[alfa] Milano ABS-day

["Ted Williams" <tedw@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hello all,

As I reported a while back, the ABS pump on my Verde had been liberally
spraying brake fluid around its engine bay....I had decided to try the GM ABS
parts switch, bought my parts from www.gmpartsdirect.com and was at last,
going to put them on. Took me a while to get to it though, because of a move
and busy couple months at work. I finally was able to make the switch this
afternoon, but I'm afraid I don't have great news.

The removal of the old parts went fairly well...and actually, I didn't have
too much trouble getting the new pump on. As the Alfa Owner article says, the
Accumulator is mounted in a different place, and the "banjo" slip for the
master cylinder is actually rotated on the other side of the pump's motor.
This posed an interesting problem, because the battery is in the way...at
first I thought I would put some spacers on the back of the ABS mounting plate
(that bolts to the car)...but after a couple of tries, and some suggestions
from my dad's friend Steve, I decided to unscrew the ABS motor from the pump
and turn it 180 degrees...basically moving the "banjo" clip to the appropriate
(read: Alfa) position. Worked like a charm!

The next hurtle, as stated in the Owner article, was the pressure switch
connecter. The new pump came with a pressure switch installed, but the
connectors are different...so I followed the article's advice and put the old
pressure switch on the new pump, then switched the 12v line and the ground on
the Alfa connector (I'd recommend buying the GM connector for the new pressure
switch and using that...) ...hooked everything up, turned the key...counted to
20...30....40...50...60...65....68.5...

Pump kept running.

Figuring maybe I screwed something up, when putting it all back together, I
decided to switch the pressure switch connector wires back to their original
places...tried it again.
20....30....35....40....60....

Pump kept running.

I fiddled with it a couple more times, rested...went to help Steve and my dad
work on putting the new engine back in my dad's GTV...was going to try and
figure out what else could be keeping my new ABS pump running....then suddenly
realized that the firewall of my car had peeling paint...like it had been wet
with brake fluid.

I'd never noticed this before...upon closer inspection...lots of brake
fluid...then, under the dash, looking up at the peddle box...more brake
fluid...Hey, I have a bad master cylinder! Yippeee!

Not knowing what the heck else is bad on the car...I decided to remove the new
parts, reinstall the old pump (in its leaky glory) and drive my butt home. Car
drove and stopped fine...made it home safe (don't try this at home kids)...now
I am going to call APE on Monday to see about a "standard braking" kit for my
car...screw the ABS. : )

That said, I do think the GM parts is a great way to save your ABS
system...you just have to be a little more observant than me, and make sure
its not something even MORE costly that could be the problem. If you are
looking to do this switch for your ABS Milano...or just want the extra "bolt
on" new parts, drop me an email. Make me an offer. I've got a new, hardly even
used, ABS pump and Accumulator...I'll even throw in the copy of Alfa Owner
that explains how to do the switch.

Ted
Los Altos, CA
88 Milano Verde
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