[alfa] 89 Spider Mechanical Issues

["Christopher " <alfadoctor@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I have decided that it is time for me to get back on the digest at least for
a little while to work through some issues that I have with this 89 spider
Veloce that I own. The car sat under a tree (haven't we heard that story
before!) for 4 years. The PO put some serious money in to the car but it was
still a gross polluter. The head was replaced with a rebuilt one but the car
still needed some serious work. Other than the issues listed below the car
is nice to drive.

Lets tackle some of these issues:

The speedometer doesn't work. The cable is fine, took it out and lubricated
it. I suspect the electrical sensor that is mounted on the drivers fender.
These go bad? Can they be repaired? Other possiblities? Does the speedometer
head go bad?
How fast would I be driving at 3000 rpm in 5th? 3500? 4000? Since the speedo
doesn't work, I need some sort of references.

The differential is bad. This diff sure makes a howl going down the road at
speed. It seems to me that someone lugged the car around town and the pinion
went out. The pinion is loose and needs to be rebuilt. Since this is a 4:10
rear axle  Swap it out with another one? I have a 4:55 sitting here on the
floor, could I swap that in?


The car passed smog with flying colors after I replaced the air flow meter
and catalytic converter. The performance of this car leaves alot to be
desired. When you put your foot down on the gasm, the rpm's goes up , but
the acceleration being that it is so lean, takes it forever to get up to
speed. Any ideas on how to get more performance out of this car? Can I swap
out the vario cam with something else? I have some 10548 cams I could drop
in.

In comparing the quality of a 76 spider with the 89 is like day and night.
The 89 might be more in tune with what a car would have for buyers, but the
76 with Spica is a far better driving automobile IMHO. This might change
when I get some of these issues resolved.

Thanks for your help.
Christopher Boles
Veloce/SS/SV Register
http://www.veloceregister.net
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