It was hard to replace the successful Alfa Romeo 155, but it had to.
In 1997, the new Alfa Romeo 156 was completely different than what the 155 was before.

The Alfa Romeo 156 was a four-door sedan that brought the Italian brand into a new era, with a car that was not only sporty, but it was also practical, fuel-efficient, comfortable, and stylish. To achieve that, the Alfa Romeo Centro Stile started from a blank sheet of paper and threw away the boxy design inherited from the 155.

The car design received many awards, and the car itself won the European 1998 “Car of the Year” award. The curved surfaces, the front fascia with the three-piece grille that forced the license plate to be installed on one side, and the coupe-like silhouette with hidden door handle for the rear doors promised a success story. The short rear overhang with a tall and straight trunk amplified the dynamic look of the car.

Inside, there were even more reasons to fall in love with the vehicle. A sporty center console tilted toward the driver, an instrument cluster with binocular-style dials were installed. The speedometer’s needle had the zero kph position at six o’clock. Comfortable seats and nice velour materials were used for the base trim model, while the front bucket-seats were standard for the whole range. The rear seats were not very spacious, with limited room for knees and head.

For the drivetrain, the all-wheel independent suspension gave the car more comfort and better handling abilities. It was a sporty executive compact vehicle, that won the hearts of the Alfa Romeo fans.