43733 Light Recommissioning and a Lot of Questions

Hello!

I finally got my 400i Manual # 43733 home yesterday!
My colleague and I towed her from the Dutch/Belgian border to close to Stuttgart in southern Germany - using a 78 bhp VW Bus...
The pace was leisurely

Today I skipped work early, and first went and washed the car:

Looks much better!

And then started with a major service: changed the oil, oil filters, gearbox oil and diff oil:


Note: you need 2 oil pans to catch all that oil!

 

Still to do:

Air filters
Fuel filters
Brake fluid
Air intake hoses.

Also, things that don't work:

Bonnet doesn't close on the left side, lock appears stuck.
Tank flap doesn't open electrically.
Central locking.
Fog lights?
Instrumentation lights
The passenger side mirror is not electric, surely it's supposed to be?

And the paint will get a good polish, the leather needs feeding and cleaning and the underside needs some rustproofing!

Wish me luck!

Esben

 

Thanks Sam!
Towing with a V8 BMW is alike to cheating

Regarding the right hand mirror: I'm now sure that it's supposed to be electrically adjustable, and also that they are rare as hen's teeth and painfully expensive.
Has anyone found a suitable alternative?

Cheers

Esben

 

Thanks guys!
I'm almost certain that the right hand side mirror is a Vitaloni Baby Turbo, without the electric mechanism.
Are you saying it might be possible to retrofit the mechanism from a BMW to that mirror, and basically turn it into a "Turbo" without the "Baby"?
Do you know what model BMW I should be looking for?

Esben

 

Eurospares have a picture of a much bigger rectangular mirror as being correct, and I've also seen pictures of cars with these:
Image Unavailable, Please Login

When did the mirrors change? And does anyone know the name of the rectangular mirror?

Cheers

Esben

 

I'm a bit unsure of how to progress with the mirrors. The very few original spec Vitaloni Turbos I have found were extremely expensive - "worst" was 2450€ for a single one
I've found a pair of red ones for 1200€, I might consider getting those and respraying them black or the blue colour of the car.

I had another look at the electrics today, and we have the following situation:

Brake lights don't work.
RH tail lamp doesn't work.
The day-time lights at the front don't work.
A number of fuses were blown, but replacing them didn't seem to sort anything...

I've already got the voltmeter out, we'll see what tomorrow brings!

Regarding the engine and diff mounts: is there a minimum in-use "thickness" of the mounts?

Cheers

Esben

 

Hi Ken,

I'm 47 years old, 6'7" and don't exactly have the build of a marathon runner - but a friend of mine is an excellent chiropraktor

Cheers

Esben

 

A little update:

- all the fluids have been changed
- the lights* work after having cleaned various contacts
- the car is now registered

So, did I go for a drive? No...
The brake lights don't work The switch works, but there is no juice getting to it.
Where does the feed wire (the red one I suppose) originate? There doesn't seem to be fuse for it.
What would help is a legible wiring diagram, the one in the owner's manual pdf I have isn't much use.

Cheers

Esben

 

I found those too, and wanted to order one straight away. However, the website seems "dead". I tried writing an email too, but no response so far!

Cheers

Esben

 

Hi Ken,

Wouldn't that be highly unusual?
The "feed" appears to come from Relay #112 (RH, very top row in the fuse box), but I can't tell which pin from the pdf wiring diagram.
One thing that crossed my mind very late last night is whether the brake lights maybe onle work with the ignition on? That would explain things...

Esben

 

Hi Sam,

If the 12V + ferd is only live when the ignition is on, then I'm an idiot and the next round of beer is on me !

If the diagrams from the 308 site are no longer available because the owner is deceased, would somebody be willing to sell me a copy of theirs?

Cheers

Esben

 

Sam,
It turns out that I am an idiot....
Brake lights work now, all that was needed was some solid advice and a bit of contact cleaner!

Esben

 

So,
Got the numberplates fitted and took her for a first proper drive!

She drives quite well, but I think the right bank is running too rich. It has some stumbling at low rpm and load, but I think that has to do with the richness. Any tips on where to look for specific info on the K-jetronic in these Ferraris?

I spent the morning (yes, took the day off ) partially recolourizing the leather. I'm really happy with the result!