Alfa Romeo 166 Reviews

Ewan Kennedy road tests and reviews the used Alfa Romeo 166 1999-2009.

Long ago, my very practical, motor-minded father talked me out of buying a zippy little Alfasud as my first car – explaining that reliability was not assured but expensive maintenance and repair costs were.Fast-forward to now and after just a short cruise as a passenger in the Alfa Romeo's 166, he was more than willing to give it the thumbs up.And why not? The surge of power when you put the foot down ... the sexy styling ... the purr of the engine assure an Italian love affair which could go on and on.Be still, my beating heart ... or at least be practical.Alfa Romeo is known for small, sporty, sexy cars aimed at the child-free brigade. Nothing family-friendly there, you'd think, except that the 166 has excellent back-seat space, four doors and a deceptively roomy boot to accommodate a family. And the accommodation is premium. Outside, you just know it's an Alfa from that triangular grille and the badge.Alfa Romeo has concentrated on sleek and sexy curves.Inside are leather seats and one of the best wrap-around driver consoles to be found. Those leather seats are heated – fantastic on a cold Sunday morning – and the console has satellite navigation, a built-in phone and even a pollen filter. More comfort than the lounge at home.Even the compact key comes with a slick little flick-switch to pop the key open. The long-held question – was this Alfa Romeo desire just a warm fuzzy memory – had been answered. This is a fabulous motor car.All of those features and the feeling of being ruler of the road comes at a price, of course (think practical, girl).At $84,950, this is a love affair for the well heeled, although the price buys a supreme drive and every possible feature.Not a huge amount of storage and not a proper-shaped cup holder to be found. But when you're spending that much on a car, just stop for the latte.LOVE IT LEAVE ITAlfa Romeo 166Three-litre, 24-valve V6 automaticPrice: $84,950LOVE ITStyling, power, comfort, handling ... where do you stop? Side mirrors which fold back in at the push of a switch to get out of tight spacesLEAVE ITTo be entirely practical ... that's a lot of money for a motor car

Sleek, purposeful and clearly Italian, the Alfa 166 is the flagship model and sits in the expensive sector of the market.At $85,000, the 166 competes with a heavyweight list of more established prestige cars, among then Audi's new A6, BMW's latest 3-series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, Volvo's S80 and even gets into the Jaguar S-Type territory.Esteemed company, indeed.Yet maybe this isn't a fair comparison. The 166, you see, is a car for the enthusiast. Someone who may have had a long history of Alfa ownership and now wants a bit of luxury to go with the distinctive growl of the Alfa exhaust note.The more you drive this car, the more it becomes addictive. It is quick, smooth, comfortable and roomy. And it barks, growls and, when kicked, roars. A Chesterfield armchair with fangs.It also received a lot of attention, despite the colour being a rather subdued metallic grey.While the car looks like a new model, it's not much different from its predecessor.Alfa has fitted the 166 with the family grille, so the shield emblem runs deep to split the bumper.But the scalloped flanks and long, swooping bonnet remain, as do the slinky side windows that narrow to a dart before disappearing over the bobbed tail.More noticeable is a commitment by Alfa to mute any body or mechanical coarseness, bringing the Italian into line with its competitors.And it works.The 166 is a quieter, smoother and more comfortable ride than before. But Alfa has deliberately left its sporting soul untouched, relayed to the driver through the heart-warming exhaust note and the seemingly endless and silky power delivery.It comes with a proper automatic gearbox with a manual sequential mode for those who want to pretend this is a more raw model.I say "proper" because the box isn't a clutchless manual like the Selespeed unit fitted to most other new Alfas.Though there are only four cogs — rivals have five, six and even an optional seven-speed auto boxes — the performance is brisk. You wouldn't want to go much faster, though I guess the size of a box may be a selling point.It will come as no surprise that this luxury model also enjoys a bit of a fang.Even its front-drive layout and the bulk of the three-litre V6 under the nose fails to dilute its precise cornering and grip.All this is relayed with precision via a leather-rimmed steering wheel that would look at home in the company's fiery 147GTA hatch.Occupants sit in leather chairs with plenty of leg and head room.Listening to Vivaldi, no doubt, on the CD player that is monitored by a wide LCD screen. The screen, incidentally, also operates the climate dual-zone airconditioning, telephone, satellite navigation and trip computer.Which told me I averaged 12.2 litres/100km and that was more than satisfactory given, as Alfa would have wished, it was driven with gusto.

Alfa's entrant in what could be termed the medium luxury level is the 166, recently upgraded with a new look outside and changes to equipment and some mechanicals.Other elements remain the same as before. It looks the business. V6 engine is raucous and unrefined compared with other offerings in the market. Needs the new GM-sourced V6 to move into the 21st century in NVH terms. Uses premium unleaded and consumes it at an average rate of about 13-14l/100km – about the same as a Falcon or Commodore 6. Weighs 1550kG – local manufacturers should pay attention. Four speed auto is awful, indecisive, easy to catch in the wrong cog, sometimes slow to respond, holds a gear too long. But sequential change is handy. Well equipped, pretty well nothing left off the luxury list which includes heated and electrically adjustable front seats, leather, climate control, cruise. Multiple air bags, ABS, and a version of ESP included in package. Full size spare. Steering wheel adjustment difficult to use – have to get out of the car. CD stacker is in the boot, cassette player (remember those) is in the dash. Good sound from audio. Five three point seat belts, roomy interior, large boot. Good on the freeway, obviously engineered as a grand tourer to eat kilometres on autostrada Handling and ride is impressive, not pin sharp like other smaller Alfas but predictable, quiet, stable. Has double wishbone front and multi-link rear suspension Like the multi spoke 17in alloys, grippy rubber. Oldy worldy ambience in the cabin – showing its age after what must be close to a decade in production. Has commanding presence.