Look what i got!

Mat Francis · May 03, 2009, 06:31:39 PM

After a long trip to SA, to see Dave Williams (of Ricciardi fame) over the weekend i'm home, and over the moon. i love the thing!

It's not perfect, but i wouldn't expect it to be. It drove home without a single issue. (we stopped twice, once for lunch, once for fuel).
Ok we all know that's not believable, it doesn't start when hot. On the bright side though it did do 40 MPG!

The only thing that works on the dashboard is the little indicator LED, so i have some fun ahead of me there. If anyone wants to point me in the rough direction it would be appreciated.

Couple of other questions, does anybody know if the heater core under the dash is the same as in the Alfettas? because it needs replacing, and no prizes for guessing what spares i have.

Next thing, is there supposed to be anything attached here? the negative terminal of the battery. one would assume if there is an extra post it would have a wire attached to it. but i can't see anything obviously out of place.

Oh and its a 87 TS if that's any use.

Alan Hopla · May 03, 2009, 06:36:33 PM

Oh shame, Oh shame.

Or is this just a ploy to get an LSD for the race car?

Hope you have a world of fun in the new toy.
Alan.

Paul Gulliver · May 03, 2009, 06:42:31 PM

That sort of performance upgrade has got ot be worth 3 - 4 secs a lap. I hope your mother was heavily sedated when you broke the news ( a mothers day present for next sunday possibly ).

alfagtv152 · May 03, 2009, 07:05:32 PM

Hi Matt,
Sorry to see you move away from Alfetta's but it is still a transaxle car!.Were you lucky enough to get a shed tour? and see all the great stuff!.
Cheers
Andrew

Gary Pearce · May 03, 2009, 07:06:56 PM

I don't think you should be concerned about the spare earth post on the batthery terminal Mat. It's probabbly just a spare for acessories etc. Don't forget the whole car is an earth post actually so it's not important to use that post.
Just be sure you have a good heavey lead to the engine block and usually a bit smaller one to the body. Have fun, sounds like you are already. Gary.

Mat Francis · May 03, 2009, 07:15:19 PM

Hehe. took 6 months to justify it to mum. she should be just about calm enough not to kill me when she gets home.

For now (i mean when i get it registered and all) it will be the road car. What happens to it after a years rego? who knows.

Am still keeping the Alfetta (s), once it runs out of rego i think i will put it on club plates. If i do that it will give me a chance to get it fixed (the rear end STILL isnt done), and maybe fiddle around with a few more things i couldn't if i needed it day to day.

We did get a short tour (probably lasted close to an hour), but it just wasn't long enough. absolutely f***ing amazing the cars, knowledge and skill Dave has. Unfortunately it was getting dark and Dave had things to do, so we went on our way. Would love to find an excuse to go back again one day.

Interestingly, the car felt much slower than the Alfetta under about 80k's. Highly likely that this is just an illusion, but i was quite surprised. I will also add that i didn't have a tacho, and as such was changing gears at what i would guess to be about 4500, but yeah just an observation.

Mat Francis · May 03, 2009, 07:16:31 PM

Thanks Gary, good to know. Plenty of fun to be had indeed!

Luke · May 03, 2009, 07:57:16 PM

Cool car, Mat! I searched long and hard for a TS 75, but couldn't find one that wasn't silly-expensive.

(edit: having said that, there's a cheap one on carsales right now,

)

Quote from: Mat Francis on May 03, 2009, 07:15:19 PM

Interestingly, the car felt much slower than the Alfetta under about 80k's. Highly likely that this is just an illusion, but i was quite surprised.

Around town, the extra torque must be noticeable, though?

Tristan Atkins · May 03, 2009, 08:23:51 PM

Hi Mat,

The heater core hoses both exit on the drives side of the 75. It also looks different to the GTV's so I'm not sure if you can simply swap them over. My donor 75 went down to the scrap yard last month but I know of another 75 thats had the engine stripped and is just sitting around.

Give Nicklos a call on 0414 999 773 and see if its still there.

I'm also spewing that its the earlier loom. If it was the later style I would have asked you to buzz it out as I'm desperate to work out the wiring to the ECU so I can finaly start mine up

Good luck with the project and the wiring (the 75 has 3x that of the GTV.) Oh and check out Craigs Place for all your 75 needs: http://www.users.on.net/~craigf/

Tristan

Mat Francis · May 03, 2009, 09:07:00 PM

QuoteAround town, the extra torque must be noticeable, though?

According to the internet, (and we all know how right that must be!), it only produces another 20 foot pounds than the claimed 168 in this alfetta review i have. i know the Alfetta engine is strong, and am assuming the TS is also, (doesn't blow any smoke, revs cleanly and gives good fuel economy). The extractors on the Alfetta make a huge difference low down.

Again, i have absolutely no proof of this, but to me it just feels like the Alfetta pulls much harder from low speed. Could just be that its a bit of an animal to drive though, whereas the 75 feels much more civilized and refined.

Thanks for the contact there Tristan. It is going to have to wait a week or two, younger brother's Alfetta has priority at the moment, but i will look into that as soon as is practical.

I got all the available stuff off Craig's Place last week and begun slowly sifting through it. I haven't taken much in yet really, its all a bit of a shock after getting familiar with the nice simple alfettas.

John Toomath · May 03, 2009, 10:07:56 PM

You've made a good start there Mat towards your next track car. With a bit of tinkering around, removal of excess components and addition of a few items you will have recreated my desktop background.

pep105 · May 03, 2009, 10:43:49 PM

Quote from: Mat Francis on May 03, 2009, 09:07:00 PM
QuoteAround town, the extra torque must be noticeable, though?

Again, i have absolutely no proof of this, but to me it just feels like the Alfetta pulls much harder from low speed. Could just be that its a bit of an animal to drive though, whereas the 75 feels much more civilized and refined.

Mat found the same thing with my 75 TS, thought that the 82 GTV was more responsive down low. The GTV just felt a little quicker initially but once the 75 got going it went harder and revved clean. While the 75 felt like it had more power overall with more mid range & top end wallop, mine had a bit of a flat spot under 2500 rpm where the GTV felt more tractable it would pull from as low as 1500 - 2000 rpm no problem where the 75 didn't like it as much. Could be just my car though. But then again theres nothing better than revving the tits off an alfa

Enjoy they are a fun car

alfagtv58 · May 04, 2009, 08:52:54 AM

Great stuff Matt, congrats.

The low down power thing could just be power to weight? The 75 would be heavier than the Alfetta.

Mat Francis · May 04, 2009, 12:19:27 PM

Thanks all. Agree, the 75 is a fair bit heavier, that thought crossed my mind.

Pep- 100% agree. with the lot. describes my limited driving experiece of it so far exactly.

Sheldon McIntosh · May 04, 2009, 04:28:16 PM

Quote from: Mat Francis on May 03, 2009, 09:07:00 PM
According to the internet, (and we all know how right that must be!), it only produces another 20 foot pounds than the claimed 168 in this alfetta review i have.

It also depends where it makes the torque as well of course. I think the twinspark engine is reasonably peaky though, compared to the twin cam, and the weight certainly wouldn't help, and the gearing is possibly a bit longer as well?

Nice one though Matt, hope it grows on you like the Alfettas have. Let me know if you need any help with electrics/flimsy interior trim and whatnot. Been there, done that.....