What was I thinking???

Hi all, this is my first post in Ferrari forum. I have been owning, working on, and driving classic Corvettes (C2 and C3) for a long time already. Never knew anything about Ferraris, just had a longtime perception, that they are out of my league.

Now I 'accidentally' won the Copart auction for Sandy flooded 1988 TR (thanks God, freshwater, not saltwater). Basically I got in for a price of average C3 chrome bumper Corvette.

So I am over excited and completely unprepared for such an unexpected entry to Ferrari world. I will see my new TR in a month, when it will get shipped to Europe.

Please share your insights with a complete newbie - what should I start from, what should I be aware of, etc. I promise to invest some time in reading all the wealth of knowledge in the forum to minimize the amount of stupid questions. What do you think about its condition, based on the pictures you see?

 

welcome aboard !
it doesnt look so bad, but mine is an untrained eye as far as flooded cars are concerned. it looks like all the important stuff is fine and so is the bodywork. but you will definetley still have to pull the engine, tranny, and replace all gaskets etc. and then for sure the electrical system will just have to be redone completely, and you should check the brakes. the interior will have suffered but we cannot see from the pics, so you will have ot judge just how far you need to go to get rid of mold etc.

but more knowledgeable people than me will soon answer some questions, especially when you get into it.

 

Wow, this could be a dream or it could be a nightmare. Testarossa's have electrical issues before they come in contact with water. I can't imagine what flooding would do.

Check out SRI's electrical kits including fuse boxes and connectors. They are pricy but in this case, they might be mandatory. They can be found here:

Innovations - Solutions - Scuderia Rampante

Use the Search function in the upper right corner of this site to see if your question has been asked (filter to search in this section and the Tech section). If you can't find the answer to your question, feel free to ask.

I would say this car is due for a major, belt change, all fluids, maybe brake pads, also probably fuel line hoses (also made by SRI). I'm sure there are other things. Like I said, it could all be good, or you may have bought a money pit.

BTW, I'm not sure how anyone can be sure the water was all fresh with no salt. The storm surge came in from the ocean and at the very least mixed with the rain water.

-F

 

What does an average c3 corvette go for???I would guess that by the time you are finished with this project, you will have exactly the same amount of money in this car that a similar driver would cost.Therefore it would make more sense to just purchase one that is ready to go, and you can use it immediately. That being said, if you have a garage, and like working on your cars, this should be a fun project. When you are done you will know the car inside and out, and can spend the money on it as you go along. Tepps

 

Was alcohol involved in this purchase? One should never drink when purchasing a TR. Only after should alcohol be used. And if you do have electrical problems....drink often!!

All kidding aside..... Congrats on your new toy and welcome to the ownership of a "real" Ferrari. 8 cylinders are for kids. 12 cylinders are for men of taste!!! Ask Joe Zaff. But be humbled in the fact that you don't have a single flying mirror version. Joe will remind you of that so you can skulk away in shame!!!

 

Nice Ferrari, seems like no body damage. Find a reputable, independent, Ferrari mechanic and start pulling that car apart and checking each system. Take the engine down and reseal it with a fresh major service kit. Good luck!

 

Average chrome bumper could go for around 20,000$, so I still believe that I got a good deal. Even if it would require a lot of additional investment, it would all be gradual not instant. I will get used to that

Guys in Corvette forum told me to park it in my driveway and make all the neighbours jealous. When someone asks, why I never drive it, I would just tell them that Corvettes are more fun. Obviously this is not true

 

If you thought corvettes were fun, this one will be an eye opener for you.

Congratulations , you are in for a treat !

Once you clean it up a bit post pics.

 

Hi Linas, welcome here ... in the world of the real "flat-twelves" !

I may cost you "a bit" more than calculated but imo you can rescue this nice Ferrari.

Shipping it to Europe makes me curious; can you tell us where (country/city) you live please ?

Find Fchat members locally to help you and advise you is my advise ... and ask here of course all that you want; the real specialists here can really be a help for you !

GOOD LUCK !

 

Congrats! My wife works in the insurance field and tells me that they are getting some bogus Sandy claims. People just wanting to cash in. With that said....lets look at this through rose colored glasses. Do you know where the water line is? Have you seen the car in person? Im trying to ascertain how much the car, if any, was submerged.

Im gonna get blasted for this........If it was my project, I would change the fuel, oil and tranny fluid. Examine for water. Check the cam belt for obvious cracks/missing teeth. Go through entire car and inspect/clean all electrical contacts and fuses. IF there isn't any water in the engine/tranny fluids AND the cam belt passes a visual inspection, change out the fuel filters, battery and do some basic light checks (headlights, turn signals, windows etc). Then try to start the motor. My theory is that the engine and transmission are designed to keep fluids in and water out.

The optimist in me is hoping that the previous owner saw a little water combined with opportunity to cash in on a bad situation. If he/she had an agreed upon value policy, a Sandy flood vehicle would be just another leaf on the tree.

The other thing I would do ASAP is to pull the carpets and steam clean them with some sort of anti pollen / mold carpet cleaner. Then put a generous amount of hide food on everything leather.

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

^

If you look at the interior pics, you can see it is almost up to the tombstone headrest.

Good bet the engine was submerged, he bought it off an auction sight unseen. Fair assumption of where the waterline could be at the very least.

 

Good Luck!!!! and post more pictures!!!




PDG

 

...your 'accidental purchase' will let this one remain among the 'living'.

Good Luck.

 

Thanks! I live in Vilnius, Lithuania. I'm aware of at least one Testarossa close to me, so it will be worth do do some consultation with its owner. He has the car for several years already, did the engine removal for some maintenance, etc.

 

Thanks for those tips, much appreciated. As far as I know, previous owner got 50,000$ payout for this car. Therefore, it looks like it was a good deal for him/her anyway. And I got the car for a small fraction of that amount.

In addition to you tips about the first startup procedure, I was also told (by the guy, who regularly works on flooded vehicles, both modern and classic) to change the oil, start the engine and run it for a while, then change the oil again, run it for a while, and change the oil third time. I should be looking for milky substance in the oil and making sure it is gone.

 

I already bought a set of NKG spark plugs, UFI fuel, air, oil filters, for the start. Also got myself electronic versions of owners manual and workshop repair manual. Started educating myself. It should be an amazing experience. Hell, I'm even considering selling one of my beloved Corvettes to get Testarossa properly fixed.

By the way, I had a closer look at the VIN and it appears that this is a Swiss model, which has been exported to USA at some point in time. Now it's heading back to Europe!

 

congratulations to this cheap car ! ! !

what is most importnat before you start the engine: remove all sparkplugs and turn the engine by putting a gear in and push the car. then may be water going from the exhaust into the cylinder can go out and you have no problem with a bent connecting rod. after this you may start the engine with the starter.

all other what to do is already written here in this thread

 

Many thanks, will note this and do it as you advise.

 

If you are at the point of "Checking the cam belt for missing teeth/cracks"...you might as well...REPLACE the CAM BELTS!!!!...Mark

 

I would part it out, it takes a while but you would stand to do very well on the sale of all the parts from that car.

 

Better to take a shop vac & attach a 4ft length of small plastic tubing to the exsisting shop vac hose. The tubing "OD" ( outside diameter) being smaller than the spark plug opening, insert the tubing into the spark plug hole as far down into the cylinder as possible, then suck out all the water ( if any). Then reverse the air flow so the shop vac is blowing air inside the cylinders in an attempt to dry them out. I would then spray a light viscosity rust inhibitor oil into each cylinder. I would NOT use the car to rotate the engine, but rather a large blade screw driver on the flywheel, this will give you a much better "FEEL", as to the ease or lack thereof of the motor's ability to "Freely" rotate.....Mark

 

Still trying to get the value of your own TR go up...Geez!

 

It has always been very sad for me to see someone parting out a classic Corvette. Especially the one, which might be brought back to road. I think, I will stick to the same principle with Testarossa. Maybe it will take time and cash to do it right, but I enjoy the road more than destination!

 

if you can do all by yourself you may keep this car and bring it on the street again.

but if you are not able to make it all ( under all I mean it so as I say ) it would be better to sell this as parts. from this money you earn then you may buy a TR without water inside.

when you want to make it very good it takes time to fix all. good luck I only can say

p.s. I´m fixing one of my 250 GT/E since more than 30 years and still not finished, but sure, not always working on

 

Congrats! Your car looks very nice in the pictures. It looks like it was a well cared for example before the flood incident. Hopefully the damage is minimal and that you will be able to get it back on the road.

FWIW, I've seen other Sandy flood damaged cars on Copart and other insurance auctions.......and a lot of them didn't look as clean as this. Quite a few of them had mud, mold, etc. I don't think they clean and detail them, so hopefully this is a sign of it being minimally impacted. Think positive! Who knows, you may have gotten the deal of the century!

Please let us know how it turns out when it arrives home.