166 queries

[Chris_2cojones]

Hi All,

Having been Alfa-less for a year I bought a 166 3.0 V6 late last year - and I LOVE it ! !

It has been extremely reliable but the only problem so far is that it "collects" stones very easily - if there is a HGV ahead my windscreen or headlamp will catch a stone being fired towards it. So far the windscreen is badly chipped in 2 places and now also cracked right across my vision. the offside headlamp becam a cropper last week and is badly cracked.

I wonder if anyone could please assist with a few techcical queries ;

1. How do I fit a headlight and front fog lamp (2003 pre-facelift model) - is it true I need to remove the front bumper ?

2. I am about to order a new windscreen but am not sure if mine is a) heated, or b) has rain sensors. The button next to the heated rear window - is that a heated front screen or just a 'fast demist' setting for the heater ? Also how can I tell if my car has rain sensors on the screen ? Can I fit a windscreen without either even if my car has them - what effect will it have ? It's a costly bit of glass so trying to shave off a few £'s ....

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Regards,

Chris

[alfaaddicted]

Hello
The button next to the rear window demist is fitted to all 166 and is fast demist although it does operate the heated base of the windscreen in the wiper park area if your 166 has this fitted.
Look at the base of the windscreen in the black wiper park area and you should be able to see very fine filament lines if your screen is heated.
Also you can tell if your car has rain sensor by looking under the interior mirror to see if your car has a black plastic "box " stuck to the windscreen that has a purple area if you look at it from the outside of the car.
I would think that you could fit a basic windscreen without the heated area/ rain sensor if you werent bothered about having them working again.

[dadwillfixit]

Hi. It's a shame you're so far away. I've got a spare screen in my garage going cheap. ps, front bumper has to come off to remove a headlight.

[ChrisS]

Re the screen..... They discontinued the variations a few years back. I went through this when I had the screen replaced a while ago. I had real grief with the Autoglass fitter at first. For some reason, he clearly didn't want to do the job, so came up with some BS about my car having A/C and the screen supplied being wrong. He wasn't interested in being told they all have A/C. I did some digging to make absolutely sure, and came to the conclusion there is only one type availabe now and it has all the options. Oddly, just had a quick look on EPER and it suggests there are still 4 types available, plain, heated, rain sensor and both?? Certainly weren't when I was looking.

Won't the insurance cover it if it's cracked?

[alfa166italian]

Chris, PM me for details of a windsceen fitters in Chertsey, Surrey area. I can't guarantee anything but they are very good at sourcing & supplying hard to find windscreens for old or rare cars, so if you gave them a call I'm sure they'll be able to help you as much as poss.

[disgusted]

Heated screen! I wish. What model got that?

On a cold morning my 166 takes about a week to defrost/demist.

[Chris_2cojones]

Alfaaddicted - Thanks for the advice, checked mine and it does have both rain sensors AND a heating element - bah! - have found a replacement screen with both on, and a green tint AND a blue tint at the top for only £260 (minus 10% for cash) so I'm happy !

Dadwillfixit - Found a good deal already (see above). Thanks for confirming that front bumper needs to be removed.

ChrisS - Thanks for your advice. Not surprised about the Autoglass BS'er. They quoted me £965 odd online, then phoned me to confirm price - when they sensed I though it expensive they miraculously shaved off a few hundred to £629 odd. I don't trust them. Also I only have T.P.F. & T insurance cover so windscreen not covered.

Alfa166italian - Thank you very much but I have found a great supplier. Well I will find out tomorrow (Mon) if they ARE any good. May PM you another time if I may for a different Alfa.

Disgusted - I agree, demisting is pretty crap considering the heating element. The rest of the car makes up for this little annoyance though I think.


As regards the front bumper removal, how much of a job is that ? Where are the mounting bolts and how many are there ? Is it a pig of a job best left to a garage ?

Also my glovebox catch is broken. There is a piece of plastic that sticks out from the frame (righthand edge) and this somehow "locked" my glovebox a while ago, and I had to force it open breaking the catch in the process. What is this piece of plastic ?

Again, any tech advice would be massively welcome.

Regards, Chris

[peachy2]

HI Chris to remove the front bumper! first if you have headlamp washers/jets you drain off all your water in the washer bottle as when you remove bumper it will go everywhere!...you may have to disconect hoses or clamp them (with a brake hose clamp)!.....take off 2 front wheels and jack up car, remove the inner wheel arches .....now there are 3 10 mm bolts on each side hold the bumper to the wing.....now under the bonnet remove the black plastic covers left,right and above the radiator!.....unscrew the centre piece and the 2 (sides) which slide towards the centre of the car! ....then the other 6 10 mm bolts and screws underneath holding the bumper on! ....now you can replace the headlight!...it is an easy enough job but just fiddly! ...hope this helps!

[Chris_2cojones]

Hi peachy2 - Thank you very much for your detailed explanation, and apologies for the delay in responding (had a crazy-busy fortnight !) and forgot to check this forum.

Blimey it seems like quite a bit of hassle just to replace a headlamp ! I MAY be able to do it - will have a look. Could you please clarify a couple of bits : Do you mean to remove the inner wheelarch covers ? (are they tricky to remove ?) , also after removing the 3 black plastic covers you mention to unscrew the centre piece and the 2 sides ..... do you mean the 3 covers or something else ? Also does the bumper just drop after removing the bolts or is it supported ?

I am well out of practice of doing any work on cars, so I just need these bits explaining in amateur-ish terms. I have just finished up on a contract at the end of last month so do have the time on my hands for now (and a shortage of money !).

Regards,

Chris

[paul.o]

Did you get the windscreen replaced?

[niallmoran]

you'll probably find the bolts up behind the wheel arch covers are pretty rusty and be a right PITA....you'll probably get away with just undoing the side that needs a new light....

[peachy2]

Hi Chris, no prob! yep you need to take off front wheels and then the plastic inner wheel arches(easy) to get access to the bumper to wing bolts,they held on by a couple of screws and a bolt!... Nial right you might get away with just dropping one side to reach headlight!...and yes you also need to remove the black trim that covers the rad! then the body coloured bits next to the headlights ,undo the screws and SLIDE them towards the centre of the car! then you can get to bumper bolts! Good luck with it!

[Chris_2cojones]

Thanks chaps for your comments and help.

Paul.O - Yes I did. In the end called a place called Smile Windscreens ([URL="http://www.smilewindscreens.co.uk/"]www.smilewindscreens.co.uk[/URL) who only cover the Kent area - the screen was only £234 WITH the rain sensor AND the heating element. Tidy job and a genuine bargain !

Niallmoran - Thanks for that tip, I'll squirt on some Plusgas first & let it soak in. I just need to replace the offside headlamp so will try to do it the way you suggest.

Peachy2 - Thanks again for sparing the time to explain in greater detail. All very clear now, although a little daunting. Decided I will give it a go though. Previously when I used to work on cars I was thorough but S-L-O-W, so as I do have the time on my hands I can spread the job over a couple of days. I also need to fit two front fog lamp units into the spoiler as they are both broken - I am assuming that this is an easy job once the bumper is off.

Regards,

Chris