156 2.0 selespeed Issues

[mfroes]

Hi Guys,
I recently got the misses a 1st gen 156 selespeed.
she loves it, but there is some issues that started happening out of nowhere.

issue 1) When stopping on a traffic sign, sometimes it just stalls. sometimes the selespeed light comes on and it wont even crank/ try to start. stopped it for 30 min, no luck starting it still.
pushed the shifter forward and tried to start on 1st gear. nothing. then have pushed it to go to neutral.
suddenly on neutral it started again, but still stalling.

issue 2) driver's side back door not locking, only unlocking.

issue 3) trunk not opening with key (sometimes works, sometimes it does not).

issue 4) aftermarket sunroof buttons (open/vent/close) only works sometimes. other times, works flawlessly (http://www.sunroofcheck.com/eng/img/pics/H700_switch-190.jpg)

issue 5) when changing gears, if accelerate too fast, looks like a clutch slipping on a regular car.


tried going to the Gold Coast Alfa Dealership and nothing got fixed.
as it seems they charged me 271 bucks for connecting to a OBDII code reader and do nothing else. First i got there at 7:50 and delivered the car, because he said it would be the first of the day. and they only looked at the car like 16:30.. once i called to check out how it was going.
And these are their response:

issue1) checked codes and found:
"FAULT CODE CONTROL UNIT FAULTY - INTERMITENT"
"ENGINE SPEED CODE OPEN CIRCUIT - INTERMITENT"
but they said that it cant be fixed as they could not figure out the problem on the car.

issue2) they said it was not locking as the "control unit faulty" code was coming on.
what is that supposed to be ?why would it be not locking only the back door and one of the sides?

issue 3) they said the another key needs to be ordered, as the one i have is faulty.
but when i click to open the trunk, it always blinks the light on the remote, i can hear a small click coming from the car, but wont open. sometimes a loud click comes and it opens normally which makes me think it is not the key itself.

issue 4) they said the same as issue 2.
i did not know that the aftermaket sunroof switch or motor were connected to any car ECU.



do you guys have any ideas what could it be ?!?!?!?!?!?!
i found this thread about the crank position sensor.
http://www.alfaclubvic.org.au/forum/index.php?topic=8154.0
Could that be the problem on why it keeps stalling and preventing it from starting ?

i am really septic on giving this to the misses to drive by herself.
any help would really be appreciated

Thanks all,
MArcelo

[Mick A]

Gday,

I think the best thing you can do is find yourself an Alfa specialist workshop near you and get the car to them.

All these things you've mentioned can't be solved on this forum, people can only speculate. Only the mechanic that has the car in front of them and can run the tests can diagnose it correctly.

I will say though, I don't think it is a crank angle sensor. You mentioned the car won't even crank, after it stalls. With an overheating crank angle sensor, the car will still crank, but it won't fire. The car won't crank because it thinks it is in gear, or it is in gear. Maybe it has a problem with the pump or the clutch solenoid. I don't know, because I can't see the car or muck around with it and go through my troubleshooting procedure.

But like I said, all you will get on here is guesses as I have just done, and at the end of the day you are going to have to take it to a mechanic. So just skip the bullshit and get it to the specialist and have it fixed.

Cheers. Mick.

[poohbah]

More to the point, avoid Alfa dealerships - find a specialist Alfa/Italian autos workshop closest to you. I'm sure someone on here can point you to someone reputable in your region.

Dealers are generally useless rip-off merchants if you take them anything other than a recent model that they sold you new.

[Alfa156Melb1]

I agree with all of the above - they will also have the right diagnostics gear as generic readers will not be able to read gearbox faults.  There's not much anyone can do here other than guess what the problem is without those codes.

However, the first thing you should do is get the selespeed calibrated, it's clutch rod adjusted and and a  clutch calibration. They may not solve your specific issue, but they'll keep the box in good order and the car will change gears properly.

If your clutch is slipping, it's more than likely worn out.. or the clutch rod is so far out of wack it can't bite..

The proper Alfa diagnostic software will calibrate the gearbox as well as diagnose any faults the car has properly.

As for your other problems, not sure, but any mechanic would be able to sort them.. just make sure you take the car to a specialist and get it done properly.. it will save you loads of money in the long term.

[bazzbazz]

Marcelo, I feel your pain, and seeing I own the same model myself am familiar with most of the problems you mention. I also have the diagnostics & gear needed to sort your troubles.

I have to be honest, one thing that irks me more than anything is people being charged $xxx.xx dollars for the privilege of having a car handed back with NOTHING FIXED! Probably because I've had it done to myself too.

Anyway onto your problems:

1/ These indicate one of the position sensors on the Selespeed actuator is dirty or worn, fortunately a quick, simple, inexpensive fix.

2/ Rear door is most likely a faulty solenoid/faulty connection

3/ Trunk not opening, the symptoms you have described indicate your right, has nothing to do with key, its the either the release solenoid or relay, fortunately I have some spares from a 156 I am wrecking.

4/ Factory fitted sunroofs ARE integrated into the central locking ecu, unless your aftermarket one closes automatically when you lock the car, then its isn't. Most likely has dirty/corroded contacts.

I'll send you a PM with contact details so if you want we can get you diagnosed & sorted properly.

Baz

[bazzbazz]

Well after a lot of effort and fault finding we got Mfroes Alfa (Now called "Patches") fully functional.

1/ The Selespeed problems were resolved by:
     A/ New Accumulator
     B/ New Range Sensor
     C/ New Clutch speed Sensor
     D/ Full Calibration

2/ The stopping at lights & loss of Throttle Input was due to corroded pins in the large connector
     Between the ECU & the PCV Valve.

3/ The rest were easily fixed

BUT, just as we had gotten it all working, Mfroes like a responsible Alfa Owner cleaned the Throttle body
which resulted in high Idle (3000 rpm) & surging. No, he didn't stuff anything at all, the PCV valve just happened to pick this same moment to start sticking open !!!!!  AAAARRRRGGGG

A quick change and now his missus has a perfectly running, fully serviced Alfa 156, called "Patches"

Why "Patches"?  Lets just say the only thing really in need of urgent attention now is a new paintjob

Baz

[mfroes]

yeah.
sorry about the delay guys.
its been a crazy month for me.

the car is just running beautifully idling right at 900rpm and with no problems.

Baz & On the spot alfa are just the best !

i just need to take a look at the suspension as we decided to put 2 guys on the back and the tyres starts hitting the body. but thats something for another day.

Baz... titanic is almolst back. 
that means we need to go for a drive so you can see it 

[bazzbazz]

Mount Tamborine & hinterland sound good to you for a blat?

Baz

[bazzbazz]

Has "Titanic" been re-floated yet?

Baz