Bambina Blog

I thought I would start a blog thread. I have been doing lots of work on the car lately, and it would help me to centralize my efforts and not have so many one-off threads – or highjack everyone else’s. This will include the work I’m doing, stories about the car, and some other car stories from my youth.

Quick introduction – my name is Spencer. My car is a ’75 GT4 affectionately known as Bambina. I inherited her from my dad – Stephen Tillim, who passed about 11 years ago. I know many people consider themselves custodians however, this car is mine and I will keep it as a statue after there is no more gas on the planet. She is my forever car.

Bambina’s first owner was a San Francisco entrepreneur named Bert Tonkin. He started a successful retail convention. I found this on one of the GT4 registries. As I did the research, I found he was from Portland area. I reached out to the Ron Tonkin collection manager, who I listened to on the Cars Yeah podcast, and sure enough, they were first cousins. My dad bought the car in the end of ’76. I asked if he didn’t like the car, but the response was no. He actually sent note to Bert’s wife upon our correspondence, and she remembered the car fondly. He said the GTB and GTS were coming out and since they were the new cars, he wanted the next thing. I wonder if he let Ron do the decision making on the order. The original spec (I hate that word now – it seems all they can talk about new supercars is the “spec”):

April 75 build – one of the last Series 1 builds
Red with Boxer Stripe / Tan leather interior
Luggage Shelf
Electric Windows
AC

The Bambina, translated to baby girl, name came for my sister who was born shortly after my dad acquired the car. He was a neurosurgeon in the Bay Area. I was lucky enough to have this car as my chariot for my first ever car ride home from Stanford hospital in ’78. It must have been a contributing factor to me as a crazy car guy and Ferrari freak. I have so many stories. I will make sure to sprinkle them out in this blog. Between my dad and my stepdad (not legally but practically) who also known in the Bay Area in Ferrari circles, Bill Schworer (recently passed), I was lucky enough to be around some of the most amazing machines in the world. I will post the list sometime. Many cars came and went. This was the one that stayed with me throughout my entire life. I’ve had offers, I told one person I would sell her for $1 million.

I am kind of a typical 308 owner. I can’t afford the bill so everything I know about fixing cars, I learned from this and mostly from the internet and Fchat. I am in the middle of a bunch of major fixes. I have not driven the car for about five years (again there’s a story). This is the largest effort I have ever taken on from a repair standpoint. I am about 4 months in.

So hi!

 

Sorry just noted it looked like I called all 308 owners poor - I know we have all done something right in life to get here. i just meant its hard to stomach $20K bills on 50K cars. I guess it would be better to call us the most diverse owner group on F-chat. Except for the Mondial crowd - who needs them?!?... Just Kidding!

 

SN 10756 .

The BBS wheels were put on the car in '77 are e50 that I have restored and modified. The fronts are 16x7.5 , the rears are 16x8 with a different offset 4.5" Lips, 3.5" Barrels - My wheels rub and I have rolled the fender. I am thinking bout a wider barrel to stretch the tire in a little.

A couple old threads and posts. But I never did a full overview of what became a long process. I guess I can make that a whole post.
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/i-went-wide.530067/
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/posts/149020222/
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/posts/147424366/

I don't have any pics of the luggage shelf but I should. My sister and I used to have booster seats and we would use the straps as seat belts! Ahhh the '80's!

 

What’s wrong with this car and my life!

In 2011 @yelcab was cool enough to come over and help me get it started. Well – at least the power got to the ignition, but he warned me not to start it as the belts were old. I have to admit – after he left I started it anyway because I wanted to hear it go. He warned me that I would have to put in the time - that the car wasn't worth it and I wouldn't be doing it for the money, just the love. I put it off for so many reasons, love, marriage(s), divorce(s), dating, money, work…

Its leaking like a sieve. It has been for years. I just haven’t driven it in the past five. But I had figured out that the shift shaft opening is one of the main culprits as there were hard drops. But if you looked at the engine, it is/soon to be was, one of those cars that just has a sheen of oil everywhere. I was almost scared to clean it because that would unplug the more places for oil to seep out. I looked at every bolt and engine plug not knowing. Sooner or later you gotta let’er rip potato chip. Second divorce in 6 years as the primary driver(waiting or her to sign the settlement agreement) , along with some prodding from my friends to not be a B!+c4 any more. But there’s oil everywhere and it doesn’t just flow up…. finally last weekend as I was removing the dip stick and looked up – front valve cover and cam seal. Yep, everything we read about here!

A couple years ago I knew I had to do the belts again due to time. I had read about the new belts designs and timing worked out that @derekw was making sets to run off the new rounded belt tooth design that is supposed to last many more miles – and 10 years. Also, they allow adjustable cam timing (that is likely where I’d pay somebody to tune). Well, I might as well check the valve clearances – cam covers coming off. I was always told it had a set of hot cams. I am not sure if they are the P6 or webcam. I am looking forward to finding out. Throughout all of my life, I know the car has been serviced by about three mechanics – The former Modena Motors in Redwood City by both Bill & Judy Morton and then by Tony Paladino after he took over. Later I had a friend and former Ferrari Los Gatos tech, Craig Burnworth, do a bunch of work in my initial recommissioning. We actually tried to do a shop in San Jose together. It failed for so many reasons, many of them me. Since then, I’ve been a one man show. But in all that time and receipts, I can’t find anything documenting if the sodium valves have been changed. Fortunately, there was a set on FChat that were also designed by Derek. WAIT – does this mean I am pulling the heads?!? Guides, springs (maybe), seals, I think this just got more serious……

I think was one of my last drives, 2018 - foggy night in Del Mar, meeting a girl that I was just supposed to be friends with, Erin, but there was chemistry and we made out once.

 

Mitchell gave me some of the best advice - get a multi-meter and one of Paul's wiring diagrams - have it professionally printed and laminated. Half the stuff that goes wrong is electrical! Start there!

 

Current state -
Rear suspension fully removed and disassembled.
Oil pan out
ac compressor out
cam belt covers removed
center console removed
starter removed

Did a lot of cleaning!

 

New Tool Day 4/27/2023

A couple new tools off amazon. I didn’t have a siphon - $9. I have a motorcycle (Ducati 907ie) that I need to get the gas out of the tank for repainting and I plan on pulling the passenger side tank on Bambina so I can get a look at anything passing through there. I think the AC Lines pass through. I want to upgrade to R134 system. I hear people say it sucks. There’s a guy here in town that sells upgraded compressors that drop in 308’s (Steve Maxwell). I know I must redo the seals I would imagine I have to redo the lines as they are so old. There is a guy here who sells an updated compressor. I love the previous thread on Electric AC Compressor being put into play. I could move the compressor up to the front. It would reduce lots of plumbing but maybe I’m going too far? That would also mean new alternator, but I plan on doing a direct fire electronic ignition. HMMM – Damn scope creep. Amazing how one $9 siphon impacts so many projects. The siphon is pretty cool – directional pump with filter, plastic pinch to pause, brass weight to keep the hose at the bottom, use gravity but if you can’t you can pump. If you haven’t seen this thread check it out! https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/electric-a-c-install-on-my-328.601689/

Does the coolant line go through the passenger side too to the radiator or is that through the center?

Second tool is actually a two-fer described on amazon as a Adjustable Gland Nut Wrench & Small Universal Hydraulic Cylinder Spanner Wrench $35 – let me explain. I am going to do my clutch which means I have to do the gears in the transfer case. There is a specialty tool / socket for that. People either buy the tool or hack away with a hammer and punch. I grew up in my late teens and early 20’s a bicycle shop mechanic and sales in Palo Alto. We commonly used spanner wrenches for multi pin ring nut contacts. I look at these nuts a lot like that. So these – they are adjustable – I think I need to drop in a spring or lock washer but you loosen and tighten to size so it not supposed to slip out. The pins are held in by Allen screws, so they appropriately pivot to fit and I can adjust depth. I will have to file / grind them into square shapes to appropriately fit the grooves. I think the smaller one is probably more applicable. Then you see it has the opening for a ½” drive on the small and ¾” on the big so you can use a good ratchet or breaker bar and torque wrench. Could this replace all those specialty sockets that are almost $100 each? Will it work at all? Have you found my missing 10mm? I don’t know? But for $35 and a little elbow grease I’m willing to try. I’ll let you know how it goes.

 

FAAAK I want to so badly but I have too small a garage and can't physically do it. I will do a "my garage" posting but essentially I am a city dweller, like blocks off the gaslamp in San Diego, and lucky to have a usable garage I rent nearby. I can walk walk to it and they agreed I can use it for this purpose mechanical work. When that engine finally comes out, I'm doing a 3.5 build with a 360 crank! I've also thought about getting a QV motor / trans and build that while i drive just because everyone says the 2v can't get over 300 whp because the heads design constrains it - that would be super expensive.... I just miss driving my car so much - it has been since 2018 and I babied it then because there was so much work to do.

 

Finally got back into the garage last night and crossed a chasm as a single man - there is an oil sump pan and baffles sitting on my kitchen counter. I have decided to take a shot at some metal work and make my own baffle based on the common design. I bought a 12 gauge sheet of aluminum. It may be too thick but not a big deal think I will order some thinner sheet. I also have a band saw, drill press and a cool little drill attachment called a nibbler. I also have the smallest Harbor Freight brake for some basic bends. I’m really looking forward to this from the days of watching all those hot rod and chopper shows from 20 years ago on discovery! I figured I would make the basic template at home using pics from the one sold on all the sites.


It was kind of cool going over to the garage at night after work. I was able to get the intermediate shift shaft lose but not completely removed. I got some paint pens to mark the alignment in the shift shaft in the trans case. It doesn’t sound like much, but it was cool actually touching this and seeing how the twisting motion moved between the gear selectors to the motion of me giving the knob a waggle in neutral like when I’m firing up the car or sitting at a stop light. It’s amazing how delicate and smooth everything in the gearbox is. How light a movement translates into horizontal slides, even at the slightest contact. No, I am not making major gear changes from there to disrupt my reassembly – just very slight taps to see what barely moves what.

I wasn’t planning on pulling the shift box, but I think I will have to get that middle shaft further forward to pull the one out of the engine / trans, so I might as well redo the shifter too. I finally get to install the other silent block / bushing from @Verell years ago and only doing the rear. It’s not terribly dirty in there but why not. I also managed to loosen the choke cable even though it isn’t needed. It was always a pet peeve to have a frozen lever!

I have decided I am going to pull the heads. I don’t know the last time they were off. Unsure about the sodium valves. So, I am making the move. I’ve been doing a lot of research on the valve train and cylinder head. I was able to get a full set of the valves from @derekw and @Nuvolari – full intake and exhaust – the ones that Derek designed and had made available a while back. I have been learning a lot about valve guides, sleeves, and springs (lengths and strength), titanium hats and seals. I think I will pull the guides myself but have new a machine shop do the manganese guide and seat install – maybe some port / polish but there is only so much to get out of our 2v heads. I want to do the new seats purely to get away from using the lead additive in my gas. The springs are my mystery until I pull the cam covers and see what I have under there – everyone always said they were beefy. P6, web cam, cat cam? I will need all your help with getting the measurements correct – I probably need to get a micrometer (poor me more cool tools!)


Shameless plug for @Nuvolari – He was on the VINwiki video series recently as he became a sponsor with his Element Fire Extinguishers!!!!



Fun side note – there is a gorgeous woman in my building. She gave me her number the other day to help her out with something as I’m on the HOA board. I looked her up, because I’m a creeper. Turns out she did some work for a local FCA region event, which I follow on Instagram and I skimmed right over her name before on the post. So I gave me a reason to send out a flirty text about it and I got a response!

 

Makes sense! My '75 GT4 is not on the list. I think redoing the seats is a must. Who knows when they ban lead additive?! I am in California...

 

I don't know why lining / sleeving makes me nervous - maybe its just something I need to get over in my head. There's also a part of me that just wants to start with new stuff. I will take those hats though! email sent!

 

May 23, 2023 - Read The Directions Dummy


What a weekend. I got what I felt like a lot done this weekend – I had even gone in a couple weeknights.


First off – I got my daily back – I had no working car for a month. I brought it down to TJ for a full 20-year body clean up and repaint. I drive a 2004 WRX Wagon – no I am not the Subaru guy chasing you down to beat you. I love the way it drives and every time I think about something new, just the cost to replace this experience is like $50-80K. I always liked that Merc GLA AMG thing. In case you can’t tell I have a GT4 – I like weird looking cars that impress nobody but the driver…. If I had all the money in the world – Audi RS6 Avant (wagon). Not a bad deal for the Subie though full body work and paint job (a 7/10 job) costs just $1,300 in Mexico (+ 150 for one month of full coverage Mexico car insurance). He was referred by a friend as extremely trustworthy.


Back to Bambina. Okay I deemed the 12 gauge aluminum was too thick. I ordered some 16 gauge and I think that should be right for the baffle. I got some poster board yesterday – I went after being in the garage and walking in crowded Little Italy to the art store while being absolutely covered in oil and grease gets some odd looks from people. I get a weird satisfaction knowing I just came from working on my amazing car and them thinking I’m a bum – they don’t know me…. I also got a new bandsaw blade for cutting metal off amazon and installed it.


I pulled the shifter out! Thus, I was able to slide the intermediate shift shaft forward enough to pull the shift shaft in the sumps out. The only bad part was when I removed the gates it took a l touch of leather (or is that vinyl) out with it. They were all re-dyed decades ago and when the did the reassembly, they must have put it on wet. I know I have to completely redo my interior anyway….


Inside the shifter was very typical to others. Not much crud but built-up grease. Black pool of grease in the bottom. Mine was in good condition. I removed the bushing and one of Verell’s Delrin silent blocks is going in (rear was done 10 years ago). I lost my other silent block I ordered way back but somehow managed to still have the quad seals.

I ordered some Swepco 101 Moly Grease to rebuild, and I have to do my CV joints as well. Again, seeing how it all works, after holding the gear nob in my hand, even as a little kid, just made me smile.


Pulling out the shift shaft from the block was very satisfying. Completely removing the bolt from the selector fork threw me for a loop for a few. I didn’t realize the shaft was grooved. I feel like I am actually accomplishing things! I meant to do this for so long! I immediately got my seals out to see if they were as tight as everyone said. They weren’t and I freaked out. I was about to post something but decided to go back the master as he had just sent me the invoice for the silent block. He sent back this great set of instructions he had created for people just like me, and I am so happy. This community is so great.


Quad Shift Seal Installation Tips


I also loosened the cam belt tensioners and pulled the belts. I am committed on the heads at this point. I didn’t even mark anything. I think I put about 2K miles over the years I had the car running between 2013 and 2018. The Hill tensioners are still in perfect condition – I think I’m just gonna run them.


I need to get a rivet gun. I have an air compressor but found this attachment that goes on the end of my electric drill. Funny – I thought I would become an air tools guy but I really love the drill attachments– they can be used anywhere.

 

I didn't see that! Thank you!

 

For my Dad:
As we go into June I am reminded of Fathers Day. I never became a dad. I sort of thought it would happen, then at 40 I met a woman that said “I have a 19 year old. Her dad is a good hearted but not there for her like she wants. You can step in and she’ll be good to you. And, she wipes her own ass.” Unfortunately, even though she’s now 24, I miss her so much as this divorce nears completion. I also feel like now at 45 I missed my window. I’ve learned more about myself and think as much as I’d be a good dad, I might also really mess up a kid. I don’t want to be 65 when the kid finally gets to college and I start to live my own life again. I have a lot to do to prepare for being old (says the 45 year old).


My dad was an interesting guy. I loved him and at many times was very angry with him, darn near hated him. But he planted the seed for being a car guy and a Tifosi. His name was Steve Tillim. He was a neurosurgeon – Chief Neuro at Kaiser in California for a bit, then went into private practice.


I grew up very lucky and in a privileged place, Atherton, California. I will never be able to live in my first home – it belongs to some tech board chairman type now. I know people were well off around me, but I had no idea how much. An the hockey stick of how wealth accelerated from when I was a kid is pretty insane.


Dad loved cars. It was how he made friends and I saw that. He always had the need to go fast. He grew up in Brooklyn and eventually made his way out to Douglaston Queens and had a speed boat as a teen. He had a MGA coupe. When he and my mom made it to California in 1974 he started looking for his new thing and got a Porsche 914. They lived across the street from Menlo College, a small business school. A young student there was a Saudi Sheikh and owned a townhouse a couple doors down. Once day my dad noticed there was a spaceship parked in front of this college student’s front door in the form of a Lamborghini Countach. I think it really got my dad’s mind stirring. Soon enough my mom was pregnant and just before my sister’s birth Bambina showed up. By the time I came along they had moved it their much nicer home and it had extra garage space. He did what every red-blooded American car guy would do – fill that space! He looked and I know there was an attempt at a 550a Spyder. He said it was $50K and just too far out of reach after buying the house. But then he got line on a hot rodded 275 GTB/4 out of France. He got it for $15K! I remember going around in both cars as a toddler. They were so different – the shapes, sounds and smells. The 275 had race belts, slider windows and Borani wheels that even in 1980 made it feel so classic, as cars were really changing shape. The Dino felt new. Even though we had the luggage rack option, my sister and I had our little booster seats and we could go as a family.


Two stories:

The Great Father’s Day Escape

I think I was four. We were driving Bambina north on 280 heading into San Franciso for some car event – full family in the car. Nearing Millbrae / South SF a woman in a black Ford highboy coupe hot rod pulls upside us and my dad took off. We were probably going 100. I remember the concern on my mom’s face, but she didn’t say anything. The road wasn’t too packed, and we were moving. About a minute into it we hear the sirens and there’s a motorcycle chip and he gets us both – we were ahead of the ford on the side of the freeway. The cop walks up to my dad and demands “You wait here!”. He does his business with the lady in the Ford. My mom quietly digs into my dad a bit as he puts his hand on her thigh and tells her to calm down. Then he comments from staring in the mirror that “Yep, she’s getting a ticket” and she pulls off then the cop walks towards Bambina and leans over to my dad and says, “license and registration – do you know how fast you were going?” Just then a car comes honking as it pulls over in front of us and backs up. A guy jumps out and goes running to the cop and then runs back to his car. The cop comes urgently back to our and hands back my dad’s info. “That man just informed me there’s a bad accident about two exits back. I have to go. Happy Father’s Day.” My dad looks at my mom and smugly smiles. He reached back to me sitting directly behind him without looking and gives me a happy tap on the leg. Then he just guns it back on the freeway into the city, but my mom said no more speeding. He listened and gave her that for the rest of the day.


The Blackout Ditch

I can’t remember how old I was – probably five. My dad used to let me shift the gates from the passenger seat to teach me how the manual works. I don’t know if that is relevant to this story, I just remember that when thinking of this because we used to do it in the same place. Atherton Avenue is a long street that is a hub to the well off. Going from El Camino Real to our home there are two sections – a long flat straight with an amazing S-curve that leads into a 1.5 mile straight, lined by trees and mansion gates. We lived past the end of that, up the hill into a more hidden neighborhood. It was late and just me and him in the car. He flew through the s-curves at 50-60mph and squeezed his foot on the accelerator. We picked up speed. The weber carbs were screaming and the gears whining. Then we saw the flashing lights. At our speed we had passed him probably tucked on a side road but we were already nearing the stop sign maybe over half mile ahead. I felt him brake hard and downshift aggressively. I sat in silence to let him do his thing. He killed the lights and hung a left into one of the last streets before the stop sign without tapping the brakes. We coasted to one of the long driveways without a gate as he killed the motor and stopped with the e-brake. We were barely in view of the home from the long straight hedged driveway. He told me to be quiet. We sat for what was probably 10 minutes. It seemed like an eternity to me. I knew we were breaking the law, but I loved it. It reminded me of Cannonball Run, which by this time I had only seen about 20 – 30 times on VHS. He whispered “Okay, let’s go.” He quietly started the car and reversed out – lights off still. We backed out on the side street and slowly crept forward back to Atherton Ave. He nosed out and sat for a moment to scan for the police car, which could have really been anywhere in a pitch-black shadow, waiting for us. He slowly accelerated away and turned on the lights as we reached Alameda De Los Pulgas, crossed through and we hurried up the hill, round a couple corners and into our steep downhill driveway. He looked at me as he killed the engine – “Don’t ever tell this to your mother”. I understood the ramifications – “Okay Dad.” “I love you” he said back.


My parents separated and divorced not long after this but those were the good days.


He remarried too soon to a woman that subtly didn’t like me until I was old enough to figure it out. I was edged out of part of his life but he made mistakes in this area, too. I now had both a step and half sister added to the family. But dad and I always had cars. He vintage raced. He wasn’t good. He loved old Formula Jr. cars. He had an Alexis Formula Jr., and he really loved his ’59 Elva Formula Jr. I also remember a couple sports racers, like a Turner. He always wanted a Cooper, but it didn’t happen. I used to go to the track with him on weekends and help him as pit crew – kill the battery and check and adjust tire pressures. He tried to build a race car broker / dealer business with his good friend, Gordon Keller – a really nice guy. Gordon worked for Victory Lane magazine. I don’t think it lasted more than a couple years and didn’t make any money. My dad didn’t make the best financial decisions, but he had fun.


I remember he split from his private practice partner and decided to go out on his own. It was a big decision and it meant he had to sell the 275. It was a sad day. I remember driving it down to Ferrari of Los Gatos and him sitting in a room as I looked around the show room. We got in a fox body musting that an employee drove, and he brought us back to Los Altos. I remember being sad, like it was one more thing from the good old days, now gone. I don’t think my stepmom liked or understood our love for the cars. I remember her smiling and giving him a hug and kiss when we got back. It was hard for me as I internalized it all. Recently while going through Bambina’s service records I came across the receipt below. This was as the late ‘80’s bubble was brewing and for a moment the car was worth over a million. He talked how this frustrated him later in life – almost like he didn’t want to do it.


Eventually they divorced too, after 17 years (coincidentally the same amount of time he was married to my mom – and the same number I see so many couples make it before throwing in the towel). He had lost most of his money and had enough to keep him going to the end.


My dad had a hard life. He was an introvert. He seemed puzzled by friendly relationships but had a couple meaningful ones. Most of those guys were older than him and died before him. He was prone to sickness. In his lifetime he survived five cases of cancer. The sixth one got him in 2012 at age 72. I lived with him a short time before he passed but moved in with a girl before he went. About a year before, he knew what was coming. He had a Lotus Elise, and Bambina. He called me over and said, “I’m not sure how much time is left. Your sisters will all get stuff that is meaningful from their mothers, jewelry and trinkets. I paid for their college, while you did it yourself. You can have your choice of the Elise or Bambina. But I will let you know, if you take the Dino, it will be expensive and a lot of hard work. The Elise will just go, and your life will be much easier. I will have to sell the other car.” It was never a question for me. “I’ll take Bambina. I’ll do the work. I will learn”. It was the memories, the sounds, and smells of my youth – a time before it all got tainted. It was Ferrari – so much a part of my identity. It was my mom and dad together in the front seats. I miss him and I feel him every time I’m with this car. I think of him when I sit in the seat that made him so happy. I see him smiling at me whenever I catch the scent of the interior. There’s a part of me that feels him being proud of me with all this work I’m dumping into her, and everything I’m learning.