1st post, Hello from Sydney !

[Spirito 3]

I've lurked a little and recently was invited back to have another look, stop in and say hi....

 

I've had my GTV 3.0l for just under 2 years, enjoy it a lot and am close to getting it to a level I'm happy with. I have much admiration and enthusiasm for many of the wonderful 916's on this site. It's truly wonderful to see such well presented cars and so much knowledge shared

 

Ciao, Ben

[EvoMan 116]

Welcome Ben. Lovely Red GTV you have there. Surprising how many Bella's there are in Australia. A red GTV on Teledials, that never goes out of style.

 

Enjoy the forum, that is becoming ever more international. And off course, happy motoring in the GTV.

[kunev 131]

Welcome to the forum Ben  . You car looks very good  . Your car have Pininfarina badges and script Pininfarina below them and I think that this is from when the production is moved to the Pininfarina factory (late 2000), but someone can correct me.

[klumoff 1]

Sydney?! Wow, its cool!!

[Damgreg 94]

Welcome to the forum Ben  . You car looks very good  . Your car have Pininfarina badges and script Pininfarina below them and I think that this is from when the production is moved to the Pininfarina factory (late 2000), but someone can correct me.

Late 2001, with the cf3 mod!

But both aren't properly placed, it seems me they are a bit high.

[Spirito 3]

Thanks for the welcome guys

 

I'm not 100% if it was built at the Pininfarina factory but I do know it was built in Feb '01 and compliance plated here in Oz in Mar '02. That always makes me laugh. I know we're a long way away here in Australia but 13 months, wtf !!!

 

There actually aren't too many of them here in Australia ... and good ones with service history and maintenance records are getting harder to find but they do stand out and I enjoy it's visual appeal as much as I driving it. I took a chance on this one & it was also my first Alfa. The best examples were out of my price range & this one seemed good enough knowing it had a lot of work to be done and parts to replace as I went along. The exhaust is unusual but was a locally sourced dealer fitted option from new & it now has the usual upgrades (Q2, Koni, Polybush, GTA flywheel/clutch etc). Still more to be done but the list is geting shorter.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited January 19, 2014 by Spirito

[Thanos 193]

Welcome Ben!

The photo on your first post is amazing!

[alfisti82 6]

woo hoo another aussie! from perth mate! love the Alfa Rosso, che bellezza!

wishing you the very best on these wonderful forums, these guys are top blokes.

and yes the 916 is a rarity in australia... people ask me all the time... what type of car is that lol

 

 

 

what did the Q2 cost to install?

[Spirito 3]

 

 

what did the Q2 cost to install?

Ciao Kangaroo !!! We've also met on the Ausalfa forum (my handle is the same).

 

Quick answer: perhaps ask these guys here but I think it's a 3 to 4 hour job (in garage speak, meaning how much they'll be looking to charge you if they're willing to get their hands dirty). Of course in Oz they'll try and pump you for 6 hours labour but ask around.

 

Long answer: I was looking to buy this car less than 2 weeks after a young guy had bought it from the original owner before busting the diff gearbox. We couldn't agree on price at this stage. I waited till he had it fixed using a 2nd hand gearbox & diff from some local wreckers. Once it was repaired & rolling by his mechanic I had the car looked over, bought it and I only drove it sparingly until about a year or so in when I had assembled all the parts & had all the work done. Included in the parts was a Quaife diff which I had sourced to be fitted. Mostly becuase I didn't want the same issue happening. Upon starting the work my mechanic called me to say there's a problem .. the 2nd hand gearbox with diff attached that had been fitted already had a Q2 fitted inside. I didn't know, nor did the short term intermediary owner, nor did the wreckers who salvaged the unit that they sold to him.

 

Luckily, I found a local buyer (I think he's on these forums as well) for my new but unfitted Quaife (same as Q2) and it only needed a new set of seals as my mechanic used those to close up my diff again. It cost me a bit of labour and I still think of it as a happy surprise. I did think it drove well, but I was always taking it easy up until then becuase I was so wary of diff breakage & reading about such on various forums. Usually diff stories aren't very happy ones, I guess mine is unusual in that sense & I am very grateful.

Edited January 20, 2014 by Spirito

[NeroGTV 22]

Hiya Ben!  About time you got onto this forum!!! 

 

And once again - your car is looking fantastic!!

 

And yes - that's me who bought Spiritos Quaiffe - And I'm very happy indeed.  With the aussie dollar taking a dive I've saved money.

[Spirito 3]

 

And yes - that's me who bought Spiritos Quaiffe - And I'm very happy indeed.  With the aussie dollar taking a dive I've saved money.

 

Hi Tony, thanks & sorry I took a while to post up here.

 

Also happy the Quaife went to another 916 owner

[kunev 131]

Nice upgrades Spirito   . From picture with parts, the rear shock absorbers seems to be not sports one. Why you have choose to not upgrade rear shock, they are much cheaper than front one?

[Spirito 3]

Nice upgrades Spirito   . From picture with parts, the rear shock absorbers seems to be not sports one. Why you have choose to not upgrade rear shock, they are much cheaper than front one?

Well spotted

 

I ummed and ahhed long about this one, read a lot, drove a fair few cars before deciding that for me & the imperfect roads I drive on I wanted to bring it back to the original ride height (my car was lowered originally) and if I was keeping the 17" wheels I was hoping to make the suspension a little more compliant. The front has Koni sports becuase it needs it (does a lot of the work & is likely to wear sooner) but it's usually on about 1/3 setting from softest and the rear has TRW shocks that are to the OEM standard. I have new KYB standard height springs all round, the rear is all polybushed, new bump stops and the front has new arms, strut top mounts etc (standard).

 

I cannot fault the rear end. It feels very well tied down, takes whatever roads I travel over with minimum of fuss & has grip levels that are in my experience incredible. With the polybushing at the rear I didn't think that firmer shocks (Koni's) were needed, in fact I think it would have made things too hard. Everybody I knew with Koni sports on the rear has them on the softest setting anyway which galvanized my choice for standard spec. rear shocks. The front is very good, still not perfect but is settling in now after 5000km's. I'm sure other will agree that finding the right compromise for the front end of these V6 916's isn't easy. I'm toying with ideas of uprating the rolll bars (especially at the rear) to give the steering a little more feel and directness. I am 100% happy with the ride/handling balance ... no longer am I on full alert for potholes & imperfections, mid corner surprises aren't likely to upset the car and I can live with the car on real roads. We don't do a lot of km's but it's our only car & it does a lot of long trips away.

 

It still rides like a GTV (which is very lively). It will never be a boulevadier, it's suspension is a little old in design (Alfa 155 - 90's?) and more geared towards the sporting side. But I've bought the balance back a little bit and now that it's a little more compliant and a little less uncompromising I've found that it's actually more fun to drive faster & I can push it a little deeper without getting white knuckles or feeling like I'm going to break something. These are all subjective opinions of course ... but it works for me.

Edited January 21, 2014 by Spirito

[Paso 239]

This is great! Welcome!

[alfisti82 6]

hmm i need to buy a q2 and some shockies stat! love the work. i love these forums as it is perfect for 916's

[orgigeorgie 2]

Welcome benny boy