Re: Dents in Spider hoods

[tony martie <tony@domain.elided>]

Some time ago I had a particularly violent run-in with a pretty good 
sized rock laying in the road.  I didn't see it until it was too late 
and I thought my guard and pan were done for when it lifted the front of 
my lowered Spider right off of the road.
No damage!  Pan guard still attached, fan shroud intact, hood still 
smooth.  No damage, nothing.  And all of this with one questionable 
motor mount (it has had the Spica pump leaking oil on it for quite some 
time now, not a good thing for the already crappy rubber block of the 
mount).
I would have to assume a properly mounted guard will go a long way 
toward protecting your hood, shroud and of course that lovely oil pan.

Tony Martie (78 Spider)
TM PhotoDesign
http://tmpd.net
phone  469 233-TMPD (8673)
fax        214 328-0882


- -----Original Message-----
From: owner-alfa@domain.elided [mailto:owner-alfa@domain.elided]On Behalf Of
Watry, Andrew (LNG-MBC)
Sent: Monday, August 05, 2002 12:49 PM
To: 'alfa-digest@domain.elided'
Subject: Dents in Spider hoods


Regarding the oil-cap-shaped dents in Spider hoods from the engine 
hitting
the ground and getting forced up:  Are people having that happen even 
with
pan guards installed? I would think that would be the first line of 
defense,
after ensuring you have good motor mounts.  If the guard is strong in
itself, and well bolted to the sway bar mounts and crossmember, that 
means
the chassis is scraping the ground, but the engine should not be getting
pushed up relative to the chassis/hood.  And so the hood shouldn't be
getting a dent.  Maybe the guards are weak enough or installed so poorly
that they deflect up, and the engine gets pushed up anyway?  I know the
clearance between pan guards and oil pans is often nonexistent.

I owned a Spider only briefly, but it had a big telltale oil cap dent 
from
the PO, and the only Alfa I've ever bottomed the oil pan out on, in 25 
years
of Alfa driving, was a friend's Spider.  I guess the engine just sits 
that
much closer to the ground than in a GTV, Berlina, Giulia sedan, etc.

Andrew Watry
Berlina Register
--
to be removed from alfa, see /bin/digest-subs.cgi
or email "unsubscribe alfa" to majordomo@domain.elided