Refresh & Service Advice for a 1986 Sprint

[stuka]

Ive just bought a 1986 1.5L 33 sprint. It has been sitting idle for quite a while and used sparingly in the last 5 years. This is my first Alpha Romeo and therefore pretty ignorant of the mechanicals. I was looking for some advice on what I should service and give attention to besides the customary oil change, oil filter, air filter and plugs. Im pretty handy with the spanners and can take on most things. Any advice is appreciated. Also, is there a workshop manual I can download or would I be best getting a Haines manual? Thanks!

[colcol]

First of all, what state are you from?, if Victoria have a look in our club magazine for SERVICE PROVIDERS, You could download a manual, but i have never had any luck with these as it always seems i can never open a file, whatever that means?, you can get a 33 manual on cd, on the Alfa Romeo ebay site for around $20, then print the pages you need off your computer, the oil used in these engines is 10-50 Mineral oil, or synthetic if your budget will stretch, the oil filters are a Z89, which is quite a common and easily available oil filter, the cam belts and tensioners have to be changed every 60,000 or 4 years or whichever comes first, if you don't know when it was last done, then do it now as they are an interference engine which means when the cam belt breaks, then the valves will collide with the pistons causing a ruined motor, oh and Haines don't make a manual for a 33, but they make one for an Alfasud and these have a similar mechanics, there are a few available on the Alfasud ebay site, just get the one that is Alfasud 1972-1984, not 1972-1976 as there will be no information on the twin carb motors, Colin.

[stuka]

Im in Hobart, doesnt look like there is a section for TAS on this forum.

As I said, Im looking to do as much as I can myself before  relying on a specialist. Im not too sure of the alfa scene here in Hobart as Im new to TAS, Ive moved from Ireland. I guess I'll shell out for the CD and go from there. I will be using the 33 as daily driver so just need to get her running sweet ASAP and looking for some pointers. Is their anything to look out for when draining and refilling the cooling system?

[scuzzyGTV]

Hi stuka
Welcome to sunny Hobart, at least it will be warmer than Ireland!!
There is no AROCA division in Tassie, but here in Hobart there is Club Motori Italia (www.cmitas.org) and in Launceston there is Italian Car Enthusiasts, both of the presidents are members on this forum.
If you do need a specialist alfa mechanic, there are a couple around.
Look forward to meeting you at some stage, and happy alfa motoring.
Scott.

[colcol]

Hi Stuka, the cooling systems in 33's are easy to work on, if the car has been sitting there a while, then give it a good flush, there is a drain plug under each bank, they are a 10mm thread, roughly in the centre, do it cold to avoid burns and hospital visits, some 33's have a heater tap, they are the ones with airconditioning, the standard ones use the standard flap, don't worry about this, just switch on the heater to hot, then jack up the car and undo the drain plug and get out of the way, to avoid getting wet, and as the coolant drains, undo the coolant pressure cap and the coolant will drain faster, then when it stops draining, do the same on the other bank, then run some water into the reserve tank and when the water flows out clean, then wait to the water stops running out and put the drain plugs back in, but make sure they have a copper or brass washer under the drain bolts and do them up to about 15lbs, now mix up some cooling system cleaner in a bucket, at this stage about 2 litres of mixed cleaner and pour it into the reserve tank on the LHS inner gaurd, and then with a bucket top up the reserve tank till it overflows, then start the engine and let it idle till it warms up and keep topping up the water as the level drops down as it warms up, when the thermo fan starts running, then check the level top it up to the full mark, put the radiator cap back on and go for a drive keeping an eye on the temperature gauge, if all ok, when home wait for car to cool down and recheck water level in reservoir, some manufacturers of coolant flushers advise running for half an hour to a couple of days, if prefer 1 week, to give it a good clean, and i will finish it off next weekend, Colin.

[stuka]

Picked up the car today, runs really sweet! Been working on it all evening, badly needs a service.

Thanks Colin for the advice, I'll have a go at draining the cooling system tomorrow night. Looks like I have a bit to do but its all good

Scott - thanks for the info, will hopefully bump in to you soon. Cant say I miss the Irish weather...

Pat

[colcol]

Ok Stuka, so you have run your car now with the cleaner through it, now drain it, wait till the engine is cool and drain the 2 banks, and put a hose in the reserve tank and give it a good flush until clean water runs out the drain holes, now loosen off the top radiator hose and with a garden hose give the radiator a good flush, but don't flush the hose that goes into the thermostat housing that goes into the front of the engine block as that has the thermostat and it should be closed so you won't be able to flush through there, now put back the drain plugs on the bottom of the block and put the top hose back on the radiator and pour your anti rust coolant concentrate into the reserve tank, the type you use is up to you, as long as they are Australian standard, they should be ok, i use NULON, because it available at Repco and its a pretty flouro green when new, and when worn out it turns a dull green, so i know when to change it, now slowly fill up the cooling system through the reserve tank, and when full, go round and squeeze all the hoses to remove any air pockets, now fill the coolant level to the top and start the engine, and let it idle, and as the air pockets are filled with coolant, the level will drop, just keep topping it up, then when the temperature reaches about 70c, the thermostat should open and then the coolant level will drop, top it up again and when the electric cooling fan switches on fill the level to MAX on the tank, put the pressure cap on and go for a drive around the block for about 10 minutes, keeping an eye on the temperature gauge, when home let car cool and then check coolant level, and if required fill to MIN or Cold on reserve tank, happy 33ing, Colin.

[stuka]

You obviously know your way around these cars Colin! This evening I drained the oil and coolant, removed the oil and air filter in preparation for replacements and put in new spark plugs. The removed coolant is best likened to tomato soup!



The oil filter I picked up from Supercheao (Z89A) isnt the same size as the one I took off. Am I best getting an OEM from Alfa? And the air filter, OEM too?

I havent implemented your recommendations below as I need to pick up some copper washers tomorrow. I noticed while underneath the car one of the welch plugs is leaking a small amount of coolant. Is this common and is there a quick fix? Also, is the timing belt and water pump a difficult job on this motor?

Cheers

Pat

[Craig_m67]

My favorite car. Had two. Your going to get addicted to it  

What version is it, Twin Carb QV ?
I had a '88 QV for nearly 15yrs, second owner 40ks ~ 400ks
The thing is bullet proof if treated well. Most all mech. repairs you can do yourself too

Only major thing i'd look for early is cracks in the front chassis rails and or inside wheel arches where the crossbrace/strut tower is welded. Telltale is strong neg camber or fantastic handling. Its what finally retired mine.  Also, look for rust at the top of the rear hatch and in the battery tray bit at the front. The firewall underneath the battery tray is a double skinned structure with foam in it.. that can hold moisture and
Hidden rust. Important as the steering rack bolts to through it (there are al spacers in between the wall).. I had suds too.. I know all about rust  

Don't be put off by anything though, its fantastically rewarding car. I'll own another one day.

There's a hungarian website/blog which has a wealth of manuals to download (I'll see if i can google it up). The Haynes manual is the better of the two alfasud manuals as it has info on the later cars and five speed g'box (if its not already been done, you will finally succumb an rotate the fifth gear synchro to second as a cheap fix - it's any easy box to work on).

>>Edit.  http://alfasprint.extra.hu/


Check cam belts and tensioners if it's been sitting a long time.
Cam belts are a doodle to replace, water pump is a f$uc&ing nightmare (do it though - there are two types, so check before you buy, you will destroy the original getting it out.. No, you will.  Yes, seriously)
New engine, g'box tail mounts do make some difference
Bearings in upper strut pans grind away and give heavy steering
Headlamps are hopeless, usually with 100W bulbs in that eventually melt the switch/stalk (check, put in relays)
Inside door handles will break
Clutch master cylinder (rubbers) hate winter and usually fall at first below zero winters evening
If the doors are sagging, check for rust in the pillar the hinges bolts too (hex heads.. Easier to remove front wing than door to check this.. Also gives you more insight into any windscreen surround rust if any.
Rear brakes are drum (??)
Front brakes are outboard (yay)

Memories are flooding back, enjoy

[stuka]

Yes mine is a twin carb. Im not sure if its QV, what is QV??

Front chassis rails are fine and the battery tray is in very good condition too. The drivers door creaks badly and the side mould between the front guard and the door has been removed, I think because the door must knock if off. I'll have to remove the guard and have a look whats going on there.

[colcol]

The  oil filter you purchased is it a Ryco Z-89 or a Supercrap Z-89?, the genuine Alfa Romeo oil filters are greatly overpriced, the last one i purchased 20 years ago was $25, i prefer the larger filters because they are bigger, so they must be better!, this is what i have been told, smaller filters have less filtering capacity, but because the fill quicker they pump up oil pressure quicker on a cold morning, The Alfa Romeo, Tecnofilter and Ufi filters are small, the Ryco, Mahle and Kneche are larger and to tell you the truth, i would use any, although the smaller ones are easier to put on and change, change them at least once a year or at every second oil change, Colin.

[norman gen]

QV = Quadrifoglio Verde (Green Cloverleaf)

[stuka]

Its a QV yes...getting used to the terminology. I got a Ryco oil filter and ordered a timing belt and water pump today. Not looking forward to changing the water pump.

[colcol]

The aircleaners are easily available  from Alfa independant spare parts outlets or filter specialists, the core plugs in the blocks are easily replaceable, i did mine about 2 years ago, get brass replacements as they don't rust like steel ones do, if my memory serves me correctly, they are 32mm, NOT 1 1\4 inch as the guy tried to tell me, and they are 25mm in the heads, to replace, buy slide hammer with self tapper in end, drill appropriate size hole in welch plug, not in centre, but towards edge, now after drillng hole, get socket or large pin punch, and tap the plug to move it, when it moves you have broken the seal and it is easier to remove, insert self tapper into welch plug and tap-tap slide hammer to get it moving, if the self tapping thread in the plug strips, then drill 180 degrees towards the edge and repeat process, the reason you don't drill in the centre is because it never seems to want to move, but tapping down on the edges seems to get it to come out, when removed clean up core plug hole, use loctite primer or metholated spirits or thinners then coat the hole and brass plug with 'green' loctite for bushes and shafts, not the thread locking loctite, put a socket in brass plug and tap it into the block, job done, Colin.

[stuka]

Got the welch plugs out last night, probably took 30 minutes to get 2 out. They were in pretty bad condition. All in all, these cars are suprisingly easy to work on. Which is nice.