Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

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Will01
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Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Hi Guys
As some of you know we like to keep our free time busy with numerous vehicles!
Recently(4months ago) i bought another car for my wife after selling my Jaguar XJ8 4.0.

We found the other Alfa 156 saloon just wasn't big enough, because i am not a fan of big cars like people carriers etc we decided on an estate car. This is where my (i think) clever thinking came in to buy another 156 but in estate form! The reson being i know the cars pretty well, they are cheap to run and easy to get hold of parts for, plus there are certain parts which can be removed form my GTA which can be used as upgrades for the standard car.

For the grand old sum of £775! 2002 Alfa 156 2.4JTD 10V (150hp) Sportwagon with 132,000miles on the clock. my original budget was £1500 so i have set about making the car right so it is safe and comfortable car form my wife and family to use especially for the long distance driving we are now doing frequently from Dumfries & Reading.

The plus points
- Timing belt kit recently done
- Upper suspension arms recently done
- Full recent service
- Recent new clutch fitted

Bad points
- She looks a bit tired to say the least
- Horrible blue velour interior

Stick with me on this one though. This is not just going to be a boring i have another car thread, there is still some development work that i feel the car requires. Some of it has already been done so i will explain as we go through.
For me i have to explain that i have never driven any car and thought yes thats perfect. Every car has something wrong with it. But with a little time, it is possible to improve anything. SO this will be a budget improvement thread.
Attachments
IMAG1083.jpg
IMAG1083.jpg (30.21 KiB) Viewed 25839 times
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

So the first thing needing doing on the new car was tyres. Really all the tyres were legal, but I could also see that there were several small chunks and one tyre didn’t hold its air very well.
You never really know how much abuse a tyre gets with varying quality of drivers out there I thought it was safer to replace.

However I also found it a bit strange that when I came to replace the tyres 205/50/15 had been fitted when they should have actually been 185/65/15!
The wheels themselves also looked a bit grubby so I decided to source the larger teledial 16” wheels that came as standard.
all the ones I found were in a terrible state so I bought some for £40, had them media blasted and then we etch, high build primed and painted them in silver. Then these were shod in some nice new Kumho 205/55/16 tyres. Straight away the car just drove better and didn’t ground out soo often.

The next step was to get the car running a bit better. First of all I took the car down to a local specialist in Penrith and we both gave the car a good going over.
Found a few ball joints were loose so I ordered a complete lower set of suspension arms and for all bushes that needed replacing I also had a set of PU bushes lying around which were surplus from my last 156 suspension rebuild on the GTA. Perfect as these are basically free as I had forgotten about them.

The rear shocks I found were just far too soft. Since the car had a towbar fitted it must have spent a lot of time towing a caravan. Therefore I decided to replace the entire suspension with a upgraded kti from AP. This included new springs and dampers.
I also sourced a complete brand new set of upper mounts as there is no point spending days fitting new parts up against old worn out parts.

Just because I was at it, I decided I would also like to make the car less boaty in the corners. I had an old set of antiroll bars off my GTA which were a lot thicker and designed to upgrade the GTA model to be a lot more sporty. These were surplus as I had already upgraded to Eibach stiffer arb’s.
Again I had many pu bushes lying around so I also had new pu arb bushes to fit aswell.
From my experience of the GTA I also knew that Meyle make a HD droplink which lasts well. So these were also ordered.

Some other niggly things I had found.
The handbrake was a bit stiff, so new OE cables were ordered.
The last owner who did a service completely botched the sump plug and had a wheel nut welded on it. So a new plug and gasket and oil was ordered.
The temp gauge always read high on the gauge but on my diagnostic tool I knew it was ok. But I found a cheap aftermarket part had been used. So an OE £12 sensor sorted that out.

The last things we noticed is that when the car is fully loaded we sometimes get an error Motor control system failure fault which flashes on dash and limits power for a second or 2. The lower turbo hose was very weak and flimsy. I replaced this with an upgraded silicone pipe and this now doesn’t show as often.
I also fitted a new BMC replacement upgraded filter which sits in the standard airbox. I don’t like cone filters as they normally sit higher in the engine bay and are surrounded by more hot engine bay air. The original air box has a good inlet system fed from the arch and front bumper.
I also know from experience that a few people have tried to dyno improvements using cone filters in Alfa 156’s and the std airbox with upgrade filter seems to work best.

Now the car is booked in for a custom remap, so hopefully the fuel economy and performance will be greatly improved. If the car I drove last weekend is anything to go by it will be a huge improvement.

All of the above sounds expensive. But up until today (apart from the remap) I have now spent my original £1500 budget. The car is great and it goes to show a few simple thought out improvements can greatly improve any car. Even an old banger.

I do have a few other little ideas to further improve the car and I will post as we go along. But this is a budget family car build nothing special. Just nice and simple.
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Spider 1969
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Spider 1969 »

Well done Will! With some TLC you can double the mileage on that engine.
Regards,
Charles
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

I have to be perfectly honest here but i am not really a fan of anything diesel. I do think of myself as a petrolhead.

However what this newest car to our family proves, even a diesel can prove to be a good car choice. I almost feel like i am being pulled to the darkside. The engine pulls really well and is great for a road car.
I am under no illusions however that it would be pretty bad on the track especially with all that weight up front. The single turbo on this engine does do a good job of keeping a large torque curve as it is a variable vane turbo which is operated off vacuum to control effectively how big the turbo is.
For me this is soo far the best diesel i have ever driven as previous diesels just seem to have useable torque in a 500-1000rpm range. On this engine the variable turbo helps keep useable torque from 1400 to 3800rpm in standard tune. This means you can drive it more like a petrol car and it has plenty pull when required e.g. overtaking.

If i get another 100k out of the engine i will be more than happy.

Another item on the action list is to replace the gearboxwith one out of a 1.9JTD which has 6 speed. This has same gear ratios 1-5 as the box in my car but it has a long 6th gear and also the final diff ratio is lower so it will accelerate faster in 1-5 but in 6th the revs will drop for motorway cruising.The other 2.4JTD i drove had this same conversion and it pulled very hard and strong and with its remap it drove and sounded like a petrol turbo car.

For a cheap to run family car we are impressed so far and anything to make it run a bit more economical on the longer runs is a bonus.

Some more pictures to look over, but in a short time the car has been transformed. I think another £500 and she will be just about complete.
Next jobs, fix Mini, bit more work on the GTA to sort her out & crack on with the Capri!
Attachments
16" teledials after sandblasting and primed with etch. You can see us starting to build up first layer of high build primer
16" teledials after sandblasting and primed with etch. You can see us starting to build up first layer of high build primer
IMAG1030.jpg (166.1 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Gearknob fell off soon after purchase. Repalced with Richbrook gearknob.It looks OE and bonus is it doesn't pull off!
Gearknob fell off soon after purchase. Repalced with Richbrook gearknob.It looks OE and bonus is it doesn't pull off!
IMAG0983.jpg (28.74 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Car soon after purchase on top of Dalveen pass
Car soon after purchase on top of Dalveen pass
12670354_10154773558198009_3317718680373635066_n.jpg (74.44 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Car with horrible blue velour interior!
Car with horrible blue velour interior!
12814366_10154723798698009_4221158519937593838_n.jpg (98.01 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Space for the kids seats
Space for the kids seats
12821482_10154723798993009_1192484988272406842_n.jpg (84.12 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Vacuum hoses started to deterioate and cause flat spots in rev range
Vacuum hoses started to deterioate and cause flat spots in rev range
13179245_10154933952838009_8474579362814507842_n.jpg (87.15 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Replaced perished rubber hose with silicone vacuum hose and flat spots gone from rev range
Replaced perished rubber hose with silicone vacuum hose and flat spots gone from rev range
13178903_10154933952998009_6655379558278278988_n.jpg (78.07 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
GTA Arb's
GTA Arb's
13439170_10155083010283009_3001797493660798863_n.jpg (35.53 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Meyle HD droplinks to replace the awlful standard links which wear out very quickly
Meyle HD droplinks to replace the awlful standard links which wear out very quickly
13557957_10155083010178009_1591339211900397624_n.jpg (15.23 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Borrowed set of front forks to make easy quick change of front shocks
Borrowed set of front forks to make easy quick change of front shocks
13658946_10155114202138009_3316471427428266944_n.jpg (106.15 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Cleaned up forks from parts washer
Cleaned up forks from parts washer
13645210_10155114202128009_8230718783944561668_n.jpg (128.59 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
BMC upgrade replacement filter vs std OE filter
BMC upgrade replacement filter vs std OE filter
13692708_10155117559658009_2104913976058717655_n.jpg (82.17 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Old vs new springs
Old vs new springs
13731476_10155117559708009_8985884180116141362_n.jpg (146.65 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
All the bits which were replaced on the weekend!
All the bits which were replaced on the weekend!
13690734_10155114202123009_4303732077944230653_n.jpg (140.4 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
Car how it looks at the moment. A bit lower and looks good with the newer wheels.
Car how it looks at the moment. A bit lower and looks good with the newer wheels.
13716072_10155120753908009_6268880403492340907_n.jpg (75.32 KiB) Viewed 25817 times
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Spider 1969
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Spider 1969 »

I was not a diesel fan myself. I drove my Spider for commuting in the period 1997-2004 during March-October and had a rusty Fulvia S1 coupe, nick named the "anode" for the rest of the year. This was only a 12 km single journey. Then I changed jobs and had to drive 180 km's per day of which I thought it would be not sonice for my Spider.

I bought a tatty Lancia Delta 2nd series HPE with a turbo diesel engine. Bit of a turbo lag but I was converted, it pulled hard between 2000 and 3000 and would cruise happily at 2500 rpm. When the odometer hit 315.000 km's I switched to a 156 1.9JTD Sportswagon and had the "feels like a petrol engine" experience due to the variable geometry turbo compressor.

I've been on company cars for commuting since 2007 but my wife still drives a 159SW JTD because it's so economical.
I think you can't go wrong on this one
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Thanks Charles.

Its funny but i recently converted my in laws to a 1.9JTD 16V Saloon a few weeks back and they love it.
Now my parents want one aswell even though my father is dead against Alfa's i think the GTA and SW have him converted. I knew he would come around as he has good taste in cars normally, he has E-Type Jags so how could he not love an Alfa ;) haha
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

New update is i have just purchased a full leather interior for the SW so looking forward to getting it fitted. Pictures to follow
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Ok so picked up Leather interior for £120 from a guy in Stockton who was breaking a Sportwagon with Momo BLue/Grey leather interior.
200mile round trip but definitely worth it.

Just trying to make the car more plush and comfortable aswell as more safe for fitting of child seats.
On that note the original velour interior is vey soft and the child seats always feel loose when in the car. The leather seats are that bit stiffer and firmer and hold the child seats far better.

Anyway whilst interior was out of car i thought i would check condition of floor as they are known to rust around drain holes and i knew i had a crusty drain hole. After quick clean on wire brush i had 3 large holes the passenger side and these were promptly patched and welded up. Doh!
Zinc primed and just ready for sealer now. Hopefully that be them ok for a few more years.

Anyway i have replaced the pillar trims with the leather versions and also fitted the front and rear leather seats and they are really nice.
Still got door cards to do and clean up the switch surrounds but she is really taking shape.
Attachments
No one likes to see this! Stupidly designed!
No one likes to see this! Stupidly designed!
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Rear folding seats in and looking good
Rear folding seats in and looking good
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New front seats in and Oscar loves them aswell. You can see his legs whilst he climbing on arm rest
New front seats in and Oscar loves them aswell. You can see his legs whilst he climbing on arm rest
IMAG1667.jpg (27.04 KiB) Viewed 25772 times
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Will01
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Location: Dumfries, Scotland
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Door cards replaced and it looks alot better now.
Have noticed door speakers are a little tempramental so will be taking connectors off and replacing.

The car has been mostly running well except the engine sometimes cuts out because security fuel pressure protocols shut engine down. Only noticed when highly laoded car and hard throttle on a gradient. Restarts after stopping but can be frustrating. Going back to adjust remap and reduce peak fuel rail pressures to avoid repeating. ometimes you have to do these things when you start playing with maps etc.

Other items, the backbox has started to blow sllighlty, i have mot coming up so will be replacing the exhaust.
Car except niggly issues above is running well and doing its job as the new family car.
Now looking for another to turn into a track car as i am soo impressed with how this one drives.
I do fancy getting a smaller engine one to help with tracktability as both the V6 & 5 cylinder are big old heavy lumps.
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Update on this old thing is it has cracked 150k miles yesterday.
Just recently had to fit new front tyres which had lasted 14k+ miles. We have now clocked up 17k miles in little over a year of ownership.
She was for a time running a fun remap. But this started causing fuel pressure issues with the ecu and causing engine to shut into safe mode. We have found it is a sensor issue. But for now she is back to standard map. The injection pump needs to come out, but that will get timed in with timing belt change etc.

We also towed a trailer tent recently and towed very well indeed. Only issue was bouncy back roads where the trailer weight caused rear suspension to bottom out and catch inner arch. So I have requested a slightly longer and stiffer spring to fit in the back.

The exhaust back box rusted out so I had old exhausts lying around so made my own replacement. Just this case I cut a straight pipe up and fitted in place of box.
Ok it looks poor and the bends are pretty awful. But surprisingly enough the car sound better and not loud at all. Plus it cost £1 so is still living up to cheap motoring.

Next job on the cards is full replacement and upgrade discs and pads plus braided brake hoses and a full fluid refresh.
Discs grooved and dimpled with Mintex rear pads and Carbon ceramic front pads.
Also going to give calipers a good clean up. Luck of paint and grease up to make sure they are working their best.
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

So this car is just a daily driver for my wife to take the kids back and forward from Nursery. But it is still important to keep them safe, so the car is getting developed as we go.
You can see i previously fitted new suspension, but the back was just too low and kept bottoming out. So i am now transplanting that onto another 156 we have.
Have bought some Zeatek Z8 Azzuro coilovers so that the ride height can be tuned to be better inline for when we are towing our trailer tent on holiday.
Also stiffer springs so it doesn't bottom out.
The front brakes needed attention so off with everything old, everything given a good clean and service new discs and performance pads fitted to help improve stopping power, especially for when towing the trailer tent.

Unfortunately the clutch has now suffered and was slipping, and only recently the clutch slave seemed to fail. Not bad since it has 165k on the clock now, but found the clutch wasn't actually that bad(in fact almost new) when removed over the weekend!
But i found slight play in the dual mass flywheel and i don't think the pressure plate felt very stiff at all, so that will also be why we were getting a slip and vibration.
This is a cheap 2nd hand car, so i have decided to ditch the dual mass flywheel and convert to a solid flywheel. Direct bolt on replacement, just had to find shorter flywheel bolts off a 1.9JTD car.
Also had to convert to a different clutch, so it now runs the same clutch as my Alfa 156 GTA. Also replaced with new hydraulics and it will get bled up later.
Unfortunately it was also starting to suffer from a slight crunch on 3rd gear(5 speed box), so i guess the synchro's are worn. When removing the gearbox i also noticed a leak, but more surprisingly about 0.5litres of oil! Funnily enough i only flushed and refilled the gearbox a few months ago. So at least we now know the crunch is down to oil starvation! That is very annoying as i was trying to keep good care of it by replacing the oil. How many people do actually change their gearbox oil, answer not enough of us!

However i managed to pickup a 6 speed gearbox from a 1.9JTD so the ratios are slightly lower from 1-5 due to a different final gear, but the actual gears themselves apart from final drive are the same as the 2.4JTD except i now have a 6th gear which is longer than the 5 speed box in top gear.
So the car will accelerate a little faster, but better on fuel on the motorway as it will help reduce the revs slightly. Also being a diesel bring the revs down into a torquey part of the rev range.

Taking the gearbox out in a Alfa 156 is a total removal of the front subframe. So whilst at it, i have also replaced the engine mounts, and for the top mount i have measured up the engine steady to have same size bushes as my GTA. Therefore i have fitted PU bushes in the top steady, this will also make the gear change feel much better and more precise as it will reduce the rock of the engine.

Whilst the gearbox was out, i have also found that the driveshafts are in a pretty bad way and a bit too much play! So the CV joints are getting replaced and new boots and grease to help them run another 100k miles(hopefully).
The labour bill on the car for the past 2 years of ownership would be through the roof, so we are doing everything ourselves, which is great for my wife as she is learning on the way.
So for our cheap £700 car we have almost tipped £5,000 but as long as she keeps delivering happy motoring we are happy.
Yes maybe not the best cost effective method of transport, but we are individuals and we like our cars.

I hope to give a good feedback in a few weeks when back on the road and have put a few miles on the clock. Hoping for a good improvement from this old girl.
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Spider 1969
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Spider 1969 »

Interesting job Will; do you have some photo's of it?
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Pictures as requested
Old job was to get rid of the rear back box. Yes i know it looks like a bodge job, but it does the job perfectly and was dirt cheap and only took 30mins

Next job was to replace sport suspension i had already fit, replace with coilovers so we could adjust rear ride and get car sitting better for towing

More pictures to follow of the gearbox job!!!!
Attachments
IMAG1999.jpg
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IMAG2001.jpg
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IMAG2000.jpg
IMAG2000.jpg (200.93 KiB) Viewed 24108 times
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18199413_10156193600468009_6465732710221369418_n.jpg (129.74 KiB) Viewed 24108 times
Removed AP Sport suspension and repalced with Zeatek coilovers for extra ground clearance
Removed AP Sport suspension and repalced with Zeatek coilovers for extra ground clearance
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Fitted on car, yes it needs a clean!
Fitted on car, yes it needs a clean!
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

So having stripped down the car, i noticed many parts needed replacing like engine mounts, but also took the opportunity to upgrade where i have found in the past it makes a slight improvement. e.g. the top stabiliser mount seems to help a more positive gearshift when it is more rigid compared to the standard rubber or a worn perished rubber isolator.
Actually the PU bushes are not available for this car, but a simple check on a vernier found the tubed end to be the same size. looks better aswell, even if not in keeping with the distressed 165,000 mile worn out look the car currently has! haha

The dual mass has been removed, but due to the difference in thickness the clutch also had to change, so i have fitted an Alfa v6 item same as what is fitted to my Alfa 156GTA.
The gearbox assembly was a complete pain!
Had to do it twice as the release bearing got stuck into the pressure plate the first time and the clutch fork fell off the release bearing. So i had to completely disassemble, remove the loctite from threads and remove the un-removeable release bearing from the pressure plate. It locks in with a sprung ring. But if you use small diameter lockwire pushed into the hole and slowly press by hand whilst pushing the wire in with a small flat screwdriver, it finally releases and you can try again.

New seals pressed into gearbox seal housings.
Attachments
bushes and the old worn out item
bushes and the old worn out item
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looks better, although it really needs repainting to look nice, but inappropriate its a daily runner, i am not getting caught up too much in that here!
looks better, although it really needs repainting to look nice, but inappropriate its a daily runner, i am not getting caught up too much in that here!
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new engine mounts
new engine mounts
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Dual mass vs solid flywheel
Dual mass vs solid flywheel
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Better view of dual mass vs solid, quite a weight difference aswell
Better view of dual mass vs solid, quite a weight difference aswell
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New clutch fitted, but this is a picture of a failed assembly attempt as the clutch fork moved in assembly and clicked the release bearing into the pressure plate.
New clutch fitted, but this is a picture of a failed assembly attempt as the clutch fork moved in assembly and clicked the release bearing into the pressure plate.
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Greased up the selector mechanism as it was quite stiff. this is due to the corrosion on the alloy casting which tightens the small nyln bushes on the spindle. Take apart, clean and grease solves the issue
Greased up the selector mechanism as it was quite stiff. this is due to the corrosion on the alloy casting which tightens the small nyln bushes on the spindle. Take apart, clean and grease solves the issue
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Gearbox seals removed and replaced. No point using old seals, really easy to change over and replace.
Gearbox seals removed and replaced. No point using old seals, really easy to change over and replace.
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New clutch slave cylinder fitted
New clutch slave cylinder fitted
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Gearbox going in, it is a tight fit so the chassis needs fettling, i will upload some pictures again once it is relieved
Gearbox going in, it is a tight fit so the chassis needs fettling, i will upload some pictures again once it is relieved
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TIME FOR A BEER! Seriously hard work to do on your own, lucky the wife was on hand to help put the gearbox on both times as she could operate the jack to get the correct alignment and i just had to push a bit!
TIME FOR A BEER! Seriously hard work to do on your own, lucky the wife was on hand to help put the gearbox on both times as she could operate the jack to get the correct alignment and i just had to push a bit!
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Subframe was treated to a new set of PU bushes for the upgraded and thicker anti roll bar which is from a 156 GTA model
Subframe was treated to a new set of PU bushes for the upgraded and thicker anti roll bar which is from a 156 GTA model
42168560782_4c0a12b0d5_o.jpg (32.19 KiB) Viewed 24106 times
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Will01
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Re: Yes another project! Alfa 156 2.4JTD Sportwagon

Post by Will01 »

Pictures

Picture showing water hose and a picture of a rusty hub and bits of hose fitted.
Getting the bolts out of the rear hub is a right pain as the bolt corrodes where the shoulder is exposed to the elements. Means getting it out is dangerous and requires alot of brute force which hopefully doesn't damage the parts.
Lucky a hydraulic press and patience normally works well, but because i like to take apart my cars i figured if i can protect the bolt it will stop it being such a pain to remove in future!
What i do is cut some tight fitting water hose to the bolt and then make it a very tight fit between the sides of the hub. This should stop poor getting in there easily!
Then fill everything with Copper Grease. Its amazingly simple and works really well. Means in future the hub can stay on the car and it cam be removed in situ without needing a hydraulic press.

Pictures and video to follow of this daily runabout, but it works well for an old girl
Need to get her back onto a dyno and get some printouts, but it does make really good power for a diesel and family car.
Estimated 180-210 but the Max torque is 400+Nm and it makes it from 1500rpm and only drops off over 4200rpm. Sounds great for a diesel aswell being 5 cylinder.
Attachments
Old photo, but here are the wheels which we refurbed ourselves, they still look good to this day(except where the wife has kerbed them!)
Old photo, but here are the wheels which we refurbed ourselves, they still look good to this day(except where the wife has kerbed them!)
IMAG1040.jpg (164.83 KiB) Viewed 24106 times
Last year for our wedding anniversary i treated my wife to new GOLD discs and braided stainless brake lines, these have now also been fitted. So the braking is now well on its way to getting sorted
Last year for our wedding anniversary i treated my wife to new GOLD discs and braided stainless brake lines, these have now also been fitted. So the braking is now well on its way to getting sorted
GoldBrakes.jpg (87.2 KiB) Viewed 24106 times
Water hose, see next picture what i used it for
Water hose, see next picture what i used it for
41997315802_9bf9af51a9_o.jpg (37.54 KiB) Viewed 24106 times
Not a great photo, but i will explain in the body of text
Not a great photo, but i will explain in the body of text
41997314872_0e07389eeb_o.jpg (29.6 KiB) Viewed 24106 times
GC_21
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