"Zathras" > wrote in message
...
>
> 1/ The 2.4 10V 140hp engine has a fabulous 'throttle' response and is
> more tuneful than the BMW and more tractable at low revs - however,
> it's a lot louder and less well balanced. I don't know how things went
> with the later 20V and multijet engines. I'd guess that throttle
> response softened and refinement got better.
I've recently gone from the earliest (136hp in a 156) to the latest (210hp
JTDm in a Brera) version of the 2.4 JTD engine. The latest version is very
refined and a lot more flexible - it's quite easy to forget what gear you're
in because the engine is so quiet. With the 156 I sometimes found with the 5
speed gearbox there were occassions when 3rd was too high and 2nd too low
for exiting from roundabouts. A mojor difference is fuel consumption - the
156 gave about 40mpg however it was driven, while the Brera doesn't give
much over 30mpg, although that's more the fault of the car (very heavy) than
the engine.

I don't know if there was a version of the 20v engine in the 156 that came
without the DPF and other emissions related stuff fitted - if there is then
this could be worth looking out for. The one thing I miss with the later
engine is the puff of smoke when you floor the accelerator with the engine
not quite fully warmed up - good for discouraging tailgaters!

The only bit of grief I had with the 156 engine was a small leak from the
high pressure fuel rail; it's an expensive part, difficult to get at, and
all the pipes that connect to it have to be replaced as well. If you can
smell diesel under the bonnet you could be in trouble.

Someone said cambelts are a problem on the 10v engines. I never noticed, and
my dealer told me he had never seen one fail. I still had it done at 60K,
though.

The one thing that 'did' for my car, at 10 years and 91,000 miles, was all
the driveshaft and steering boots/gaiters which perished/split and needed
replacing. You need a good independent dealer with a cheap hourly rate ...

DAS