Buying Mondial T, Belt question though

I am helping my brother pick out a Mondi. I told him 3.2 which is what I have, but he wants t for speed. Anyway, there is a black one at non-ferrari dealer that says only 2k miles since belt service but not sure how long has gone by. Can the belts be easily inspected for date marking on belts.....Is there and inspection port that can accessed?

Also, he is looking at another one current on service but a valeo. A little quicker but Im nervous about it. Should I tell him hell no or valeo is not ticking time bomb.

 

Uh oh...Another belt thread.

I am going to cut this one off at the pass

When it comes to belts its a time not just mileage thing and the best way to examine the belts is when they are off the car. While you are inspecting them, you might as well replace them and the tensioner bearings as well.

The Valeo has proven to be exceptionally reliable based on the feedback received on this board, however, if something does break, your brother is going to have to do some legwork to find parts as they are not readily available.

Hope this helps

 

I would find out how long if longer than 5 years drop the engine and do the major service. A poorly maintained Mondial t means big dollars at some point. I bought mine in 2007 had 1500 miles since major service but that was in 2000 and they were not in good shape thought I could get away with deferring it but I learned defferred service can add up to a hefty repair bill quickly.


One other thing to worry about that is never thought of is the gaskets in the gas tank for the fuel pumps. I had a small leak in the tank and after taking it apart we found that the gaskets were deteriorating and were luckily caught in a small filter in the tank to keep debries from the fuel line. Once that was corrected the car ran so much better and fuel ecconomy went down.

My recomendation is if he is going for this model buy one that is 100% on the services otherwise if you do not have disposable cash walk away til you find an example that is. No such thing as a cheap Ferrari because it will come back and bite you in the arse. I love mine and Have about 37k into it to get it in perfect shape and up to date on all recomended services.

 

Anyone who owned this type of car and doesn't have the doccumentation of the last belt service says alot about the car &/or previous owner.

IMHO

 

Tell your bro not to get a t for the speed. Get it for power steering and a lower center of gravity. It ain't that much faster than the 3.2. How do I know, I was just able to keep up with Joe Zs 3.2.
dave

 

The Valeo if sorted and correctly priced would be a keeper and the top of the line Mondial to get IMO. If he is ok with a non-clutch, he might expect greater performance also. I've heard very quick shifts, and if correctly used the Valeo seems to be robust [at least at this time]: HankSound will chime in I'd expect.

Time will tell.

There is more power in the T and 'some' 328 owners like to boost their model to make up for what they perceive a lack of power. If he tests a T against yours and you do the same I'm sure you'll notice the difference in power.

Much more to go wrong on a T and more costly to maintain as in shocks and pwr-assit steering, EXPENSIVE front wheel bearings, the 'starting issues' if solenoid gets hot [easy fix but frustrating at first], not to mention I"m guessing at some point the ABS, but not sure on that. If the rear window gets into problems [assuming a cabriolet for NA in the Valeo as that is all what was officially imported] then expect some extra bucks there. Don't get me started on seat belt mice: Disconnect them.

As for water pumps, belts, etc. one expects an engine out service and the belts cannot be that easy to inspect while in situ. I'm sure we'll get those that can do it while in the chasis.

As others stated: IF this seller/dealer-whatever cannot show WHEN the date of last change, you'll need to negotiate a engine out service or WALK AWAY as you'll need to do that service for piece of mind. Shoot, actually, you should also ask WHO did that service... when and who with what are as important.. PS: Replace the tension bearings and rebuild the H2o pump as default items.

 

No Im aware of all that you have mentioned about belts but what I was wondering if there is an inspection area so I can get the manufacturer date of the belt......

They start with year, then month, and so one:
0912-------
That means belt was made in 2009 dec. If there is an easy way to see the belt with out have to do too much thats what Id like to know so obviously if the belt is 0506------or something like that its time for an engine out and Im going to tell him to pass.

Thanks!

 

Makes sense, but you still wouldn't be able to tell when the tensioners were last replaced...and they can be as problematic as an old belt if left unattended.

I am surprised at how many owners don't change their tensioners "while they are at it." when I got my Mondial the last owner had done a full blown engine out with a nice hefty price tag, but didn't change the tensioners because "they looked great." I changed the belts/bearing, etc just under 3 years later and the tensioner bearings probably had a few more months left in them before they took out my engine.

 

I am afraid that this method is flawed. I have personally witnessed shelves of belt kits that can sit in inventory for several years and can easily be sold out of production date order. So using your example the 0912 belt kit could have been put into use before the 0506 kit - as they often occupy the same shelf space. There is just no simple way past a reputable service receipt I am afraid.