What's this and this and this?

And some more

1. Pic of oil pressure at idle car warmed up.
2. Pic of oil pressure at 2500-3000rpm, no load. Looks high. It that normal? Wondering if oil pressure sensor really needs replacing? BTW, the PO said the 1987 Milanos have different threads on the oil pressure sender and if I want to use a 164 sender, I need an adaptor?
3. Driver door arm rest needs some help. How do you fix them?

"What's this and this and this?"

1. It is actually right side remember look from ****pit in planes, trains. boats and Alfas.

It is thermotime switch for cold start injector timing when engine cold.

2. I can't see a tab in picture

3. No and should not have anything to do with oil level sensor or light for it on ARC panel. Is low oil pressure red light on in pressure gauge?

4. Yes normal air gap at air cleaner horn.

"And some more"

1 and 2. Was pretty normal on the 87 I had.

As for idiot light sender yes thread pitch different (coarser) and has tapered pipe style threads But oil pressure gauge sender shold be the same as 164 and most others and uses a sealing washer with straight non-tapered threaded.

3. Not sure you really care but it has to be an inside job to resquare edges.

Richard2 said:

1. What's this connector on the left side of the thermostat housing? Connector is broken and keeps falling off. I have a spare Bosch connector to replace it, but what's it for?

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As above, TTS (thermo time switch) for cold start injector control.

2. What goes on this electrical male tab by the battery? Looks like it has been used, but I can't find a loose wire in the area.

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That is a ground point. There's multiple ground wires attached. I can't recall specificially which ground wire normally attaches to that tab. The original wire may be loose, or regrouped with one of the others.

3. The oil level light flashes on the ARC panel. PO said it was caused by the oil pressure sender. Looks like he replaced the oil pressure switch and put a resistor in the circuit? Is that normal? I got 10 ohm resistor to bypass the oil level switch any way.

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Don't confuse oil 'level' with oil 'pressure'. The oil pressure sensor sits at the back of the engine under the air intake plenum.

The oil level sensor is bolted into the side of the block next to the dip stick.

First ensure there's enough oil in the engine, then check the sensor/sender and its wiring.

If your pressure sensor is bypassed, that's another issue, but we can presume it's functioning given your dash gauge is reading.

4. There's this gap between the air inlet tube and the air filter box. Is that normal?

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As above, normal.

Richard2 said:

1. Pic of oil pressure at idle car warmed up.
2. Pic of oil pressure at 2500-3000rpm, no load. Looks high. It that normal? Wondering if oil pressure sensor really needs replacing?

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Given the gauge is functional, the sensor must be functional. The actual oil pressure will depend a little upon oil temperature, oil viscosity (ie: the oil grade, like whether you're using 10W40 or 15W60, for example), and engine revs, but your readings don't look unusual to me.

3. Driver door arm rest needs some help. How do you fix them?

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Not really fixable. It's a one-piece door card made from a compressed cardboard-like material. It's common for the arms rests to sag from time and use. To fix it, it would be a custom job. Usually better to find better-condition secondhand trims. The fabric insert is easily transferable if the new trim doesn't have it, or a different style of fabric.

It sounds like the PO was a bit confused about the oil pressure stuff. There are three sensors for oil.

1) Oil level sensor. This is down near the sump on the driver side of the engine. This lights the light in the ARC. If the sensor is bad, you can bypass it with a resistor (100 Ohms works)

2) Oil pressure warning light sender. This is on the back of one of the heads and is just a simple open/closed switch. This lights the light on the instrument cluster. There should be no resistor on this wire. This is the sensor that's in your second post, third pic.

3) Oil pressure gauge sender. This is a vertical, cylindrical sensor pointing straight up between the heads at the back of the engine. This is a resistance-based sender that feeds the gauge. There should be no resistor on this wire.

My guess is the PO got confused about fixing the oil level light in the ARC with a resistor and put it on the wrong sender. Take off the resistor and plug that wire directly into the oil pressure warning light sender, that should make the light on the dash go out.

The oil level sender (same as the 164) on your Milano is kaput. Just use the resister to bypass it to get rid of the ARC light, no pun intended, lol.

I do notice your low oil pressure light is on? Might be bad sender for that.

Actually, oil pressure does look a little high, ours reading about 55 at the same rpm level when hot, but when cold can be higher. Is your high reading with the engine cold? Our Milano does read high at idle. I think your values are ok, judging by ours.

Don't know about the difference in the 87 and later oil pressure sender threads.

That unused electrical tab should have a two black wires connector to it. Don't know right off what for, but will research it a little. The orange connector should also be a two black wire connector. Both connectors should be the same as the two driver's side ones you do see. Might be grounds.

Replace the arm rests/panels. How did they get so trashed? Geez, what do some people do in their cars, anyway? Uh, don't want to know that I guess. Should be some available eBay?

Too bad you didn't buy this a couple of years ago, as a guy in Kent had a Milano with all good interior he was parting out due to a head on collision. I got a few parts, should have taken more.

And, as Steve says, the gap is normal.

P/S seat on mine sits higher we think but then susan is pretty short so "whatever". /the engines are different but that oil light shouldn't be on. Mine comes on from time to time and I got the replacement switch today. The old one sticks I think. The sender is a new Sunpro as mentioned on the 164 board and I trust it moreso than the light. I had to "resist" the temp sender same as the 164 to bring the "actual" more in line with what the gauge indicates.

Susan wants dance lessons as well. To hear her talk, ABBA did "Dancing Queen" in her honor but I have absolutely zero, zilch, nada rhythm. I hear the music but funny, I dont "feel" it. Funnier yet, I drummed many MANY years ago and was quite good. I have a good oil level sensor you can have as mine is no longer required since I deleted the ARC. I'd suppose it's the same from the 4 cyl vs. the 6. I recall reading there are 2 lengths and this is the only difference. Mine is what i believe to be the long one, about 6 inches. yes I wrote that with a straight face. Straight face...? There I go again!! Lemme know Mr R2. ciao chris

Not sure what a "dirty" is but I can assume it means don't get my hands dirty. Really? With a big s-eatin grin :whistling: - I dont get dirty working on my cars. It'll take more time to pull the car into the work area than to remove the sensor. It's that lil plugged in sensor just below and left of the cap in this pic. On the 4 banger it is right there for easy pluckin.. And John just for you as I think you might stalk here - I can't remember when I last got rust flecks in my eye. >> Happy Easter all ciao jc

when 6 inches is really 9

In order to understand how to bypass the sensor, I first had to understand how it operated. The shop manual came in handy here. There is a decent description of the Alfa Romeo Control (ARC) computer and all it's associated sensors. The Oil Level sensor is composed of a heated coil (13 ohms) and a bimetalic switch connected in series. When the ignition is first turned on, voltage is applied to the sensor. If there is no oil in contact with the bimetalic switch, the coil will heat it and open the circuit. If there is oil in contact with the switch, the oil will absorb the heat generated by the coil and the switch will remain closed. After a few seconds, the ARC checks to see if the circuit is open or closed. If open, it lights the warning light and keeps it lit until the ignition is turned off.

This passage above was written by C Verilli on a website supporting Alfa 75s.

So as I thought... it took 2 minutes to get the sensor out. 21 mm open end and voila. Here's how it measured R2. I assume it works as when my ARC wasn't acting wonky, the oil level light would self test and then go off. I have no earthly idea of how the 6 might differ but I seem to recall the sole difference is in the length. The one in my TS Rossa is much shorter. On her, I just added a resistor and dont have to worry about it. Lemme know if you want me to mail it to you. Some pics: ciao, jc