320touring gets an Alfa Romeo 156..

[320touring]

Did a flexible hose burst?

nope, a brakepipe.

[Tickman]

It certainly made a puddle quickly enough. Such a shame only two runs done but as you said lucky it didn't happen at work.

 

Seats do seem lovely, Alfa seats are ace looking and it was rather comfy.

[320touring]

So after the shenanigry of Saturday I got up early to Crail and went Drag racing..

 

how did it go, I hear you cry!

 

well...

 

Met up with my Brother (e30) and Joe (zx)

 

 

Got to Crail about 10.30 and queued to sign on. It was rammed, and took about 30 mins between runs.

 

First run went ok, and I worked out launching just below 3k was decent.

 

Will was up running his stock Starlet, bought for the drag racing. He stays in Acrington, and intends to leave it at the mother in laws..

 

Joe hails from that there Yorkshire, so they're both a fair bit from home.

 

Run 2 in the Alfa was slightly more eventful. Got a good start, and cleanly theough the gears up to approx 85mph indicated at the line.

 

hit the brakes, got a pop. Pedal to the floor and not slowing..

 

Handbrake and gearing down was deployed and I got it down to 20mph and made the turn onto the return road. Lucky as the other option was a tyre wall and the sea..

 

See if you can guess what was wrong?

 

 

 

A blown brake pipe meant no pressure. Got towed home.

 

Its booked in for a pipe on Wed morning.

 

A baptism of fire indeed. Luckily the leather s wipe clean..

[320touring]

A couple of Drag racing Vids for some excitement, rather than the crushing annoyance of an Alfa..

First Pass Vs Citroen ZX 1.9td

2nd pass- the one with the brake failure

 

[Tickman]

I was expecting some expletives at the end of the second video!

[320touring]

I was expecting some expletives at the end of the second video!

I think I stopped it just before the pant shattery took place..

[The Moog]

I had it on full screen and headphones on for the full OMG effect at the end...

[320touring]

I had it on full screen and headphones on for the full OMG effect at the end...

I was fairly calm- think most of the blood was assisting my sphincter in clamping the leather

[320touring]

Brake line was done on Wednesday-apparently a bit of a barsteward...

 

Braking is now much more acceptable.

 

Straight back to the grind- another 160 mile trip for work on the thursday-parked it next to its sexier younger sibling

 

 

Once home I sorted the sidelights after the bulb turned up

 

 

 

I also took the opportunity to manually set the lights to their normal setting- the headlight level motor on drivers side was constantly putting the lights at lowest level.

 

Before

 

During

 

After

 

Dipped beam mow much better.

 

I also slung in the 2nd tank of fuel.

 

380 miles on 56.17L Giving 30.76 mpg

 

 

Its off on its holidays today as my brother is borrowing it for the weekend.

[320touring]

I'm at an odd place with this car now - most of the time it drives me crazy, but just sometimes it can seem like a pleasant place to be.

Certainly on recent 160 + mile trips it is comfortable enough, and the fuel consumption has even improved..
the last  tank cracked 34 mpg.

I still don't think I'm bonding with it, and I think the main cause is the engine - it's just not that good - not particularly thrilling to the ear, lacking in any grunt below about 4k rpm and not even that quick to rev. Are the v6 ones better?



at least It can't be worse than the Peugeot 208 hire car I had last week - pretty much as slow as a week in the jail..

[HMC]

Maybe the variator is knackered? Does it make any odd sounds when you start it from cold? That's apparently one sign It's kippered, varies the timing and if its not doing its thing properly it makes the car seem flat and gutless. I considered it a consumable item when the belt was done on my 155 but usually it gets left until it goes wrong.

[320touring]

Maybe the variator is knackered? Does it make any odd sounds when you start it from cold? That's apparently one sign It's kippered, varies the timing and if its not doing its thing properly it makes the car seem flat and gutless. I considered it a consumable item when the belt was done on my 155 but usually it gets left until it goes wrong.

someone in Pistonheads suggested checking the MAF, so I may do that first:)

[Six-cylinder]

I think the main cause is the engine - it's just not that good - not particularly thrilling to the ear, lacking in any grunt below about 4k rpm and not even that quick to rev. Are the v6 ones better?

I have a 2001 V6 2.5 Sportwagon and that is a joy to drive the engine is full of character and gives enough performance to make it seem all worth while. I almost forgot, not bad to look at when I clean it up.

 

Prior to that I had a 1998 2.0 TS saloon which I thought was still a joy, revvy with just about enough torque even if ultimately not quite enough go, it still went well.

[cort16]

The v6's are lovely but you can lop 10 mpg off your fuel consumption

[320touring]

I dont mind paying for more fuel if it means a better car:)

[cort16]

You might as well get a 166

[Six-cylinder]

I used to own this V6 24V but it was spoilt by the Automatic gearbox.

[320touring]

I'd have a 164 v6 in a heartbeat- great cars!

 

thanks chaps, you are really helping..

[Six-cylinder]

I'd have a 164 v6 in a heartbeat- great cars!

 

thanks chaps, you are really helping..

In 1996 when I left the motor trade and gave up my new Xantia I needed a stop gap car and at work we had a 1988 164 V6 12V manual which I took home for a weekend, when I returned it my boss commented my hair on the right side looked like it had been dragged though a hedge backwards, I had to explain that was from having the drivers window open all the way to listen to the engine music!

 

I was not a great example of a 164 and I was not brave enough to buy it, I drove away in a Saab 900i.

 

A bit more to the tale, when I told Mrs Cyl I was considering buying the Saab not the Alfa she said I under stand you need a car but buy an interesting one, so I looked at a couple out of the paper including a 1983 Alfa Giulietta 1.8 saloon but did not fancy a car with its battery charging light on as my daily driver. When I got home with the Saab Mrs Cyl made me go back and buy the Giulietta for her!

[HMC]

I can thoroughly recommend the V6. I love it's raspy howl at high revs and its still sweet as a nut at 190k with the lump never having been apart. I reallised yesterday I've owned it 6 months and though ive serviced it i haven't washed it yet so made amends yesterday......

[Six-cylinder]

I can thoroughly recommend the V6. I love it's raspy howl at high revs and its still sweet as a nut at 190k with the lump never having been apart. I reallised yesterday I've owned it 6 months and though ive serviced it i haven't washed it yet so made amends yesterday......image.jpg

More pictures please!

[320touring]

Have a gratuitous pic of this avec wine bottle..

 

I didn't empty the bottle, honest.

 

1500+miles in daily use so far..

 

[flat4alfa]

Look at the size of that Corsa!

 

156 lines still look special today.  You are winning the 'be Montalbano' compo.

 

Nice bottle by the way.  Chilean Shiraz?

[purplebargeken]

All modern cars are bloaters now. 

[320touring]

This car has now moved on to pastures new-

 

I'd simply had enough of the faults and flaws, but didn't have the time or desire to take the car off the road to sort them - I pretty much ran it into the ground.

 

Fair play to it it took a helluva beating, never failing to start, and only failing to stop once.

 

Headline figures:

 

purchase price 200

Repairs 132

Fuel 632

 

Miles covered 4094

Average mpg 32.8

 

running costs per mile 18.6p

 

Because I was using it for work, I claimed approx 1/2 the miles. Factoring in that, plus what I sold the car for (£118) I get a cost per mile of

 

- 2p per mile.

 

All in all, the Alfa paid me £99 for the time I had it. Not a bad result.

 

|http://thumbsnap.com/fF6OByyA

 

|http://thumbsnap.com/uPXHlNze

 

|http://thumbsnap.com/HeHEtlj3

 

I'd have another but it'd need to be a V6