My wifes 146

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rsfruitbat
Posts: 773
Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2014 7:54 am

My wifes 146

Post by rsfruitbat »

Thought i'd be the first to post.

We were lucky a couple of years ago to find a 1.8 W reg 146 with 23000 genuine miles on the clock with all the paperwork to proove it.

Anyway couple of problems at the moment.
1. regularly has to have the 30 sec reset as it starts hunting at idle. Once done it'll be fine again for maybe 6 weeks then it will start to deteriorate until it is reset again.

2. From cold car it is as flat as a f**t. You can put the accelerator to the floor when its rolling with no effect on acceleration. as the car warms the problem diminishes until it is running normally.

3. Whining under acceleration. Suspect that this is the fanbelt tensioner? Had this go once before on my 146Ti but when I sprayed it with WD40 it went away briefly but that hasnt worked on this car.

Any thoughts / advice appreciated.

rsfruitbat

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AlfaCorseChris
Posts: 634
Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2014 8:30 am
Location: Cyprus

Re: My wifes 146

Post by AlfaCorseChris »

Hmmm... sounds like a throttle or ECU issue to me mate, maybe a dry joint somewhere.
It happens to cars that arent been used much and arent garaged either (asuming this one been your wifes , it stays outside) :lol:

Bout the wining ... I'd have that checked ASAP !
If its fan belt tensioner, then worst case, you lose your water pump if it brakes or starts wiggling about causing your belt to jump and snap

What if its a timing belt tensioner though ?

WD 40 wont solve the problem mate, it will only hide it for a while. However it may case you other issues as it contains diesel in it and it eats up through the rubbers and belts.

rcollie
Posts: 37
Joined: Thu Jan 30, 2014 8:39 pm
Location: Leslie, Fife.

Re: My wifes 146

Post by rcollie »

Could be issues with idle control valve. The throttle body can be taken off and given a good clean.

The lack of oomph when cold could be the MAF. Try a test drive with it disconnected. It can sometimes be cleaned for temporary relief. If you need a new one don't be tempted by the cheap copies, buy the genuine Bosch part but look for the 'Vauxhall' version as it is identical but much cheaper.

The relay box at the front of the battery is a common cause of gremlins due to it's exposure to the elements. Many people have stripped back all the wires and redone all the connections. I believe the Fiat Tipo has the same box under the dash, Alfa Romeo knew better!

If you can get the whine when stationary revving the engine then try unhooking the belt of the tensioner and running the engine for a couple of minutes like that to see if the noise stops.

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PETROLHEAD
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Location: Nottingham

Re: My wifes 146

Post by PETROLHEAD »

All sound advice Collie, nice one! :D
SHREW

I AM the Law!


Alfasud 1.7-16v, Charade Turbo SR, & The Dirty Diesels - GT Cloverleaf, 159 Ti Sportwagon, Saab 9-3 Sportwagon

rsfruitbat
Posts: 773
Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2014 7:54 am

Re: My wifes 146

Post by rsfruitbat »

Thanks for advice so far guys.

As soon as I can get rid of the manflu I am planning to try some of them

rsfruitbat

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