Alfa Romeo 156 Bonnet Catch

If you own an Alfa 156 or 147 you should be aware the bonnet safety catch allows the bonnet to flip up at high speed if you don't maintained it correctly. There have been several accidents since Christmas 2006.

Its not a fault or a design flaw - it's actual your fault if it happens to you because you should have maintained it correctly; well thats what Alfa will tell you...

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Crashes due to Alfa Romeo 156 bonnet catch problem
My Alfa Romeo 156 crash
Salubrious reliability awards won by Alfa Romeo
My Alfa Romeo 156 cost £21,900 to run over 4 years

Crashes due to Alfa Romeo 156 bonnet catch problem?

My own crash – reported on usedcarmart.co.uk

On the 27th of December my Alfa 156 Bonnet Safety catch failed whilst driving at 70mph on a busy A23.

Dave K – reported on alfa156.net

No comments but photos

Roger D – reported on usedcarmart.co.uk

On Wednesday (22/11/06) I had gone down the M42 at rush hour, observing the 50mph restrictions. Then I returned at 11pm, in the dark, in driving rain. Foolishly, I was driving at the speed limit (70mph). the motorway wasn't rammed, but it wasn't empty either.

I came around a group of lorries in lanes 1&2 (I was in the fast lane) and noticed all the spray - and my speed. So I decided to slow down. Before I had a chance the bonnet was up. It smashed the windscreen and sunroof but luckily they stayed in one piece.

James T – reported on usedcarmart.co.uk

I was driving back from work on Friday night (17 Feb 2006), probably doing about 50mph at the time, when the bonnet catch on my Alfa 156 (1999) released and smashed my windscreen, destroyed the bonnet and some damage to the roof. I am not sure if its classified as a write-off though, probably as a result of my speed at the time.

This happened about 5 miles before I got to the motorway. Had it happened on the motorway, I doubt I would be writing this thread.

Djtw reported on alfaowner.com

Dont make the same mistake as me!

David Oliver – reported on usedcarmart.co.uk

the very same thing happened to me yesterday morning (29/10/2006) with a 2001 156, the bonnet flew up while I was on the dual carriagway out of Cork doing 100kph, it broke the windscreen, damaged the roof and bent the bonnet, luckily it was 1/2 seven in the morning so there was not too much traffic, As I was on the main road in the middle of a flyover I needed to pull off and even though I shut it down again it flew up twice more causing more damage and my wife and son a few frights!

Danko in Italy reported on omniauto.it

Translation - at 130 kmph the bonnet opened and I had lean out of the car because the windshield was covered with the bonnet and risked my life. Contacted supplied to make a claim, result? Customer guilty! The fact I had to always verify the bonnet was closed.

VO2Max - reported on alfaowner.com

I had a lucky escape when my bonnet popped up to the semi-open position while doing an unmentionable speed on the motorway! Luckily I noticed and retired to the hard shoulder to slam it shut and change my underwear.

Greg Black, Bournemouth reported on driving.timesonline.co.uk
Crashes due to Alfa Romeo 156 bonnet catch problem?

I have an Alfa Romeo 156 on a 51 '01 plate. Whilst driving at 70mph the bonnet shot open smashing the windscreen, denting the roof, bending the supports, and crippling the bonnet. I had driven more than 300 miles since the bonnet was last opened so this would appear to be a bonnet release failure, not that I forgot to close it. I am reluctant to claim on my insurance as I feel this has been caused by a defect to the car. I have contacted my local Alfa dealer who have told me there was a recall for the Alfa bonnet catch and my car has been 'done'. Do I have a leg to stand on with Alfa or will I have to claim through my insurance?

Selespeed - reported on alfaowner.com

I have seen the damage that can be caused by an opening hood at 130 km/h and it is not a nice sight (and in this particular case it was the dealership who had last closed the bonnet).

Alfa Jock - reported on groups.google.co.uk

Saw a thread on one of the forums a while ago about a 147 written off when the bonnet catch failed at high speed, opening the bonnet and trashing the screen and roof - not a pretty site.

This weekend I heard about a friend of a friend's 1999 156 written off in exactly the same way recently , and worryingly, the Police apparently said this was the fourth 156 they had seen this on. Anyone else heard of this?

Chris - reported on alfaowner.com

A colleagues 156 2.4 oiler had a stuck bonnet recently. The next day saw a 156 on the hard shoulder of the M62 Hull end with a bonnet that had flipped back!

Wagon156 - reported on alfaowner.com

had this problem and the bonnet did actually lift right up. This was after a visit to Arnold Clark in edinburgh and happened on the M8

Lee S - accident date 08/01/2007

had an incident involving the bonnet flying up on my alfa 147 which i had purchased second hand yesterday, I hadn't even made it home from buying the car!! My insurers (Privilege) are saying that I may not be covered if the damage was due to a mechanical failure.

andyroo75 - reported 02/01/2007

I was driving (a Alfa 3.0L V6 GTV) down a dual carriageway one morning (it was quiet luckily) at between 70/80 miles an hour, when suddenly the bonnet flew up smashing the windscreen and bending the roof and windscreen pillars. The bonnet stayed for a couple of seconds before ripping off the car completely.

The Financial Times - published on 01/01/2007

Reports how Alfa have employed a consumer rating group to help find out what is going wrong with Alfa's brand loyalty. Quote from article:

The changes are therefore designed to tackle what Mr Hudson calls the “little things”, such as not getting his car back cleaned after repairs, as well as the big things, such as the incident in 2005 when the bonnet of his 156 Sportwagon flew open on the motorway and he subsequently found out that his dealer had failed to inform him that the car was subject to a recall notice.

Link to article on FT
Link to article on Xinkaishi Blog

Alfa Romeo 156 Bonnet Catch

On the 27th of December 2006 my father-in-law and I almost lost our lives thanks to a faulty Alfa 156 bonnet catch. After changing the battery in the morning, I drove up the A23 to collect family for a late Christmas lunch and ended up almost being killed by my Alfa 156.

At about 70mph in the outside lane, over taking a car on a busy morning, the bonnet flipped up smashed the windscreen and then bent around the roof of the car. The rear view mirror broke off in the force and my father-in-law & I were covered in a spray of glass.

I had no way of seeing where I was going, but amazingly I managed to steer through the traffic and pull over into the verge without crashing.

The car has been written off without a doubt. I'm definately lucky to be alive, and my father-in-law certainly feels that he had a luck escape too. I am so shocked that this is a known fault with Alfa 156's and that I NEVER recieved a notice from Alfa Romeo or my dealer I use for servicing.

Alfa Romeo need to be given a big kick up the arse.

The people at alfa156.net have kindly put together a cleaning and lubrication guide for Alfa Romeo 156. (PDF File - 3mbs)

Make sure you read it as your life depends on it!!!!!/alfa_romeo_156/_images

What Alfa Romeo must do about the Bonnet Catch Problem?

Alfa Romeo have known about this problem for several years now and are not admitting that accidents caused by the faulty catch is their liablity, but instead telling owners that it is their fault for not checking the bonnet has been closed properly. Even though it is a well documented manufacturing fault with them trying to recalling all Alfa Romeo 156 cars in 2005.

I've been a Alfa Romeo 156 owner since 2002 and never received a recall letter or any notification from Alfa Romeo.

In my case the bonnet seemed to close properly, but the safety catch had only half closed and driving at 70mphs it opened causing a near death crash - even the safety catch failed.

Alfa UK sold a total of 18,379 cars in 2003 and 2004 (http://www.autoindustry.co.uk/statistics/), I’m not sure of the amount of 147 and 156’s sold but I’d guess it is quite a large percentage.

Most of those cars are now on the secondhand market and their new owners will not have a clue they are driving around in potential death traps (and like me wouldn't know of the problem until it was too late). My guess is most of these Alfa’s will not be serviced by main dealers either so the problem will go unnoticed.

So what should Alfa Romeo do? They need to send letters out today via their dealers to all known Alfa Romeo 156 drivers. They should put together a national media campaign, TV and Press Ads. Tell the likes of Watch Dog, Top Gear, Vosa to warn people of the problem and get them to service the bonnet catch.

If they keep up the attitude they have today we are going to see more and more crashes and certainly some deaths on the road.

Alfa Romeo you have a duty to your drivers and other road uses to fix this problem before it is too late.

What Alfa Romeos 156’s & 147 are involved?

Apparently these are the chassis numbers for the Alfa Romeos that have the problem however my car was built in 1998:

147 - produced between September 2000 and October 2003 - chassis numbers between 3001296 and 3199283 and between 5001188 and 5115697

156 - produced between September 2000 and October 2003 - chassis numbers between 150357 and 247973

If you own one of these cars go to your nearest dealer straight away – but check you bonnet is closed first!!!!

Even if it seems shut the catch might be half open……

Salubrious Reliability awards won by Alfa Romeo

Some of the Salubrious Reliability awards won by Alfa Romeo taken from honestjohn.co.uk

FIAT/Alfa joint worst for breakdowns attended by German ADAC during 2001.

9th from Bottom of 100 models for reliability in Auto Express 2002 survey.

18th from Bottom in 144 car 2002 JD Power / What Car? Customer Satisfaction Survey of V and W reg cars.

Alfa Romeo had joint highest average cost in warranty claims for cars up to 10 years old in 2002 Warranty Direct index.

Joint fourth bottom in 2002 Which reliability survey of cars up to 2 years old; 74 cars surveyed.

Alfa Romeo 2nd least reliable of 31 makes of car in 2002 'Which?' reliability survey cars 2000 - 2002; 3rd least reliable cars 1997 - 1999.

Only 87% breakdown free in 2003 Which survey.

Alfa Romeo had fourth highest warranty repair costs in 2003 Warranty Direct Reliability index (index 155.10 v/s lowest 31.93).

98-2000 average for breakdowns and faults and poor for problems; 2001-2003 average for breakdowns and poor for problems and faults in 2003 Which survey.

7th from bottom out of 137 models in 2003 Top Gear survey.

156 8th bottom model and Alfa Romeo bottom marque in 2004 JD Power Customer Satisfaction Survey.

Alfa Romeo 5th bottom of Reliability Index for 2004 combining average cost of repair of £392.88 with high 39.55 failures per 100 Warranty Direct policies. Link:- www.reliabilityindex.co.uk

Came 16th from bottom in 2005 JD Power/What Car Survey of 23,000 cars reg Sep 2002 to Aug 2003 with satisfaction score of 74.7%

Alfa Romeo 156 Review - Reliability and Cost

My Alfa Romeo 156 has cost me £21,900 to run in 4 years and I have nothing to show for it, apart from this blog, a few photos and a near death experience.

I’ve owned an Alfa Romeo 156 since 9/9/02 to 26/12/06 – approximately just over 4 years of troubled motoring. My total mileage was 32,000 miles.

After several months of looking for the perfect car, I purchased my Alfa Romeo 156 on 9/9/02 with 27,500 miles on the clock; the car was in excellent condition, not even a stone chip from being driven too fast. It cost £7,495 with a warranty.

Six months later on 31/3/03 with 28,416 on the clock I had a service and was billed for £950.00 as the Alfa had some knocking from the front suspension and needed the top suspension arms replacing.

On 8/12/04 with 41,274 on the clock I had another service costing £549.19 and had the top suspension arm replaced again.

On 31/08/05 with 47,000 miles on the clock one of the spark plugs blew out of the engine whilst of the M27 driving to Southampton. A part of the spark plug dropped into the engine and chewed it up. £3,527.99 later and a new recon engine I was back on the road.

I’m now thinking why on earth did I buy an Alfa Romeo 156.

A few more trips to garages to get brakes, tyres, more suspension arms, a new key and exhaust replacement - I was a further £1,625.00 lighter.

The summer of 06 was the hottest on record with temperature reaching 32oC and guess what? my air con packed up. I went to Halfords to see if they could fix it – but it was terminal. We spent the summer overheating in my car. There was no way I was going to spend more money on this car – it was time to think about selling it. I had chucked so much money at it there was no way I was going to get it back.

The Alfa also started to fall apart from the day I got it – an ill fitting stereo, interior parts falling off, loud vibrations from the air heater when it was cold.

Then finally on the 27th December 2006, which just over 60,000 miles on the close I almost lost my life thanks to a faulty Alfa 156 Bonnet Catch – the car is a write off.

Here are the running costs of my Alfa Romeo 156, over 4 years driving a total of 32000 miles. The car was purchased in 09/02 with 27500 on the clock:

Depreciation £7495 (Purchase Price) – £0 (Value Now) = £7,495.00
28416 miles Service 3/4/03 = £950.00
41274 miles Service 13/12/04 = £546.19
47000 miles New Engine 31/08/05 = £3,527.99
Miscellaneous Servicing, MOT’s and Parts = £1,625.00
Fuel Cost 36000 miles @ 36 mile a gallon, £4 per gallon = £4,000.00
Car Insurance = £3,600.00
Car Tax = £660.00

Total Running Cost = £21,904.18

These cost don’t include:

Replacing the broken air conditioning unit
Replacing boot lock and badge
Fixing of loud fan noise from the internal heating system
Fixing the ill fitting stereo
Getting the fuse box cover remounted
Fixing the sticky petrol cap flap that wouldn't open
Loss of No Claims Bonus
Hire Car whilst I find a replacement

If we include them the cost would be more like £26,000 plus.

Copy of the Recall letter to Alfa Romeo 156 Drivers

Vehicle Safety Recall Notification
Alfa Romeo 156 (All Versions)
Bonnet Closure-Method and Maintenance

24 October 2005

Dear Customer

Alfa Romeo have received a very small number of reports of the bonnet accidently opening on the Alfa Romeo 156. To prevent similar occurrences, we must draw your attention to the need to follow precisely the instructions given in the Owner’s Handbook regarding correct closure of the bonnet whenever it is opened or the release mechanism operated for any reason

These instructions require that to close the bonnet, you must allow it to drop from a height of 20 centiemetres above the engine compartment. It is then necessary to check that it is fully closed by trying to lift it upwards. If it is still open, or simply engaged in the safety position it should be re-opened and the complete closing operation repeated, rather than just trying to press it down.

If the check shows that the bonnet is shut correctly, then the bonnet will not open during driving.

Moreover, to ensure that the bonnet closing mechanism continues to operate efficiently, especially in particularly aggressive environmental conditions (such as driving on roads which are heavily salted to prevent ice). It is necessary to strictly follow the maintenance programme enclosed with this letter and which you should insert in your Owner’s Handbook.

Finally you are requested to take your car to any Alfa Romeo Dealer, by Appointment, who will check the state of maintenance and efficiency of the bonnet closing mechanism and answer any questions you may have.

The check and any necessary maintenance will be carried out free of charge. A list of Dealers is enclosed for your reference.
If you no longer own or operate the vehicle would you please advice us of the name and address of the new owner using the detachable reply-paid card at the bottom of this letter.

The Safety Recall is being conducted in accordance with the Society of Motoring Manufactures and Trade Voluntary Code of Practice and is fully approved by the Vehicle & Operators Services Agency (formerly the Department of Transport). We apologies for any inconvenience caused and thank you for your cooperation.

Yours faithfully, Alfa Romeo UK

Orginal document can be found here.

What the Alfa Romeo 156 Manual says about the bonnet?

This what my Alfa Romeo 156 owner’s manual says about closing the bonnet

“To Close: - Lower the bonnet until approximately 20 centimetres from the engine compartment and then let it drop ensuring that it is fully closed and not just held in position by the safety hook.

If the bonnet does not close properly do not push it down but open it again and repeat the above procedure.

Always check that the bonnet is closed properly to avoid it opening while the car is travelling”

As you can see there is no mention on maintenance. Before my crash I changed the battery of my car and closed the bonnet from 3 feet. The bonnets are very heavy on the Alfa and it closed in the normal position. I gave it a quick push up and down and it seemed fine.

Unbeknown to me the catch and safety catch had only half closed and any major force, such as driving at 70mphs would open it. The rest is quite self explanatory...

Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione

If you own an Alfa 156 or 147 you should be aware the bonnet safety catch allows the bonnet to flip up at high speed if you don't maintained it correctly. There have been several accidents since Christmas 2007.

Its not a fault or a design flaw - it's actual your fault if it happens to you because you should have maintained it correctly; well thats what Alfa will tell you. Read More

There is no doubt that Alfa has just designed on of the best looking sports cars in Alfa Romeos history – The Alfa 8C is definitely the Alfa Romeo everyone has been waiting for.

Hopefully the build quality and reliability of the Alfa 8C will be better than their past cars which have been dogged with recalls, manufacturing faults, poor build quality, poor residual value, expensive running costs, extremely poor customer service and care.

Alfa Romeo are currently washing their hands of bonnet catch problem that has caused an untold amount of high speed crashes, writing off the customer’s cars. Alfa Romeo has known about the problem for years and are blaming the customers for the crashes. I hope they don't treat their Alfa Romeo 8C customers as badly has they treat their other customers.

If Alfa Romeo are going to be taken seriously with their latest Alfa 8C Competizione then they have to sort their act out; improve their quality, customer service and support. Until then I’d recommend you look elsewhere for your new sports car - its not worth the heart ache owning an Alfa Romeo will bring you.

The first Alfa Romeo 8C was built in 1930 and was one of the ultimate thoroughbred racing cars of the time.

The latest Alfa Romeo 8C was launched in Paris last year and is set for a production run of 500 cars. The engine is an 8 cylinder 4.7, 450bhp with a maximum rpm of 7500. It does 0-60 in 4.5 seconds. I wouldn't like to see the bonnet flying up at high speed on this Alfa!!!!

If you still think its worth putting your lives in Alfa Romeos hands then here are some interesting links on the new Alfa Romeo 8C:

Alfa Romeo 8C - Offical site
Alfa 8C Competizione to be built? - Channel 4
Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione Paris Motor Show - AutoBlog
Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione - The Video on You Tube
Alfa Romeo 8C 1983 Classic Car - Wikipedia
Alfa 8C Competizione - Evo
Alfa 8C to become Le Mans racer - Channel 4
Alfa 8C Competizione - Top Gear 12 Sexiest Car
Alfa 8C Competizione - Auto Express Part 1
Alfa 8C Competizione - Auto Express Part 2
Alfa 8C Competizione - What Car? Star car of 2007
Alfa 8C Competizione - What Car? Alfa Video