USED Alfa Romeo 159 Saloon (06 - 12)

My car

Having been persuaded by a colleague to try an Alfa Romeo I bought a second hand 156 JTDM and loved it. When the 159 came out I was totally smitten by its looks and, encouraged by excellent reports from Messrs Clarkson and the Daily Telegraphs Honest John bought a 1.9JTDM Lusso in metallic black with beige leather trim. Being an Alfa it’s sadly had some faults, most noticeably a vibration in 3rd gear and a humming noise from the dash. But both these problems were fixed by the dealer, Bishops in Guildford, who are just as good as any Audi / Mercedes dealer I’ve dealt with in the past. The car itself is really well equipped and even today I’m still discovering nice touches and thoughtful features.

The car is fantastic to drive, not the most powerful for sure, but as a package I think unbeatable for the price and those looks! Though not new any more it never fails to surprise me how many people will come over and say what a great looking car it is and how they wish they could have an Alfa.

My car

just had the car now 6 weeks and think it is excellent . ran Audi A4 until my dealer told me the new A4 was on 5 month delivery. I so glad he did .the build quality is good but just lacks a little something, but the leather is beautiful.its a nice car to drive and very good fun when you push it, turn off the traction control and it gives you just slight under at the limit. And as the same as so many other readers people just love the looks of this car. thanks Audi !!!!!

My car

I have had my Alfa 159 for nearly a year now. I have suffered from a rattling sunroof, a faulty alarm, a defective Bose Sub-Woofer, a jumpy CD Changer and a rattling glove box. But...WHO CARES...This car is fantastic! It's an absolute joy to drive. Every time I drive past a BMW, Audi or Mercedes, I feel sooo smug knowing that I am driving the coolest, sportiest car £25k can buy. Even the interior is pretty good, maybe not BMW standard, but it looks a damn sight better thats for sure, with the dashboard sporty and angled towards you like it should be. Well done Alfa! I get mine serviced at Mangoletsi in Knutsford, they are superb - as good as any BMW dealer, and I've known a few.

My car

I really struggled to buy this car new last year - Alfa Romeo seemed to make it really difficult to obtain a test drive, then deliver it.

So was it worth the wait? It's a great looking car - I share the experience of others here who have had complete strangers stop to admire and comment on the car.

It's great fun to drive, very pokey and very comfortable, and the interior quality is high in terms of the materials used: the leather is luxurious, the plastics and aluminium trim high-quality. However, whether the build quality is as high as, say, an Audi is open to debate. The odd rattle is appearing and the bonnet release catch came away on mine.

Downsides? The steering feels very light, and is thrown out by relatively minor bumps and holes. It is very sensitive to road camber and strong braking has it moving around a bit.

I've asked my dealer to check this but anything they did(?) made no difference. I also found the car driving itself occasionally (not the cruise contol, which I never use!), continuing to accelerate when I took my foot off the gas from a starting position. The dealer looked at this also, though it's happened again once since then.

Whether these are congenital problems or just experinced on mine I've no idea - I'm going to another dealer to find out!

Overall, it's a good-looking car and great to drive fast. Take a test drive and make your own mind up.