1998 550 Maranello "sorting" thread--DIY

Hello everyone,
I had been thinking about doing a DIY thread with my new to me 550 Maranello, going through the process of sorting it and making it into my car. However, with the news today of our comrades who have departed the list I was feeling very strongly that I needed to thank them for all they have helped me with. This thread therefore dedicated to all those people who have helped me with the 550: Brian Crall, Taz, Konadog, PAP348, cribbj, FBB, Dave and Kris Helms, and everyone I may have missed.

I am an amateur mechanic. I am not a pro. However I have a fair bit of anecdotal car experience and have worked on them for years. I would love for any experts who observe the thread to give me any tips or correct any things that I do wrong. This is really aimed at the DIY'ers who want to be able to enjoy a Ferrari without being totally tied to the mechanic.

I purchased this 1998 550 Maranello with 17,040 miles on the ODO. I am the fourth owner. It has in its history fairly regular services: fluids, two timing belt services, the replacement of "some" cooling hoses, and otherwise appropriate maintenance. Nothing special or over the top. It arrived with Bradan straight pipes and first generation Tubi's.

In this thread I plan to document:
Complete fluid replacement (brake/clutch, gearbox/diff, oil, coolant).
Upgrade of all coolant hoses to Scuderia Rampante hoses.
Removal and cleaning/replacement of fuel injectors.
cleaning and seal replacement on headlights.
Removal of fuel tank and replacement of all hoses/seals/filters associated with it.
Removal of first generation Tubi mufflers and replacement with OEM 550 mufflers.
A thorough undercleaning and interior/exterior detail.

Okay...first steps: I wouldn't have thought about doing any of this without a lift. Its the best money I've ever spent for my hobby.
First I removed the rear wheels, rear bumper, and all underpanels. Removing the underpanels really allows to to see what is going on. All rear wheelwell shields removed also to facilitate access to fuel tank and filters.

First photo is in the passenger wheelwell looking forward revealing fuel filter and associated hoses, and fuel filler overflow hose in the foreground. The opposite side is identical.

Next photo is of the fuel filler neck apparatus, revealing the rubber fill pipe and overflow pipe. These appear to be in good shape. No evident leaks here.
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The fuel tank is accessed by removing the carpeting on the boot back wall, which is adhered to the shield by three screws and velcro, which came right off of the carpet. The plastic shield is held in by 16 10mm bolts. The cover for the tool compartment must come off to access the bottom ones.

As previously noted, there is a rubber gasket on the shield that can adhere quite vigorously. I had to work a screwdriver in between the gasket and shield and work the shield loose, but eventually it came apart.

Voila!
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At this point I needed to drain the fuel tank completely, which had been filled up by the selling dealer. I used an 8ft section of 3/8 inch ID fuel hose, and snaked it down the fuel filler pipe into the tank. I had to remove the circular straps holding the filler pipe in place on the frame members to facilitate snaking the tube down to the tank.
A quick blast of the air hose across the bottom of the siphon hose started the fuel running and 22 gallons later I was finished. I did not take any photos during fuel drainage, due to a mortal fear of gasoline and ignition.

At this point I bled the fuel rails, and then removed the fuel filters on either side, fully draining the system forward of the filters by back bleeding the fuel rail openings once the filters were off.

The first photo shows the fuel rail bleeder valves, and the second shows the empty filter location. I am going to replace all hoses associated with the tank, and this includes the delivery line and the return line seen in the second photo.

As far as the third photo goes, does anyone know why Ferrari chose this contraption to connect to the fuel delivery side of the filter? According to Daniel's diagrams at Ricambi there is a "new solution" where you just connect the fuel line directly to the filter. Thoughts?

While I was taking photo number two I looked up and took photo number 4, which is the gearbox oil cooler. Inspect that for leaks...none apparent even though there appears to be a little moisture there.
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Hey Darth, I didn't. It is a 1998 550 Maranello Rosso corsa exterior with tan interior, no leather parcel shelf.
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So, last night I pulled the fuel rails and injectors to be sent to Mr. Injector. One thing I discovered that FBB has referred to also is that this car's engine is BIG. I had to climb on top of the engine to reach the back two injector clips for each bank. The little rubber boots over the injector clips are cracked and heat damaged on each of those back clips but otherwise things look okay.

Photo one shows removal of the fuel hose strap which will be needed eventually to remove the manifold. Remove the remaining three injector rail bolts (all of which are 5 mm hex IIRC) and gently work the injectors out of their sockets. More fuel will spill...it's just a little though!

The injector has a Bosch part number of 0280150449. This injector is available from a variety of suppliers new for about $140. Beats the $454 from Ferrari.
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Okay...today's job was to pull the fuel tank. All in all it worked out fairly well. Minus a few speedbumps of course!

Step one was to remove the two bolts holding the tie-in straps, visible in photo number one.
Step two is to remove the two bolts that hold in the disaerator (photo 2)
Step three is to disconnect the electrical connectors from the pumps and the level sensor
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Once those steps are done, the next part is to begin to try to wiggle the fuel tank a bit. I tried doing this. Tank wouldn't budge.
Then I thought about the fact that the tank had been sitting in there for 13 years and was probably adhered to the gaskets it sits on. I put a pry bar gently under the leading edge of the tank and lifted gently UPWARDS on the bar. The tank is soft aluminum and if you try to pry it up by pushing DOWN on the pry bar the tank will dent and possibly puncture. Don't do that.

This was successful in freeing the tank and getting it to wiggle. As I wiggled it I noted a significant amount of remaining fuel despite my siphon that I could hear sloshing around in the tank.

You have to jimmy the tank and disaerator assembly on top a little bit to access the vent line from the passenger side of the disaerator that goes to the fuel filler neck assembly. Disconnect this line, which comes off by squeezing the white tabs and gently sliding it. (photos one and two)
Next up remove the Oetiker clamps that hold the filler pipe and vent pipe to the filler neck and pull these rubber hoses off. Clamp them with a vise grips so they don't leak as you try to pull this damn thing out. (Photo 3)

Lastly, you must remove the delivery hose and return hose from the fuel pumps. Since I am replacing both of these hoses for each pump I elected to cut them, leaving a two inch segment off each connector that I then plugged. If you just disconnect the lines and manipulate the tank downward in the process of backing it out, fuel will come out. Ask me how I know this.
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Now I am ready to slide the tank out. The tank measures about 33 inches side to side, and the width between the boot lid gasket is 33 inches. No go. Remove the rubber gasket by grabbing at it's base and GENTLY pulling. It comes right off. Be careful though because even simple parts like this are stupidly expensive. Removing the gasket gained me an extra inch.
Place duct tape around the metal lip of the boot opening.

The tank needs to be pulled towards the rear of the car, getting the disaerator around it's mounting tabs on the body, and then upwards and out of the widest portion of the boot opening. You also have to tuck the metal straps behind the tank so that they don't hook on it on the way out. It's a *****, especially with fuel in there. I did get the tank out myself, with my kind assistant folding the two fill hoses coming out of the passenger side of the tank folded over on themselves. It came out, with no damage to the boot lip at all. The duct tape was scuffed a little bit.

Photo 1 is the tank out of the car, and photo two is the tank compartment now empty.
Photo 3 is the tank drain plug. This plug is concealed by a large rubber disc that comes off (seen in the front drivers side flat portion of the tank compartment floor in photo 2). The drain plug is situated such that if you had the right type of drainage apparatus you could feasibly drain the tank from underneath but there's so much mechanical ****e down there in the way (it comes out just to the left and above the gearbox) that I was worried about a fuel spill.

I did find this inhabitant of the tank compartment (photo 4) who had torn the crap out of the insulation under the rear deck and made its habitat on top of the forward vent valve of the tank before he gave up the ghost.
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The tank was now drained out of the car through the drain plug... and I removed another 7 gallons or so. The listed capacity of the tank in the WSM is 27.7 gallons...Obviously my math is off a bit on how many gallons I drained between yesterday and today but the car was full when I took delivery.

Photo one shows the filtrate of the remaining 8 gallons in the bottom of the tank. Looks pretty clean to me. Tomorrow the variable spanner wrench arrives so I can remove the fuel pumps and level sender to evaluate their conditions.
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Today around noon I received my highly anticipated tool in the mail: The OTC variable spanner wrench (photo 1). The wrench works right out of the box on the fuel sender unit ring nut but needed slight modification to work on the ring nuts for the fuel pumps. The parts to modify were gotten at Lowes (photo 2).

The ring nuts have approx 6mm diameter holes in them, so all you do for the level sender nut is screw on the 6mm tips included with the tool and the sender unit comes out nicely.

For the fuel pump ring nuts, the tips needed to be extended and the best and easiest way to do that was as pictured (photo 3)

Once the wrench had been modified it fit nicely into the fuel pump ring nut (photo 4)
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When using the variable spanner wrench on the ring nuts, they are tight, but can be removed by hand. Just apply steady firm pressure and the nut will begin to loosen. (photo 1)

Now that the ring nuts are off, the pump covers can be removed. I just applied firm pressure on the unions for the delivery and return lines outward and the covers popped off the gaskets.

Now comes the tricky part. The black plastic covers are separate from the actual plastic container holding the fuel pump (photo 2). They are held together by a bracket secured with a single 10mm bolt. Remove this bolt (photo 3). This allows you to fold the cap and return pipe downward so you can bring the can containing the fuelpump straight out of the opening. The apparatus barely fits through the opening, its a very tight squeeze. You need to pull it straight out and not at an angle, using a screwdriver to help the various protrusions to clear the hole. The plastic shears against the opening of the tank if you are not careful so look back in the hole for any leftover shavings after the assembly is out.

Lay them out for examination and be proud, along with those crappy "antivibration" gaskets that the fuel pump assembly sits on in the tank! Be proud! (photo 4)
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All three check valves need to be removed as their gaskets are the ones usually implicated as being leaky and causing fume smells. In this car two of the three check valves are connected to the disaerator by a 4 inch stub of hose, and the one in the front of the tank has a separate hose connection (photo 1)
All 3 are removed the same way. Rotate them 1/4 turn counterclockwise (GENTLY) and pull them straight up and out of their seats. Same commentary applies here about leaving plastic shavings behind on the sharp edge of the tank hole.

When you are finished you can examine the valves and gaskets. Take special note as to how the gaskets were placed on the check valves; the gaskets are shaped differently on each side. (photo 2)

Shake the check valves and make sure that the "floats" are free in each, and that when the float is "up" you cannot blow air in from the bottom and out of the hose.

The condition of my gaskets was pretty good...they were pliable and flexible, and I was unable to break them by pulling (not brittle). They will be replaced anyway
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The condition of the rest of the parts was as follows:

The fuel level sender unit looks very cheap, like it was put together in someone's hobby room. The gasket for it looks totally new...I will end up reusing it as it looks and feels so good.

The gaskets sealing the base of each fuel pump cover under the ring nut were also in pretty good shape, however I will be replacing them. Inspect the fuel pump cover thoroughly to make sure there are no cracks in the plastic. None found with mine.

The condition of the gasket holding each fuel pump in it's basket as well as the antivibration gaskets was another story altogether. The antivibration gaskets were badly damaged by fuel exposure and literally fell apart in my hands as I removed them. (photo 1)

The star shaped gasket sleeve holding the fuel pump in place had begun to deteriorate (photo 2 shows well the alligator texture of the cracked rubber) and there were some small pieces of rubber in the bottom of each fuel pump basket. However, the screens protecting the fuel pump intake had almost no debris embedded in them and the gasket sleeve still formed an intact barrier between the sleeve and the screen, therefore no junk has gotten into either pump (photo 3)

I am also electing to replace the delivery pipe and the wiring harness for each pump. Being that cracks in wiring insulation are reputed to have caused fuel tank explosions in airliners, it seems prudent here in that the wires are submerged in gasoline and run along metal brackets.
Photo 4 shows the delivery pipe, the wiring harness, and the fuel pump cover gaskets. I cant believe how much is charged for these replacement fuel cover gaskets...each one is $62.58 from Ricambi.

My general impression is that I took this fuel tank apart "just in time". These gaskets were well on their way to falling apart. My impression is that I can probably go another 10 years before doing this again, keeping in mind the car's ownership locations up to now (it's 13 years old).
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Of note here my friends:
I was just informed that there are none of the fuel delivery pipes or wiring harnesses (pictured in photo 4 of my last post) in the US.

They also want $85 for EACH of the green seal rings pictured in the same photo. This is the ring that goes between the fuel pump cap and the fuel tank lip. Good thing I didn't tear up the ones I have, which are in pretty decent shape. *whew*

Ferrari should be ashamed. Don't get me wrong, I know they aren't, but they should be. The car is only 13 years old.
Boo.

 

Ask and you shall receive Cribbj...photo one is of the fuel pump.

Check your PM for higher resolution photos of the hangar assembly.

And Cribbj, you must have a special connection at Ricambi because that price of $85 each IS today's Ricambi price. It appears that Ferrari prices change on whims, or maybe something more sinister.

Regarding the wire issue, there is nothing wrong per se with my wiring, but you are right I could make a better wire set. No plastic clips are really needed...you are just jumping a male spade to a male spade. A good quality wire with PTFE jacket, double crimp female spade connectors, all sealed up with fuel-resistant heat shrink would be pretty easy to do, and would eliminate the clips altogether. Two less pieces on each pump assembly to deteriorate and break.

You've inspired me...that's what I'm going to do.

The in-tank delivery hose is a hard plastic material...yes it is bendable but if I try to crimp it with my finger I cannot. I'm not sure I can get one short enough from ATL with the cuff on both sides. I will go measure
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