Alfa Milano Registry - Verde Rebuild Week 1

Having previously had to remove the exhaust to install some of the rear-end Performatek poly bushings I knew that I may as well start there since one of the PO's decided to have their exhaust guy weld it together as one piece (except for the rear muffler) so I was going to have to remove it. I jacked the car up and put it on four jack stands with the rear end quite a bit higher than the front end. Before I jacked up the front end I made sure to undo the bolt for the radiator hold down as I had previously cracked a perfectly good radiator using the front jacking point, there must be a bit of flex in there or something, that was an expensive lesson! So now just to be safe I always undo that bolt before lifting the front end.

The convenient (not!) one piece exhaust

After that I basically started following the procedure in the service manual for engine removal. As I disconnected each hose and wire I attached some masking tape and labeled it with the # that the manual assigned to it. I didn't remove the hood until just before I pulled the engine. When I removed the hose at the very front passenger side of the plenum it started dripping fuel so I put the end in a small bottle to catch what I thought might be a pint of so... After topping off my fuel can for the snow blower (it had been almost full), topping off the snow blower and filling half of the tank on the tractor in the shed it I couldn't figure out how this much fuel could possibly be in the lines! I finally gave up and plugged the hose with the cone shaped top from one of my gear oil bottles that I had been saving for who knows what (now I know :-) ). It finally dawned on me the next day that the fuel was probably coming out of the tank, not just the lines, since I had the rear end jacked up so much higher than the front, or at least that is what I think is happening, anyway back to the topic at hand.

While removing the fuel injector electrical harness some of the connectors broke as they were VERY brittle so I'll have to replace those. I've got some in decent condition on my spare Spider wiring harness but I'm also waiting on a response from these guys on their replacement connector housings as that is all I need and they are a lot cheaper than getting replacements from the usual Alfa vendors, they look a little different so just want to verify that they will fit before I order any. 02/03/06 - Well I got the following reply "It appears to be shaped differently than the one we sell. It might not stay connected. " so I guess I won't be getting any of those...

Week 1: Jan 21, 2006 - Preparing to remove the engine
Week 2: Jan 28, 2006 - Getting the engine out of the car
Week 3: Feb 04, 2006 - Removal of the heads and oil pan
Week 4: Feb 11, 2006 - Removal of the pistons and crankshaft
Week 5: Feb 13, 2006 - Mar 26, 2006 - Much time passes with little rebuild progress...but got other stuff done
Finishing Up: Jul 02, 2006 - Much more time passes but finally finished!