Sillyspeed...

I should have known this would happen.

Car is a 2002 built (facelift interior) 2.0 Selespeed Veloce.

Fault code: P1742 - Selection Range Sensor.

Am I correct in assuming this is the actuator, and will be hugely
expensive to fix?

On the other hand, I joined the ranks of the Italian Freemasons and went
though the Sillyspeed fluid check procedure - the fluid warning light is
flashing in addition to the code read above - and found it to have
dropped below minimum.

Help......

Cheers,


--
SteveH

SteveH wrote:
> I should have known this would happen.
>
> Car is a 2002 built (facelift interior) 2.0 Selespeed Veloce.
>
> Fault code: P1742 - Selection Range Sensor.
>
> Am I correct in assuming this is the actuator, and will be hugely
> expensive to fix?
>
> On the other hand, I joined the ranks of the Italian Freemasons and went
> though the Sillyspeed fluid check procedure - the fluid warning light is
> flashing in addition to the code read above - and found it to have
> dropped below minimum.
>
> Help......

I'd try topping that up, first.


--
Catman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3
Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply)
116 Giulietta 3.0l Sprint 1.7 GTV TS 156 V6 2.5 S2
Triumph Sprint ST 1050: It's blue, see.
www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk

Catman > wrote:

> SteveH wrote:
> > I should have known this would happen.
> >
> > Car is a 2002 built (facelift interior) 2.0 Selespeed Veloce.
> >
> > Fault code: P1742 - Selection Range Sensor.
> >
> > Am I correct in assuming this is the actuator, and will be hugely
> > expensive to fix?
> >
> > On the other hand, I joined the ranks of the Italian Freemasons and went
> > though the Sillyspeed fluid check procedure - the fluid warning light is
> > flashing in addition to the code read above - and found it to have
> > dropped below minimum.
> >
> > Help......
>
> I'd try topping that up, first.

Well, it's not that.

<looks for warranty documentation>
--
SteveH

SteveH wrote:
> Catman > wrote:
>
>> SteveH wrote:
>>> I should have known this would happen.
>>>
>>> Car is a 2002 built (facelift interior) 2.0 Selespeed Veloce.
>>>
>>> Fault code: P1742 - Selection Range Sensor.
>>>
>>> Am I correct in assuming this is the actuator, and will be hugely
>>> expensive to fix?
>>>
>>> On the other hand, I joined the ranks of the Italian Freemasons and went
>>> though the Sillyspeed fluid check procedure - the fluid warning light is
>>> flashing in addition to the code read above - and found it to have
>>> dropped below minimum.
>>>
>>> Help......
>> I'd try topping that up, first.
>
> Well, it's not that.
>
> <looks for warranty documentation>

Oh dear.

--
Catman MIB#14 SKoGA#6 TEAR#4 BOTAFOF#38 Apostle#21 COSOC#3
Tyger, Tyger Burning Bright (Remove rust to reply)
116 Giulietta 3.0l Sprint 1.7 GTV TS 156 V6 2.5 S2
Triumph Sprint ST 1050: It's blue, see.
www.cuore-sportivo.co.uk

Catman > wrote:

> > Well, it's not that.
> >
> > <looks for warranty documentation>
>
> Oh dear.

The problem now is, once it's fixed, do I keep it or chop it in for
something that doesn't have sillyspeed?

If I do chop it in, I'm unlikely to find anything else that's anywhere
near as nice for similar money (ie. the £5.4k I paid originally) -
anything in that price range would be older and higher mileage.

On the other hand, I can see it would be sensible to both ditch
Sillyspeed and get a diesel.

--
SteveH

On Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:29:08 +0000, (SteveH)
wrote:

>I should have known this would happen.

You *did* know. You were blinded by love at first sight..

--
Z
Scotland
Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather (sold)
'Oil' be seeing you..
(Email must have the word 'Alfa' in the
subject line to get through auto-filtering)

On Thu, 26 Nov 2009 18:03:13 +0000, (SteveH)
wrote:

>On the other hand, I can see it would be sensible to both ditch
>Sillyspeed and get a diesel.

If it's an Alfa then, perhaps, *sensible* isn't realistic. However the
*most* sensible/fun 156/9 would be the 2.4 IMHO.

--
Z
Scotland
Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather (sold)
'Oil' be seeing you..
(Email must have the word 'Alfa' in the
subject line to get through auto-filtering)

Zathras > wrote:

> On Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:29:08 +0000, (SteveH)
> wrote:
>
> >I should have known this would happen.
>
> You *did* know. You were blinded by love at first sight..

Oh, yeah, indeed - black Sportwagon, tan leather, facelift interior but
original body. Of course I was blinded....

However, that doesn't excuse my local specialist from taking the ****.

They've come back with:

New actuator (debatable)
Cambelt tensioner (very dubious, only 16k since it was done with OEM kit
at my trusted local garage)
Rear suspension arm (you're having a laugh - wasn't an advisory on the
MOT in Sept. - only 1.5k miles ago)

Anyway, total estimate is £2.5k - understandably the warranty company
want an independent opinion of this before going ahead.

No wonder people avoid Alfas like the plague - that's around double what
I'd have expected to pay even if it needs a complete new Selespeed
actuator.
--
SteveH

On Wed, 2 Dec 2009 17:33:58 +0000, (SteveH)
wrote:

>Anyway, total estimate is £2.5k - understandably the warranty company
>want an independent opinion of this before going ahead.

Warranty..that's handy!

>No wonder people avoid Alfas like the plague - that's around double what
>I'd have expected to pay even if it needs a complete new Selespeed
>actuator.

That's where the depreciation comes from.

In 2001, I took a gamble and bought a new Alfa. I was scared about the
reputation so, after a lot of research, decided the diesel was going
to be the least problematic and so it was for the first 7 years. After
that, it deteriorated into a joke on a number of counts to the point
where I wouldn't now want a 156 over 7 years old and 70,000 miles even
if it were given to me. I'm sure others have different experiences but
that's mine.

Now, if Alfas were actually built as well as the Italians claim,
really to German standards and had decent support network it would be
a vastly different story. A fair number of years of experience
suggests that Alfa cannot get out of the rut it's in whether it's
trying to or not.

--
Z
Scotland
Alfa Romeo 156 2.4JTD Veloce Leather
'Oil' be seeing you..
(Email must have the word 'Alfa' in the
subject line to get through auto-filtering)

"Zathras" > wrote in message
...
>
> In 2001, I took a gamble and bought a new Alfa. I was scared about the
> reputation so, after a lot of research, decided the diesel was going
> to be the least problematic and so it was for the first 7 years. After
> that, it deteriorated into a joke on a number of counts to the point
> where I wouldn't now want a 156 over 7 years old and 70,000 miles even
> if it were given to me. I'm sure others have different experiences but
> that's mine.
>

Shame, my petrol 156 is 11years old and 80,000 miles. Given my recent
experiences, I was going to give it to you (fellow Scot, we need to stick
together). Instead, I guess I'll have to keep it.

> Now, if Alfas were actually built as well as the Italians claim,
> really to German standards and had decent support network it would be
> a vastly different story. A fair number of years of experience
> suggests that Alfa cannot get out of the rut it's in whether it's
> trying to or not.
>

Ah now, I've never heard Alfa claiming that the cars are well built, or that
they have a decent support network. I think both of these claims are only in
the febrile imaginings of Alfisti, so smitten by the Alfa experience that
they have thrown logic out of the window.

Dave S.....

> --
> Z