Non Retro Car Advice - Alfa 159 Sportwagon JTDM

I'd buy a petrol SW in a heartbeat. When they drop down into my price range I will do exactly that.

I ran a 156 for about 4 years and it was as reliable as anything I've owned. I know lots of 159 owners whose cars also give little trouble.

For the most part, they are no more complicated than any other modern car but, as ChasR says, sometimes a bit of specialist help goes a long way. For example, the intercooler hose issues are well known amongst specialists and on the forums but a garage who isn't used to seeing them might struggle to diagnose the problem.

www.alfaowner.com is the forum I'm still an active member of 5 years on.

Cable ties were actually designed as a solution to the problem of manufacturers constantly redesigning all manor of 'clever' undertray fixings which: fall off; snap off; or turn into a blob of rust.

In this case they lost the bolts and could not be asked to source replacements. As a result the car had a warped and butchered undertray that became the lowest part of the car. I did managed to salvage it however with new nuts and straightening. The threads were undamaged and I can't see how it could catch anything on the ground short of it being used for a Dukes of Hazzard commercial.

My 2.0 TS with more miles (111k vs. 72k) was specialist serviced and that was fine and had less evidence of 'making do and see how it lasts).

I did forget a few things. In a nutshell.
-the diesels are Fiat/GM units. They are OK. Fiat released a revised EGR gasket that the specialists don't sell for much. This improves things alot ; it makes the car "see" an EGR despite it working less.
-Good specialists include AutoLusso and Alfa Workshop. I've dealt with the former with great results

Cough - guess how mine is held on...

When it went to the garage to have the sub-frame sorted the screws holding the under-tray on stripped and they used self-tappers which eventually wore through the under-tray holes. As a 'temporary' fix I've used tie-wraps...

I need to get it up on ramps and put some riv-nuts in. It does show how low the standard suspension is, I've also got the scratches on the corners of the lower bumper testament to the overhang.

Funnily enough the under-tray on the MX5 is also hanging off, no tie-wraps.

Oh yeah, for the 1.9 JTDm 16v replace the water pump when you do the timing belt.

A mate has one, the mpg is shocking - Low 30's on a 2.4 TD Owners forum says they're all like that.....

That is bad. What's the point in getting the diesel if it isn't going to net you better mpg over the petrol offering?

I had some variant of the 1.9JTD engine in a Fiat Multipla 115bhp version. It's a cracking engine and very economical 50+mpg in what was effectively a 6 seater van/estate. The crappy chocolate clutch slave cylinder which is in the bellhousing failed in the Dartford tunnel which was not fun but I believe the Alfa has a different bellhousing and clutch system which might be more sturdy & reliable.

Talking of which, Autolusso do a kit to get rid of the dual mass flywheel by replacing it with something from a 3.2. I tried to do this but couldn't as the bellhousing & clutch actuator were different.

The dual mass flywheel doesn't seem to last long and is expensive to replace - hence Autolusso's solution.

Other things that can be ironed out but probably illegally now, blanking off the EGR and having the ECU altered to ignore the subsequent odd readings from the EGR. Removing the DPF - or the internals of the DPF.

The EGR and DPF clog up with short journeys. Longer journeys and/or a regen are supposed to clear the crud but maybe not. There was a big issue with diesel 500s becoming unreliable because of EGR/DPF on short journeys - Fiat's answer, use the petrol engine if mainly shorter journeys.

If they are the same size as my M3 they can be ridiculous.

Just seen your reply. You have the same problem as my fronts ; almost no cars with them fitted as standard. Rears for mine are cheaper.

Is your 911 on 17s? They are reasonable. It's funny, I used to see them as expensive until recently.

I'd have thought 18s were a bit cheaper on an 159!