Faults:

Selespeed replaced at 145000km.

I'm now finding water seeping into thecabin (floors).

General Comments:

This car is an absolute joy. I don't care that I have the above issues - they are fixable :)

I have owned many Alfas, so am accustomed to issues.

I cannot drive anything else (I've tried and hated them)

156 is sexy, comfortable and fast, and I love it.

Faults:

Brake Pads Needed Replacement which was OK, but it was very expensive... Speakers stoppe to work after a while, Driver Windows started malfunctioning after a while. nothing major though.

General Comments:

Its nice, and leather seats make it a classy car. good image when you drive on the roads.

Faults:

Nothing at all has gone wrong with this car.

I have had standard wear and tear against the car, such as a cracked windshield from a stone throwing truck and the standard paint chips that are expected from normal use.

I did have the dealer scratch off the '+' plus sign from my SeleSpeed button, and was quite shocked to hear you cannot purchase new buttons, but rather you need to buy a new steering wheel. That is off, but the dealer is going to fix my button for free.

I have a Sportwagon, and the housing for the retractable boot cover squeaks a bit when driving over bumps.

I bought a packet of those anti-scratching pads for the feet of furniture, and put them on the housing and it worked wonders. You cannot see them, and it doesn't squeak any more.

General Comments:

I love the car.

I have the Recaro Leather seats, and they are so comfortable that passengers from the soft cushy 'luxury' cars even claim they are fantastic.

The car sounds like a dream, really gets the heart racing, and it corners exceptionally well.

I do have good tyres on the car (Continentals) and they really do help the car corner like a demon.

Some people don't like the reduced visibility in the Sportwagon, but I wouldn't go to a Sedan for anything.

The Sportwagon looks extremely sexy on the road, especially with the hidden rear door handles, it looks very unique.

Mine is in Africa Grey with dark tinted windows, and it came up very well, though the Silver Grey with dark windows would also look great.

Faults:

Passenger side A pillar trim came off 3 times.

Glove box lid warped.

Internal rubber door seals warped.

Damaged engine. Apparently one of the bearings disintegrated requiring my car to be towed to the service after only 10500 Km. The call-out service person could not believe it.

General Comments:

Exhilarating performance once you get the engine over 3000 RPM, but the build quality is absolutely shocking.

The engine problem is simply unbelievable. I had many cars before and I NEVER experienced an engine failure. Closest I ever got was a cracked harmonic balancer on a VR Commodore (for the Australian audience).

Additionally, the Alfa sales and service is absolutely appalling! Amazingly the Alfa dealership is owned by the same group that runs the SAAB dealership where I bought a used SAAB 9000 CD to replace my Alfa 156, and their service is simply amazing! I never experienced such a good service with anything before.

Perplexing.