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IN AN EMERGENCY
212
IN THE EVENT OF A FLAT BATTERY
Before anything else, you are advised to
read the precautions for preventing the bat-
tery from draining and for ensuring long life
in the “car maintenance” chapter.
CHARGING THE BATTERY
IMPORTANTThe battery charging pro-
cedure is described only for information pur-
poses. This operation should be carried out
by Alfa Romeo Authorised Services.
Charging should be slow at a low amp rat-
ing for 24 hours. Charging for a longer time
may damage the battery.Charge the battery as follows:
– Disconnect the battery negative termi-
nal (–).
– Connect the charger cables to the bat-
tery terminal ensuring that the bias is cor-
rect.
– Turn on the charger.
– After charging, turn off the charger be-
fore disconnecting it from the battery.
– Re-connect the battery negative termi-
nal (–).The liquid contained in the
battery is poisonous and
corrosive. Avoid contact
with the skin or eyes. The battery
should be charged in a well venti-
lated place, away from naked
flames or possible sources of
sparks: danger of explosion and
fire.
Do not attempt to charge
a frozen battery: it must
firstly be thawed, other-
wise it may burst. If freezing has
occurred, the battery should be
checked by skilled personnel to
make sure that the internal ele-
ments are not damaged and that
the body is not cracked, with the
risk of leaking poisonous and cor-
rosive acid.
Page 218 of 271

CAR MAINTENANCE
It is however wise to remember that Pro-
grammed Maintenance does not complete-
ly cover all the car’s requirements: also in
the initial period before the 20,000 km ser-
vice coupon and later, between one coupon
and another, ordinary care is still necessary
such as for example routinely checking and
topping up the level of fluids, checking the
tyre pressure, etc...
IMPORTANTThe Programmed Mainte-
nance coupons are specified by the Manu-
facturer. The failure to have them carried out
may invalidate the warranty.
The Programmed Maintenance service is
carried out by all Alfa Romeo Authorised Ser-
vices, at pre-established times.If during each operation, in addition to the
ones programmed, the need arises for fur-
ther replacements or repairs, these may be
carried out only with the explicit agreement
of the customer.
IMPORTANTYou are advised to contact
Alfa Romeo Authorised Services in the event
of any minor operating faults, without wait-
ing for the next service coupon.SCHEDULED
SERVICING
Correct maintenance is determined in en-
suring long car life under the best conditions.
This is why Alfa Romeo has programmed
a series of checks and maintenance opera-
tions every 20,000 km.
IMPORTANTOn versions fitted with re-
configurable multifunction display, at 2000
km from the maintenance deadline, the dis-
play will show “REFER TO SERVICE MANU-
AL” which is shown again turning the igni-
tion key to MAR, every 200 km. For fur-
ther details, see “Service” in the “Recon-
figurable multifunction display”.
C C
A A
R R
M M
A A
I I
N N
T T
E E
N N
A A
N N
C C
E E
216
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CAR MAINTENANCE
217
SCHEDULED MAINTENANCE PROGRAMME
20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180Thousands of km
Check tyre conditions/wear and adjust pressure if necessary
Check operation of lighting system (headlights, direction indicators,
hazard warning lights, boot, passenger compartment, glovebox lights, warning lights, etc..)
Check operation of windscreen washer system, adjust spray jets
Check position/wear of windscreen/rearscreen wiper blades
Check operation of front disk brake pad wear indicator
Check wear conditions of rear disk brake pads
Sight check the conditions of: body exterior, underbody protection, stiff pipes
and hoses (exhaust - fuel supply - brakes), rubber parts
(boots - sleeves - bushes etc..)
Check cleanness of locks, bonnet and boot and lever cleanness, and lubrication
Sight inspect accessory drive belt conditions
Check handbrake lever stroke adjustment
Change air cleaner cartridge (petrol versions)
Change air cleaner cartridge (JTD versions)
Top up fluid levels (engine coolant, brakes, windscreen washer, battery, etc..)
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Page 220 of 271

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CAR MAINTENANCE
218
20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160 180Thousands of km
Check and if necessary top up the Selespeed automatic transmission oil level
(2.0 JTS versions)
Sight check for conditions of timing gear drive toothed belt (3.2 V6 and JTD versions)
Check emissions/smoke at the exhaust (JTD versions)
Check operation of engine control system (through diagnosis socket)
Check mechanical transmission oil level
Change counter-rotating shaft drive belt
Change timing gear drive belt (1.8 T.SPARK and 2.0 JTS versions) (*)
Change timing gear drive belt (3.2 V6 and JTD versions) (*)
Change accessory poly-V drive belt
Change spark plugs (petrol versions)
Change engine oil and oil filter (petrol versions) (or every 24 months)
Change engine oil and oil filter (diesel with DPF versions)(**)
(or every 24 months)
Change engine oil and oil filter (diesel without DPF versions)(**)
(or every 24 months)
Change brake fluid (or every 24 months)
Change fuel filter (JTD versions)
Change pollen filter (or every year)
(*) Regardless of the km covered, the timing belt shall be replaced every 4 years for particularly demanding use (cold climates, driving in the city, idling for a long time) or in any case every 5 years.
(**) Engine oil and oil filter shall actually be changed according to the conditions of use of the car and it is indicated by the relevant warning light or message (where provided) on the instrument panel
(see “Warning lights and messages” paragraph).
If the car is used mainly on urban routes or if the yearly kilometres travelled are less than 10,000 km, the engine oil and filter must be changed every 12 months.
Page 221 of 271

CAR MAINTENANCE
219
ADDITIONAL
OPERATIONS
Every 1000 kmor before long journeys,
check and if necessary top up:
– engine coolant fluid level
– brake/hydraulic clutch control fluid level
– power steering fluid level
– windscreen washer and headlamp wash-
er fluid level
– tyre pressure and conditions.
Every 3000 kmcheck and if necessary
top up the engine oil level.
The use of FL Seleniaproducts is rec-
ommended which have been designed and
made expressly for Alfa Romeo cars (see
“Refuelling” in the “Technical Specifica-
tions” chapter).
ANNUAL INSPECTION
PROGRAMME
For cars with an annual mileage
of below 20,000 km (for example
about 10,000 km) the following
yearly inspection programme is ad-
vised:
– Check tyre conditions/wear and if nec-
essary adjust the pressure (including spare
wheel)
– Check operation of lighting system
(headlights, direction indicators, hazard
warning lights, boot, passenger compart-
ment, glovebox lights, warning lights, etc.)
– Check operation of windscreen wiper
system, spray jet adjustment
– Check windscreen blade position/wear
– Check front disk brake pad conditions
and wear
– Check cleanness of bonnet and boot
locks, and lever cleanness and lubrication.– Sight check for conditions of: engine,
gearbox, transmission, pipes (exhaust - fu-
el supply - brakes), rubber parts (boots -
sleeves - bushes etc..), brake and fuel sup-
ply system hoses
– Check battery charge
– Sight check for conditions of various dri-
ve belts
– Check and if necessary top up fluid lev-
els (engine coolant, brakes, windscreen
washer, battery etc. )
– Change engine oil and oil filter
– Change pollen filter.
Page 222 of 271

CAR MAINTENANCE
220
IMPORTANT
Engine oil
Should prevailing use of the car be under
one of the following specially heavy condi-
tions:
– trailer or caravan towing
– dusty roads
– short distances (less than 7-8 km) re-
peated and with external temperatures be-
low zero
– frequently idling engines or long distance
low speed driving or in case of a long term
inactivity
replace engine oil more frequently than re-
quired on the Scheduled Maintenance Pro-
gramme.IMPORTANT
Diesel filter
The variety of the degree of purity of the
fuel oil in commerce may make it necessary
to change the fuel oil filter more frequently
than stated in the Scheduled Maintenance
Programme. If the engine is “sobbing” it
is a sign that the filter needs changing.IMPORTANT
Air cleaner
Using the car on dusty roads change the
air cleaner more frequently than specified in
the Schedule Maintenance Programme.
For any doubts concerning the intervals be-
tween the engine oil and air cleaner re-
placement in relation to how the car is used,
contact Alfa Romeo Authorised Services.
Page 223 of 271

CAR MAINTENANCE
221
Car maintenance should be
entrusted to Alfa Romeo
Authorised Services. For
routine and minor maintenance op-
erations you wish to carry out
yourself, always make sure you
have the proper equipment, genuine
Alfa Romeo spares and the neces-
sary fluids; do not however carry
out these operations if you have no
experience.IMPORTANT
Pollen filter
If the car is used frequently in dusty or
heavily polluted environments it is advisable
to replace the filtering element more fre-
quently; in particular it should be replaced if
a reduction of the amount of air admitted to
the passenger compartment is noted. IMPORTANT
Battery
It is advisable to check the battery charge,
preferably at the onset of winter, to prevent
the possibility of the electrolyte freezing.
This check should be carried out more fre-
quently if the car is used mainly for short
trips, or if it is fitted with accessories that
permanently absorb electricity even with the
ignition key removed, especially in the case
of after market accessories.
If the car is used in hot climates or partic-
ularly harsh conditions it is wise to check the
level of the battery fluid (electrolyte) more
frequently than specified in the Scheduled
Maintenance Programme.
Page 224 of 271
CAR MAINTENANCE
222
fig. 1 - 1.8 T. SPARK version
A0A0736b
A0A0681b
CHECKING LEVELS
Never smoke while work-
ing in the engine compart-
ment; gas and inflammable
vapours may be present, with the
risk of fire.
When topping up take
care not to confuse the var-
ious types of fluids: they
are incompatible with one anoth-
er and could seriously damage the
car.
fig. 2 - 2.0 JTS version 1Engine oil - 2Battery - 3Brake fluid -
4Windscreen/rear window/headlight
washer fluid - 5Engine coolant - 6Power
steering fluid - 7Selespeed transmission oil
(2.0 JTS Selespeed versions)