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Thinking of buying a v6 155

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1K views 18 replies 7 participants last post by  NineOneSix 
#1 ·
Had a look at a 155 V6 today and found-

1) rust under the radiator, is this panel still available? I know it was only about £15 for my 145 but that was 5 years ago.
2) Tappety top end- think this is normal, its done 126K, didn't sound too bad certainly not a rattle. About 4 bar indicated at about 50mph forgot to check at idle:eek:
3)Oil leak - looked like maybe the cam cover gasket at the rear but was enough to have dripped on the exhaust bracket so its not just 'acceptable' weeping:( .
No evidence of having any suspension work but no clunks, seemed smooth enough, tracked straight and I think that new arms are quite cheap anyway. Fitted with new tyres so difficult to assess anything there.

Other than that it didn't seem bad, back box probably stainless but the centre pipe rusty(not stainless as in ad and no silencer between cat and backbox?), a bit of paintwork to do in places but very tidy, alarm duff but maybe I could fix that.

Its to replace my 75 T/spark as I really think it time to have a V6, (read mid life crisis) and my mileage is very low so economy is less of an issue (read mid life crisis and premature senility:( ).

I was pleasantly surprised with the drive (about 7-8 miles), smooth, eager and comfortable with good brakes and a nice sound. The engine seemed to come on song about 4500 but was reasonably torquey at the low end. Nice leather interior and sportpack wheels.
At £1400 its priced a bit on the high side considering the mileage but most bits have been done. Was thinking of offering about £1100-1200.

Any advice to give as its the first time I've driven a 155 and the transaxle cars are the only ones I have managed to live with but the 75s are getting a bit long in the tooth now (sorry guys)!
 
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#3 ·
Assuming its a widebody, its a relatively rare beast, but they don't fetch big money, so worth a try at about £1K .....

The engines are pretty bomb-proof - and yes they generally clatter a bit (!) but can do 200K plus....

Sounds like the exhaust is an aftermarket jobbie......not a big issue - but check the front pipes from manifolds to cat......they are pricy ro replace - tho the flexis can be replaced by exhaust specialists...

Get one - you'll love it!
 
#4 ·
Bought!

Paid a bit over the odds but it does have 4 brand new tyres (courtesy of the phantom tyre slasher of Maidstone!) recent £586 service/mot and seems in very good order.
Will have a go at the tappets and odd bits but not too much to do.
I'm sure that the temptation to do odd 'improvements' will sneak in eventually and spoil it!

Thanks guys

Mark
 
#5 ·
120k is a baby. The head gasket and gearbox will be the things to keep an eye on at that mileage.

Clutches tend to do 80k so if you can find when yours was last done, you'll know when the next one's due.

Have a look at the coolant and if it looks remotely not new, replace it with new 50% mix. While it's drained, take the opportunity to check that the low coolant warning light on the check-panel works. A new sender (top of the expansion tank) is about £40.

The radiator support bracket should be still available as it's an accident damage-able part.. about £20 from memory. Having said that, even a (front) head gasket is not available from AR, so if you find any genuine part, buy it.

While the rad is off, check out the bottom few rows.. chances are they've been shot blasted clean through. The v6 makes a good ICBM and while it's wafting along the motorway, the bottom bumper slots will channel grit/stones right onto the radiator.

The exhaust should have a lozenge shaped silencer in the big space you'll have under the n/s rear seat. It's not essential but it helps the back box keep the noise down, if yours is too noisy. Bosal etc. do replacements ~ £90.

The flexi-pipe is AR only unless someone can make one, which it seems they can..

Check the rear brakes for any discolouring. If they're remotely rusty put more bias onto the rear, using the brake compensator. If that doesn't sort it, new re-cond' calipers aren't tooooo frightening at £90 each.

Your dampers will make it to 180k if they're the original Boge. No worries there. I didn't have much trouble with my wishbones either, though 60-80k seems to be how long they actually last.

Cam-belt is good for the full monty 72k change interval recommended by AR so no sweat for yours. It'll still be immaculate at 144k but when you change it, change the tensioner too, as yours will be original. It's a blinding piece of kit.. but it won't do 216k.

Water pump is indestructible but at the next cam-belt change you may also want to change the pump (~ £90 for OEM part) as you have to dismantle the belts to remove the pump.

So don't worry about the mechanical pieces too much:- they're pretty bomb proof as long as you don't take the ****. Spend your money fixing the little electrical bits and pieces that fade away after that mileage.

Good luck with the beast... :)


Ralf S.
 
#7 ·
It was delivered today and the power steering belt had snapped, don't know how he got it here! Knocked off another £100 which was probably too reasonable as he seemed pretty depressed about it. Maybe I'm too honest!

Great introduction to your new car, reversing it into the drive with no power assistance.

Thanks for the advice Ralf, will get ordering bits tomorrow and have a look on my day off on Thursday, probably order more bits friday and fit them Tuesday!

Good job the 75's still running.

Mark
 
#12 ·
[So was that £1100 with the missing belt, bet he had sore arms afterwards.]


Yep. As for the arms, so did I after getting it in the drive, how did he drive it 12 miles on country roads like that? 100 yards was enough for me, at least it happened to him saved me a few quid and the grief of getting it home! Would have looked and changed it anyway.

Mark
 
#13 ·
Well done mate, you'll love the car.
I think this is the champagne coloured one with grey leather and sportspac wheels. It is a widey and was owned by an alfa specialist?

The belt was just was of those unfortunate things that happen at the wrong time.
 
#14 ·
[I think this is the champagne coloured one with grey leather and sportspac wheels. It is a widey and was owned by an alfa specialist?/QUOTE]

Thats the car, advertised on pistonheads.

Have ordered the P/steering belt (not in stock at the specialist I rang so will have to wait:( ). Day off today so will play cars.

Have sorted the alarm, repairing the remote, resoldering the I/R LED and replacing the batteries. I've had several kicking around for the past 15 years from my two way radio business, lithiums have a long shelf life, never chuck anything away! That got it working but with a range of 1 foot from the sensor. Cleaning the lenses of the infra red sensor (inside and out) and polishing the scratches out of the lens on the remote and the tip of the I/R LED restored it to 2-3 ft range out of the car. Worth a try if anyone has the same problem:).

Mark
 
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