Sounds like the Diff has gone on my GTA

Not had a chance to post this since this happened due to hectic work and home commitments.....

But last Wednesday night - felt like I'd lost my gearbox. No drama at all, just felt like I was not in gear, and then soon after could smell burning oil. AA came out, and said "had no problem finding you, I just followed the trail of oil !"

Car is in the dealers at the moment awaiting inspection as this is being claimed as part of the 3rd year dealer warranty. Early view is that the dealer thinks the diff failed.

The worst thing about all of this, is all the stick I'm getting from mates and work people about owning an Alfa..... and as the car was recently in having had a list of jobs done, over the last month I've hardly had the car!

To make matters worse, the wife recently scrapped the rear bumper as well !!!!

I so love the GTA, it feels so special, but as JC said "Owning an Alfa is like having great sex, however it leaves you with an embarrassing rash"......

I'm not sure I can cope with the rash for much longer !!!

Sorry to hear about that.. I am guessing you read some of the other threads on Diff failures? Of course it would be prudent to wait for the final verdict from your garage before going further, but If the damage is to diff only then there is a definite upside to it.. You can fit the Q2 diff at not extra cost compred to a normal diff and get a car about twice as good as it was before.

Whats your cars history BTW? Some of us have a pocket theory that the reason so many 147 GTA's compared to 156 GTA's has failed diff's is connected to the 147 having VDC. Another is there is virtually no service descprition on checking or changing Diff oil.

Originally Posted by 156GTASW

Not had a chance to post this since this happened due to hectic work and home commitments.....

But last Wednesday night - felt like I'd lost my gearbox. No drama at all, just felt like I was not in gear, and then soon after could smell burning oil. AA came out, and said "had no problem finding you, I just followed the trail of oil !"

Car is in the dealers at the moment awaiting inspection as this is being claimed as part of the 3rd year dealer warranty. Early view is that the dealer thinks the diff failed.

The worst thing about all of this, is all the stick I'm getting from mates and work people about owning an Alfa..... and as the car was recently in having had a list of jobs done, over the last month I've hardly had the car!

To make matters worse, the wife recently scrapped the rear bumper as well !!!!

I so love the GTA, it feels so special, but as JC said "Owning an Alfa is like having great sex, however it leaves you with an embarrassing rash"......

I'm not sure I can cope with the rash for much longer !!!

Peter,
This is interesting as I have heard the same, regarding the diff failures relevant to 147GTA & here now we have a 156GTA wagon.
I would like to know what the dealer has to say about the cause of failure?
Peter, you are right that the oppurtunity to fit the Q2 should not be missed.
Monstro

Is the diff and gearbox oil the same or is it from a different resevoir??
EPER shows a dipstick on the gearbox.

I believe it is the same oil, and the description above certain;y sounds consistant with a diff failure.

Honestly though a Q2 will make a huge difference to your driving enjoyment, this will turn out to have been a good thing in the end
Your humble stationwagon would show a BMW330 a clean pair of heels on track with this diff..

Originally Posted by 156GTASW

The worst thing about all of this, is all the stick I'm getting from mates and work people about owning an Alfa.....

Explain to your mates that an Alfa has Soul. Blowing the diif was just a way of telling you to upgrade to Q2.

Yep get them to put a Q2 in

yes, Q2 is the way to go.

do the research (well, you may have already read the many threads about GTA diff failures), and you'll see it makes sense. whilst the 147 GTA seems most prone to diff failures, i figure it's only a matter of time (miles/km's) before the 156 GTA's will have troubles.

Damn, sorry to hear that. But as everyone says Q2 it up even better if it is under warranty!

If the gearbox and diff oils are the same, then I would suggest everyone has their level checked at the next service. Mine was checked at last service last week, and it needed topping up. Not sure exactly how much but I will find out...

I would love to get the Q2 fitted - however I don't think it will happen. As the car is just over 2 years old with avg miles, I think the box (inc diff) is supplied as one unit, therefore it will be replaced as one piece. The Q2 diff (even though an Alfa part) is still a mod, as such I doubt unless I pay for the complete repair will be allowed.

diff is in a separate 'compartment' to the gearbox, so can be swapped out separately. perhaps negotiate with the workshop to pay the extra for the Q2. it is seriously a good investment.

PS: forgot to say earlier, i'm sorry to hear of your woes . hopefully it's sorted out soon, and the car is not off the road long.

Sad to hear about your diff problems. Hope she'll be fine soon. Don't even start to think about another car. No need for that.

My 147GTA has been "mistreated" a lot and I have had no problems whatsoever with the diff. In the last two years it has done 50000 kilometers of tracktime (Zolder, Spa, Zandvoort, Nurburgring incl. to and from the track) and the only thing that has gone bad are the brakes and driveshafts. Diff is still fine so your problems are "unlucky"

Like the others, if possible try and get the Q2 instead of a standard diff.
It don't think they will change the entire gearbox just because the diff's gone bad, so make them use the Q2 as the replacement.

Good luck.

Had a call - and yes a new box is being ordered.... and there is no chance I'm getting a Q2 fitted as then if something goes wrong in the future I'll end up with a battle on my hands

I'd happily pay the money to get this mod done.... but I do actually understand where Alfa stand on this i.e. make the change, it's not a standard part of the car - any problems - I take the risk.

Am I right in thinking that the Q2 diff is only about £250 ?

Yup, its a steal..

Its pretty well tested in GTAs at this point.
(In my car its standing up to 50% torque over standard and has survived about 8 track days plus 8 thousand miles).

The standard part is much more likely to give problems, and most likely when you are out of warranty too.

fiting a Q2 surely should only affect diff/gearbox related warranty claims though?
BTW a full GTA gearbox is only about £866 sterling.
They are classed as recon, but actually are brand new..

The Q2 does make the GTA far far more dynamic, personally I would take the smallish risk, for the definite gain.

Buying the GTA in the first place was not an investment decision
- it was about embracing the joys of adventure!!

Cheers,
TB

Originally Posted by 156GTASW

Had a call - and yes a new box is being ordered.... and there is no chance I'm getting a Q2 fitted as then if something goes wrong in the future I'll end up with a battle on my hands

I'd happily pay the money to get this mod done.... but I do actually understand where Alfa stand on this i.e. make the change, it's not a standard part of the car - any problems - I take the risk.

I'd happily pay for the diff - but the dealer is not too happy to fit the part....

I'll have a further chat with them - but I won't get my hopes up.

picked one up today, £221.11 inc vat after asking for a discount (10%)

Alex

Originally Posted by alexace

picked one up today, £221.11 inc vat after asking for a discount (10%)

Alex

Which dealer mate?

Sorry to hear that mate

Originally Posted by 156GTASW

I'd happily pay for the diff - but the dealer is not too happy to fit the part....

I'll have a further chat with them - but I won't get my hopes up.

sorry to hear that mate