33 1.5 Carb VS 33 1.7 16v

Hi!

I'm planning to buy a 33 .

In the past i've had two series 3 : 1.3 double Twin Dellortos, and one 1.7 16V S .


The most fun to drive was in fact the 1.3, despite the 16v just went going, & going, & going, it only stoped at 230km/h because of the engine cut .

The 1.3 felt more alive...


It has to be an series 3 .

Here in Portugal i still can find and 1.5 ( carb ) and the 16V .

What i would really like to get was the series 3 1.7 Double Twin Carb, but i dont even know if the series 3 had a 1.7 carbed version ( think not ) .


I've never driven an 1.5 carb, will it be much faster than the 1.3 ?

Comparing the 1.5 carb with the 1.7 16v, will it have a great difference ?

Can you tell me the real figures, acel & top speed, from a 1.5 carbed version, not the factory ones, i'm really looking for the real, user tested, values .

My 1.3, ALFA said, top speed was supposed to be 176km/h but i measured once, straight no back wind, 194km/h, with a Magellan GPS .

Please let me know what you think !

I don't know much about the 33 range but there was a 1.7 twin carb model before the introduction of the 1.7 fuel injected and 16V models.

This twin carb model must have stopped at the same time as the production of the Sprint 1.7 - about 1989/90.

Personally I'd go for the 16v over the 1.5 model just for the extra power - about 30hp more.

Here in Portugal there was a 1.7 Twin carbed model, but the series two, not three like i like .


Yes the 16v has that extra power, but the carbed boxers have such a different life and sound...


And if i choose the 16v i'm stuck with that lousy ABS...
I really prefer the simpler system...

According to the parts cd, you can still have a series 3 and carburettors (only 1.2, 1.3 and 1.5). I once had a 1,5 with ported heads, C&B cams and twin 45 mm Dellorto's. It went like stink, and was almost as fast as the 16v I replaced it with. God, I miss that engine .

Why not just buy any series 3, and drop the 1.7 115 Bhp double Weber lump in there. It will bolt straight on .

-- Hoygaard

If the twin carb 1.5 33 is anything like the Sprint with the same options.
You definitely want the 1.5

Originally Posted by Hoygaard

According to the parts cd, you can still have a series 3 and carburettors (only 1.2, 1.3 and 1.5). I once had a 1,5 with ported heads, C&B cams and twin 45 mm Dellorto's. It went like stink, and was almost as fast as the 16v I replaced it with. God, I miss that engine .

Why not just buy any series 3, and drop the 1.7 115 Bhp double Weber lump in there. It will bolt straight on .

-- Hoygaard

here here go for the 1.7 its a lot of fun.wont be selling mine in a hurry
its got to be the quickest 1.7 possible even the rs turbos etc struggle to pass you

I want a car i can start using everyday, so i cant fit an 1.7 8v carved engine, that would take time and space, i dont have . ( it crossed my mind though... )

Another prob is MOT, if i change engines, they wouldnt notice at MOT when they looked at it, but they would probably notice the emissions test beeing rather different than an 1.5...


Does anyone has ready-made, fully-working-with-good-results, plans for an adaptor to fit carbs on a 16v head ?

There was a series 2 1.7TI model with an 8V, twin Dellorto engine producing 115bhp. The series 3 16V 1.7 had fuel injection and (originally) 137bhp on tap. Later models, with a catalytic converter, had 129bhp.

My first Alfa was a 1.5TI (105bhp) and it was replaced by a 16v model. Both were great fun, but the 16v was a screamer but had tro be kept on the rev limiter, whilst the TI was probably the nicer to drive (and listen to!).

Originally Posted by Bill Smith

Both were great fun, but the 16v was a screamer but had tro be kept on the rev limiter, whilst the TI was probably the nicer to drive (and listen to!).

I think i'll get the 1.5 one...

That sentence says it all!!

And with the advantage that it does not have any complicated electronic, only the ignition module . And we can always find cheaper parts or even a complete engine, in scrapyards!

TNX all!!

hello from spain, im goin toput a 1.7 twin webber 40 in my 1.3 second serie, don't care about MOT or ITV people, do you ralty think they've ever seen a 33 boxer engine to say if it.s a 1.3 or a 1.7 one?
you can tell then that serial numbers does not concord becase iron block was broken and you did replace it whit other one, but al internal pieces are original.

Well i have tested all 3 of them..

1.5 which i have (sprint). Very well as a everyday car and in traffic , power at 2k rpm to 3,5k and great sound from carbs. It cannot stand well to modern cars with injection but wait for corners, great fun.

1.7 carbed 8v. Same Sprint had my friend. More power in low rpm , excellent city car and very fast in spinting between traffic lights. A lot of modern cars do stay behind in short distances and of course way behind in corners. Consumption is quite larger due to the fact that you want to rev it. In comparison with the 1,5 when we measured our cars , mine stayed 2 to 3 lights poles behind in the first 0-100km/h.

16v. Great engine but it needs time to reach mid rpm so that it can boost all power. From traffic light to traffic light 8v can be faster but in highway it is a lot faster or if you start accellerating while cruising at 4k rpms.

16v carbed. With proper configuration it can reach 150 hp and it the ultimate fun in boxer engine. The sound , the acceleration the feeling is all the money....

i think 8v can output more power on mid range than 16v, and you can make it run faster too with a modief distributor, ignition time and carbs setting.
this stock engine outputs 117 hp at 6K but you can make it run over 6,5k (giving power) easly, i hope that will take more than 125 hp from this engine, with better throtle response than a 16 cat. for example.

i expec an 0-60 acel time down 8 sec with a 1.3s gearbox, faster than stock 16v and with a good power output at any engine speed.

There isnt that much difference between a 1300 twin carb and a 1500 twin carb (one is 1350 and the other is 1490 remember). The 1500 pulls better, but overall performance wasn't that noticable in my opinion when I had these engines in a Sud.

I prefer the smaller engines, although less powerful they have a shorter stroke and rev more freely and IMO are nicer to drive.

what's the meaning of IMO?

Originally Posted by dmetal

what's the meaning of IMO?

in my opinion ?

ok, i see

well i like screamers too but with a minimum torque at mid range.

Also , 1.7 8v requires less attention than 16v. In case of a broken cambelt for example , 8v will survive instead of 16 which will require rebuild......

Originally Posted by Greek

Also , 1.7 8v requires less attention than 16v. In case of a broken cambelt for example , 8v will survive instead of 16 which will require rebuild......

8v will still bend valves, just possibly not as many of them...
(I know, I have the bent valves in a box somewhere.. )

well here comes mi 1.7 engine, is fully re gasketed, timing belt, valves seat, guides, bearing sealed,... a little of paint ando ready to fit.
next days i'll do it!