Overview

The Alfa Romeo 156 was a entry level luxury car manufactured by the Italian carmaker Alfa Romeo, a division of the auto giant FIAT Group, from 1997 until 2007 at the Pomigliano d'Arco, Italy, and Rayong, Thailand plants; in Thailand the production started in 2002 and lasted just a couple of years, the cars built here were targeted mainly for Asian Pacific markets. The Alfa Romeo 156 was the direct replacement for the Alfa Romeo 155 and at the end of its production life the car was replaced by the Alfa Romeo 159.

The 156 was officially launched at the 1997 Frankfurt Motor Show. Alfa Romeo offered the car in two body styles, a four door sedan and a five door station wagon. The sedan model was produced until 2005 and an all wheel drive version of the station wagon entitled Alfa Romeo 156 Q4 Crosswagon was produced for two more years until 2007.

Variants

Alfa Romeo offered the 156 with no less than eight engines, six petrol - a 1.6 liter TS (Twin Spark), a 1.8 liter TS, a 2.0 liter TS, a 2.0 liter JTS (Jet Thrust Stoichiometric), a 2.5 liter V6 and a 3.2 liter V6 - and two diesel - a 1.9 liter JTD (uniJet Turbo Diesel) and a 2.4 liter JTD -. All petrol engines except for the 2.5 liter and the 3.2 liter had a straight four configuration, the 1.9 liter JTD also was an inline four, were the 2.5 liter JTD was a straight five.

The entry level 1.6 liter engine produced 120 hp @ 6300 rpm and a maximum torque of 108 lb/ft @ 4200 rpm. The engine came with a five speed manual as standard gearbox. In terms of performance the car was able to get to 60 mph in 10.1 seconds, cover a quarter of a mile in 18.2 seconds and get to a top speed of 124 mph. As for the fuel consumption, on average it returned 29 miles to the gallon.

Second petrol engine as displacement, the 1.8 liter, made some 140 hp @ 6500 rpm and maximum torque of 120 lb/ft @ 3900 rpm. The same five speed manual was offered as standard. With this engine the Alfa 156 could get from zero to 60 mph in 9.0 seconds, cover a quarter mile in 17.1 seconds and get to a top speed of 129 mph. The fuel consumption was 27.7 mpg on average.

The 2.0 liter TS engine produced 150 hp @ 6300 rpm and maximum torque of 133 lb/ft @ 3800; the 2.0 liter JTS generated 165 hp @ 6400 rpm and 152 lb/ft @ 3250 rpm. Both engines could be order with a standard five speed manual or a five speed semiautomatic. If fitted with the manual the Alfa Romeo 156 2.0 was capable of sprinting to 60 mph in 8.4 sec / 7.9 sec (TS / JTS), covering a quarter mile in 17.0 sec / 16.5 sec (TS / JTS), and get to a top speed of 133 mph / 137 mph (TS / JTS). On average the car returned 25.1 mpg / 27.9 mpg (TS / JTS).

The 2.5 liter V6 had a power output of 192 hp @ 6300 rpm and 161 lb/ft @ 5000 rpm. The engine came with a standard six speed manual or a four speed automatic as optional. In the Alfa 156 2.5 sixty mph came in 7.0 sec / 8.2 sec (6MT / 4AT), the standing quarter mile was covered in 15.7 sec / 15.9 sec (6MT / 4AT) and the top speed was 143 mph / 141 mph (6MT / 4AT). The fuel consumption was reasonable, returning an average of 19.6 mpg / 21.4 mpg (6MT / 4AT).

The most powerful petrol engine, the 3.2 liter V6, was available only on the Alfa Romeo 156 GTA that became available from September 2001. The engine generated 250 hp @ 6200 rpm and 221 lb/ft of torque @ 4800 rpm. The only gearbox available was the six speed manual. The Alfa Romeo 156 GTA could do not to 60 mph in 6 seconds dead, a quarter mile in 14.3 seconds and a top speed of 155 mph. On average the car returned 16.3 mpg.

The entry level 1.9 liter diesel was offered in three power outputs of 115 hp, 140 hp and 150 hp (exclusively for the Crosswagon). Gearboxes available were the five speed manual and the six speed manual (the last was only for the Crosswagon). Zero to 60 times ranged from 8.9 sec to 10.1 sec, quarter mile time from 16.3 sec to 17.1 sec and top speed from 119 mph to 130 mph. The fuel consumption, on all variants of the engine was around 38 miles per gallon.

The most powerful diesel, the 2.4 liter, produced 175 hp @ 4000 rpm and 284 lb/ft @ 2000 rpm. A six speed manual transmission was offered as standard. The car could do 60 mph in 8.0 sec, a standing quarter mile in 15.4 seconds and a top speed of 140 mph. On average it returned 35 miles to the gallon.

Additional Information

The Alfa Romeo 156 received the Best Compact Executive 1998 from What Car and Auto Express, European Award for Automotive Design in Belgium 1998 and Car of the Year in Denmark, Spain, Holland, Luxembourg, Germany, Portugal, France and Croatia 1998.