QV Engine & Gearbox inspection and preparation for efi

Hi, all fellow 308 enthusiasts. I own a 1983, 308QV that I have driven regularly the last 13 years. Now I have decided to make a "reversible" modification to efi using a Link G4X CPU. I'm a completely new beginner when it comes to efi design and programming so it's going to be fun. I'm a amateur when it comes to wrenching but I have restored a few cars in my life including the 308 so I know a bit about the mechanical side of it. I have already fabricated most of the efi hardware and the wiring loop and the focus is now on the engine and the gearbox. The plan is to inspect the gearbox and the engine for wear and tear and change out any worn components and all seals. All bearings, piston rings, seals, clutch and valve guides were changed in the engine 13 years / 10K km ago by me so I know the engine is in fair condition except from the piston liners that showed uneven wear back then. The plan is to install high(er) compression pistons and re-conditioned Nikasil liners or new cast iron sleeves. I'm awaiting a set of 10:1 JE pistons and will decide which type of piston sleeves I will go with when I have the pistons in hand. I'm also on the lookout for a set of sport camshafts but have had little luck in finding any available. Anyhow, I have plenty of time to source a set of new or modified camshafts and can start out the project using the original ones. My hope is that I can get help and good advice in this forum as the project progresses.


Firstly, I have a question for the experts. I've noticed that there is a ø22 mm threaded alu plug in the engines cooling system that leaks into a cavity in the intermediate plate between the engine and the clutch cover. It's one of the big plugs like the one shown on the pictures below and I'm a bit reluctant to attempt to screw it out. Is there anyone here that have any experience with these plugs. Can they safely be unscrewed or is there a high risk of having to drill and mill it out?

Best, Peter



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No input from the forum regarding the aluminum blind plug so I decided to attach it by the trail and error method. tried to unscrew it using the correct 12 mm unbrako key - That did not go well and within a few seconds the square hole had become round. I kind of expected this and had prepared a more violent plan B. I drilled out the center of the plug and tapped out the remaining. Easy, quickly done and actually very gently to the threads in the block. I then clean the thread with a light acid to remove carbonates from the cooling fluid and polished the threads with soft Dremel brush. New conical plug installed with Loctite 542 thread sealer.

Best, Peter

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All engine hardware is now going for yellow and black electro plating:

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And the standard US QV rear exhaust cam shaft is shortened and plugged with a o-ring sealed steel plug. I'm in contact with Cat Cams in holland with respect to getting a customized set of "fast road" cams produced. The piston liners are in UK for re-sizing and Nikasil coating to fit my new high compression pistons.

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Hmm thank you, but I know some of you out there are real proffs! Anyway, I'm an experienced amateur but for sure stepping on new stones in this project. This afternoon I started preparing some of the efi hardware in preparation for engine assembly. I installed the injector carriers and assembled the blind plate for the exhaust cam.

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Front Intake cam it should be

 

Yep, that's my integrated home shop. It's relatively small and everything needs to have a dedicated storage location. It doesn't always looks so well organized. Long hours and hard work always tend to lower the threshold for a clean and organized work place. I follow and admire your 12 cylindered adventures closely and see that we both share that weakness

 

The Link ECU provides full logging as I understand it. My biggest challenge will be to build fuel tables and other tables from scratch with absolutely zero experience. Link do not, to my knowledge, deliver basic software examples for a Ferrari V8 engine. Thankfully I have access to the web and can start there.

Best, Peter

 

Short update from the engine department. I finally sourced new high(er) compression pistons from US and was then able to get the cylinder sleeves bored and treated with new Nikasil. I initially wanted to go with cast iron sleeves but eventually decided to use the original aluminum sleeves leaving out any dimensional doubt and maintaining the very wear resistant design. I think I also found a company that will make me some new slightly more sporty cams. Only downside is the delivery time of 3 to 4 months. While awaiting new cams I'm killing time by preparing some of the sub assemblies such as overhauled driveshafts, throttle housing with positioning sensor and the air intake box (CIS unit) with air intake temperature sensor. Also received all the engine hardware back from plating and god it sorted out in my small assembly bags. I'm using the same plater for all my projects and I'm still amazed that he never loose any of the several hundred parts

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Also took the opportunity to get the few years old expansion tank sand blasted, acid treated inside, painted on the outside and coated inside with POR fuel tank paint. It annoys me that all the original steel tanks on my F-cars starts to corrode quite rapidly so this is a test to see if the coating is holding. I know there are mixed opinions about the coating inside but I believe the tricks is in the preparations and preparations are very time consuming - Time will show if it was worth it. Below a few pictures from the installation of the TPS on the throttle housing.

Best, Peter

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Also got a question for the more electrical inclined experts. I've started to QC check the EFI harness and my sensors. I've just tested the cam sensor with a simple DC power supply at 8V and a voltmeter. As I expected there is 0V when there is no trigger wheel tooth between the Hall censor and the corresponding magnet but I only measure 0.25V when the trigger tooth is between the sensor and the magnet. I expected at least 5V or maybe even 8V. Am I having a problem here or is this as expected?

Best, Peter

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Thanks mk e. The Hall sensor can run on anything between 5 to 12V and I have chosen a 8V supply from the Link 4GX ecu. It makes sense with the missing pull up resistor. The ecu Hall trigger input channel has a standard feature where I can define a pull up resistance with a good span. The CIS air meter is not in use. I'm just using the empty housing to draw in air via the original air filter. This is practical and makes the engine room look a bit more original.

Best, Peter

 

I tested the hall sensor again this time with a 1Kohm resistor between the +8V power supply and the signal output and that fixed the low voltage issue. I now have full 8V output when the trigger wheel covers the magnet. I would say the airflow through the cis housing is rather unhindered. The flow area is at least the same as in the hose to the throttle housing. There is no doubt that the distance from the plenum to the air filter is rather long but I live with the added resistance. The alternative will involve a completely different air filter setup and I don't want that.

Best, Peter

 

I went for CatCams (The only company that replied to me). They want to have the original cams in hand before I can get a final recommended specification but the cams will not be too aggressive. Standard intake duration is 222 deg @ 0.05" and with a lift of 8.74 mm I believe, so maybe something like 240 deg @ 0.05" and 10 mm lift. But it's all guessing at this stage. I think they have bad experience with F-cams due to the many different configuration pending model, production year, destination country so they are very reluctant to say anything up front. I thought they had a finished product on the shelf but that's not how it works.

Best, Peter