[alfa] Re: undercammed Berlina vs.importance of exhaust

[NortonMarg@xxxxxxx]

Awhile back I posted the list about the lack of power I had considering I'd 
just done a mildly hot rod engine rebuild, 10:1 flat top pistons, euro cams, 
big valve conversion and mild porting. Here's the end of the tale:
My mechanic had told be there was no front muffler, just a straight piece of 
pipe welded in. So I had installed a new front muffler, and by the denim dyno, 
I must have picked up 10 h.p. The guys who put in the front muffler, did a 
bad job (not enough clearance to the frame) AND scratched my doors, so I took it 
to another shop (Emmanuel's, in Alameda, where they LOVE Alfas), put it on 
the lift and saw that the other two mufflers were not genuine Alfa. The middle 
one did not go straight through and was small. Now the car is wearing a stock 
Alfa exhaust system front to back and it runs MUCH better. It revs well and has 
a lot more power, AND is quieter.
I'd had a suggestion to leave the straight pipe in the front because it 
sounded good, but as my mechanic said "it's hard to out-Alfa Alfa". My feeling was 
that Alfa had done a pretty good job and if you wanted to make improvements, 
you'd better be doing it with a dyno or it might be no improvement at all. 
Certainly, the prior owner's inclination to fix everything the cheapest way 
possible, didn't do the car any favors.
I may still go for a Pittatore cam or two.
Stevan Thomas
73 Berlina
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