Alfa Pages

[LDA]

hey all,

having an annoying problem with my perm 4. if i have to slow down slightly harder than a gental push on the brakes the 4x4 warning light comes on and i lose 4wd. the light only goes out if i turn off and restart.

i can brake quite hard in my 33 after the new pads i put in were run in ok but if i use much more than 20% of the stopping power i lose 4wd. its ok if i'm not far from home, i just let it be and finish the drive. but the car tends to torque steer and not stick as well as it does in 4wd mode.

whats the problem? this happnes quite a lot now, every time i drive the car. is there an easy fix? maybe just unplug the brake switch?

thanks

L.
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A good workman allways blames his sh*t tools.

[paulhide]

First thing I would check is the slight possibility that one of the two brake sensors behind the peddle may not be releasing or working properly. One sends a signal to your brake lights the other is for the 4WD system. If one of these sticks then the 4WD will disengage. Simple part to sort out/replace if this is the problem.
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Owner's Club 33 Registrar. Now from P4 & S2 1.7 QV
http://www.alfa-pages.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=5188

[LDA]

thanks, will check that.

L.
_________________
A good workman allways blames his sh*t tools.

[LDA]

turns out that the switch under the brake pedal was sticking. some wd40 seemed to sort it out. gave it a bit of a clean out as well. took it for a 2 hour test drive and it worked perfectly every time nice easy fix that one

L.
_________________
A good workman allways blames his sh*t tools.

[paulhide]

Good. Glad it was that simple. Wonder what would've happened if you'd taken it to a garage.
_________________
Owner's Club 33 Registrar. Now from P4 & S2 1.7 QV
http://www.alfa-pages.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=5188

[GaryUK]

Lot's of sucking air through teeth and tutting whilst an imaginary figure materialised in his head. This figure would depend on his assesment of the size of your wallet.

[LDA]

yeh very happy.
seems ice can catch out the 4wd system tho. if i'm on a dry/non ice covered road its cool. but if i hit ice then the 4x4 cuts out under breaking.
it does seem to cut back in tho once you have stopped breaking.

very glad i sorted it for free. thanks for the idea on what to look for paul! i owe you a pint!

plus i rebuilt my heaters over the weekend. and they are working so well. i have never been in a 33 with hot air coming out of the vents

good job too as it damn cold out there!

L.
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A good workman allways blames his sh*t tools.

[paulhide]

Yeah, I've got to work out why my heater isn't sending hot air in when the matrix seems okay.
_________________
Owner's Club 33 Registrar. Now from P4 & S2 1.7 QV
http://www.alfa-pages.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=5188

[LDA]

i took the whole lot out. its bloody hard work. i had to take most of the dash out (only to find that i could have done it without) and then got my m8 to help me drag the thing out of the car.

took it apart as much as i could and cleared out the years of road dirt. found a duff spring on one of the flaps and put a new one on. i cleared out the vents etc as much as i could reach too.
i read a while ago of someone else doing it to their car. it was a post on this forum too. worked a treat. the fan seems to blow more air now, and the heater seems to heat the air aswell. bonus

its damn hard work and i would get help if you can. but this week i'm very glad i did it.
took me all of sunday just to get it back in though. not easy. and a very cold and stressful job when the weather is like it has been over the last few days.

it was all worth it in the end. but boy did i drink in the local on sunday evening!

good luck.

L.
_________________
A good workman allways blames his sh*t tools.

[Buck Bundy]

[LDA]

ho no! not too bad i hope buck.

i was working on a full time 4wd replacement part for the mag coupling. but since i'm not keeping the car 4wd anymore i've given up on that project.

you can really use the 4wd sustem to get you out of trouble in the pulsar. the alfa is sort of similar so long as your not breaking. but the alfa doesnt have any clever diffs to help out.

if you break while not in a straight line i find the 4wd cuts out a little earlier. not sure of the thinking behind this but its a pain in the arse as the rear wheels dont get powered up as soon as you lift the break pedal. there is a short delay that can play havoc with taking round abouts quickly.

can you fix you car buck or has it hit its last wall?

L.
_________________
A good workman allways blames his sh*t tools.

[tvatavuk]

Reason for 4x4 to disengage when braking with more then 0.2G )) is to protect its parts from damage as a result of transfering brake force front-rear and vice versa.
Either visco coupling would owerheat or you would crush one of prop shafts joints.
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Tino Vatavuk
Little black dress which replaced Alfa Romeo 33 S 16v Permanent 4 GMo

[paulhide]

Anyone know why my P4 shakes a bit when going round tight corners even though I've changed the viscous coupling. And can you put the prop shaft in front of the coupling 180 degrees out of alignment with that to the rear of it and if so how could you tell you'd done this???????
_________________
Owner's Club 33 Registrar. Now from P4 & S2 1.7 QV
http://www.alfa-pages.co.uk/viewtopic.php?t=5188

[tvatavuk]

1. Shaking a bit can be caused just by not centering enough first visco mount.
2/3. Don't know.
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Tino Vatavuk
Little black dress which replaced Alfa Romeo 33 S 16v Permanent 4 GMo