Transmission

Unusually, the clutch, gearbox and diff are at the back of the car in a big transmission unit. The basic idea is “even weight distribution”. The 75 is very good in this respect, with 53/47% spilt. In reality, the main benefits come from having the heavy bits (engine and transmission) within the wheelbase of the car, making for a low polar moment (and hence good turn-in). Whatever, it makes working on the transmission “bloody difficult”…

Clutch release mechanism

When I first got the car, the clutch seemed very reluctant to engage and disengage. Amazingly, the problem was cured with a careful squirt of penetrating oil onto the clutch splines.

You can look at the splines to check for corrosion. Under the car, move the clutch operating lever boot out of the way. A small flashlight and a mirror will help you look inside. If the mechanism is sticky, careful lubrication ought to improve things. Be careful not to get any oil onto the clutch plate when doing this.

Gearbox oil

The geabox oil requirements seem a little unclear. My handbook recommends SAE 75w-90 gear oil. My Alfa dealer suggests synthetic oil. Haynes suggest an EP oil. The top choice is Redline synthetic 75W90NS, which is available in the UK from Demon Tweeks (thanks Jaap!).

If the oil is low and/or degraded, then gear selection becomes difficult.

I used Tetrosyl 5-SX 75W-90 synthetic, which seems to work well. I doubt it’s as good as Redline, but it’s reasonably cheap and easily available in the UK. Certainly, the gearchange has improved noticeably. For some strange reason, the gearbox has stopped leaking oil too…

Gearbox syncros

Apparently, it is “normal” for the first gear synchro to wear quickly. First and second gear can be a bit tricky from cold, but so far the problem hasn’t got any worse.