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pedrobedro
Man at Matalan
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Mine was a Sud cloverleaf Ti with twin 40 downdraught Dellortos. I couldn't weld fast enough to keep it on the road but I had a great 2 years with it.
Nomad
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Closing this as I've just been out for the first decent run - it's feels like it's had a new engine fitted 
Tickover is smooth and stable, revs drop gently when you throttle off at junctions (they always used to drop sharply), quicker pickup especially just below half revs, more midrange, I found the car doing 15mph more than usual on familiar roads driving the way I normally do (speed limits were observed at all times
)
I'm guessing cleaning the oil mist from the intake bits (MAF & idle valve especially) made the main difference
Tickover is smooth and stable, revs drop gently when you throttle off at junctions (they always used to drop sharply), quicker pickup especially just below half revs, more midrange, I found the car doing 15mph more than usual on familiar roads driving the way I normally do (speed limits were observed at all times
)I'm guessing cleaning the oil mist from the intake bits (MAF & idle valve especially) made the main difference
Nomad
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Latest update - it happened again, I'm still not sure what is causing it but last time it went away when I did work around the sensors...
This time I removed the idle control valve, tested and cleaned that but it made no difference - removed it again and cleaned the housing with carb cleaner which fixed the problem
I'm not 100% convinced but it looks like the issue is some blockage or build-up in the passages from the air control valve @Blobber had the closes guess
It would be nice to know but at least I can now clear the problem in less than 5 minutes.
Odd / spooky that it's happened once a year - every year I've owned the car
This time I removed the idle control valve, tested and cleaned that but it made no difference - removed it again and cleaned the housing with carb cleaner which fixed the problem
I'm not 100% convinced but it looks like the issue is some blockage or build-up in the passages from the air control valve @Blobber had the closes guess
It would be nice to know but at least I can now clear the problem in less than 5 minutes.
Odd / spooky that it's happened once a year - every year I've owned the car
daleyd
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The wife had a giulietta for a while, it had stop/start on it (still quite new tech at the time).It's an Alfa, must be it's birthday or something
It worked twice, the day we left the dealer, and the day we part-exed it 18 months later...
Seen this on a 220gti Rover, throttle switch in conjunction with the vacuum sensor defines idle conditions - iirc the switch was actually on the bulkhead, the vacuum sensor was in the ECU, plastic hose with rubber connector pipe - worth a look?
Thing is the idle valve should not get oil in it
When the crankcase ventilation system clogs up instead of crankcase gases being fed into the intake to be burnt. Sometimes there's a pipe off the cam cover that goes straight to the inlet via a valve or sometimes there's just a small 1.5mm flame trap hole (cavalier). when the valve system blocks you get oil up near the air filter piping, idle valve etc.
There should be an oil trap maybe in the cam cover (fiat Lancia) the rover v8 had a grey oil trap in the pipe right on the rocker box. I think mk2 fiestas had the trap in the oil filler cap, when that blocks up it blows all the oils seals. We had a lad at work with that, it dropped so much oil we called it the Torrey Canyon. For those too young that was an oil tanker that grounded off Cornwall in 67 - the RAF Napalmed it.
So both bits need to be clean, the flame trap valve / tiny hole and the oil trap.
When the crankcase ventilation system clogs up instead of crankcase gases being fed into the intake to be burnt. Sometimes there's a pipe off the cam cover that goes straight to the inlet via a valve or sometimes there's just a small 1.5mm flame trap hole (cavalier). when the valve system blocks you get oil up near the air filter piping, idle valve etc.
There should be an oil trap maybe in the cam cover (fiat Lancia) the rover v8 had a grey oil trap in the pipe right on the rocker box. I think mk2 fiestas had the trap in the oil filler cap, when that blocks up it blows all the oils seals. We had a lad at work with that, it dropped so much oil we called it the Torrey Canyon. For those too young that was an oil tanker that grounded off Cornwall in 67 - the RAF Napalmed it.
So both bits need to be clean, the flame trap valve / tiny hole and the oil trap.
Nomad
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Thanks everyone 
Looking around the manifold in the past (I changed the head gaskets so have seen it on the car & off).. there are 3 small bore pipes that looked clean (fuel pressure reg etc) + 3 larger 1/2" pipes (brake servo etc) all looked clear.
The thing I don't understand is there' no oil around the idle valve, the seat looks clean, but twice blasting the housing with the valve removed has cleared the problem. Gremlins make as much sense as anyuthing else I can think of
Alfas ( & Lancias) - I've has a few and they have all been a love / hate ownership. This one was registered in a February but I don't know when it rolled off the production line, maybe it's like the Queen and picks a random day every year for it's "Official" birthday when it wants some love ??
All is still working fine today, life is good
Looking around the manifold in the past (I changed the head gaskets so have seen it on the car & off).. there are 3 small bore pipes that looked clean (fuel pressure reg etc) + 3 larger 1/2" pipes (brake servo etc) all looked clear.
The thing I don't understand is there' no oil around the idle valve, the seat looks clean, but twice blasting the housing with the valve removed has cleared the problem. Gremlins make as much sense as anyuthing else I can think of
Alfas ( & Lancias) - I've has a few and they have all been a love / hate ownership. This one was registered in a February but I don't know when it rolled off the production line, maybe it's like the Queen and picks a random day every year for it's "Official" birthday when it wants some love ??
All is still working fine today, life is good
Melvyn Best
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If the idle speed control valve is mounted in a rubber hose you could try restricting the hose when the idle speed is too high which might mean the ISCV is sticking. Another thing worth checking is the throttle butterfly(s) , I’ve had a couple over the years where the securing screws haven’t been fully tightened allowing the butterfly to shift so it jams slightly open but on occasion centralising giving normal idle speed. Another thing worth checking ,if you can get a strobe light on it when it’s playing up , is the ignition timing, sticking advance weights can cause the ignition to advance increasing the idle speed but that can also cause sluggish performance due to the timing not advancing quick enough
Nomad
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Hi. Good point about disturbing the contacts but last time & this time removing the ICV did nothing, removing it again and using carb cleaner into the housing worked so I don’t think it’s that
ICV is mounted solid in the manifold not on rubber, will try a strobe if / when it happens again.
Pic as requested by @dave h 2
ICV is mounted solid in the manifold not on rubber, will try a strobe if / when it happens again.
Pic as requested by @dave h 2
Nomad
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I'm still homing in on the intermittent idle and am getting close to the root cause. There's a 1/2" breather from the oil filler neck that vents into the inlet manifold just upstream of the throttle body.
The breather is clean but there is oil mist inside the manifold at the end of the pipe so it's obviously venting light oil mist into the intake.
The idle valve pulls in air (and oil mist) upstream of the throttle and allows metered air to bypass the throttle body.
I'm now sure the oil mist is somehow blocking the bypass circuit .. easy enough to clean it now I know where the problem is
Italians - it's a love / hate thing, you're either crying tears of joy or you're just crying 
I now know Fiat (Tipo?) wiper arms fit and work better than the originals. Another bonus is they have standard fitting for the wiper blades (the original Alfa arms have some wierdo cantilever blade / arm setup .. and replacements are all for standard fittings so are incompatible)
The breather is clean but there is oil mist inside the manifold at the end of the pipe so it's obviously venting light oil mist into the intake.
The idle valve pulls in air (and oil mist) upstream of the throttle and allows metered air to bypass the throttle body.
I'm now sure the oil mist is somehow blocking the bypass circuit .. easy enough to clean it now I know where the problem is
The car passed MOT yesterday (no advisories but the tester did mention a couple of bits he wants to see fixed before next year), it celebrated in typical fashion by exploding the wiper arm on the way home from the test center. It's the first time in my life a wiper arm has snapped !It's an Alfa, must be it's birthday or something
Italians - it's a love / hate thing, you're either crying tears of joy or you're just crying I now know Fiat (Tipo?) wiper arms fit and work better than the originals. Another bonus is they have standard fitting for the wiper blades (the original Alfa arms have some wierdo cantilever blade / arm setup .. and replacements are all for standard fittings so are incompatible)
Make a note in full view somewhere of the bits needing looking at, or you will only remember to fix them when it fails next year. Doing it in the summer when battered knuckles hurt less will better than now.
My italian stallion (Delta integrale) is sitting in the work car park right now 205,000 on the clock. I have one thing I've noticed I have made a note to look at later in the year.
My italian stallion (Delta integrale) is sitting in the work car park right now
205,000 on the clock. I have one thing I've noticed I have made a note to look at later in the year.
Nomad
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Good point about making a list - here it is 
Both front indicators show white light (now fixed - new yellow bulbs were fitted when I got back from the test), head light alignment is good but one side is dull (I drive a lot at night and both give plenty of light but he suggested a new bulb), a driveshaft CV boot is looking weak (ok now but replace in Summer when it's nicer working outside?). rear washer / wiper not working (they have worked in the past). I thought he said the brake lights were poor when sidelights were on but they looked ok when I checked last night - will find a helper and check again ( maybe a poor earth?). Some oil on the front subframe - possible oil seal starting to fail or drips from topping up the oil? (clean it then monitor). He also mentioned the seat cover on the drivers seat was torn (not an MOT point - just looks bad when the rest of the car is so tidy inside). It passed emissions but took a couple of attempts (borderline? It's not done many miles since the last service and get regular Italian tune-ups so not a lot more I can do for now) 
@bricol
It was surprising to see brake performance is literally off the scale. Both fronts & rears locked the wheels and threw the car off the rollers when he tested them. I did work on the brakes 2 years ago as it failed the MOT first time (a sticky front caliper, rears got new drums & shoes), now they have bedded in they are amazing. fantastic in the dry but easily lock the wheel in the wet unless you are careful. I suspected the tyres were under-performing in the wet, good to know it's the brakes are over-performing
Both front indicators show white light (now fixed - new yellow bulbs were fitted when I got back from the test), head light alignment is good but one side is dull (I drive a lot at night and both give plenty of light but he suggested a new bulb), a driveshaft CV boot is looking weak (ok now but replace in Summer when it's nicer working outside?). rear washer / wiper not working (they have worked in the past). I thought he said the brake lights were poor when sidelights were on but they looked ok when I checked last night - will find a helper and check again ( maybe a poor earth?). Some oil on the front subframe - possible oil seal starting to fail or drips from topping up the oil? (clean it then monitor). He also mentioned the seat cover on the drivers seat was torn (not an MOT point - just looks bad when the rest of the car is so tidy inside). It passed emissions but took a couple of attempts (borderline? It's not done many miles since the last service and get regular Italian tune-ups so not a lot more I can do for now) @bricolIt was surprising to see brake performance is literally off the scale. Both fronts & rears locked the wheels and threw the car off the rollers when he tested them. I did work on the brakes 2 years ago as it failed the MOT first time (a sticky front caliper, rears got new drums & shoes), now they have bedded in they are amazing. fantastic in the dry but easily lock the wheel in the wet unless you are careful. I suspected the tyres were under-performing in the wet, good to know it's the brakes are over-performing
