Sportwagon 1.9 JTDm

Looks wonderful but disappointing to drive

I can't share Honest John's enthusiasm for the 1.9 diesel powered version of this car. Compared to the 2 litre diesel Ford Mondeo I owned previously the Alfa is sadly lacking in torque at low revs, always needing to be in one gear lower than feels right, just to avoid the turbo-lag. Yes it will rev nicely (for a diesel) but at the expense of fuel consumption. My regular commute gives me around 35 mpg (compared to 42 mpg on the Mondeo over the same route).

I really wanted to like the Alfa because it looks superb both inside and out but, again, compared to the Mondeo, it has an uncomfortably hard ride, lots of road noise on most surfaces, and is starting to give problems with the diesel particulate filter - so I'm selling it before it can give me any more grief.

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