False starter, finished
Running beautifully, passed its MOT with just a new washer tube needed; I knew that the Spider was about to throw some kind of challenge at me. That’s what they do – it’s what keeps the relationship interesting. But I really wasn’t expecting trouble to come from the brand-new starter motor that I’d fitted only six months previously.
This was not only new, but an upgrade to a Series 4 Spider unit that’s both smaller and has more torque for easier starting – a real win-win. Or it was up until the moment when I turned the key and heard a bang followed by what I can best describe as the sound of a lawnmower hitting a patch of gravel.
I haven’t felt such horror since I last read a Stephen King novel – was that the ring gear, or the flywheel itself? I’d heard tales of them cracking. At least there’s an open bit at the bottom of the bellhousing so I was able crawl underneath with a torch and eliminate that duo from my enquiries. However unlikely, it could only be the starter, which still turned the engine over but made that awful grinding racket. It did at least fire the car up for my house move to Cambridge, luckily with no need to stop for fuel. Then I got on to Classic Alfa about the problem. ‘Please send us the starter back for testing,’ was the response. Nothing for it but to take the carbs off again to get at it. I’m getting much better at that now following three goes in the last year, but it’s still a knuckle- nicking pain.
The verdict a few days later was as expected – the starter was broken. It was the suggested solution that surprised me. ‘I have a freshly rebuilt Bosch starter motor here that I can send as a replacement. We find that these are much more reliable than the reproduction new units.’ I wish I’d known that earlier. And so we now have yet another example to add to the growing list of reproduction parts for classic cars that clearly aren’t as robust as the originals.
All very annoying then, but not enough to stop me from adding a pair of later-model seatbelt support clips to the order. I’ve only just found out about these and have spent the past six years being annoyed when the belt constantly slips off my shoulder. So with the new starter in and working perfectly, that’s two things fixed.