Hi All,
I have been given the opportunity to have 5 hours to dismantle as much as I need out of alfetta for a fixed price.
My questions are - I need to remove the complete interior and was wondering if I need any special tools to do this?
Can I get away with using standard tools in an everyday toolbox?
Also, any tricks to removing the doors and dash and centre console?
I will also be removing the front grill along with the lights - how does the grill come out?
The other thing is the seat belts - I remember I tried to remove the passenger side belt once and I couldn't get the nut out - it just kept spinning - What is the trick to this?
Thanks
Joe
Sedan or coupe?
The seatbelt bolts have captive nuts on the underside of the body, so really shouldn't spin.
Do you really want 30 year old seatbelts of unknown origin though?
As for non-standard tools, my first choice would be a plasma cutter (unless you have to leave the shell in a half-reasonable state).
A couple of allen key sockets will speed things up, 6 and 8mm would be the most useful ones from memory.
An electric rattle gun and an assortment of extension bars and impact sockets would come in handy, and a cordless drill with a phillips head bit will save your wrist - and an assortment of drill bits for removing rivets. I vaguely remember the grille being held in with rivets but might be thinking of a different car...
Also a manual impact driver (the kind you hit with a hammer) - they're fantastic for loosening the rusty screws you'll run into.
Other things I'd take would be a pair of small bolt cutters if you're planning on having to hack through much wiring, a gear puller for the hubs, steering wheel etc, angle grinder with thin cutoff wheels and cold chisel/big hammer for bolts that just won't undo.
Also a can of good penetrating fluid (you can do much better than wd40) - first thing you start with is spraying every nut and bolt you're planning on undoing, and let it soak in while you're pulling the easy stuff out.
Have a read of the workshop manual before you go (and take it with you) - it will show the procedure for removing the dash, grille etc. and save you wasting half an hour trying to find that last bolt holding everything together ;)
Are you participating in some kind of game show, 5 hours?
Game show , now thats an idea!!. Maybe someone could donate an Alfetta, preferably a shit one. We could pull it apart at Club night , that might generate some more numbers. Beats watching the Voice.
P.S. who wants to be Seal!
Yeah, everything festy mentioned plus... actually, I was about to suggest a steering wheel puller, but don't bother. Undo the lower universal nut and the whole column is held by two further nuts, take it all in one piece then :o
What can't you take?
Dash board is just 4 fixing points, remove gauges and undo centre console first then take dash as a whole. The remainder is very straight forward and easy. Be real careful with interior lights on B pillar, very brittle and hard to come by.
Exterior trim picks off with a screwdriver, just be careful, start at one end ( which ever comes off for you) then with light leverage on trim and continue prying along length to remove.
Joe, you've certainly been busy recently. 5 hours is a fair amount of time to do some serious shopping.
Any arrangements on how many pairs of hands?
How did you come across this deal?
Hi Guys,
Thanks for the responses.
I found this car on ebay and the guy wanted to get rid of the whole car. I offered a few hundred dollars and asked if I could strip it and leave it as a rolling shell and he agreed but I need to do it in a set time frame.
I have put the pics of the car - as you can see the body is in terrible shape but everything else looks in good condition.
Is the rattle gun and the manual impact driver a definate tool I need or can I get away without them?
I am bringing another friend of mine to help me strip it and have managed to get a hold of a ute with an 8ft tray so that will help me cart quite a few bits back :)
Re the seat belts - I will take these ones just in case, but should I want new belts, where would I get them from?
Anything else I should know.
Thanks guys.
Joe
Like the one I got a year or more ago....took me a couple of days to strip but I took my time and that included getting the transaxle out. If you don't want the loom that makes it much, much easier. Just be brutal with rusted up screws and bolts. Saves a heck of a lot of time.
Al, that pic is a sad sight, leaving those poor bitches out like that is criminal.
QuoteAl, that pic is a sad sight, leaving those poor bitches out like that is criminal
Alfa Duk , Imagine how i feel. I was picking up some bits & pieces from Alister last year and he showed my the shell. I said to him I brought a new Piper Yellow Alfetta in 1980 registered AXL 395 from Talbot Motors in Melbourne . He went and checked the old rego on the windscreen and guess what. I get misty eyed every time that photo comes up.
Gully
It depends what you want off it - I don't believe you will need impact tools to get the interior out. Failing the plasma cutter (!) a small (easier to get into tight spaces) angle grinder may get you out of trouble if something is really stuck.
Ah Gully, that is tough,my condolences
Thanks for the responses everyone.
Just to clarify - how would one remove a rivert?
It is just a matter of drilling off the head and then punching the body of the rivert out?
Thanks
yep, drill out the head and hit it with a punch if needed.
Thanks Festy.
Appreciate it.
Regarding the seats - do they come off in one piece or will I need to remove the seat+rails and then the mounts?
I am just trying to gather all the info now so I am not wasting time tomorrow as I can't afford to.
Thanks
Joe
From memory, it's just the 4 bolts in the rails, and then the seats should come out.
Yes they're held in by 4 cap head bolts, I can't remember the size but think they're 6 or 7mm.
Slide the seat all the way back to get the front two, then right forward to get to the rear ones.
Quote from: Paul Gulliver on June 20, 2012, 08:17:03 PM
QuoteAl, that pic is a sad sight, leaving those poor bitches out like that is criminal
Alfa Duk , Imagine how i feel. I was picking up some bits & pieces from Alister last year and he showed my the shell. I said to him I brought a new Piper Yellow Alfetta in 1980 registered AXL 395 from Talbot Motors in Melbourne . He went and checked the old rego on the windscreen and guess what. I get misty eyed every time that photo comes up.
Gully
Sorry Paul - I promise not to post it again..... :-X
Joe - in case no one has suggested this before, get yourself a cordless drill with a couple of well charged batteries, plus one of those cheapish large packs of bits and assorted hex head sockets, and make sure the pack has a couple of long extensions in it so you can get to odd places.
If you want to keep the screws and bolts just grab a large plastic bucket that you can throw them in from a distance. Throw all the odd bits in there as well and sort it all out later. That'll save you a heap of time and make sure you take away as much as you can. Whatever you don't want later can be ditched.
Also very useful to have a 1/4 drive socket set with an 8, 10 and 13mm socket. Very handy for tight spots.
Thanks again guys.
Nice idea regarding the bucket Alister.
Should time permit and I don't need the part (and if the part is still on the car) - does anyone need anything?
Thanks
If any of these bits aren't spoken for (and you're happy to post them) I'm looking for a petrol cap (key isn't essential), hazard switch, speedo cable, parcel shelf (the one under the passenger side dash), fuse box cover and the lower plastic grille inserts that go behind the bumper.
A set of trim removing tools would come in handy, so you don't wreck all the clips and trim, they look like a 2 pronged fork, you could most likely get away with a metal trim removal tool, if you are not fussed about scratching the metal from the donor car, don't forget to video it with a clock running in the background, and post it on this forum for our amusement, best of luck, Colin.
You shouldn't need a trim removal tool for an Alfetta coupe. Nothing is clipped in place, it's all screwed. You'll need a small flat blade screwdriver to prise the covers off the armrests and window winders to access the screws.
The chrome trim below the side windows is riveted in place.
Joe, if you get time, take the window winder cables and mechanisms. Before removing them you need to wire the cables firmly to the barrel so it doesn't unfurl. Mark them LH-RH then undo the nuts holding the pulleys, then unbolt/de-rivet the barrels from the door structure.
The rear seat just needs a firm pull up on the front then lift it out, and the seat back is held through the rear firewall with big wingnuts. Even if you don't take the seats, grab the wingnuts.