Relays for 308.

My 308 didn't want to start the other day. It cranked fine,but,wouldn't fire up.(sounds to me like either no fuel,or no spark) I heard a "clicking" sound from behind the fuse box cover,so,I removed it. I heard (and felt) the "clicking" sound coming from the,apparently original,"Electric Fuel pump Relay". So,I removed it,gave it a few taps,put it back in,and she fired right up. So,before I get stranded somewhere,I am getting a new Relay. Actually,after looking at all of them,they all look old and original. So,it may be adventageous to replace all of them,and keep the originals as "spares" and "Original Equipment Parts". I did already,change all new fuses this past Spring. However,some Relays can be very expensive,as I found out on a Porsche that I once owned. And,dealer prices are usually pretty outrageous. But,when I was checking auto parts stores for the Porsche Relay,found a very great disparity in price. (or unable to get an old one) It's almost like I'll have to check several auto parts stores for their price for each Relay. So,I was wondering if any of you guys had purchased any new Relays lately,and where. Also,when I do this, I will keep a"log" of which Relay,bought at which store,at what price,for anyone else for future reference. I assume that most of these,but,maybe not all,will be O.K. for several different year cars,and even maybe between 308 and 328.

 

Thats a good idea,Andreas. I have an alarm and a hidden kill switch. But,thats an added theft deterrent. All of the Cavalinos and wheels and tires will be gone,but,the car will still be there! HeeHee!

 

I'm going to call Bosch today and see if I can just buy them directly from them. There is a Bosch/Blaupunkt Distribution Center on 25th. Av.in Broadview. Which is only about a 10 minute drive from my house. I hope that I can,as,in the past I've seen some pretty severe price disparity at Auto Parts stores. Not to mention that when you say that it's for an '81 Ferrari,they start wiggling around,sweating,and saying,"Huh?" You almost need to check EVERY Auto Parts store for EACH Relay. Because some may have one Relay for one price,but another at a different price. A Hugely different price,but,then,they might have another one at another different price. No "Standard" pricing. And,I've seen, (and bought) some pretty expensive Relays in the past. I can't believe that some even cost over $100.00-JUST for a Relay? (that was for a Porsche-but,at the Dealer. Ended up searching and finding it for considerably less elsewhere.)

 

O.K. I'm checking my owners manual,and ,Yes,they are Bosch Relays. BUT...when it gets to the "Relay for Fuel Pump",it doesn't list the numbers! I don't know why,as it does for the other Relays. So,I am going out and taking it out and getting the numbers directly off of it to see.

 

Bill. I just went out and checked and it's Bosch Relay # 0332 014 113. I called Bosch directly,and they said that they don't have THAT part # any more,that it's been Superceded by another. So,he was going to check around and get back to me. He did go on to say that this Relay has a life of 70million cycles,or something like that,and that it should not be failing,even on a 23 year old car. He said that ,especially since my car only has 18K original miles,that part should be ,basically,"like new". He sounded like he really knew what he was talking about,so,I believe him. But,now that it's failed even once,I am "paranoid" that it could fail again,when I'm somewhere really far,on a Sunday or Holiday.(next Thursday at The Rock,for instance!) So,I'd much rather buy a new one , and keep it in my car,just in case.

 

O.K. I found one! Grand Auto Parts in Bensenville,Il. $24.00 Sounds pretty reasonable. They said that they can usually get these old foreign car Relays .

 

Thanks Bill. I REALLY appreciate the effort in locating one. I'll keep them in mind for the future. See what I mean about differences in price,only depending on where you go. There doesn't seem to be a "Standard" price,or even close to one. No "suggested Retail price". So,I got one at Grand Auto for $24.00. A liitle more,but,thats O.K. I got it.( I needed it now.) But. I am seriously considering buying replacements for all of them,provided that there aren't any that are too outragious. Just the "peace of mind" in having spares is value enough to warrant the small expense. Even IF I never use or need them,they'll stay with the car. My wife had a '96 Chrysler Sebring a couple years ago. Same thing happened. We were out driving,the car was fine. Turned it off,and when we went to restart it,it cranked but did not fire up. So,I deducted a lack of fuel,or lack of spark. Tried the old "screwdriver in the spark plug wire trick" (said in a "Maxwell Smart" voice. ) I DID have spark! So,then I the thought,"No fuel" delivery (Full Tank of Gas) So,I checked for the Fuel pump Relay. And,I checked the other Relays,and saw that the Relay for the wiper motors was the same. So,I switched it with the Relay that wasn't working,(Fuel Pump) and it fired right up. Good thing that it wasn't raining,and good thing that the 2 Relays were the same ! WE were able to get home,and the next day get a replacement for the bad one.

 

I am also picking up some 1034 bulbs for the rear brake lights,as one of mine is out. I am getting 10 (only .95c each) so I'll have plenty of spares,or in case anyone else needs one.

 

O.K.guys. Just make your shopping lists! My wife had a day off yesterday. So we had to do some running around errands. It was really nice out,so,I wanted to take a drive in the Ferrari like I did on Wed. Well,THAT never happened! We had SO MANY stops to make,were out driving around from 10:30AM to about 3:30PM. My back was,and still is,KILLING ME! It really hurts like Hell,today. No kidding. I can't sit and drive around for that long! Ofcourse,we were in and out of the car, (her P.T.Cruiser) but,my back is SO bad,I can't do that anymore. I am on "enhanced doses" of my pain meds,today. And,If I ever feel better enough to pick-up my light bulbs,am spending the rest of the day recuperating!

 

O.K. I got the bulbs. I got 10,so,if anyone else needs one,let me know.

 

You know,the guys at this Grand Auto in Bensenville,that I just found. Told me that they will go to great lengths to try to find parts for people. They are really,True car guys.They are automobile hobbyists themselves. And,show,drive,belong to car clubs,own old cars,old european cars. So,they said "give them a try,they'll do their best to track down any parts". So,I'll stick with them,now. BTW.I had to replace one ot the two light bulbs in the drivers side brake light. There were 1057's in there,but,the manual says 1034's. So,I went with the 1034's. There's no difference in brightness,or anything. And,now they are correct.