of the few cars I've owned that I've liked as much as the Monaro I have now and there would definitely be space in my lottery win garage for another.
Like a few earlier posts I've never had a GTA but did have a 2.5 156. It was equally the best and worst car I've ever owned (and I've owned a fair few, around 100 or so). When it was good it was a wonderful thing. So smooth, you could pull away from 25mph in 6th, but that wasn't the best way to do it! When you gave it it's head it sounded like God yawning. Also comfortable and handled well, or at least well enough.
BUT, I'd been driving for about 42 years when I got that Alfa and NEVER come home on a recovery truck. With the V6 156 I came home on one three times! All fairly minor stuff but nothing I could fix away from my workshop. When I bought it I decided to give it a full service and timing belt/water pump. When I took the belt cover off first thing I saw was the timing belt cut about halfway through where a previous idiot had put one of the idler pulleys on back-to-front. And I had just driven this 150 miles from purchase to home!
Anyway, I rambled on a bit there. Bottom line, wonderful when going well, not so much other times and in the end the floor pretty much fell out and I couldn't be bothered to do that much welding.
I imagine a GTA is much the same. That's what I meant to say at the beginning!
BUT, I'd been driving for about 42 years when I got that Alfa and NEVER come home on a recovery truck. With the V6 156 I came home on one three times! All fairly minor stuff but nothing I could fix away from my workshop. When I bought it I decided to give it a full service and timing belt/water pump. When I took the belt cover off first thing I saw was the timing belt cut about halfway through where a previous idiot had put one of the idler pulleys on back-to-front. And I had just driven this 150 miles from purchase to home!
Anyway, I rambled on a bit there. Bottom line, wonderful when going well, not so much other times and in the end the floor pretty much fell out and I couldn't be bothered to do that much welding.
I imagine a GTA is much the same. That's what I meant to say at the beginning!
Most important upgrades to the GTA:
1) Q2 or Quaife - should have been fitted ex factory
2) Suspension upgrade, preferably adjustable. Not to slam it low, but to keep it flexible, also for the occasional track day.
3) Tires - test winners Michelin Sport Pilot Cup 2 also works for everyday use and provides next level performance on track
4) Sports exhaust to release la sinfonia Bussone
No engine upgrades are necessary, the Bussone has plenty og power and pulls from idle to 7k rpm redline - true gem ..
1) Q2 or Quaife - should have been fitted ex factory
2) Suspension upgrade, preferably adjustable. Not to slam it low, but to keep it flexible, also for the occasional track day.
3) Tires - test winners Michelin Sport Pilot Cup 2 also works for everyday use and provides next level performance on track
4) Sports exhaust to release la sinfonia Bussone
No engine upgrades are necessary, the Bussone has plenty og power and pulls from idle to 7k rpm redline - true gem ..
Dale487 said:
K50 DEL said:
Dale487 said:
K50 DEL said:
I had a 2.5 V6 156 for a little while as a company hack, still one of the nicest cars I've driven, even if some muppet configured it with green velour interior and the spoiler delete option.
Much like this GTA, the 156 shape just doesn't look right without that spoiler to me, so I'd love this car but would have to retrofit the spoiler or see what Novitec or similar could offer me.
What colour was it on the outside? Much like this GTA, the 156 shape just doesn't look right without that spoiler to me, so I'd love this car but would have to retrofit the spoiler or see what Novitec or similar could offer me.
Edited by Rob 131 Sport on Sunday 23 May 09:07
How do these compare the GTV 3.0?
I've had 2 GTV 3.0's and a 147 GTA and the GTV was the vastly better car. Engines were a bit different but on balance equally good. The 3.2 in the GTA a bit more refined but race like with more power, where as the 3.0 was less powerful but more raw in sound.
Would be interested to know how a 156 GTA stacks up against the GTV
I've had 2 GTV 3.0's and a 147 GTA and the GTV was the vastly better car. Engines were a bit different but on balance equally good. The 3.2 in the GTA a bit more refined but race like with more power, where as the 3.0 was less powerful but more raw in sound.
Would be interested to know how a 156 GTA stacks up against the GTV
Had just parked this morning when this pulled alongside !
Not seen one for years.
Had a lovely long chat to its elderly owner. It turns out he bought it in 04 when it was about 18 months old.
There was a choice in his local Alfa dealers of a red one with a huge rear spoiler ( which he didn’t like ) or this stunning Grigio Metalizato six speed non rear spoiler example.
Said he did one track day in it, not long after he bought it and that the “ Lotus 7s “ gave me a lot of trouble !
Used for years as his high days & holiday car & garaged, it’s only covered 73,000 miles. It’s been outside for over a year now and is in dire need of some bodily tlc.
Fitted with a Sports exhaust, it sounded epic ! Swapped numbers and I have first refusal on it.
Not seen one for years.
Had a lovely long chat to its elderly owner. It turns out he bought it in 04 when it was about 18 months old.
There was a choice in his local Alfa dealers of a red one with a huge rear spoiler ( which he didn’t like ) or this stunning Grigio Metalizato six speed non rear spoiler example.
Said he did one track day in it, not long after he bought it and that the “ Lotus 7s “ gave me a lot of trouble !
Used for years as his high days & holiday car & garaged, it’s only covered 73,000 miles. It’s been outside for over a year now and is in dire need of some bodily tlc.
Fitted with a Sports exhaust, it sounded epic ! Swapped numbers and I have first refusal on it.
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