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FAQ
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Frequently Asked Questions:
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How do I fit a new hood on a Spider 105/115?
Well, it's not quite so easy as it sounds. If you are not quite certain contact your nearest
Alfa-Dealer or Saddlemaker.
Tools: Poprivet pliers, 4m/m drill, screwdriver, spanner, brush
Material: hood,special glue for hood, poprivets, metal plate (special accesory)
First of all you should take notice of what you are taking apart and how you do it.
The rest comes almost by itself. To take the hood apart it's best to start off with a
small drill for the poprivets, the glued parts usually comes off easily but you'll have to
take the glue from all joints and metal parts. Take particular care of the front end, in my
opinion it's the hardest part.Take care with the twisted wire and make sure that
you take it carefully out of its guideway. If it unravels you'll never get it together again.
For the fitting procedure you'll need a Poprivet gun or pliers of good quality and loads of
poprivets. Whatever you do try to complete the fitting on the sameday, otherwise you may forget
what you did the day before, the glue has to be used up otherwise it goes "off".
The new hood is to be placed loosely at the back end.
The front end is to be glued and riveted, make sure that the front seam is pointing down
far enough. Otherwise it's going to be very loud, as if you're in a wind tunnel !!!.
You'll need loads of patience with the riveting you'll also need many hands to press down
and to fit the metal plate thats up front under the hood.Do yourself a favour and buy this
part new, the old one is more than likely knackered.The rest is small stuff, that is what
takes up most of the time.Take care that you use just the right amount of glue, too much
and you won't get out of your seat, too little and by 120 mph you'll be topless.
Don't glue too tight otherwise the hood might not close properly.Your first try might not
be bad but a bit of practice you'll get the hang of things.
The front support bar should be dismanteld first, derusted (Sandblast) and afterwards spray
galvanized. Afterwards finish off by spraying and the inner area should be washed out with
underbody sealant.!
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How do I take care of my hood?
There are special polishes for those blind rear windows, after using it once
you've got an almost new window.
Textile cover:
It is very important that the hood be opened when it's dry otherwise it will
bleach in certain areas, apart from falling apart after some time.
Never open the hood, especially when it's cold that's not very good for the rear window.
Critical is when the temperatures reach around or just above freezing.
I speak from my own experience, it was about 6° and whups a tear appeared in the rear window!!.
The new Spider (916) is not so susceptable to this problem because you can take the rear window
out and replace it, not so with the older models (101 bis 115) where you've got to replace the
whole hood.Some say it pays to seek a saddler, I find it's so or so expensive.
If you want to drive open in winter it's best to warm the rear window before folding and the
same goes when opening.Please open it slowly, you know why?(!).
To clean the hood all you need to begin with is a hose with clear water or a highpressure jet,
be carefull and don't get too close. There are special cleaners on the market but be carefull
you musn't forget to impregnate it about 2 or 4 times a year. On the older models you must take
extra care. The paintwork has to be cleaned after impregnation otherwise it leaves ugly marks.
Plastic cover:
The plastic cover is easier to clean, you can even fold it when it's wet, plastic dries
quicker.To clean the cover use PVC cleaner. Don't forget the rear window when it's cold,
slowly unfold or fold otherwise the window will tear.It is important that you treat the cover
with a good PVC carer product.
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What can I do wrong with my Alfa-Motor?
- No sprint starts when the motor is still cold, otherwise you can buy a new motor!
- Don't give too much gas when the motor is warm
- Check oil level, too much is just as bad as too little
- Check water in radiator and in winter the antifrost mix
By warm I mean oil temperature, and not the water temp.!!!
Start
How do I take care of the bodywork?
Because of the reduced lead content the newer red coloured models are sometimes
dull. Most of the best polishes don't even help so leave them on the shelf!.What
you can do is to regularly wax your Alfa with hard wax, you'll see the difference.
Start
What must I look for when buying new rims?
To make it easy for you the ET ( offset) is decisive to measure how far the wheel protrudes
out of the wheel arch. The optimal ET differs from model and type, optimal means that
the wheel is in line with the wing/ fender and that the wheel can move freely.The MOT
will check it so or so!.
Result: The smaller the ET = more protrusion, the deeper the ET = less protrusion.
The wheelbolts diameter and the number of bolts are usually written as in the following example;
98/5. When you see this you logically think aha! 5 holes but what's 98?, 98 is the boltcircle in mm.
So when you are buying new rims check up before puchasing, otherwise they may look great but don't
fit, shame!,shame!.
More info under Tuning-Styling.
Advice Tuning Start
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