On auction in Melbourne this summer - Ferrari 400i

Lot # 12 on the auction bill for spring auction at Sharron's in Melbourne.
Ferrari 400i Coupe Auctions - Lot 12 - Shannons
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Please note the report that talks about the rusted out chassis members.
There is also the ripply body, poor paint (needs repaint according to Shannons - after the rust has been removed and the bad previous repairs fixed) and an overheating engine, and that is without taking the car for a test drive. So maybe the gearbox is OK. They describe it as a "project car".
Might be OK for spares for someone who has a few of them.........

 

That's ridiculous - who'd be mad enough to have more than one of these cars ?

 

Slow learner.

 

.............and a $15-$20K prediction...............................................................
















tell 'em they're dreamin'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

At least the colour spec is pretty nice.

 

After talking to the mechanic that performed the PPI I took a gamble on this one. It arrived at my place yesterday afternoon. After recharging the battery overnight I was able to fire it up this morning after changing out the positive battery connector.
The startup injectors are not getting powered up so the endless cranking to get it started had taken its toll on the battery cables - I suspect this is why the PPI said it cranked over unevenly. After the battery connections were repaired it cranked over smoothly. I found a can of "Start You Bastard" in the boot so sprayed some in the left bank where the intake tubing was disconnected & it fired straight up.
It runs quite smooth & has a good note to it. It does not blow any smoke at all. It did start to get a bit warm after a while as none of the electric fans were running. After I shut it down I checked the wiring to the fans & someone has rewired all the fans but they are not hooked up. Given how long I ran the car for & the slow rise in temp I dont expect the engine to overheat once the fans are reconnected.
I decided to see why the startup injectors were not firing & found a wire had come loose from the back of the fuel pump master relay that goes to the cold start relay. I have repaired this & am waiting for it to cool down again to see if this has rectified the hard starting problem.
The PPI said that the headlights did not open on the drivers side - this was a hose resting on the manual knob on the headlight motor. Once this was moved the headlights are working fine.
Now for the rust issues. The mechanic that performed the PPI said that the rust is in the chassis braces behind the front wheels. There is a small amount of rust in these but this should be a relatively easy repair. The body has had a cheap respray & the paint is not good up close.
All up I'm happy with this purchase & hope to get this car back on the road in the near future while my other 400I will be a more longterm project.

Cheers Al

 

The cold start injectors are now working & it fires straight up.

 

Excellent news. Definitely a keeper if mechanically sound. Any mods to appearance can be made in due course.
Just out of interest what was the winning bid?

 

Thanks. It passed in at auction but I paid $16,000 which is about 10,000 your money.

Cheers Al

 

Wow you must be happy with that. Absolute bargain
Spend a few grand and you have a v 12 ferrari for the price of a Ford mondeo

 

LOL! Glad you seem to have got a good deal on this one.

 

You have a good candidate for an "enthusiast's" car. It looks good, it has issues but "tinkering", as I call it, is what classic car ownership is about. Plus you have the ability and equipment to work on it. Sweet!

 

That is hands down the best and most accurate product name that I have ever seen. Leave it to the Aussies to come up with something that so accurately reflects the trials and frustrations of trying to start up a recalcitrant motor!

If I saw that name on the autoshop shelf, I would grab it immediately. Brilliant name, great marketing!

 

This was the first time I've used this but it worked well. I can see why they had a spare can in the boot with the starting issues the car had. Your right it is a great name & clever marketing.
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After the cold starting had been sorted I found it was still hard to start when warm. This problem was traced to a dry solder joint on the hot start relay. I'm happy to say it now fires up quickly hot, cold or anywhere in between.

I have looked into the electric cooling fan issue & removed lots of extra dodgy cabling & have restored the original fan cabling. The two front fans have been previously replaced with 10" slimline davies craig fans which only flow about half the air the original fans did so I have ordered 2 x SPAL fans to fit instead. I can't wait for them to arrive to see if this rectifies the cooling issues. I have read in other posts that all 3 fans should come on when the temp sensor in the bottom of the radiator triggers. Looking at the cct diagram & the wiring on my car it would appear that one front & the rear fan come on with this & the other front fan only comes on with the aircon. Can anyone confirm if this is correct for a 1980 vehicle?

Cheers Al

 

This is a great thread for all the real 'car' people out there who can/ are willing to save these 'orphans' from the junk pile. A nice antidote to all the 'don't touch it if it isn't perfect' advice.
Regards from another 'orphan' owner (14 years now and no regrets).

 

I'm glad to say that I got this car registered this morning. It survived a full MVR pit inspection & is running beautifully.

The main issue with the car as stated in another thread was that someone had not put the nut on the water pump impellor & it had worn into the front housing until it started to spin on the square shaft. I have also replaced all 4 ball joints as the rubber boots had split. The radiator & fans were serviced before I found the water pump issue. The seat belts were re-webbed. A very minor rust repair was performed on the bottom of the inner wheel arch behind the right front wheel. A new gear reduction starter fitted - thanks Howard. All belts have been replaced & a few other minor issues sorted.

I can't wait to put some real K's on it. A run North of Alice Springs might be in order soon - we have a 200Klm stretch of road with no speed restrictions.

Cheers Al
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Rockin' good news, Al.

I'd love to hit that unrestricted stretch in a 400. It will be fantastic!

Aidan

 

Great to see it running and on the roads.

 

Congratulations Al - glad to be a small amount of help!

Howard.

 

Good on yer,mate,great to see another one on the road.
Haven't heard anything bad re the 200Klm stretch,even after all the naysayers that were against it had their say.

 

Thanks everyone for the comments. I still can't get the smile off my face.

Most people are happy to have the extra money coming in to the town again from the car manufacturers testing their new models. They do bring a bit of money in to the town & like to test in the summer which is great for the motels to have a few customers outside the tourist season.

 

Well done Al. I marvel at your mechanical nouse and ability to sort the car out. There is a manual 400 in Melbourne that is being put back together by a lovely chap in Berwick. He is mechanically inclined, owned the car for 14 years or so and is looking to sell once he gets the engine back in and running properly. It is not restored. Best described as a driver. He will be ready to drive the car again in December/Jan. I will keep you all informed as I will not be buying given the current restoration on the QM. He is looking for about $25k on the road running and sorted.