AlfaCali

Well, since Alfa left the country many moons ago I decided to bring Alfa to me. Given how intelligent or simply a glutton for punishment I am, I procured a beautiful blue 1997 Spider TS a few months ago. Since I used to own an Alfa - most recently a glorious red 1982 GTV6, which my brother just happened to wrap it around a telephone pole when I was away on business. Since i am up for the Alfa adventure again, which may include pushing/rolling the car over its radiator hoses on the side of the busiest freeway in Los Angeles to get out the oil and coolant soup that had formed as a result of faulty head gasket - I took the plunge and found a 916 in Canada. What I look forward to in this forum is learning how to do basics and where to obtain parts for minor modifications – to start only minor such as, some interior work, new stereo etc. Then tackle some suspension and exhaust mods. I also want to start prepping for future maintenance and securing parts, and I already have started a list such as cam belt but will be looking for advice on what other parts to stock pile. Thanks!

Thanks for the advice! I have ordered boxe's' of parts, including all belts and tools, filters etc etc. The CAM belt was changed a couple of years ago, so that is is good shape. Given the car only has 20,000k miles I suspect that some parts were maintained differently than others, so by 'miles' I am sure everything is fine, but by 'years' it is more of an inexact science. Thus me ordering dozens of parts. Oh and a new stereo, I know the wind in the hair and alfa exhaust should be plenty, but in traffic it helps to actually hear clearly what was coming out of speakers. I looked about the position lights laws and I might be wrong, but I dont think it was mandatory in 1997 when the car was made. The car passed US regulations, I had to produce a significant amount of paperwork. Alfa Romeo had to send a letter validating that the car passed all safety and emmission laws and then of course the California DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) had to inspect and have proof that it passed a smog test. Also California was very happy to take a nice size check to get it registered, I should have claimed to be aresident of Las Vegas and pay a fraction of the costs...

Thanks, I was looking at what else I should get done if i have to replace the variator. There is a lot I can do. But with 20k miles, the car 'should' not need too much done. The MultiEcuScan is a great idea. Hopefully reduce how much guessing I have to do. Link?

Thanks - yes the issue may be the variator. As long as I am going to replace the variator I might as well as replace the cam belt.

Thanks! The car is a 1997 TS with only 20k miles, I do not know of any V6s in the US. I see Sasha recommends some teledials, definately I will take a look at those prices. I am finding all the engine parts I need on-line without too much of a problem. The challenge I am going to have is in diagnosing issues. The engine is a little 'rough', not bad, but not super smooth 'sounding'. The engine drives fine, and is mechanically in good condition. The bodywork should last as long as my girlfriend does not take the keys !! I will definately bookmark the links.

There were some taxes i had to pay when the car drossed the Canadian border into the US. The bigger issue was with the State of Calidornia. I had to have a lot of paperwork from Alfa Romeo as well as sellers. I then had to get the car smogged and inspected to confirm it was US legal. Finally, California has high tax rates, so I had to pay taxes on the price of the car. Each state is different, and almost all states are cheaper than California. For parts I am looking at buying a few in advance. Any suggesstions?

From what I understand there are just over a dozen 916s in North America, they were never sold here new - according to what I have researched. I 'think' there are two others in Southern California. This is going to be an interesting adventure. Already gathering names of parts suppliers. In many cases the shipping will be more than the part I need...