Hi everyone, I want to share with you all a horror story that happened recently. i will begin.bought a 105 1750 veloce 1968,flew to melbourne from sydney to pick up.owner kept saying how good it was,came to pick me up and my son from tullamarine,car seemed ok,a few blemishes but for 6k its ok.payd moneys and drove off,spent the day driving around melbourne,car went well,did all my checks,id bought many alfas before.anyhow woke up early next morning,started drive up the hume back to sydney.car went perfectly until about 50ks south of albury,suddenly it started overheating,i started nursing the car,hope to make it to albury and a mechanic,but i should have not kept driving at all,the rngine suddenly died at a truck stop.phoned nrma,it took them 4 and a half hours to get to us,they where arguingon who would pick me up,it was astinker about 40 c. nearly died.make a long story short,car ended up at howlong service station wich is part of nrma,wanted to get car towed back to sydney,they wanted 1300 dollars for tow due to car not driveable.i then decided to get car fixed at albury where i had the engine rebuiltreplaced
NEW PISTONS AND LINER KITS
REHARDEN AND STRAIGHTEN CYL HEAD
ALL NEW VALVES AND INSERTS
GUIDES ULP COMPATIBLE
LINISH CRANK NEW B/E AND MAIN BEARINGS
NEW THRUSTS
NEW TIMING CHAINS
FULL ENGINE GASKET + OIL FILTER
REDO RADIATOR
NEW HOSES
NEW NGK SPARK PLUGS
ALL NEW ENGINE BOLTS
RUNNING IN OIL ETC. COST $5900
did i get ripped off,my mecahinc in sydney thinks so,what do u think,car does run beatifully and i am happy,the moral is though,i should have got car towed in the first place fro melbourne and not driven myself,u learn from your mistakes.
NOW I WOULD LIKE SOME ADVICE FROM U KIND ALFA NUTS LIKE ME,
WHAT OIL SHOULD I USE,THERES SO MANY DIFFERENT ARGUMENTS AND OPINIONS AROUND,SOME PEOPLE SAY USE FULL MINERAL 20-50,AS THIS IS WHAT CAR HAD OUT OF MILANO FACTORY,AND OTHERS SAY SINCE ITS NEW ENGINE USE SYNTHENTIC,I WANT TO KEEP CAR FOR A LONG TIME SO I WANT WHAT IS BEST FOR CAR.
ALSO WHAT PETROL GRADE SHOULD I USE,MY ALFA MECHANIC SAYS NORMAL UNLEADED IS FINE,BUT OTHERS SAY USE PREMIUM,PLEASE SHED SOME LIGHT ON THESE SUBJECTS,ALSO ANY OTHER INFO WOULD BE VERY APPRECIATED.
CIAO TUTTI,VIVA L'ITALIA,AUGURI
Sorry to hear your story, Just a few thoughts
1. I personally may of had a different expectation when purchasing a 40 year old car. At $6,000 for a 105 step nose your are lucky to get a running example, let alone something you would embark on an interstate trip first off.
2. As John Hanslow is always saying pre purchase inspection $$$ spent on any alfa from a reliable source is always money well spent.
3. I have got two older alfa's 105 GTV & 116 GTV the most important part of the annual budget to run these cars is the most expensive membership i can buy from the RACV total care ($176.00 p/a) which covers amongst other things.
" assistance when over 100km from home
Should you be on a longer journey and your vehicle breaks down or is involved in an accident, RACV will contribute up to $2,400 (per incident) towards a pool of benefits to assist you while your car is being repaired. These include any combination of the following:
assistance when over 100km from home
Should you be on a longer journey and your vehicle breaks down or is involved in an accident, RACV will contribute up to $2,400 (per incident) towards a pool of benefits to assist you while your car is being repaired. These include any combination of the following:
Accommodation
Rental vehicle
Taxi fare (up to a limit of 3 trips of $80 each)"
Alternative transport.
I'm sure the NMRA in NSW will have somthing similar.
PS: I purchased the 116 GTV in Tasmania last year. Picked up the car late on the friday night ,driving from Launceston to Devonport to get on the ferry. The bloody thing just stopped ( engine running but won't proceed).Sitting on the side of the road wondering what i had just brought and what was going to happen next.!!!
Rang the number on my RACV card. Call answered in Hobart service car dispatched from Devonport going again in 35 minutes . The best $176.00 i spent last year.
Hope your car is going well and starts giving you the smiles that these older cars can generate.
Cheers
Paul
Hi there i would use either penrite 20 - 50 or bp course plus i run this in my road 90 and race 90 and find it to be great and do not use anything below 95 ron unless you do want to get ur engine done in syd as well. 98 ron is better as it has a lube in it that helps with something (its like flash lube) ive gone blank. hope this helps
I have split this topic......no need to hijack the other thread.
HI, guys,thanks for your valuable input.it is much appreciated,by the way,i absolutely love the car,goes like a dream,it has so much personality,drives and responses like no other,im in love,i am absolutely gobsmacked how advanced these cars must have been in theyr time,whe are talking 40 years ago,cars of today just dont have that feeling of proud pleaseure and class. ciao angelo