festy's Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV

[Holden202T]

Yeah I didn't think it would need much!

[festy]

Got the oil drain fitting into the sump, mmmm welding cast aluminium that's been soaking in oil for a few decades is fun. I had to cut one of the fins off to make room

Sump

There's still one pinhole leak that needs to be ground down and fixed, a job for another day.

Sump inside

[festy]

Fixed the leak in the sump bung, there was a tiny crack in the weld so I cleaned it up and re-welded, then cooled it *very* slowly and now it's sealed.

I opened up the oil feed to 3mm:

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And picked up a 90* fitting so I should be able to close the bonnet now:

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Welded the V band flange to the turbo housing:

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[festy]

... then started on the dump pipe

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Not sure which direction to route the exhaust in - between the the engine mount and steering rack is probably the best but means the exhaust is doing a >90* turn leaving the turbo then the same at the other end, or route it between the steering rack and firewall where it fits but only just, and runs very close to the rear brake line but the angles are slightly better.
I'm leaning towards the first option, the turns aren't *that* much sharper...

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Also found my boost solenoid that my brother gave me a while back

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[Holden202T]

looking good man!! I would go for the option away from all the accessories, like you say the bends wont be a lot less tight and will make heaps of other stuff easier!

[HQ355]

Re-route the brake line ? Good luck either way !

[festy]

It is a pretty tight fit this way, and I have a feeling I'd be forever trying to stop the exhaust banging on the firewall/steering rack/block:

alternate route

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I think I'll probably take the easy way out and go in front of the steering rack, if I cut back the 90* bend I should be able to reduce the angle a bit.
I can always make a second pipe if I change my mind later

[Holden202T]

yeah I agree, and that will annoy you to no end!

[festy]

Too easy, shortened the bend but kept the angle pretty much at 90*

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Fits like a bought one

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Needs a bit of trimming to length, but I'll worry about that once I have the sump back on and can see where the exhaust has to go

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[festy]

No luck tracking down a new timing idler shaft.
I did find two on ebay in the US but they were both asking more than a complete engine is worth, so didn't bother bidding on those.
One would probably turn up eventually (or a very cheap parts engine at least) but I want to finish this ASAP so decided to pull the timing gear out of my spare engine.

I was hesitant to start pinching parts off that engine because it was a runner. Only just though, it really needed new valve guides.

To pull the timing cover, the sump needs to come off - and that was a problem because the engine was sitting on a trolley, and I gave away my engine crane when I moved house so lifting it was going to be fun
I took some rough measurements and made a very basic stand to hold the engine by it's mounts, then spent a very tense hour slowly lifting the engine off the trolley with a pair of jacks until it was high enough to fit the stand.

Then quickly dropped the sump and pulled the timing cover (while being careful not to bend the oil slinger like I did on the GTV) and grabbed the timing gear.
The oil pump drive gear didn't want to come off at first, and looks like it might have been spinning on the crankshaft, which would explain thy the engine looks like it's been starved of oil at some point.
The idler shaft inner bearing surface is a bit scored (again my guess is low oil pressure) but it should be ok after a light buff.

The condition of this engine compared to the GTV's is startling. I got this GTV about 16 years ago as an abandoned project that had been left to rot in a yard, but there was a glovebox full of receipts for mechanical work carried out before it's demise - including an engine rebuild.
Since I've had the car it's done about 4 track days, a few laps of my old driveway, and roughly a dozen donuts (mostly in the hands of my daughter) so probably less than 100km all up.
Here's what it looks like inside (without any cleaning) - compared to my spare:

GTV block

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GTV oil pump/timing cover

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Spare engine:

spare block

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spare

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And my gaskets turned up today, so I can start re-assembling it all tonight