Sold £350 Alfa Romeo 156 Sportwagon V6 Veloce FOR SALE (bonus: dirty photos) NOW with clean but crarp pics

[Guest Breadvan72]

BUMP!

 

Do not fear the awesome awesomeness of this car*.  I might budge a bit on the price, but not much, cuz I is like a right total bastard and stuff. .    Get shopping, you carjoy fiends. 

 

 

 

*Legal disclaimer boilerplate:  the term "awesome" and all derivations thereof hereinbefore referred to and hereinafter referred to as the hereinbeforesaid shall be understood, interpreted, and construed as meaning "12 years old, Italian, and parked out in the rain".  All disputes, contestations, and protests whatsoever relating to this or any other matter appertaining to the hereinbeforementioned conveyance of awesomeness hereinafter referred to as the hereinbeforementioned pile of ropey old shit made by some bloke called Fabio who is probably in the Mafia or something or just bone idle and have you seen that Foxy Knoxy on the telly I still would even if she is a bit stabby (allegedly) shall be determined by and the parties hereby absolutely and unconditionally submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of Junkman tossing a 20p coin found in a handbrake.  

[Guest Breadvan72]

I am garnering an extensive collection of "I'd love to, but my wife says FRO" emails from all corners of the Autoshite world.  I feel yer pain, blokes, as I too know what it is like to live under the reign of terror,

 

Is no one here single, gay, or whatever?    Alfas are a bit metrosexual, so BONUS.  

[beko1987]

I sometimes wish I was single, not so much that I was gay though but if it meant I had to say yes to an alfa then possibly!

 

For the record, my missus also said No, apparently I already own a large uneconomical car, why the fuck would I swap it for a smaller, just as uneconomical car. Plus you'll rag the fuck out of it cos it's a manual with a large engine'

 

She has a point... I'll buy you a beer anyway Breadvan when we meet!

[Guest Breadvan72]

Those points are all completely logical and correct and should therefore be ignored.  

 

Beer yes.  Fox at Christmas Common?   Shepherd's Crook at Crowell?    

[Guest Breadvan72]

Or somewhere closer to Marlow - what is good over that way?

[Guest Breadvan72]

Check out the fancy new For Sale Sign courtesy of Dave, a man who knows a good Alfa when he sees one.  

[Negative Creep]

I love these. Erm, anyone want a nice C70?

[crapcarcollector]

Me too, CRV? Anyone?

[Guest Breadvan72]

Bump! 

[Guest Breadvan72]

I have decided to hold onto the Alfa for a while.  It might be the only thing that I have that is vaguely modern and reliable, and it may, just may, be beginning to be thought of as sort of modern classic-ish, if you squint, sort of, a bit. 

 

 

I am still open to offers if anyone really wants it, but for the time being will keep it and drive it occasionally.    

[Guest Breadvan72]

Over a year on, and I am again thinking of getting rid of the 156.  How about "buy a Busso V6 engine for £350, with a free Alfa Romeo car bolted on"?   You could scrap the car and put the engine on your coffee table as an objet d'art.  Or stick it in some other Yarmouth and blat about.

 

Since last year, the car has acquired a dent on the front offside wing next to the driver's door.  It has received a reconditioned starter motor as the original one failed.  It has a new exhaust back box as the old one was going ratty.  It has some small signs of incipient bleb on one wheel arch, but no other apparent rusty bits (NB I have not lifted the carpets).    MoT until November, with no corrosion advisories.  The rear windscreen wiper stopped working last week (motor for this on eBay for not much).  

 

The brakes are getting a bit worn and may need doing soonish.  An ABS sensor needs replacing, and the brake warning light sometimes comes on for a bit and then goes out.  Fluid level is OK.  

 

Oil changed last month.  Still drives very well. makes a GR947 noise.  Occasional slight balkiness going into fifth ( box is six speed manual), but you get used to that.  Might be something simple such as bushes, I dunno.

 

92,000 or so miles on the clock, and has been routinely fed on V Power and posh oil.  LEVVA seats still in good nick, comfy to sit in.  Lecky suff works, aircon doesn't work. Might just need a gas, or maybe has a leak or summat.

 

Two miles from J6 M40, where there is a bus stop from London. 8 miles from nearest railway station, with BV meet N greet service available.    Buyer gets free go in Dolomite Sprint or Lotus Excel or ye olde Landy.  

[purplebargeken]

Fuggin'ell. All of these wantage cars coming up. That actually looks rather lovely. 

 

Sigh.

 

GLWTS

[MarvinsMom]

as above, thatr is a SHWEEEET looking car, as much as i would love to own it, SWMBO would gut me like a cod fillet....

 

so many lovely cars for sale.so little money and space..... fucksticks.....

[Partridge]

Aye, it's lovely. If only I sold the Rover in the time. If only I had more money etc etc.

[Guest Breadvan72]

It is a bit more scabby in real life than the photos suggest.  A few scrapes and dings here and there, but only one of any significance.  I will do a piccie of that one.  

 

I can't see it being worth more than 500 quid tops at present, so 350 seems a fair shiter price.   I wonder if I put it on the Bay will people bid it up because they want to bum the engine.    The cam belt ought to be good for another 8000 to 10000 miles.  The first one did actually make it to 72000 without borking (see above for tales of reckless risk taking based on laziness).

 

The stereo that was in the car last year is now in my wife's Pug 206 , but there is a reasonable stereo in its plaec.  Radio works fine, CD player works sometimes, seems to prefer playing classical music to RAAAAAAAAAAAWK.

[HMC]

PM sent

[Guest Breadvan72]

Essexman, blagger that he is, stole* my hat at Shitefest 14.  It was a somewhat ancient baseball cap, IIRC.  He now proposes to trade the hat back to me in exchange for the Alfa.  Sounds like I will be the winner on this deal.

[purplebargeken]

The dings are not that bad at all really having seen this rather handsome automobile in the flesh so to speak. The worst bit is the front O/S wing which has dings and dints. We spoke yesterday about the possibility of an ebay wing as it is a bolt on/off item. 

 

The door wing interaction was a bit noisy due to a bent bit on the wing. It should be a fairly straightforward swap but not sure if the bumper and headlight would need to come of tbh.

 

The tan seats look very smart and are comfy. 

 

The alloys could be refurbed by a mobile person for about 50 quid a corner. The gear change may well be a linkage/bush or two issue.

 

It is a lot of car for the money. Addictive experience? Oh yes

[Skizzer]

I can second the thumbs up for the Alfa, having borrowed it for a week or so last summer.  (And no, the denting wasn't me.)

 

Lovely interior, yummy woofly grunty V6 motor, comedy gearchange into top is a doddle once you get the hang of it (which is quickly).  Barg.  

 

Me, I'd be keeping it though.

[Guest Breadvan72]

Dude, fifth ain't top.  Sixth is top.  Because race car.  No wonder you spaffed all your holiday money on pez.

[skattrd]

I think you should keep the Alfa as your reliable* backup car ... or at least until you have more than 1 car working properly.

[purplebargeken]

^^ my thoughts exactly. Tis a fun thing to drive. 

[wuvvum]

I want this so badly.

 

I really shouldn't though.

 

Looks like Essexbrookjm might have beaten me to it anyway.

[purplebargeken]

It was very tempting but that gear change skill was beyond me and the throttle is licence death worryingly easy to operate.

[purplebargeken]

Front wing on ebay possibly in the correct colour is 45 quid plus some postage. 

[Guest Breadvan72]

I am doing thinkage upon whether to stick or twist, but if I do decide to sell the thing, Essexbrookjim has first dibs at present. Everyone else form the usual ill tempered and disorderly queue.

 

The gear change into fifth (and only that gear) is a bit cock, but you get used to it with a bit of practice.

 

I still CBA to take a photo of the dents on the front offside wing, but might do so tomorrow if not on a SECRET MISSION to somewhere in East Anglia.  As to which, I could tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.

[Guest Breadvan72]

PS  - all my speeding tickets come from driving ancient shitwagons, and not the 156.  It did once go at an indicated 130 on the M1, allegedly.

[HMC]

Im out actually, part of the deal on this my side was SWMBO was also going to drive it, her Horsey truck is an auto and shes point blank refused to drive the alfa. Would have been my first alfa after missing out on a 164 V6 some years back.

 

Apologies BV (although I know we had yet to have a deal as such)

 

I do still have your cap so if you could PM me your address I can return it!

[stripped fred]

Not sure if it's the same gearbox in my 2.4jtd or not? Mine is 6 speed, GM flavour. 2004 car. Mine used to be a bit stubborn but when I had a new clutch and dmf the garage adjusted the linkage and it's fine now. Synchromesh into 2nd catches a bit when cold but that's all.

[Guest Breadvan72]

This is an Alfa from before when Alfas became Vauxhalls, unless someone is going to tell me that a 2001 156 has a GM gearbox.  There is nothing GM about  the engine that I know of.  

 

BTW, OMG THRD DRFTN BLUD, I am sooooo fed up of people at filling stations telling me that the engine in my Lotus is a Vauxhall.  Chapman (or some minions of his) used the size and shape of a Vx iron block, made an alloy block, and did the rest of the engine Lotus  (but more reliable than usual Lotus, and besides it tends to be electrics and gearboxes that screw up Lotuses, in my experience of six of the things, rather than engines).