| Subject | Date Asked | Expert |
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| overheating proplems with alfa 145 | 4/7/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: hi i drive a Alfa 145 2l recently it overheats a lot i have replaced the thermostat and fluched the ...
A: As the temperature rises in a confined space so does the pressure. The cap is supposed to relieve ...
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| alfa 156 2litre | 4/6/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: When i clutch to change down gears the the idler goes right down causing the car to stall. i have ...
A: First is to clean the carbon out of the idle motor channels and the throttle body. Then check for ...
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| 1990 SPIDER VELOCE | 4/6/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: I can not get my car to start after it sat for about 2 months. I have spark at the coil and the ...
A: Under some conditions fuel can stay good for years and with the right combination of weather fuel ...
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| Spider not performing | 4/5/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: i have a 1996 2.0 tspark spider which doesn't seem as lively as it should be. I got my mechanic to ...
A: If I saw those two codes I would suspect a bad plug connection or a poor reference voltage signal to ...
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| Alfa 156 Selespeed stuck in neutral | 4/4/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My neighbor has this car which, about twice/month, shifts itself into neutral and stays there for ...
A: that is a self priming system and it would be difficult for an air lock to occur. However, the fluid ...
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| Alfa 156 Selespeed stuck in neutral | 4/3/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My neighbor has this car which, about twice/month, shifts itself into neutral and stays there for ...
A: The pump might stop working because of poor electrical connections. Clean the battery terminals and ...
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| 156 2.5 V6 rough idle and hesitation | 4/2/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My 156 has a rough idle after it is fully warmed up. It also has hesitation every now and again ...
A: The modern scanner is not capable of finding these faults. It only shows a data stream in not very ...
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| 156 2.5 V6 rough idle and hesitation | 4/2/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My 156 has a rough idle after it is fully warmed up. It also has hesitation every now and again ...
A: You are being subjective. These items must be checked to see if they really are ok. By the way, it ...
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| 156 2.5 V6 rough idle and hesitation | 4/1/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My 156 has a rough idle after it is fully warmed up. It also has hesitation every now and again ...
A: Neither. If you do not have access to an oscilloscope then you must do a "plug cut" to start ...
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| Cold Start pt. 2 | 4/1/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My apologies for neglecting to mention that I have replaced the battery and the mechanic checked the ...
A: You did not indicate whether or not it started and ran fine in the summer and nothing was done in ...
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| Cold start problem | 3/31/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: 74 Alfa GTV 2000 This winter I'm having a major problem starting my car in the morning. I have a ...
A: If the cold start device is not energized with ignition on then there could be a fault in the ...
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| How to Build an Airflow Adjustment Device | 3/29/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My Alfa Spider's auxiliary air valve opens too much, so that the cold idle is too fast. If I adjust ...
A: The idle fuel cutoff is not an emissions feature. The fuel cut off on deceleration is an emissions ...
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| Alfa 156 front coil springs | 3/28/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: . I have a Alfa 156 2l T-Spark and want to lower the suspension got the coil springs from the UK now ...
A: First off: this is why you should reconsider lowering the vehicle for the public roads. 1) You will ...
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| alfa 156 v6 overheating | 3/27/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: It Keeps overheating, I have had a new radiator , thermostat and replaced both head gaskets. it only ...
A: Based on what you wrote: the V-6 is self bleeding if all the plumbing is as designed. You can check ...
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| 164 hiccups | 3/25/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: I have ordered the O2 sensor and I will replace the plugs and wires this week. The oil was recently ...
A: For a problem like this I start with the battery and the ground connections. Clean the battery ...
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| HICCUPS | 3/24/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My 91 164 has developed a bad case of the hiccups......While driving, the engine intermmitently cuts ...
A: Replace the sparkplugs with NGK BPR-6ES unless you keep it above 3K RPM and then use NGK BPR-73S. ...
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| alfa spider 1984 | 3/23/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Just purchased and Alfa that had not been driven in 10 years. cleaned the tank, replaced sock and ...
A: Check twice that the plug wire sequence in the cap is good. Then check the ignition timing. The ...
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| noise on my alfa 156 | 3/22/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: ANSWER: It is a mistake to grind bent valves. It is also not a good idea to regrind modern valves. ...
A: It is difficult to interpret a noise from a distance. However, a mechanics stethescope is good for ...
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| noise on my alfa 156 | 3/21/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: hi i have just rebuilt my top end after the cam belt snapped on my alfa 156 i have reground all ...
A: It is a mistake to grind bent valves. It is also not a good idea to regrind modern valves. Take it ...
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| 156 jtd starting | 3/21/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: have read about your starting problem, thought i would share mine with you. had the car serviced and ...
A: It is probably either the ignition module or the fuel pump. And it may be shut down by the security ...
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| 145 2.0ts Electrical horror | 3/21/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Yesterday - I had a completely flat battery. Seems the stereo was left on, judging by the way it has ...
A: You need to replace the battery first off. Then, it will take 10 miles of driving for the computer ...
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| Engine Problem | 3/19/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: I recently bough a 147 JTD and the car works just fine in low speed, when I press the pedal at 80 ...
A: It is quite probable that you have a temporary lean condition. It is also true that if the light ...
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| Oil leak, selespeed box. | 3/10/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Just found your interesting website. I have 2000 156 Selespeed. 70,000 miles. Have had normal ...
A: I am in the USA and do not have access to newer manuals. However, replacing a seal is a very ...
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| 1990 alfa spuider fans do not come on | 3/3/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My spider is heating up and I noticed the electric fans are not coming on (I live in Florida-big ...
A: The easy part first. In your area I would use a 20w-50 regular oil. I am in Montana and so use a ...
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| alfa 166 2.5 | 3/1/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: i have a Alfa 166 2.5 petrol the problem i have is the hot air does not work the temp gage on the ...
A: You did not state what the indicated temperature is. Assuming it is above 180 degrees F then this is ...
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| Spider Relays Common Failure Points | 3/1/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: 1984 Spider. Lots of new parts, original wiring. Running very well at this point (many thanks to ...
A: Grounds that are directly exposed to the elements have the most trouble. But, unless a problem ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/26/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: I tested O2 Sensor Output Voltage with a DMM and an OScope in parallel. O2 Sensor output was still ...
A: The DMM cannot read the cycle of the O2 sensor. All the readings are correct and the system is ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/20/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: This would be funny if it wasn't so sad. A few weeks ago I cleaned out my Alfa Spider's Aux Air ...
A: The answer to how to test is in my last post to you. Now..about the silicone. That statement is ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/20/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Do you know a way to check if my O2 sensor is working (i.e. verify my wiring splice is ok) without ...
A: In open loop the computer uses a prepared map to run much like a carburetor. If you did not see a ...
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| rough after warm | 2/19/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: the car runs well until I turn it off, 5 mins later (still warm) if I restart it it runs real rough ...
A: Most vacuum leaks are persistent, however, sometimes a crack can open intermittently. Check with ...
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| rough after warm | 2/18/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: I have a problem w/ my 1985 graduate that after it warms up and I turn it off, when I restart it ...
A: If you mean the fuel line, those hoses are not made with silicon--they are high pressure hose that ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/17/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Great information. Again, what is an acceptable power supply to the fuel pump? My measurement of ...
A: Yes, run an additional wire directly from the battery while engine is running and see if it helps ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/17/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Sokol - Regarding my Alfa Spider's noisy fuel pump, and startup-then ...
A: I did not catch the misprint. I meant to write 0.3 volts. Your ground system is fine, it is the ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/16/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Could a voltage measurement at the main fuel pump terminals, measured while the engine/pump are ...
A: In an earlier exchange I said to turn in the screw on the air flow sensor (under the plug that ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/15/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: My in-tank pump (and sock) was recently replaced with a larger Delco unit for a Volvo, so probably ...
A: 1)Now is not the time to adjust the tension of the air flow sensor. 2)The check valve on the output ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/15/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Great info. My Spider's in great shape and running quite well (never quite well enough for me ...
A: I am not there to hear the noise but it must be fuel pump related and there are two ways that noise ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/13/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Interesting ideas. I appreciate your expertise. I couldn't adjust the timing to save my life. ...
A: Re: the noise. The differential is limited slip type and needs a 75w-90 synthetic oil that needs to ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/13/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: At what temp is the aux air valve supposed to close off completely? Wondering if it's supposed to ...
A: You have two problems which is why I gave you the tuning parameters. I have had hit and miss luck ...
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| Jetronic Aux Air Valve / Idle Performance | 2/11/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: I'm shining a flashlight into my 1984 Alfa Spider's Auxiliary Air Valve. How wide should the ...
A: About half the area should be open around 30F. Any Bosch air valve will do so get the best price. ...
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| Re: Repairing an Alfa Spider | 2/9/2007 | Stephen Sokol |
Q: Are Alfa Romeo Spiders "easy" to fix or are they "difficult" to deal with like a B.M.W? I would ...
A: It is expected that you know proper procedures and really do understand how to diagnose electrical ...
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