I had similar experiences with Russian airforce crews. Very funny, very capable, not to be underestimated, but not the enemy.

Indeed. The current Russian leadership is as unpredictable as it gets, which is why I view the unilateral disarmament crowd with some disdain. Past performance is no guarantee of future returns, as the small print often says.

Rather than type it all out again, I’ve obviously been unclear in what I was trying to say, so please see this extended reply to someone else who voiced the same thing as you:

I’m 46. Ex-airforce pilot.

Absolutely. Completely agree with your analysis.

Ah - I think my original post was not particularly clear then. It’s not that the USA and Russia are direct economic opponents, in the same vein as China as you mentioned, but indirect.

Now that is a fair point...

I think it was a turn of phrase, describing the general condition of this class of car, rather than a chemistry lesson on hydrocarbon chain vs. ferrous/non-ferrous metal deterioration...

Whilst I understand your analogy with India/Pakistan I think it’s a little misplaced. The United States and Russia are not really opponents at a military level; I do not for a minute believe that the average American citizen has a deep cultural and political, or even personal loathing and hatred for their Russian…

You’re laughing then. I suspect there will be a small, but lucrative market for cars like this when they become eligible and shipping, especially to the east coast from Europe, is not hugely expensive.

Leases aren’t as common in the UK as they are in the USA, although they are growing in popularity.

It’s one of a slew of so-called ‘lifestyle’ wagons that were popular here in Europe in the lates ‘90s, early 2000s. Not a big boot on it compared to something like the V70 or E-class of the same era, but you’d look good crammed into the back!

That 300 you always wanted but couldn’t justify? Now you can!

It’s not uncommon to see wagons loaded up to bursting point in Europe, especially in the summer. Mum, Dad, 2 or 3 kids, camping gear in the boot, rear or roof mounted bicycle rack and maybe even a small trailer for the bits that wouldn’t fit into the car.

Sadly, the word is not for at least another 8 or 9 years for the earliest ones, and good luck with spares! Any one who buys one of these Alfas, be it a 156 or 159 when they become eligible for import is going to be spending a lot of time emailing European parts suppliers....

1 - Too many used cars for sale at any given time with not enough buyers. RHD cars have no other market and when the large corporations and rental companies dump their 3 year old fleets every year, prices have to be ridiculously low to shift them.

I think it’s the fact that there are far more used cars on the market at any given time than there are buyers. Also, a large percentage of any new car’s price is taxes and that amount is instantly wiped off the minute it leaves the lot.

I like them a lot. It’s on my radar for ‘Airport Car’ replacement, which is currently a slowly dying Chrysler Neon.

I’m about to replace my Volvo V70 for another wagon (I’m British) and I’m still not sure about the V90. Volvo don’t have a good recent track record of getting it right for the first few years on most models and it’s a properly expensive car so, on balance, I think I’m going to pass this time round. Mechanically…

The last advertising campaign for the 159 Sportswagon in the UK was aimed at just such people I think.