[Bora1978]

Can anyone tell me if the parking light indicator located in the oil-water temperature gauge for the Alfa Romeo 2600 Sprint only lights up for the parking lights being on or does it also light up when the headlights are turned on for driving?

 

[ballough510]

I just checked mine and it comes on with the parking lamps and stays on with the headlights turned on.
It also stays on when you use the Hi beam's....
Hope this helps
Ric

 

[Bora1978]

Do you mean that in order to turn on the headlights you have to first turn on the parking lamps or are they separate functions where you can have one or the other. I'm trying to determine if I can have headlights without having parking light come on. Also, what particular lights around the car come on when the parking lamps are turned on? I'm having trouble with mine and I am trying to get an idea of what should work when I activate the switch.

 

[ballough510]

The headlight switch is like a giulietta... It pulls out one click and the park lamps light up and does the dash tell tale. Turn the knob and pull it the rest of the way out and the tell tale and the park lamps stay on and the headlights come on.
If that helps
Ric

 

[tubut]

Ric, that may be true for USA models but cars in Europe.

I know some European countries (France and Germany, probably other countries as well) required the parking lights to be routed through the indicator light switch, so that either the left or right parking lights (the small light on the front bumper plus the rear light -- not the rear indicator light) would stay on permanently (not flashing) when the direction indicator was engaged while the ignition was turned off. In such a setup, the light switch then would override the indicator switch so that all four lights would come on, and the indicator lights (including the side lights on the front fenders) would only start flashing when the ignition switch was turned on. If I recall correctly, some cars may even have had separate light bulbs or filaments to separate the front indicator lights and parking lights.

None of this may be reflected in the wiring diagrams, but I have not checked if, or to what degree, the wiring diagrams in German, French, Italian and English (USA) owners manuals differ from each other.

 

[Bora1978]

Tubut,

Thanks you so much. You certainly clarified everything. Now things make more sense.

 

[ballough510]

thanks Ruedi
I have seen some german cars mostly, wired that way in the past. My car is from Padova as you know and works as I described. There is a separate toggle to cancel the dash lights while either the parking lights or headlights are on. But there is only one headlight switch that functions like a Giulietta is the easiest way to describe. I hope Bora that you get your's sorted. What is your chassis number??
Grazie Ric

 

[Bora1978]

The Alfa is number AR824645 and it was built on March 16, 1964 and was sold into Switzerland where I eventually bought the car. One of the upgrades to the car being made is to change the front turn signals to the units used on the later Spiders which have both an orange turn signal len and a white parking len. The original turn signal units on the Sprint only have the white len and a single bulb which are now being recycled to the rear bumper as backup lights as it appears there are no backup light that came with the car when it was manufactured. The car is being reconditioned for my daughter and it will be most original externally but there are several upgrades being made to the engine, steering, suspension, wheels and tires and interior to make the more like a daily driver for her if she choses, as she lives in Dubai where she can use the car as much as she likes and not worry about corrosion. It is my belief that she will have quite a unique Alfa as I suspect there aren't many 2600 Sprints in the UAE. It will be interesting to see how the vintage car community in Dubai reacts when she gets the car later this year.

 

[tubut]

There were two types of front indicator/parking lights on the Sprint (and two different ones on the Spider), which differ in (a) the number of wires (single socket, but single or dual-filament bulb) and (b) the type of reflector they use, as per attached parts manual pages.

If I recall correctly, the Sprint reverse light were again slightly different with respect to how the attachment screw for the housing (going through the lamp base for the front, but going through the lens housing for the reverse lights) -- which means front lights can be adapted to become reverse lights (mounted below the bumper), but reverse lights would look ugly (and collect water in the screw holes) when moved to the front (mounted above the bumper).

 

[Bora1978]

You are correct about the differences in the front turn signal attachment points and the rear but since the rear bumper has never been drilled for anything, it looks like we will have no problem moving the factory front turn signals to under the rear bumper to use as backup lights. Perhaps we will experiment in which way to mount the lens for the best light rearwards and look if anyone makes replacement lens that might work better than the originals if necessary. I'mm off to visit the car next week to see how things are progressing on the interior work and bring the new exhaust system from QuickSilver out for fitting.

 

[ballough510]

Bora..... That is sooo cool to have that car in Dubai. What a great plan! So you know, I have 822269 Gigigo Graffiti
Did you use the electric power steering for her? I saw somewhere maybe in the UK there is a kit made for the 2600
Sprint.
Ric

 

[Bora1978]

My mechanic and I looked into the electric power steering but came to conclusion that the entire steering system of the 2600 Sprint was so antiquated that my mechanic came up with what we hope is a better solution. He replace everything from the factory with a modern hydraulically powered rack and pinion unit. Since the car is apart for other upgrades, we haven't had a chance to drive it yet but knowing his expertise and confidence that it will work, there should be no problems. The truth is that the brakes, shock absorbers, springs and rims are all being upgraded but no of the changes are readily visible when you look at the car. For example the rims will be 16" instead of 400 mm, a difference of 1/4" in diameter, which is hard to spot and they will be 1" wider and made from aluminum but they will look just the same as the factory steel rims and use the same hubcaps. This gives the car a bit lighter parts but permits the use of a very large range of modern tires. The replacement disc brakes are vented, slotted and drilled, suitable, if required, for track days. Even the vacuum booster for the brakes has been changed and the brakes now are piped for dual circuits which wasn't available from the factory but adds a great deal of safety to the car. Can you see the changes when standing and looking at the car, no, but they make for a better car to drive. The same is true for little things light replacing the old incandescent headlight bulbs with LED units. When you look at the headlights you only see the factory units but when you turn them on at night you get superior lighting. All this is not being done to produce a concours car but to result in a car that my daughter will use regularly and enjoy.

 

[chris hedley]

Hi Bora , the car sounds great ,there are still people out there that will say it should be kept as factory ,often by people that have to drive these cars, I have a 2600 spider and know from experience that they are not the greatest car to drive, but we forgive them. I also have an XK150 Jaguar and I posted on the owners site about fitting power steering ,and you would have thought I was the antichrist, I got so much abuse it was unreal, if stopped the thread by saying its either power steering or I will have too sell the car, and I did get power for it and its great, once we are out of this ,I will look into getting the same system for the 2600.
Stay safe Chris

 

[Bora1978]

I appreciate your comments about some changes to my daughter's car. She wants to use the car as much as she can which is why the upgrades are being made. She loves the look of the car from the exterior and for that reasons the exterior changes are being kept to a minimum and being done in a way that are barely visible. Safety is important to her so things that improve safety are being addressed. Comfort and ease of use are also important to her so that has dictated changes. She wants to drive this car for a long time, at least the next thirty years, so the upgrades have been done keeping that in mind. So, yes, it's a "resto mod" but one done respecting the original design and functions of the car but permitting her to have the maximum enjoyment and use of it for a very long time.