20 year have passed and the 156still looks modern and gorgeous. One of the most beautiful sedans ever made.

@Falcone-en4wl

3 жыл бұрын

Walter Desilva created a masterpiece.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Indeed!

@johnphaceas7434

3 жыл бұрын

absolutely, I'm on my second, and it still looks as contemporary as anything in the office carpark. Except that it is also far more stylish than anything that has come out of a BMW, Audi or Mercedes factory in 30 years. The series 1 pre-facelift cars - Walter's timeless original design - are to my eye by far the most beautiful. I've always thought the more corporate family face on the facelift made the car too anodyne and stylistically "safe". And I love the fact they enjoyed an outstanding racing record. I would say they are the best handling FWD sedan I've ever driven. Just feels absolutely planted.

@simonhodgetts6530

3 жыл бұрын

To me there’s only a handful of truly beautiful sedans - Jaguar XJ series 1, 2 & 3, Maserati Quattroporte mk 5, Rover P5B, NSU Ro80, Ferrari Pinin 4 Door, Alfa 164 and the Alfa 156...........

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

I agree with most of your choices!

I(or we) still love to hear another glory of twinspark..

@MLC...

3 жыл бұрын

I still love the twin spark 16v engines.

As a kid I used to draw a lot. The 156 was by far one of my favourite subjects. I used to spend hours poring over the details of the design. I especially liked the small vents below the scudetto and the rear door handles cleverly hidden in the C pillars. Back then I was fascinated with the 156 GTA and its Autodelta derivatives, but these days I find the regular versions to be more pleasing to the eye, especially in pre-facelift form. I'd happily trade my current ride for an early 156 berlina with a V6 and a manual gearbox.

@malcolmhardwick4258

3 жыл бұрын

And the aluminium front door handle !

@FireflyActual

3 жыл бұрын

@@malcolmhardwick4258 You're right, how could I forget! Thanks for pointing that out.

@malcolmhardwick4258

3 жыл бұрын

@@FireflyActual Looks very classy !!

I didn't know that such a racing car existed... Thank you for another interesting and educational video! 🍀❤️

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Our pleasure!

I think the 156 represented a high water mark for Alfa, not just in style and performance, but in racing too. They were very successful in the BTCC as well. Hell of a car, this example. I can't believe how 'normal' the engine looks, must have been a requirement for the class to use mostly production parts. I would guess only the camshafts, injectors, throttle bodies and exhaust are different.

@Matteo_Licata

2 жыл бұрын

The engine looks remarkably stock, yes. So much so that one would doubt the horsepower figure its owners claim. Unfortunately, I don't precisely know what was and wasn't allowed on Superproduction cars in period, so your guess is as good as mine. What I can tell you is that this car was built from the ground up, starting from a lightened bodyshell supplied by Alfa Corse itself: it's never been a road car.

Mine is a 2001 too! As one can imagine, today's video has hit a sensitive cord... Timeless design and racing pedigree too! I was in a debate recently, talking about when Alfa Romeo was a competitive racing firm. All rememberd the 50's and the 60's Era and I reminded the 155's and 156's recent years. Now that's a happy quinsedence! N technologies powered? Now that is a great developer of the time ! Great ingredients for the specific car!

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

The car was built from components purchased directly from N Technology, which was the entity that took over Alfa's racing activities in period. Yes, Alfa's recent racing success tends to be overlooked... Which leads me to say that the firm wasn't good at capitalizing on its racing success... If you win but nobody knows you did, it becomes rather pointless! :)

@studiocalder818

3 жыл бұрын

It seems that FIAT had forgotten the DNA of Alfa and the expectations of its fans (there are no Alfa on the track anywhere, not even at the Nurburgring among the carneadi that jump off the track ...); I trust that the French know how to better interpret the brand satisfying the strong passion it arouses

@through_changes

3 жыл бұрын

@@studiocalder818+1! I have hopes for the French too. I just hope they make it in time, and hear petrol engines and not electric ones..

@studiocalder818

3 жыл бұрын

@@through_changes in luxury it seems that the French are good at making Italians work 😊. They are better at investing in right ideas beyond a certain scale.

@MLC...

3 жыл бұрын

@@Matteo_Licata Hi Matteo. According to Sergio Limone and Luca Gastaldi's book "Le Abarth dopa Carlo Abarth - appunti su 30 anni di vetture da corsa", Abarth built SE079 Alfa Romeo 156 Superproduzione in 1999. Project was farmed out to Novaprogretti di Colucci, Avidano & C, who developed the car. Is this linked to N-Technology that you mention, or a completely different project?

What a lovely machine. Yes, that gear change mechanism is a work of art. 😍😍 Another great video my friend. 👍

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you! Cheers!

I owned an Alfa 2004 156 and it was one of the best cars I have owned. Beautiful styling, knockout leather interior, I loved driving her, what a car! Very nice video. Thank you very much.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

I’m glad you got good memories with the 156. 2004 means it was a restyled model, which engine did yours have?

An amazing racing machine 😍. No wonder Italy won the euros! A country than can provide such cars, they can do anything.

Wish more modern Giulia in motorsports 🙏 I was flying though mountain passes in upstate NY last week with a Q4 in heavy rain condition. My God! Never ever in my life feel such confidence in heavy rain till Giulia Q4! Alfa for life❤️🙌

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

I hope so too! By the way, I'm glad you enjoyed driving the Giulia, it truly is a great car

I agree about the era. I own a 164 Q 1994 and it's the best fwd 20th century car I've ever driven. It concedes nothing to the e36 m3. The 2 door gt that followed the 164 in the early 2000s was fantastic.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Right on! And congratulations on your cool 164!

Wow that is such a cool car. Would love to hear her sing 🎶

@Matteo_Licata

2 жыл бұрын

Me too. Sadly they didn't start it up for us :(

the most high sales alfa romeo model in modern era..with advanced front double wishbone suspension

I'm actually a bigger fan of the. 155 touring car, which was very dominant in the early 90's. However, I wouldn't say no to this gemstone.

@MLC...

3 жыл бұрын

I am also slightly more biased towards the 155. In fact, I still own mine after more than 20 years.

From even more modern era, almost stock Alfa 159 2.4 JTDm was raced at Bathurst 12 hour race, perhaps to promote Alfa diesel lineup in Australia. It happened in 2007, 2009 and 2010. Also a 147 diesel was entered in 2009. The cars finished all races and looked fantastic. But the engines weren't tuned or anything, so it wasn't as hardcore racing as with this 156. This was a great video, very good information, I love that engine bay!

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you very much! I didn't know that diesel Alfas raced at Bathurst, do you know where I can find more info about that? I'm curious now :)

@misssummersalt

8 ай бұрын

Yes please let us know more! I'm an Aussie boy who's been to Bathurst with Bentley a few years back, and since then I've owned a 2.4 159 of my own, but I had no idea my little Alfie shared such a connection. That's fascinating! Man, I love how the community on this channel is always sharing such wonderful little nuggets of gold like this. My one to share is that the one and only Arancia Veloce (orange) Abarth X1/9 Stradale Prototipo resides in Australia and I have driven it - if only very briefly as we rearranged the showroom I was working at at the time. Still, the sound of that little beast is just magical! P.S. I have every little detail about the production and history of that car that you could ever wish to know. If you would ever like to know more about it, just let me know :)

You are right! People tend to forget too easily but those were glory days, thanks to a few men capable to win competitions despite very low budgets and, quite often, against the hostility of their own top management.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Yes. Alfa Romeo did very well in those days, yet few realize how good we had it back then.

Sad to hear you are closing down. I have enjoyed watching, thanks.

@Matteo_Licata

2 жыл бұрын

I'm not closing down, at all :) I've just shut down the memberships, but rest assured that Roadster Life doesn't go anywhere!

I could just imagine how “tight” driving this Alfa thanks to its structural roll bars.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

One hell of a track day weapon, that's for sure. Wish I could be the one buying it :)

Interesting ! Thanks for that video :)

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Glad you liked it!

What a cool car! My first Alfa was a 2 litre 156 back in 1997, one of the firsts in Germany. Lovely car that was. Ciao 🙋‍♂️

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Very cool!

I had to sell mine this year because of the pandemia. I miss my Alfa sooo much. Beautiful car, loved to look at it. Bravo Matteo! Excellent work!!

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you! I hope one day you'll be able to buy another Alfa!

Thank you for a very interesting video indeed! Really a pity that you could not take a drive to share the sights and sounds. I can imagine it sounds great. I also consider the 155 and 156 era another golden era for Alfa Romeo in motorsport, with numerous championship victories for both the 155 and 156 models. I could be wrong, but I think 155's and 156's will be sought after in a few years, as roadgoing simbols of a great era in Alfa Romeo's racing heritage.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you! Glad you appreciated it! Unfortunately, the car’s owner doesn’t let me drive them… And I understand that: if such cars were mine, I’d be wary of letting strangers take the wheel. I agree with you that the 155 and 156 will be sought after by a new generation of enthusiasts, who grew up with them

@MLC...

3 жыл бұрын

@@Matteo_Licata I agree with you 100%. It is also a good thing that a new band of enthusiasts love the 155 and 156. We need them to ensure the survival of the remaining specimens.

I wonder how do they do to take 220hp for the TS engine. An amazing engine per se. I had a 147 2.0 and I still regret to had it sold.

156 is such a beautiful car especially in GTA form than the facelift model and 159.

I loved my156 - I’d have another one without hesitation...........seems there’s a number of low mileage Japanese imports coming into the UK now - maybe I’ll take the plunge, as my last fossil fuel car.

@MLC...

3 жыл бұрын

I think we must keep the demand for fossil fuels high. I will never ever succumb to electric cars.

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

That sounds like a great idea. Japanese-spec Alfas were well-equipped and tended to be bought by enthusiasts who took good care of them.

Matteo, do you know if the Kit Sport wing like the one this car has made any improvements? Did it reduced lift or improved stability?

@Matteo_Licata

5 ай бұрын

To be honest with you, I'm not entirely sure how well the taller rear spoiler worked. I'll do some digging!

😀😀😀 ..

I heard that a Giulia Quadrifoglio prepared by Scuderia del Portello was supposed to take part in the 2021 Nürburgring 24h but eventually it didn't race. Do you perhaps know why?

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Yes I heard about that project. They run into technical issues and the car couldn’t be ready on time.

@JK061996

3 жыл бұрын

@@Matteo_Licata that's a shame, hopefully they'll try again next year

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Sure they will. Lacking factory support for the endeavor, dealing with the car’s onboard electronics proved to be more challenging than expected.

What is the song that starts at 2:16 ?? Urgent please credit the music :)

@Matteo_Licata

Жыл бұрын

Sorry to be unable to help. I made this video a year ago and I no longer have the video editor file for it, so I can’t look up which track it was. All I can say is that the music I use all comes from KZread’s own library.

This is a factory racecar, so I guess it is not road legal... So I need to buy a racetrack as well... And a car transporter.... And a team... And... :)

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

Yes indeed :) It doesn't have a license plate, I confirm!

@malcolmhardwick4258

3 жыл бұрын

Sounds like a plan !

@kelemenkaban2505

3 жыл бұрын

@@malcolmhardwick4258 ...in my dreams only.... But you cannot dream big enough :)

@malcolmhardwick4258

3 жыл бұрын

@@kelemenkaban2505 No harm in dreaming big !

Hmmm that's a pity, i suspected a lottery for your subscribers to win this car! And than you give us the address from the factory 🤦🏻‍♂️🤦🏻‍♂️. A big disappointment 😁😂😂👍🏼🍀❤️

@Matteo_Licata

3 жыл бұрын

I wish I could organize such a lottery 😊

Beautiful, interesting car. Too bad it drives the wrong wheels.