[Hamez]

Hi all,

I've somehow ended up agreeing to buy an Alfa Romeo!

Long story short, I was helping my sister look for a new car and while browsing stumbled upon a Giulietta cloverleaf. It was no good for her but it grabbed my interest so a couple of Google searches and a quick insurance quote later and I've booked to view it.

Viewing and test drive went well, the car isn't perfect my any means but I like the way it looks, it drives straight enough and it seems like an honest car. Suddenly I'm faced with the proposition of explaining to the missus why I'm selling my perfectly reliable and incredibly practical Honda Civic to buy a shiny red Alfa Romeo! To be honest I'm not totally certain myself why I'm doing it. The timing isn't great for me personally, I wasn't even thinking about changing vehicles and I'm really more of a German or Japanese car guy anyway. Nonetheless, the Civic has today been sold and I've agreed to pick up the Alfa on Monday!

So with all of that I thought I'd better check in and say hi 🙂 I browsed a little and looks like there's some good information and knowledge here. One thing I couldn't find though was a "members cars" section or similar where people can create threads for their cars and chart the journey. It's something that almost all car forums have, is there a section like that here somewhere?

 

[DomMag]

Hi Hamez,

Can't answer your question about a 'members car section' as not here long enough myself. I suppose you could make this thread the story of your Giulietta? Post up some photos etc ?

I think all older second hand cars come with some sort of issue or niggle that will irk the new owner....but that's also an excuse to get out to the car/garage and get clambering and fiddling about.

 

[TonyGr]

Some projects are documented here Motoring Images
Others choose to do so in the relevant Technical Lounge

 

[LuigiMusso]

Congrats on the purchase!

Sounds like a similar journey to mine.

From a super reliable Japanese to Alfa Giulietta QV.

Only way to fly!

 

[Hamez]

Thanks guys, I'll probably put some bits and pieces down in here, more so I don't forget what I'm doing/have done than anything else!

So I've had it a week now. Have been away with work for most of it and as such haven't had much opportunity to get familiar with it, but so far I'm liking it 😁 It needs a damn good clean inside and out, and has some annoying niggles that vary in difficulty to fix. Chief among these is the driver's side of the heating system not working, which I've read may be a dash out job so I'm not looking forward to that one.

Anyway everyone likes pictures I know, but the only one I've got so far is the one in the dark after picking it up last week so you'll have to make do with that for now. Will endeavour to take some better ones once it's had a decent clean.

 

[Hamez]

Hey guys,

Time for the tiniest of updates. Life has been pretty hectic the past few weeks. I've been away with work, partner had some minor surgery and now we're moving house so the Alfa has been shoved way down on the list of priorities. I've done less than 200 miles in it since purchasing it...

Today however I did manage to get something sorted that's been bothering me ever since I picked it up. The little eye on the end of the key fob that allows you to attach it to a keyring or such was broken and needed replacing, so I ordered a replacement key fob set off eBay which arrived this morning. I didn't fancy faffing about reshelling the whole thing so I just dismantled it enough to slip the old broken eye out and slot the new one in its place. Seeing as I had the button pad off anyway I also swapped that for the new one. It's a really small win but being able to have it attached to all my other keys and hang it on the key hook brings peace to my mind 😁

Hopefully next week I can get some time to begin tackling some of the other niggles that need sorting, and maybe even give it a well overdue wash!

 

[classicgal93]

Welcome and congrats on your lovely red Alfa! Cheers.

 

[Hamez]

Thanks, it really needs a good clean so I can take some better pictures!

 

[Hamez]

Well I finally got round to giving the Cloverleaf a wash today. Well I say wash, I threw some soapy water at it! Comes up OK, I'd like to get a professional to have a go at it really but for now it'll have to make do with me and a bucket and sponge.

Managed to fix another one of the little niggles it has. The offside LED strip in the boot hatch had stopped illuminating, so I opened the boot fully prepared to dig into the wiring between the body and the boot hatch. Thought I'd have a quick look at the connection to the light unit first and found it was both loose and corroded. Cleaned up the terminals as best I could, pushed it home and what do you know, it works. For now anyway.

Another of the niggles I need to sort is the heating/climate control issue. I'm sure I'd read somewhere that you could activate a self learn procedure for the mixer flaps using the buttons on the climate control panel, but for the life of me I can't find that info now. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

Better put a couple of poorly taken pics up too I suppose!

 

[DomMag]

Paint work has polished up very nicely!
I nearly always find that a couple of the faults and niggles are surprisingly easy and simple fixes. Hope it carries on that way for you Hamez

 

[Hamez]

Paint work has polished up very nicely!
I nearly always find that a couple of the faults and niggles are surprisingly easy and simple fixes. Hope it carries on that way for you Hamez

Me too, unfortunately I think the issue with the climate control is going to be the one to buck that trend!

 

[Hamez]

Got a mate of mine to have a go at polishing the headlights for me yesterday, a definite improvement but the lenses still aren't great. Also tightened up the passenger side rear door strap as the bolt had come loose and tried to calibrate the mixer flaps for the climate control system with limited success. I am now able to get A/C from the driver's vents but not heated air 🙃

Today's job was getting my dad's ph1 GTV sorted so it could be MOT'd before all the garages closed for Christmas. The driver's inner door handle cable had snapped and the door not being able to be opened from the inside would've been a failure. Fitted the replacement this morning along with a new inner handle return spring as that was also snapped. Phoned up the MOT guys and by 2pm it was all done with a fresh 12 month ticket 👍 a couple of advisories on the front brakes so I'm sure I'll be asked to look into that after Christmas.

Amazing the amount of similarities the cars have, there's a real sense of design philosophy with Alfa.

 

[Hamez]

Alright, another couple of niggles sorted. Firstly, the rear sidelight LED strip in the boot had stopped working again. Popped the access hatch and it seemed to be working itself loose, and I couldn't seem to see how it would attach on one end. I popped the nearside access hatch to compare and immediately noticed that there was a screw missing from the offside which explained why when I first inspected it I found it bodged in with sellotape! Rooted through my odds and sods draw and found a suitable screw for the job. Hopefully that's permanently sorted that one.

Next was an intermittent knock from the nearside front, very sporadic and sounded like a droplink or similar. Got underneath it and discovered that it was fact that whoever had worked on it last has stripped the thread on the nut for the bottom ball joint bolt 😱 Luckily the bolt itself was ok so I ran the die up and down the thread to clean it up and then it was back into the odds and sods box to find a nut. Applied some loctite and tightened it up and hey presto, no more knock!

Next on the list was to empty the rear interior light of the small lake that had formed in it 😳 Popped the cover and had a look to try and find the source of the ingress. Seems to be coming from the radio aerial which I believe is a common problem? Would make sense for it to be coming from there as my radio reception is crap! Ran out of time at this point so stuck it on the to do list and called it a day.

 

[duemila]

car looks great nice purchase

 

[Hamez]

car looks great nice purchase

Thanks, I'm pleased with it!

Two days of working on it in a row, this is unheard-of! Today's jobs were to investigate into the water ingress and also to do a quick service. Started with the water ingress, I'd read mixed reports on how easy it was to access the radio antenna so was pleasantly surprised when after popping out a couple of trim clips, removing the rear convenience light and pulling off the sunroof surround it was all there in front of me with plenty of access room. Started by unclipping all electrical connectors, blowing out with an airline and applying contact cleaner which I left to dry whilst I took the antenna off. It was clear to see that water had been getting in somehow so I cleaned up all the surfaces, applied a liberal helping of sealant and then bolted it back down. I've no idea if it's worked or not as I wanted to let it dry properly before I get it wet! I can however report that my radio reception is much improved 😁 gone from only really being able to get local stations intermittently to being able to pick up a variety of stations pretty consistently, which is great. Real test will come in the next couple of days when the roof sees some water but I'm happy with the early results.

After that it was onto a quick service. Oil and filter, air filter and cabin filter. Nothing special to report here, air filter was surprisingly clean, oil was pretty manky and the cabin filter looked like it hasn't been done in years! Engine seems a little quieter on tickover now and the slightly musty smell I was getting in the cabin has faded so I'm pleased I was able to get those jobs jobbed today.

Next job now is one that I'm really not looking forward to, the distinct lack of control in the climate control system. I'd read that sometimes the cabin filter can contribute to the issue but I didn't notice any change after fitting the new one, it was pretty dirty but I think I was clutching at straws hoping it would help! From what I've read and my symptoms it seems like I've got the mixer motor issue so I'll scan it tomorrow, try to do a self learn and then work out what I'm going to do when that doesn't fix it. 😳

 

[Hamez]

Managed to get the scanner on the car today to have a look into the HVAC system, hopefully if I report my findings here then someone a bit more knowledgeable than me might be able to help me out a bit.

Firstly, my problem. I have no hot air on the driver's side of the car. The passenger side does have hot air, not furnace-like but more than acceptable. I also noticed that the passenger side doesn't seem to blow properly cold air. The only fault code is a stored code: B190913 REC motor circuit open.

With the scanner I had a look at the live data and with the heat set at 32° both sides and the fan on full, the left mix motor is at 0% and the right is at 100%. I then used the scanner to adjust the demand of each side. With the left side at 0% I get hot air from the vent and with it at 100% I get cool air. The right side however doesn't change the temperature of air at any percentage (you can hear and feel changes in the force of air from the vent though). I tried a self learn procedure which came back with a successful completion message but no change. Can anyone shed some light on the probable cause of the problem? Or maybe advise any further tests that could help? I could really use some hot air on these cold mornings! 🥶

 

[cnut]

Managed to get the scanner on the car today to have a look into the HVAC system, hopefully if I report my findings here then someone a bit more knowledgeable than me might be able to help me out a bit.

Firstly, my problem. I have no hot air on the driver's side of the car. The passenger side does have hot air, not furnace-like but more than acceptable. I also noticed that the passenger side doesn't seem to blow properly cold air. The only fault code is a stored code: B190913 REC motor circuit open.

With the scanner I had a look at the live data and with the heat set at 32° both sides and the fan on full, the left mix motor is at 0% and the right is at 100%. I then used the scanner to adjust the demand of each side. With the left side at 0% I get hot air from the vent and with it at 100% I get cool air. The right side however doesn't change the temperature of air at any percentage (you can hear and feel changes in the force of air from the vent though). I tried a self learn procedure which came back with a successful completion message but no change. Can anyone shed some light on the probable cause of the problem? Or maybe advise any further tests that could help? I could really use some hot air on these cold mornings! 🥶

Hi, are you on the Giulietta Enthusiasts FB group? There is a guide on flushing the heater matrix with citric acid. This should fix your issue as it's the same problem mine had.

 

[cnut]

Facebook Groups

Giulietta Enthusiasts Guides has 2,458 members. Here is a dedicated section which is purely for guides. If your removing the front bumper to removing the door cards to install new speakers no matter...

www.facebook.com

 

[Alfa Nut.]

Firstly, congratulations on your lovely motor. Some daytime photos would be nice, even if in the snow for now⛄

As part of our family, we also have a Giulietta QV, but it is a limited edition (no 9 of 100), Squadra Corse made for the SA market only. Outrageously loud and quick as it's had modifications done by a local motorsport company. All commissioned by Alfa of SA, so we bought it off the floor with the mods included.

To your issue of the climate control, however. We've owned various Alfas over the past almost 20 years and every single one has had its own foibles as far as this is concerned. A common thread on just about all of them (except my Giulia) is that they tend to run extremely cold. Often it's meant the climate control temp settings have to be as high as 26 or 27oC in order for any heat to be felt.

Both our Giulietta and Giulia suffer the same issue as you appear to have though. Particularly with regard to the centre vents in the dash. They both do (but not all the time) blow warm air from the passenger vent, whilst cool air will come out the driver's side.

Typically, however, once driving for a few kms and oil up to temp, it settles down and a comfortable ambient temp is achieved. Generally, the Giulietta does, however, run a lot colder than the Giulia when the CC is at the same temp setting.

Over the years, I've raised the various aircon issues we've had with the dealership and they told me it's just how they work.

Based on my experience with the Giulia in this regard, it's possibly fair to say that Alfa have improved their CC systems, as I haven't had a problem with it being too cold in the car. The strange behaviour of the hot and cold blowing simultaneously, however, does still exist....

You may not be able to get it fixed to your liking. We certainly haven't but have learned to compensate and live with it...

It's one of the reasons we love our Alfas...

 

[Hamez]

Facebook Groups

Giulietta Enthusiasts Guides has 2,458 members. Here is a dedicated section which is purely for guides. If your removing the front bumper to removing the door cards to install new speakers no matter...

www.facebook.com

Thanks, I've joined the group and found the post. I'll have a read through it and if it seems like it'll help then I'll give it a bash 👍