Il Nuovo 156 and Sportwagon
Alfa Romeo announced it's new 156 and 156 Sportwagon models, which feature revised styling by Giorgetto Giugiaro and a range of new engine options. The new models, updates on Alfa's current best seller, are due to go on sale June 21.
According to Giugiaro, "The reinterpretation of a winning model such as the Alfa 156 had to convey maximum determination and aggression to give it even greater appeal. Hence the decision to model the exterior shape to bring it up to date and also to adjust the volumes and sizes".
Thus you see a new front end with significant changes to the grille, which is now bigger and features new design headlights. The lower bumper area is also narrower than on the previous version. At the rear, the Italdesign team has gone for style. The tail-lights have thus been slightly reworked so that their lower part is emphasised by two slight side-whiskers and the upper part by a motif that frames the Alfa logo and emphasises the rear bonnet volume.
Giorgetto Giugiaro's changes respect distinctive brand features, emphasise the features of a winning model and confirm, once again, the profitable relationship that Alfa Romeo has enjoyed with the great master of his trade, who was voted 'Designer of the 'Century' by more than 120 international journalists at Las Vegas in 1999.
The interior has also been enhanced by major and minor styling changes that alter its appearance. The aim: to increase the sensation of light and elegance while pursuing the close family ties with the Alfa 166 and the Alfa 147. The facia has been completely revised and its good looks have been enhanced by a selection of three color scemes: black on beige, black on grey, dark grey on light grey (tone on tone matches). The current sporty black facia complements these alternatives. The New Alfa 156 and Sportwagon are the only cars in this band to offer a leather-trimmed facia. The new model now features Alfatex, a new high-tech cloth used to trim seats and door panels. Alfatex was patented by Alfa Romeo and takes the form of a microfibre used to improve transpiration and assure outstanding seating comfort and great elegance.
The centre of the facia reveals another new detail. The upper part features a multifunction display in an innovative, up-to-date design, while the lower part contains a built-in radio and mono-zone or automatic dual zone climate control system controls according to the specification.
The new models now bring us another world first - the 129 kW (175 bhp) 2.4 JTD 5 cylinder Multijet 20v engine. This is the second member of the Common Rail power unit family to offer Multijet, multivalve technology and it is accordingly identified by the name 'm-jet' under the number of valves. This brand new power unit is flanked by the 2.0 JTS, Alfa Romeo's take on the direct injection petrol engine. JTS technology, initially adopted on the Alfa 156 in 2002, allows engine power and performance to be increased without affecting fuel consumption. The system benefits from a stratified charge lean burn system at engine speeds up to 1500 rpm. Above this threshold, the engine harnesses all the engine's power to increase performance. Unlike other lean burn engines, the new unit also comes with the customary trivalent catalytic converter, can run on normal currently-available petrol instead of the low-sulphur type and is already in line with the tough Euro 4 emission limits. The 2.0 JTS also comes with a Selespeed gearbox to assure customers a sporty, comfortable and safe drive in any situation.
The array of engines on the New Alfa 156 and Sportwagon is complemented by the tried and tested 85 kW (115 bhp) 1.9 JTD turbodiesel engine and the dependable petrol-driven 88 kW (120 bhp) 1.6 T. Spark, 103 kW (140 bhp) 1.8 T. Spark and 141 kW (192 bhp) 2.5 V6 24v units (with manual gearbox or automatic Q-System transmission).
The New Alfa 156 and Sportwagon confirm the geometry adopted on the previous model with its specific configuration of 'high' dual wishbone suspension at the front, MacPherson type rear suspension with transverse links of different lengths.
