Project car - 1989 75 3.0 V6 [Updated 12 November 2021]

[shiny_car]

Update time.

The weather was pretty average every day I was working on the car, so I didn't have an opportunity to start painting the brake calipers. But, Spring is upon us, and the weather has been better, so hopefully the coming weeks will be ideal.

Here, I removed the right brake disc splash guard, and confirmed it needed some trimming from the 'corners' for better clearance of the new calipers.



Trimmed each corner, then re-primed and sprayed with high-temperature tolerant black paint. Refitted the right side guard once dry.







Bought some (brake) hose clamps and removed the original front brake calipers. The hoses will be replaced with braided versions, so no concerns about kinking and damaging the old ones.





Right side hub and bearings. There was evidence of grease working its way past the original seal, so new one required. Also, I couldn't avoid damaging the old seal during removal to access the bearing. Later discovered I was supplied the wrong size, outer diameter! Instead of 57mm, they were 56mm, so had to re-order and wait for delivery.

Everything degreased and inspected. The bearings and races appeared in good condition, and possibly not the originals.









'Up to' 50g of bearing-grease required, as per workshop manual. This equates to quite a lot; the hub was moderately packed. I've continued to use Penrite lubricants.







The correct size seals sourced and fitted.



Hub and disc brake fitted together, more grease applied to axle, then slid into position.



Castle nut and washer fitted, then torqued according to workshop manual. Low torque required, so the small 1/4" drive wrench used. Once properly set, new split pin fitted.





Hub cover refitted and job done on this side: new Tarox disc in position.





Similar steps followed for the left side, but steering knuckle not fitted to the car so that I can take this assembled unit to have the caliper brackets custom made.

Trimmed and painted splash guard bolted to steering knuckle.





Packed no more than 50g of fresh bearing grease into the hub.





Dropped the inner bearing back into position, then fitted the new seal. The 41mm socket piece (same size used to turn the crankshaft pulley nut) was the ideal diameter to hammer the seal into position.







Hub secured to brake disc.





Then hub/disc slid onto steering knuckle axle, castle nut torqued to-spec and split pin fitted, finished with hub cover.









Onto a new stage: cleaning up the front right quarter panel. I will have this whole panel resprayed; there are areas where the clear-coat is peeling. Plus, after much deliberation I made the decision to change to the Evoluzione style bodykit! So the wheel arch mouldings and sideskirts will be replaced as part of the transformation.

Removing the wheel arch moulding, which was fitted with 4 rivets. The rivet heads were 'drilled out'.







Note the mounting tabs for the wheel arches. The arches are made from an ABS plastic, hollow and light.







A heat gun and plastic 'trim removal tools' were used to remove the grey side moulding. A few areas had a solid, plasticky bonding agent (?Sikaflex) which required a hobby knife to cut through.





The front of the mouldings are held to the panel via an interference-fit round lug. Double-sided tape does most of the job of fixing the mouldings in position. A lot of tape residue remained.





The double-sided tape remained solidly bonded to the back of the moulding.





Trying to remove the tape residue initially proved a major chore. I tried every solvent I had, with little effect: turpentine, wax & grease remover, paint thinners, kerosene, but it seemed methylated spirits worked best. Regardless, it remained a very tedious job, still requiring a knife blade and finger nails.

I knew there must be an easier way, so did some research. A dedicated solvent like 3M Tape & Residue Remover was recommend by some, but then I discovered pin stripe eraser wheels. Wow, awesome tool, and very cheap. These attach to any drill, and cost me about A$8 each. They seem made from a firm rubber, and function similarly to a pencil eraser.

Attached to my electric drill, running at 2,800 rpm. After a little practice, these made very easy work of removing the residue. Some of the best little 'tools' I've ever bought; cheap and extremely effective. A revolution!  :mrgreen:





For comparison, you can see where I needed to use the knife to cut off the black (Sikaflex) bonding agent. Then where I started removing the tape residue using a solvent, fingernails and knife. Then the flawless finish from using the eraser wheels. Also note the peeling clear coat; this panel may have been resprayed at some stage.



In this photo, you may be able to notice the subtle difference in paint colour. Behind the mouldings is 'fresher' paint, a slightly lighter shade of red. The remainder of the paintwork is 'faded', and is a darker shade. It's another reason to respray most of the car, to attain matching panels, albeit at extra cost.



I'll leave it here for this month. Thanks for looking.

[Duk]

Some more awesome work, Shiny!!! 
I'm sure that everyone appreciates your efforts, you information and your photos.

It will be interesting to see what your car looks like with the 18" wheels on it. I like the O.Z.s, but personally think that 18s on a 75 will look strange. But potential looks are always a hard thing to judge and are definitely based on personal preference.

Keep up the great work!   

[shiny_car]

Cheers Duk, appreciate it. 

[AR753.0ltr]

Hey Shiny,

Great attention to detail. Love the build and the brake upgrade. Look like it's all coming together. Hopefully one day I can get my 75 to that standard.

Was going to suggest, the hub grease cap that covers the front wheel bearing you can buy those new from Italian automotive spares.
Had to get a couple when i did my wheel bearings as they were a bit dented. Just thought I'd suggest it as it would keep with your level of detail on the car.

[bteoh]

Hi Shiny,

Did you replace the front bearings? I was wondering how you removed the outer race? I had to take my hub to the alfa specialist to remove it for me

Nice work and very meticulous. Well done

[Duk]

I was wondering how you removed the outer race? I had to take my hub to the alfa specialist to remove it for me

The easiest way to get a race out of a hub is to run a bead of weld around it (on the actual area the rollers run on), either MIG or Arc.
This causes the race to shrink and also gives you a handy place to put a dolly against to administer the final bit of effort to get the race out.

[shiny_car]

Was going to suggest, the hub grease cap that covers the front wheel bearing you can buy those new from Italian automotive spares.

Thanks for the heads-up. But sshhh, don't tell anyone if I retain the originals    . Only cos they will be hidden from sight. 

Did you replace the front bearings? I was wondering how you removed the outer race? I had to take my hub to the alfa specialist to remove it for me

I didn't replace them. If required, I would have tried to work something out using my hydraulic press.

[VeeSix]

Dam fine work Richard, can not wait to take it for a drive 

I am slowly restoring a black 3.0, sort of slow project, attend to it here and there, the 75 signature strip that wraps around the car, the very rear one after the rear door bolts on one end but then has to adhered for the rest of the run, what are you going to use Richard, can anyone recommend a tried and tested product?

I have to replace and am wondering what the best product to use will be, you have to remember you need good adherance but do not want to damage paint, cause corrosion at a later date then have the rust start appearing from underneath 

[shiny_car]

Thanks mate.

For the mouldings, I'll use a combination of double sided tape and Sikaflex.

[VeeSix]

What is Sikaflex and where is it purchased?

Why the two products and not just one? 

[Duk]

What is Sikaflex and where is it purchased?

Sikaflex is a non-acidic curing (as apposed to typical silastic type sealants), mounting adhesive that gets used plenty in the automotive world.
I've bought it from Super Cheap Auto in the past.

[shiny_car]

What is Sikaflex and where is it purchased?

Why the two products and not just one? 

Yeah, Bunnings also sell it. I haven't compared prices, but probably not much in it, I just buy wherever is convenient.

'Sikaflex' is the brand. '227' is the version you can use. ie: Sikaflex 227. It's black.
http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online-store/products/Sikaflex-227-Adhesive-310mL.aspx?pid=11079#Cross

You can tell from the moulding I recently removed, that it is primarily held by double-sided tape. However, this can of course perish a little over time, and can also 'tear' through the middle. As such, Sikaflex provides added security to prevent things falling off, but importantly, to keep the shape of any curved/flexed pieces (ie: keep the ends from popping off the panel).

I'm yet to determine if Sikaflex (or similar) was used from the factory. I suspect the front-right moulding I removed has previously been removed and then replaced. Chances are, the factory only used ds-tape, but I'll probably determine this once I remove other pieces.

[shiny_car]

Update time again.

After much deliberation, I finally changed my mind about the exterior, and decided I will fit a version of the Evoluzione bodykit. This means replacement wheel arch flares, sideskirts, and bumpers. At this stage, I have secondhand tatty/damaged flares and sideskirts, made from fibreglass, which will require a lot of fettling to fit nicely. Fortunately, I'm pretty good at fibreglassing. Down the track, I will source the bumpers, and have to decide between the deeper front Evo style versus Veloce (or preferably a variation of these, the EMC Racing version, but these seem the scarcest); it will depend on the stance of the vehicle after setting the ride height. The Evo version will probably sit too low to be practical (let alone strictly compliant with roadworthy's 100mm clearance).

I drew inspiration from various internet photos to help decide what I liked. The Evo kit initially seemed too bold, but over time it has grown on me as the look that I like best. Here's some of my inspiration:

*original plan was TS bumpers + lip spoiler


*Evoluzione style kit; note how the front bumper has the extra 'cooling slot' behind the number plate; this adds extra depth/height, and the lower lip may end up too low to the ground


*favourite is EMC Racing front bumper; compared with the Evo, the central opening is a single large hole rather than divided into 6; remainder of kit is Evo-esque


*Veloce style bumper; lacks the cooling slot of the Evo/EMC bumpers, so offers more ground clearance


Everyone will have their personal favourite, so I can expect much discuss! And some people will prefer no change to the factory style, and fair enough. But my main inspiration is this black one, and no surprise that I bought the same wheels as a result!



OK, back to my own car! 

First up, I fitted a new rear engine mount. Taking tips from others, I had it frozen in the freezer to shrink it ever-so-slightly for easier fitment. Then heated the housing with my heat gun (I don't have a blow torch). It pushed in quite easily, with a few hits from a hammer and punch; then used an adjustable spanner to rotate it to the correct orientation.







The new mount isn't as wide as the housing, so I offset it to the right side, meaning the rear of the engine will be relatively offset to the left. Discussion in alfagtv6.com forums highlights how the V6 engine is usually rotated in the chassis, and looking from above, indeed my engine sits slightly 'anticlockwise' of centre. Arguably, this is partly due to the propeller shaft being offset to the right. Regardless, I am trying to mount my engine with minimal misalignment.





Onto the body, I removed the original sideskirt. This revealed years of dirt and grime in the door sills, along the side and underneath. The sideskirt was secured with a combination of screws, and twist-lock clips.









The area was cleaned, including scrubbing the chassis, then painted underneath along the edge with body deadener.







New side indicators. 'Clear' provides a more modern appearance - or else, I just don't like orange! These versions are designed for circa-1990s Mercedes, and were suggested by NSW alfista XAR75X. eBay, AUS$34 delivered.



I had anticipated a drop-in swap, but no, needed to trim the panel. No big deal. Used the Dremel, and masking tape to help capture the metal filings.





Test fitment, and have since cleaned up the modified hole and painted with rust proofing primer.





Secondhand Evo style front wheel arch moulding and sideskirt. These originated from a car stripped by jazig.k. He sold the side pieces and bumpers to another owner, who only kept the bumpers and on-sold these to me. jazig.k originally dissuaded me from purchasing because of the damage, but hey, I'm up for a challenge and confident I can fix it better than new.









Rubber edging on wheel arch moulding not in great condition. Decided to ditch this, and properly blend the piece into the metal panel. Some of the gel coat peeled off with the edging, and will be repaired accordingly.





Test fitment, and you can see some of the work required.





Wheel arch moulding is a poor fit around the rear of the panel. Higher up seems to have been trimmed away previously; further down, it sits proud of the panel rather than flush; and down low, it needed stretching over the panel, unacceptably. So I cut this whole section off, to be replaced.





Last installment: I spray painted one of the Brembo brake calipers, and very pleased with the result. The other one, along with the assembled brake disc and steering knuckle, have been dropped off at a local engineering workshop to design and fabricate a CNC routered adaptor bracket. By next month I should have the pieces to show.

Prior to painting, I 'popped' the pistons from the caliper with compressed air, by holding the blow gun  nozzle in the brake hose inlet. Some scrap mdf wood pieces helped control their release. The pistons have some surface corrosion/pitting, but primarily on the exposed surfaces, which won't affect function. Each piece cleaned for reuse.









Masked the caliper and commenced the spraying process, using 'Real Red' VHT Caliper Paint. My cheap way to support the caliper for spraying the flipside was using some M6 bolts through the pad pin holes.







The paint was cured in the oven at about 90 degrees celcius for an hour, as per VHT instructions.



Heat tolerant silver caliper decals, off eBay. Dimensions carefully measured, then applied masking tape for alignment after gently sanding the caliper surface smooth.









Then many, many coats of Clear VHT Caliper Paint, cured in the oven.





'Orange peel effect' undesirable. 800 then 1200 grade wet&dry sandpaper used to smooth the 'visible' surfaces of the caliper; ok, no secret, I saw no point smoothing the rear of the caliper if you aren't going to see it!





Next, machine-polished the surfaces using an orbital polisher, 'White' Lake Country CCS polishing pad, and Menzerna PO106FF Final Finish polish (light cut, high gloss). Needed caution against cutting right through the paint. LSP (last step product) was Poorboys World Wheel Sealant paste.









Then to complete the refurbishment, refitting the caliper pistons. Masking tape removed, you can see the piston wells with black seals.



ATE Bremszylinder Paste (Brake Master Cylinder grease) used to lubricate the seals and pistons. Dust seals simply stretch over the pistons then press onto the calipers.





With the pistons and seals pressed back into the caliper, this caliper is complete and ready for fitment.






Thanks for looking.

[Duk]

I'm a huge fan of the Evoluzione body kit! 
Nothing says '80s RACE CAR like no other (even if they were from the late '80s and early '90s ).
BUT, I do believe that the real visual success of an Evoluzione kitted car, like the 75 in general, comes down to wheel choice, primarily offset but also design. And ride height, to make sure there is minimal gap between the top wheel arch and the top of the tyre. The reality of practicality and legality are often at odds with ride height, though.

Something to keep in mind with wide wheels and a reasonably aggressive wheel offset, is wheel arch clearance. Pretty obvious, but 1 thing I found with having the Pace Engineering 'long shank top ball joints' in my car, the camber curve characteristics (the wheels gain a fair bit of negative camber with bump travel) allow me to have rim width and offsets that you couldn't get away with in cars with standard suspension geometry.
Better handling characteristics, too. 

Pilfered from AlfaBB.

[jazig.k]

Haha! That's my old EVO kit!! I sold it on ebay for $450 maybe 2 years ago... I can tell by the damage everywhere!

Edit: hehe, so I read the actual post though, you did mention it was mine...  I jumped the gun