[AlfaVeloce]

I swapped some PM's with Steve about 164 fuse locations. I still havent been called about my 500 yet.
Steve, one of my best friends and a former Alfa owner Doug lives in Janesville now.
Just leaving now to go get some cat food. But in the F-150, not an Alfa. I have a lot of cats. I guess.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I put the center air register back in the 164S after repairing the air direction control. The left half had the follower that connects all the slats break off the one you use to adjust the air direction up and down. I just wired it back on with a black bread tie. Works great. Can't even see it. Also the left/right air direction control was stuck and I got that freed up. After I got it all put back together, the battery was stone cold dead. It was fine when I took everything apart so I hope it was not something I did. But the date code on the battery is 12/2002 so...it might well be over for that one.

Yes, Glenn, I'm enjoying the heck out of your car!!

 

[AlfaVeloce]

The 164S' battery took in full charge overnight. I'll have to wait to see if it holds.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

It's beginning to look a bit like Spring here in the southern US so I thought I would kick start this thread again.

The battery in the S did not survive the winter so we are sporting a brand new group 31 in the trunk.
I was having a little trouble getting the sleepy Busso kicked off. My wife was standing there giving me a funny look as I was grinding on the starter, 10 seconds on, 20 seconds off, so I rolled down the window and told her, in my best high brow New England accent: "Carbon on the valves." Let's see how many of you get that obscure reference. After a few tries she did stumble back to life and Belinda and I took her out for a burger run. Dang how I love that car! Fun stuff.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Good luck with that Richard. We're going to Texas Friday to see my wife's 83 YO dad. He's winding down a bunch this year and the wife is concerned. He's getting his house remodeled for wheel chair access.

We won't drive the S. We probably go in the new Fiat unless we have to take something big back with us. Then it will be the F-150... and all it's gasoline.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Yes Alex I have one of the Prima Edizione models, the first ones they sold in the States. I love it. Ours are all powered by the 1.4 Multi-air, 101 hp. Scoots along just fine. I have not really noticed it being darty in a straight line, but my old room mate from college rented one and complained about that. Maybe I am just so used to my 164S massive torque steer that nothing bothers me. I rebuilt the left front suspension of it last year and it seems a lot better now. The S, not the 500.

My dealer call me yesterday and asked if wanted the first new Abarth 500 they're getting. I said of course I want it, I just can't afford it right now. Holding out for a new Alfa... only 2 more years.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I moved into my new office in Research Park today, then drove the 164S to pizza at Big Ed's. Jim was there in his Alfetta, and Stan drove his GTV-6. Lots of other Alfisti showed up Alfa-less but it was a pretty OK turnout for a rainy, wet night.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I bought the 500 new because I wanted it now and there are not any used ones, at least not when I bought mine. Fiat left our shores years before Alfa did.

But is was another grand day driving my 164S to work and answering questions like "Is that a Peugeot" and "who makes that?"

I did notice on the way home in a hard right turn the unmistakable click click click from the front end that went away when I straightened back out. You know, the sound money makes when it leaves your pocket and flows into the CV joints.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Not much today, but yesterday I had coffee with the Texas Hill Country Chapter folks in Austin. I don't think I've seen them since the convention in Lexington. I snagged one of their neat-o calendars that have the pix that the CC photog students shot. Sweet!

The real fun was driving by my land south of Waco and seeing someone had put up a "for sale" sign on it. I called the number on the sign. Seems another absentee owner has made a gross miscalculation of scale. I moved the sign over a block for her and from her description, it's in the right place now.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

The group 31 batteries sold at auto parts stores and Walmart, etc are not nearly the capacity of group 31 truck batteries or original Interstate.

Now you tell me.
I got mine at Sam's.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Nothing Alfa related today at all. But I finished my Master's thesis. yeah! It has a few reviews to go through. No orals. I may have to do a presentation on it. Trying to weasel out on that. We'll see.

Now I will do something Alfa related. I will put my red Alfa shirt in the laundry.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I drove the S to work today. Smelled just a tinge, a little hint, of ethylene glycol on the way to work, but it went away. When I got home I noticed there was a trickle of wet still on the concrete from where I left in the morning (did not notice it on departure) starting from about the spot that would be at the front of the engine. So, we got a little investigating to do this weekend.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Smooth moves John. You get an attaboy!

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I drove our new 2008 159 TI 2.4 JTDM Sportwagon 860 kilometres from Melbourne, (where I bought it yesterday), to our place in Adelaide... The 2.4 diesel has some pretty decent grunt. The TI model has all the bells and whistles with 19" wheels, body kit, huge Brembo brakes and lowered sports suspension. Like all Alfas you just want to get in and drive it. It is going to be our family car and my wife's daily driver...

Congrats! I see these in Germany all the time when I am over there and I just swoon. I guess I'll have to wait another 20 or so years to get one over here (imports have to be 25+ yo to get them in).

What I did today, sort of Alfabb related not necessarily Alfa, I emptied my PM folder here on the BB so it isn't full anymore. Tonight it will be Big Ed's Pizza with the other Huntsville area Alfa owners. I'll be driving the 164S.

It may be my last Big Ed's pizza for a while... Change is in the wind. Big change.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

Thanks Larry. I forgot to add that it has the six speed Qtronic auto transmission. It is by far the best auto I have experienced. The gear changes are super smooth and fast and it has a sport mode as well as a position where you can change gears manually with the stick or with paddles on the steering column, both of which work beautifully.

Goodness! When is the next flight to Australia?
Really does sound nice. I like your silver color. The popular color for these in Germany seems to be black, which I like a lot, too. I will working in Germany for 2 months this coming Spring (northern hemisphere). I'd like to see if I can lease one somewhere.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

We took the S to LaVoce's Christmas party tonight.... and..... I think we skipped a cog on the aft sprocket on start up to come home. Drove OK, maybe a little rough on idle, and made noise like a sewing machine. But made it home OK. I guess we'll pull the covers off and see where everything is sitting tomorrow, timing wise.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I pulled the covers off and checked the timing, and, yep! Multiple teeth skipped on the aft cam. Shucks. I was going to drive this car to Texas over Christmas. Time to form up plan B.

I'm running short on time to be piecing these cars back together, what with the winds of change howling as they are for me right now.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I would retime it with original belt and do a compression test with all the plugs out and then based on results make a decision of what to do next. I got lucky once on a GTV6 it happened to.

We'll give it a try! Sure as heck nothing to lose now.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I'd have bought a 159 and not thought twice. I really like that car. Fiat's loss on that. Like a lot of stuff these days. Don't get me started.

Not an Alfa event for today but I'll go ahead and fill you in on Friday coming up as I might be incommunicado a day or two: I'll be pulling the donor 164 off the trailer at my sister in law's farm, where it will stay until the move is complete. The first of the Alfa herd to be transplanted in Texas. Why the donor first? Because it was already up on the trailer from when I picked it up and brought it home.

What's going to be on the trailer going back to Alabama this weekend? A model T frame a friend of mine in Alabama bought that he had found online. The frame happened to be about 5 miles from my sister in law's house, and she knew the sellers. Funny world.

 

[AlfaVeloce]

I'm in the Seattle area this week not doing anything Alfa related except watching the BB. A couple of things for Del: if you get a honk and wave from a silver Toyota rent car that'll be me, and I still have an unbuilt Heathkit somewhere in my ham radio stuff.