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1750 turbo blown - YET AGAIN!!!!

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1750 blown
33K views 172 replies 45 participants last post by  shaunieb 
#1 ·
Some of you will no doubt recall the saga from last year ( http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/alfa-159-brera-and-946-spider/587010-1750-turbo-blown-again.html ) when the already-replaced-once turbo on my 159 went bang. Well, unbelievably, this afternoon saw turbo #3 follow suit in similarly spectacular fashion, :mad: :cry:.

We'd just dropped off SWMBO's Giulietta at our local(ish) Alfa indie (McLennans at Loanhead, Edinburgh) where it'll be getting a service and timing belt/water pump replacement on Monday and were heading back along the City Bypass at a steady 55-60mph (heavyish traffic) when the whine/scream, under the slightest throttle application, started.

Even Jennifer, who admits to having zero technical knowledge where cars are concerned, picked up on it instantly. I had barely finished responding with my fears over what it might be based on previous experience(s) when they were comprehensively confirmed. A slight stuttering in the power delivery, then a surge followed by total loss of boost pressure and a smoke trail that The Red Arrows would have been proud of.

As it was only a couple of miles or so back to McLennans and mostly downhill so it wouldn't involve much throttle usage, after stopping briefly to pour in a litre of Selenia Sport Power (lucky I carried a spare bottle, :rolleyes:) as a precaution to replace that already incinerated, I elected to limp back there rather than sit on the hard shoulder in sub-zero temperatures for however long it took the RAC to get there, by which time the garage would have been shut for the weekend in any case.

The guys at McLennans smelt the car arrive before they saw it, the stench of burning oil was so strong, although oddly the smell seems to be coming from under the bonnet rather than out of the exhaust - if you turn on the heater/air con fan with the recycle set to off so that it draws air from outside, within seconds the interior of the car is filled with fumes, :confused:.

We enquired about renting a vehicle locally, or failing that could they call us a taxi and in response Stuart McLennan Snr handed over the 'key' to a 159 1.9 and said "just use this, at least until you get the Giulietta back". Top Man, :thumbs:.

I think this latest episode could well be the final nail in the coffin. Off to scour Autotrader for a suitable runabout/dog transporter, then it'll be down the Lotus dealer on Monday for some 'man maths', :D.
 
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#128 ·
this very advanced engine with direct injection is bound to have new issues that garages haven't seen before.

It sounds like this is down to a Bosch injector failing.

Alfa romeo dealerships should have spotted what was going, however i guess there will always be cars that fail the owner, the dealer and the manufacturer

great shame for such a nice car and an advanced engine
 
#129 ·
this very advanced engine with direct injection is bound to have new issues that garages haven't seen before.
Alfa have sold direct injection Petrol engines for 13-years, so I'm sure the leaky injector issue has come up at some point during that time.
Obviously a Turbo won't be at all happy with getting lubed by Petrol instead of oil, so will show issues long before an NA engine.

This is dragging on far too long.
Hope it gets sorted soon.
 
#131 ·
Similar problem on my 2.4 brera

I had a similar problem with my 2.4 Brera. I had 3 turbos blow within 80 miles of each other. In the end i took it to AutoLusso in Dunstable. They put it down to 3 things:
1. A small kink in an oil feed pipe at the back of the turbo. This had been changed by the first garage doing the repair (Rusper Alfa Romeo near Horsham) but apparently was slightly kinked reducing oil flow.
2. The possibility that the first garage weren't priming the turbo before first engine start. Apparently this can take a good 20 second engine crank to get oil through the turbo. The engine must not be started before this is done or it will spin up with no oil and burn out the bearing before it has left the garage.
3. The oil was sent for analysis and had a larger than normal fuel dilution. The car had been remapped before i bought it. AutoLusso put it back to a standard map with just a EGR delete and a DPF delete.

Dunno if this helps i couldn't read the whole thread it is too long. I am currently taking Rusper Alfa to court because they refused to warranty the repair. So annoying i paid them £2500 and still had a broken car! AutoLusso fixed it first time but they were expensive because they knew it was a hot potato and did it by the book.
 
#134 ·
As an aid to you on your voyage through 'professional channels' maybe set up an online petition regarding bad customer service. I'm sure most, if not all AO members following this on here would be more than happy to sign! Not particularly useful to you now but may help your "professional" further down the line ;) Just a thought!
 
#140 ·
Well, after stumbling around a bit digesting the "How to Tweet" instructions, this pen and paper man has entered the 21st century. My first 'Tweet' is out there in cyberspace, :D.

Can't say much in only 140 characters though, :( - had to reduce my original 4 page email quite a bit there, :rolleyes:.

#159nightmare - spread the word, thanks in advance. :thumbs:.
 
#142 ·
Well, that's the 159 off to pastures new. Despite all the agonies of the past 2 years, I was still sorry to see it go, :cry: , as we've had a lot of good times with it and when it's on form, it's brilliant.

It couldn't go without giving me one last kick in the privates though, :eek:. I'd tried 'hawking' it around numerous used car outlets to no avail and it didn't reach anywhere near its reserve (which was only £6.5k) let alone my hoped-for £8k when I put it into BCA so I ended up at the WeBuyAnyCar type of establishments and finally agreed to part with it to 'Trusted Car Buyer' for £7400, :(.

I've just spent £300 this week having the turbo oil leak fixed (well done Western on that one - NOT, :mad:) so in reality it's not a huge return for such a well cared for (in terms of every other part of it) car. I was barely 1 hour back in the house after parting company with it when I had a phone call from one of the traders I'd contacted a few weeks back. At the time, he declined saying that Alfas weren't 'on his radar' as he concentrated on German marques, but he now had somebody looking for exactly what I'd had and he was willing to offer me £8.5k, :rant: :cry:. Bloomin' typical, :rolleyes:.
 
#144 ·
Not the best of stories to part ways with your everyday Alfa driving.


Chin up, hopefully 2-3 years away there'll be something tasty
in AR's line-up when you feel the urge to get some Italian action again.
(That's what I'm hoping.)

I miss the 1750's performance (damn the tractors) but my heart still
yearns for those heady days of 2.2 Carbonio Brera ownership. [sigh]
 
#145 · (Edited)
I certainly don't see me being back in an Alfa (discounting my good lady's G) in what remains of this lifetime - I've taken the liberty of amending your quote to reflect the current state of play, the clue being in my avatar, :D .

Not the best of stories to part ways with your everyday Alfa driving.


Chin up, hopefully definitely 2-3 years days away there'll be something tasty in AR's Lotus's line-up sitting on your driveway when now you feel the urge to get some Italian British action again.
(That's what I'm hoping.)

I miss the 1750's performance (damn the tractors) but my heart still
yearns for those heady days of 2.2 Carbonio Brera ownership. [sigh]
 
#148 ·
I do apologise was just a quick google search! (although the auto express one ain't too far off this picture)

I have had an email regarding Alfa's future. There plan is to have 5 models in 2016 and and by 2017-18 there is going to be 9 Alfa Models.

Heres hoping they stick to it!!! :thumbs:
 
#156 ·
This whole saga is a PR disaster for Alfa. I'm sure there are many happy 1750 owners out there but it only takes one instance like this to make people think twice about buying an Alfa.


Western Parts - Do you intend to open a dealership in Aberdeen?
There is a lot of interest and wealth up here but being 130 miles from the nearest dealership puts people off.
 
#157 ·
I'm afraid it's going to take a whole lot more than some pretty pictures to tempt me back into the fold - once bitten etc etc. Don't get me wrong, I still love the cars and will be staying on here (you can't get rid of me that easily, :rolleyes:) but until somebody performs a massive shake-up in the aftersales area, getting them to understand the significance of the words 'customer' and 'service' when linked together, then I'll not be parting with any more of my hard-earned in AR's direction, :(.
 
#173 ·
Some of you will no doubt recall the saga from last year ( http://www.alfaowner.com/Forum/alfa-159-brera-and-946-spider/587010-1750-turbo-blown-again.html ) when the already-replaced-once turbo on my 159 went bang. Well, unbelievably, this afternoon saw turbo #3 follow suit in similarly spectacular fashion, :mad: :cry:.

done 4 turbos on my 1750 in 66000km. There is definitly a design issue.

We'd just dropped off SWMBO's Giulietta at our local(ish) Alfa indie (McLennans at Loanhead, Edinburgh) where it'll be getting a service and timing belt/water pump replacement on Monday and were heading back along the City Bypass at a steady 55-60mph (heavyish traffic) when the whine/scream, under the slightest throttle application, started.

Even Jennifer, who admits to having zero technical knowledge where cars are concerned, picked up on it instantly. I had barely finished responding with my fears over what it might be based on previous experience(s) when they were comprehensively confirmed. A slight stuttering in the power delivery, then a surge followed by total loss of boost pressure and a smoke trail that The Red Arrows would have been proud of.

As it was only a couple of miles or so back to McLennans and mostly downhill so it wouldn't involve much throttle usage, after stopping briefly to pour in a litre of Selenia Sport Power (lucky I carried a spare bottle, :rolleyes:) as a precaution to replace that already incinerated, I elected to limp back there rather than sit on the hard shoulder in sub-zero temperatures for however long it took the RAC to get there, by which time the garage would have been shut for the weekend in any case.

The guys at McLennans smelt the car arrive before they saw it, the stench of burning oil was so strong, although oddly the smell seems to be coming from under the bonnet rather than out of the exhaust - if you turn on the heater/air con fan with the recycle set to off so that it draws air from outside, within seconds the interior of the car is filled with fumes, :confused:.

We enquired about renting a vehicle locally, or failing that could they call us a taxi and in response Stuart McLennan Snr handed over the 'key' to a 159 1.9 and said "just use this, at least until you get the Giulietta back". Top Man, :thumbs:.

I think this latest episode could well be the final nail in the coffin. Off to scour Autotrader for a suitable runabout/dog transporter, then it'll be down the Lotus dealer on Monday for some 'man maths', :D.
 
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