Restoration of Miura 1021

For those that don't know, I thought I would add a few shots of Alberto's second rear tail clips. His plan is to eliminate the louvers in this piece and mold a large rear glass to set in to view that monster power plant for shows and events.
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Fitting the second tail piece so it will be an easy transition and will line up without re-adjusting the latches. We moved the mounts and pins and re-welded exactly where the position points are for the first clip.

A little bit more fit and finish. It's a long and tedious process but well worth the effort!

I don't know too many Miura owners that have a second rear tail clip. Pretty Cool!

Steve
Steve Kouracos
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May I suggestion that the louvers are instead made out of clear plastic to enable viewing of the engine. These louvers are a big part of the looks of the car.
Pete

 

Wasn't the Miura originally intended to have a window, but it caused cooling issues? It would be neat to replicate the original style window for shows...

 

wow thats a good union of 2 good ideas . I would love to see that !

Gary
Espada
8394

 

Just came across this thread...awesome stuff.

Thanks for sharing.

 

Lexan is not the way to go.. I have a line on glass as this is what we are doing on the LP420 SVM

 

Hey Pet.. I know what your saying about the louvers.. they are unique to a Mira! But a custom made piece of glass would be pretty cool...to reveal the motor compartment without any distraction. Mostly for show.

Thanks

 

Yes your are correct. I believe the owner just wants the people to see inside the motor compartment without having to always lifting up the tail. There is nothing like the profile of a Mira when the front and rear clips are down and the doors are shut.

Steve

 

No Lexan!! Only real automotive grade. We would build a mold and have someone like Metalcrafters in fountain Valley Ca. do it. They make specialty glass for prototypes and concept cars. All depends on the owner.

Steve

 

Still think clear louvers would absolutely knock everybodies socks off and look far more finished ... but up to the owner.

Pete

 

Hello & THANK YOU!! for the time & effort you are taking to photograph & document the restoration & graciously including us along your journey. My neighbor in the 70's had a black Miura, I could hear him start the car up from 1/2 a block away, I would run to the front of my parent's driveway, just to see the Miura drive-by...FIRST car I EVER LUSTED after & I was only 12....never heard the car get out of 1st gear...the owner had a Beautiful Exotic Asian wife....I LUSTED after her too!!!.....on a mechanical question...are the connecting rod bearings grooved 180 degrees or 360?.....Mark

 

I have never seen grooved connecting rod bearings on any engine (however it would not surprise me if there was an exception). Generally it is not good to do, it cuts the bearings load carrying capability in half. Main bearings are often grooved but that is because that is the way oil gets to the rod bearings.

Cheers Jim

 

Hell Jim; Good "Catch"....my error, as I meant to write....180 or 360 grooved "Main" bearing/s.....Mark

 

On the Miura workshop site there are some photos of the main bearings, only the upper half is grooved. This is a good way to do it, the rods still get the oil they need and the mains do not loose their load carrying capability in the direction they need it most. The crank has two holes in the main bearing journals 180 degrees apart so the rods are provided oil for 360 degrees of rotation. The crank is also cross drilled to minimize centrifugal loads on the oil and the risk of losing oil flow (due to excessive pressure from centrifugal loads and therefore excessive oil flow out of the rod bearings) to the rods at high rpm.

Cheers Jim

 

Confused. Lamborghini would not have made those bearings ... they would have bought them (probably after designing them to suit sizes in a bearing catalogue) from any bearing supplier that gave them the best bang for buck.

I'd rather choose the best bearing manufacturer (Vanderwall?) and see if they have bearings to suit ... but thats just me.
Pete

 

Hello Pete; Very accurate & excellent point. A limited production auto maker like Lamborghini could NOT afford the costs to manufacture their own bearings. As for spelling..it's "Vandervell".....Mark

 

Alberto,

Your project makes my 308 restoration look like a walk in the park! Beautiful work, keep those pictures coming. Your car really is the greatest supercar.

 

Dear Alberto, keep on the good work, there are always some people who have some criticism, I made also made some experience after restoration of an old Jag, saying this is not original, that is not.... blabla... but finally, important is that you enjoy and that other enjoy too, I personally find the informations in this chat and thread useful and inspiring, and maybe, one day if I also will have the honor to own a Miura, I will remember you and be thankful for sharing with us pics and infos.

Enjoing other is also the mission, I believe, for all owners of those cars, I have this feeling having a 670 SV, and sharing some time with kids, that look at the car as i looked into the Countach some decades ago.... By the way, in Switzerland we have some good guys restoring Miuras and other Lambo classics in St.Gallen, the Hirsch Lambo dealership, if you need support or parts. Have a good (lambo) time.
Antonio

 

Hello Antonio; Well Stated & "Sad but True", there will always be those that choose to "Piss on someone else's Parade"....SCREW THEM Alberto!!!!....you will have the last laugh & greatest pleasure, because you are the Proud Owner of a Magnificant Miura...a True Legend in Automotive History....I as MANY have demonstrated...APPLAUD your EFFORTS!!!.....Mark

 

It seems rational that the grooved main bearing shells should be on top (attached to the block) and Post #48 shows that this is where they were in Alberto’s engine.
Reading this write-up from Mahle/Vandervell would also suggest theat the groove should be in the top bearing: http://www.vandervell.co.uk/images/slideshow/homepage/1285170047TheInfluenceonMainBearingGroovesonBearingPerforman.pdf

BUT
When I rebuild my Espada engine many years ago, I remember that the grooved caps were at the bottom, which puzzled me at the time. I consulted the parts manual (both then and just now), which clearly shows that the grooved shells should be at the bottom, so that is how I installed them. I have also consulted with GTCP on this and according to their documentation the grooved shells should be at the bottom.

Things typically are more complicated than they appear at first sight and maybe the pulsating flow and oil hole locations need to be timed, so oil flows to the big ends (of the con rods) at a location and time with minimal pressure in the oil film.

Laust