2000 Alfa Romeo 156 Twin Spark Sportwagon review from UK and Ireland
"Good car let down by poor service agents"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Cam belt, main bearings and crankshaft.
General comments?
These cars are perfectly OK if you ignore the Alfa Romeo service schedule. The Cam belts need doing every 36k not 72k. Not all dealers are aware of the renewed schedule and this is were the problems start.
At 48k my cam belt broke lunching most of the valves in the head. The repair bill was £1700 however it was covered under warranty. At 62k the car blew the bottom end of the engine which is a common side effect of the cam belt snapping. This unfortunately wasn't covered under warranty and cost me over 2k to fix.
The car was utterly brilliant apart from the problems associated with the belts. Sure there were problems, but nothing worth talking about. The cars are very stylish and far more exclusive than their dull German rivals.
If you can find a good specialist which knows how to service them, then you will have a pretty good car.
Search for New and Used Alfa Romeo 156s available in the UK
Click here to advertise your car
Recommended reviews
  | 2000 - 156 Selespeed 2.0 Twin Spark An unreliable wreck |
| Starting a love affair with one of these will leave you heartbroken! |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model Year | 2001 |
| First year of ownership | 2003 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2006 |
| Engine and transmission | 2.0 Manual |
| Performance marks | 8/10 |
| Reliability marks | 5/10 |
| Comfort marks | 7/10 |
| Dealer Service marks | 6/10 |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 4/10 |
| Distance when acquired | 22000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 64000 miles |
| Previous car | Alfa Romeo GTV |
| Date of Entry | 19th September, 2006 |