2009 Alfa Romeo GT engine

CORRECT USE OF THE CAR
169
STARTING PROCEDURE
FOR PETROL VERSIONS
IMPORTANTIt is important never to
press the accelerator before the engine has
started.
1) Make sure the handbrake is engaged.
2) Move the gear lever to neutral.
3) Fully depress the clutch pedal, so that
the starter motor is not forced to crank the
gears.
4) Ensure that the electric systems and de-
vices, especially if they absorb high quanti-
ties of energy (e.g. heated rearscreen), are
switched off.
5) Turn the ignition key to the AV Vpo-
sition and release it as soon as the engine
starts.
6) If the engine does not start, return the
key to STOP, then repeat the procedure.
IMPORTANTIf it is difficult to start the
engine do not insist with extended attempts
which may damage the catalyst, but con-
tact Alfa Romeo Authorised Services. The ignition switch is fitted with a safety
device which obliges the driver to return the
key to the STOPposition before repeat-
ing the starting operation if the engine does
not start immediately.
Similarly, when the engine is running, the
device prevents the key being moved from
theMARto the AV Vposition.
STARTING
THE ENGINE
IMPORTANTThe car is fitted with an
electronic engine lock device. If the engine
fails to start, see the “Alfa Romeo CODE sys-
tem”.
C C
O O
R R
R R
E E
C C
T T
U U
S S
E E
O O
F F
T T
H H
E E
C C
A A
R R
We recommend that dur-
ing the initial period you do
not drive to full car perfor-
mance (for example excessive ac-
celeration, long journeys at top
speed, hard braking etc.).
Running the engine in con-
fined areas is extremely
dangerous. The engine con-
sumes oxygen and produces carbon
monoxide which is a highly toxic
and lethal gas.
When the engine is
switched off never leave
the ignition key in the MAR
position to prevent pointless cur-
rent absorption from draining the
battery.

CORRECT USE OF THE CAR
170
STARTING PROCEDURE
FOR JTD VERSIONS
1) Make sure the handbrake is engaged.
2) Set the gearshift lever to neutral.
3) Turn the ignition key to MAR. The re-
configurable multifunction display will show
the
mwarning light.
4) Wait for the
mto turn off, which
takes place sooner, the warmer the engine.
With the engine very warm the light might
stay on for such a short time as to pass un-
noticed.
5) Fully depress the clutch pedal.
6) Turn the ignition key to AV Vas soon
as the
mwarning light has gone out.
Waiting too long, makes the warming work
of the glow plugs useless.IMPORTANTThe electric devices that
absorb a high amount of energy (climate
control, rearscreen heating, etc.) are cut off
automatically during starting.
If the engine does not start at the first at-
tempt, move the ignition key to STOPbe-
fore repeating starting.
If starting is difficult (with the Alfa Romeo
CODE system working properly), do not in-
sist with prolonged attempts.
Only use an auxiliary battery if the cause
is due to low battery charge. Never use a
battery charger to start the engine.
WARMING THE ENGINE
– Drive off slowly, at medium revs with-
out accelerating abruptly.
– Do not drive at full performance for the
initial kilometres of the journey. Wait until
the engine coolant temperature reaches 50-
60 °C.

CORRECT USE OF THE CAR
171
Never push, tow or coast
start the car. This could
cause fuel to flow into the
catalyst damaging it irreversibly.
Remember that the en-
gine brake and power
steering are not opera-
tional until the engine is started,
therefore, much greater effort than
usual is needed on the brake ped-
al and steering wheel. For cars with turbocharg-
er in particular, but for all
cars in general, sharp ac-
celerating should be avoided before
switching the engine off.
A “kick” on the accelerator
serves no purpose, consumes fuel
pointlessly and may cause serious
damage to the turbocharger im-
peller bearings.
EMERGENCY STARTING
If the Alfa Romeo CODE system does not
recognise the code transmitted by the igni-
tion key (warning light
Yon the instru-
ment cluster glowing on steadily) emer-
gency starting may be carried out using the
code of the CODE card.
For the correct procedure see the chapter
“In an emergency”.
IMPORTANTIf the engine turns off with
the car on the move, the next time it is start-
ed, the Alfa Romeo CODE warning light may
turn on(
Y). In this case, check that switch-
ing off and starting the engine again with
the car stationary, the warning light stays
off. If not, contact Alfa Romeo Authorised
Services.
ENGINE SWITCHING OFF
– Release the accelerator pedal and wait
until the engine reaches idle speed.
– Turn the ignition key to the STOPpo-
sition and switch off the engine.
IMPORTANTAfter a tiring journey it is
advisable to let the engine “get its breath
back” allowing it to idle a while to lower the
temperature in the engine compartment.

CORRECT USE OF THE CAR
172
Never leave children un-
attended in the car. Al-
ways remove the ignition
key when leaving the car and take
it with you.To avoid useless con-
sumption of power and
possible draining of the
battery, never leave the ignition
key in the MAR position when the
engine is not running.
PARKING
When the car is parked, proceed as fol-
lows:
– Switch off the engine.
– Engage the handbrake.
– Engage first gear if the car is faced up-
hill or reverse if the car is facing downhill.
– Turn the front wheels so that the car will
immediately come to a halt if the handbrake
slips.
REDUCING
RUNNING COSTS
AND ENVIRONMENT
POLLUTION
By following a few simple guidelines, it
is possible to save car running costs and re-
duce harmful emissions.
GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS
Car maintenance
To take care of the car maintenance have
the checks and adjustments carried out in
accordance with the “Scheduled Mainte-
nance Programme”.
Tyres
Check the pressure of the tyres routinely
at an interval of no more than 4 weeks: if
the pressure is too low consumption levels
increase as resistance to rolling is higher.
Useless loads
Never travel with an overload in the boot.
The weight of the car (especially in urban
traffic), and its geometry heavily affect con-
sumption levels and stability.Electric services
Use electric devices only for the amount of
time needed. Rearscreen heating, addition-
al headlights, windscreen wipers and heater
fan need a considerable amount of energy,
therefore increasing the requirement of cur-
rent increases fuel consumption (up to
+25% in the urban cycle).
Climate control system
The climate control system is a further load
bearing heavily on the engine inducing high-
er consumption levels(up to +20% on av-
erage). Outside temperature permitting,
preferably use the air vents.
Aerodynamic items
The use of non-certified aerodynamic items
may adversely affect air drag and con-
sumption levels.

CORRECT USE OF THE CAR
173
CONDITIONS OF USE
Cold starting
Short journeys and frequent cold starts do
not allow the engine to reach optimum op-
erating temperature. This results in a sig-
nificant increase in consumption levels (from
+15 to +30% on the urban cycle) and emis-
sion of harmful substances.
Traffic situations and road
conditions
Rather high consumption levels are tied to
situations with heavy traffic, for example
in queues with frequent use of the lower
gears or in cities with many traffic lights. Al-
so winding mounting roads and rough road
surfaces adversely affect consumption.
Stopping in the traffic
During prolonged stops (e.g. level cross-
ings) it is advisable to switch the engine off.
DRIVING STYLE
Starting
Do not warm the engine with the car at a
standstill or at idle or high speed: under
these conditions the engine warms up much
more slowly, increasing electrical consump-
tion and emissions. It is therefore advisable
to move off immediately, slowly, avoiding
high speeds. This way the engine will warm
faster.
Pointless manoeuvres
Avoid accelerating when waiting at traffic
lights or before switching off the engine. This
and also double declutching is absolutely
pointless on modern cars and also increase
consumption and pollution.
Gearshifting
As soon as the conditions of the traffic and
road allow, use a higher gear.
Using a low gear to obtain brilliant per-
formance increases consumption.
In the same way improper use of a high
gear increases consumption, emissions and
engine wear.Top speed
Fuel consumption considerably increases
with speed. Maintain an even as possible
speed, avoiding superfluous braking and ac-
celerating, which cost in terms of both fuel
and emissions.
Acceleration
Accelerating heavily taking the engine to
a high speed has a considerably adverse ef-
fect on consumption and emission levels;
it is wise to accelerate gradually and not ex-
ceed the maximum torque.

CORRECT USE OF THE CAR
178
Keep your speed
down when snow
chains are fitted.
Do not exceed 50 km/h. Avoid
potholes, steps and pavements and
avoid also to drive for long dis-
tances on roads not covered with
snow to prevent damaging the car
and the roadbed.
CAR INACTIVITY
If the car is to be left inactive for long pe-
riods, the following precautions should be
noted:
– House the car under cover in a dry and
possibly ventilated place.
– Engage a gear.
– Check that the handbrake is not en-
gaged.
– Clean and protect the paintwork by pro-
tective wax.
– Clean and protect the metal polished
parts with marketed products.
– Cover the rubber windscreen and
rearscreen wiper blades with talcum powder
and raise them off the glass.
– Open the windows slightly.
– Inflate the tyres to a pressure of 0.5 bars
above normal. If possible rest the tyres on
wooden planks and periodically check the
pressure.
– Do not turn on the electronic alarm sys-
tem.– Disconnect the battery negative termi-
nal from the battery and check the battery
charge. This check should be repeated
every three months during stowage.
Charge the battery if the indicator (where
provided) shows a dark colour in the central
green area.
– Do not empty the engine cooling sys-
tem.
– Cover the car with a fabric or perforat-
ed plastic cover. Do not use compact plas-
tic covers which prevent the humidity on the
surface of the car from evaporating. Snow chains cannot be
fitted to the space-saver
spare wheel. So, if a front
(drive) wheel is punctured and
chains are needed, a rear wheel
should be fitted to the front of the
car (adjust tyre pressure to the
specified value as soon as possi-
ble) and the space-saver spare
wheel should be fitted to the rear.
This way with two normal drive
wheels, snow chains can be fitted
to them to solve an emergency.
Deactivate the ASR sys-
tem when snow chains are
fitted. Press the ASR-OFF
button, button led turned on.

IN AN EMERGENCY
179
3) Fully depress the accelerator pedal and
keep it pressed. The
Uwarning light will
come on for eight seconds and then go off,
now release the accelerator pedal.
4) The
Uwarning light begins to flash:
after it has flashed the same number of
times as the first digit on the CODE card,
press the accelerator pedal and keep it
pressed until the
Uwarning light turns on
(for four seconds) and then goes off; now
release the accelerator pedal.
5) The
Uwarning light starts to flash: af-
ter the number of flashes corresponding to
the second digit on the CODE card, press the
accelerator pedal and keep it pressed.
6) Repeat this procedure for the remain-
ing digits on the CODE card.
7) After entering the last figure, keep the
accelerator pedal pressed. The
Uwarning
light turns on (for four seconds) and then
goes off; now release the accelerator pedal. 8) A quick flash of the
Uwarning light
(for about four seconds) confirms that the
operation has been carried out correctly.
9) Start the engine turning the ignition key
fromMARtoAV Vwithout returning the
key to the STOPposition.
Conversely, if the
Uwarning light stays
on, turn the key to STOPand repeat the
procedure starting from point 1).
IMPORTANTAfter emergency starting
it is advisable to contact Alfa Romeo Au-
thorised Services, because the emergency
procedure must be repeated each time the
engine is started.
EMERGENCY
STARTING
If it is not possible to deactivate the engine
inhibitor with the Alfa Romeo CODE system,
the
YandUwarning lights stay on and
the engine will not start. Emergency start-
ing is needed to start the engine.
IMPORTANTYou are advised to care-
fully read the entire procedure before carry-
ing it out. If a mistake is made during the
emergency procedure, the ignition key should
be turned to STOPand the operations must
be repeated from the start (point 1).
1) Read the 5-figure electronic code on the
CODE card.
2) Turn the ignition key to MAR.
I I
N N
A A
N N
E E
M M
E E
R R
G G
E E
N N
C C
Y Y
In an emergency we recommend that you call the freephone number found in the Warranty Booklet.
You can also consult www.alfaromeo.com to find Alfa Romeo Authorised Services your nearest

IN AN EMERGENCY
180
STARTING
WITH AN AUXILIARY BATTERY
If the battery is flat (for battery with op-
tical hydrometer: dark colour without green
area in the centre), it is possible to start the
engine using an auxiliary battery with the
same capacity or a little higher than the flat
one.
Proceed as follows (fig. 1):
1) Remove the protective cover on the pos-
itive battery post pressing on the opening
catches (front), then connect the positive
terminals (+sign next to the terminal) of
the two batteries using a special cable.
2) Connect the end of the second jump
lead to the negative terminal (–) of the aux-
iliary battery with an earth point
Eon the
engine or gearbox of the car to be started.IMPORTANTDo not directly connect the
negative terminals of the two batteries: any
sparks may ignite the detonating gas which
could come out of the battery. If the auxil-
iary battery is installed on another car, avoid
metal parts touching accidentally between
this car and the one with the flat battery.
3) Start the engine.
4) When the engine has started, remove
the cables, reversing the sequence followed
for connection.
If after a few attempts the engine does not
start, do not insist but contact the nearest
Alfa Romeo Authorised Service.
fig. 1
A0A0149b
This starting procedure
must be carried out by
qualified personnel because
incorrect operations may cause
electrical discharge of considerable
intensity. The liquid contained in
the battery is poisonous and cor-
rosive. Avoid contact with the skin
and the eyes. Keep naked flames
and lighted cigarettes away from
the battery and do not cause
sparks.
Never use a battery
charger to start the engine
as this could damage the
electronic systems of your car, par-
ticularly the ignition and fuel sup-
ply control units.