Alfa Gta with the Selespeed gearbox?

conaero

Forum Owner
Messages
34,593
I ran a 156 SW 1.8TS for 6 years, its a great car but it did have some issues.

Mainly front squeaky suspension which was common on all Alfas of that period.

The cambelt went twice towards the end, not the cars fault, when I bought it I was told it had just had a cambelt and seeing I bought it from an Alfa Technician didn't question it. When it went, Mike Roberts looked up the serial number on the snapped belt and it came from the same year the car was built...so you cant really blame the car for that. It went a second time shortly after, after I drove over some debris on the road that the workers had left behind which got sucked up into the timing system and caused the belt to skip.

Other than that, I think I had a window motor go and a the fuel pump relay that took ages to work out what the issue was, both cheap and easy to fit. The AC never worked as it should despite replacing pipes and the condenser so just gave up on that. Lovely car to drive and lovely looking:

http://www.sportsmaserati.com/showthread.php/2596-SOLD-Alfa-156-Sportwagon-1-8-Lusso-(2001)
 

P R

Member
Messages
1,382
Where in Middlesbrough was the red one? I knew a lad who had a modded one, not sure if its this one?
I ran a 156 GTA manual for 10 years, put 155k miles on it. Original clutch, original alternator. One catastrophic belt failure at 140k miles (ish) 9 days before the appointment to have it changed! Apart from that the front arches rusted. I loved it. Traded it in for the Ghibli, wish Id kept it now for the peanuts I got for it!
 

Evo Cymru

Member
Messages
688
I think all the Middlesborough ones are Japanese imports from the the details on the dealer's website. All Selespeeds which were never sold over her too - not sure why Alfa did that?

I loved my 156 GTA - was on 100k and still very strong although front wings were going on mine too - Alfa design fault where the inner liners rubbed apparently. Poor examples still go cheaply but good ones are now going up in value...
 

TridentTested

Member
Messages
1,819
I bought new one of the first Selespeed 2.0l in the country. I actually ordered it before any had been made, before any journos had a go in one.

Lovely car but the gearbox was pants. The first time I attempted a three-point turn in a busy London street was an eye-opener: the glacial ages it took between each 1st to reverse change meant an angry queue had built up before I completed the turn; I'm sure they were muttering oaths against what must have looked like a learner driver. I had to recalibrate what manoeuvres I could attempt with it.

My first weekend with it, she stalled at the traffic lights in the middle of one of north London's busiest junctions. "Gearbox Error" is a message I learnt to dread. Having stalled in gear it refused to start because of the error. The supplying garage luckily answered the phone and told me to do a battery reset. Also luckily I had some tools with me to disconnect the battery but trying to explain to traffic wardens and police why I was blocking the junction in the middle of a busy Saturday, and couldn't push the car to one side, was enjoyable. Not.

Alfa changed all sorts of bits - gearbox ECU, throttle body - under warranty but never solved this stalling problem. Eventually I learned to recognise the symptoms and was able to slap it into neutral when it decided to stall. Once in neutral it was prepared to restart, so was just the inconvenience of starting up again but at least it didn't need a 15 mins battery reset.

When it was working it was okay. The up-changes were a bit ponderous but the down-changes, and attendant throttle blips, were dare I say it, better than my QP's.

Would I buy one now? I think it would be a brave move. There are probably some specialists out there who know more about them now than Alfa themselves did in the 2000s. I'd only consider owning one if I lived near someone with those skills.
 

TridentTested

Member
Messages
1,819
wish Id kept it now for the peanuts I got for it!

Ain't that always the way? Most of my Alfas were given away for peanuts and my 164 I actually did give away to a friend. I'd had a few part-ex quotes from dealers and they were so laughable that I preferred a friend to get use out of it. There are many I wish I'd kept.
 

lisknik

Member
Messages
5,524
Just got my backside on the AROC forum for the first time in weeks, some one on there is selling a 156 gta selespeed saloon if any good :)
 

jamiebee

Junior Member
Messages
31
I saw that!

170k miles so not for me, but it does offer some reassurance that the Selespeed box isn't too delicate.
 

lisknik

Member
Messages
5,524
I saw that!

170k miles so not for me, but it does offer some reassurance that the Selespeed box isn't too delicate.

My 2.5 is on 160K, in five years of ownership and me putting a third of the millage on her never changed once.... still pulls like the day I got her. Those engines are remarkable!! :)