Alfa Romeo is now offering Australian buyers the 159 Sportwagon powered by the company's new 1750 TBI engine. Already slotted into the Giulietta and Spider models, the turbo four-cylinder powerplant will only be available to special order in the 159 Sportwagon. The local distributor arrived at this decision in light of buyer preference for the diesel-engined 159 Sportwagon models running the six-speed automatic transmission.
Alfa Romeo claims that the 159 Sportwagon with the 1750 TBI engine will reach a top speed of 233km/h and accelerate to 100km/h from rest in 7.9 seconds. Fuel consumption in combined-cycle testing is rated at 8.3L/100km.
Only the four-cylinder (1750 TBI) variants will offer a manual transmission -- a six-speeder -- the diesel and petrol V6 variants exclusively automatic. As for the diesel 159 Sportwagon, the 1750 TBI variant will be sold in two levels of trim: standard or Ti. Topping the range, the 3.2 V6 JTS is solely equipped to Ti level.
Peak power from the petrol four (displacing 1742cc) is 147kW and the engine produces 320Nm of torque. As in other applications, the engine features direct injection and turbocharging to achieve a combined-cycle fuel consumption figure of 8.3L/100km and emit 194g/km of CO2.
In the standard level of trim, the 159 Sportwagon is upholstered in leather (including steering wheel rim and gear knob). Cruise control, electrically adjustable heated mirrors, remote central locking, electric windows, reverse parking sensors, dual-zone climate control, Bluetooth and Blue&me infotainment are all fitted as standard.
For the Ti variant, the 159 Sportwagon comes as standard with black leather/red stitching, electrically-adjustable sports seats and aluminium decorative trim.
Outwardly, the Ti models can be identified by sports suspension (20mm lower), 19-inch alloy wheels with 235/40 tyres and Brembo brakes finished in red, plus a body kit and burnished aluminium door mirrors.
Standard safety features for both grades include ABS, Emergency Brake Assist, stability control, hill holder, rain-sensing wipers and auto-on/off headlights.
Prices are $51,990 for the 159 Sportwagon 1750 TBi or $56,480 when upgraded to the Ti specification.
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