Testarossa wheels detached from car at high speed!!!!

Do you have any pictures of the damage?

 

All KOs you need to check periodically, the TR lug is like a regular wheel stud on a Ferrari vs a big nut which was used on older models, if procedures are followed for putting on the wheel they will be fine and I would not be concerned with them.

 

I asked our tech if he had heard this happen,said nothing maybe was not torqued properly. If you need any parts please call me 1-866-929-9919 ext138
Thanks Ronnie

 

Fix the car and OWN it.

Thank your lucky stars it was not worse and drive on. Originality is not effected by a proper repair...see Loss of Value discussions on here......

Do the work yourself with the proper tools from now on.....no worries!


These are very fine cars, with a few ownership quirks.

READ and FOLLOW all available shop manuals. JOIN the club(s) and DISCUSS the ownership with like minded individuals (steve f is golden here!).

GAS it UP and DRIVE the cr@p out of it!

SLEEP well, knowing you are one of the fortunate few to realize the dream.

ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ(Boxer)ZZZZZZZ(12 banger)ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ!

 

Ronnie.....torque,.............and properly.........came immediately to mind.

How many parts you got?????????

 

I still have the old quarter panel in my attic. Might be able to take some pics. It didn't really look that bad - the wheel just kind of reamed the whole fender opening larger and cracked the paint around the edge. However, aluminum stretches rather than bends, so trying to rework it into original shape was prohibitively expensive.

 

LOL! "chairs and flares", eh?

 

It was common enough that Ferrari changed the design.

 

On Boxers and all previous Ferrari's, F40's and F50's, as well as every other make of car with knock offs, the knock off itself is a big nut (female thread). On the TR it is a bolt (male thread) a very large steel bolt. That bolt is very heavy and has a great deal of rotating mass. When the wheels undergo sudden speed changes the heavier bolts are less likely to do the same speed changes as the wheels than are the lighter nuts so they have been known to fall off in cases when proper installation procedures have not been followed. To compound the problem Ferrari never published the proper procedure so if you were not in the position to benefit from being told directly by the factory as I was, there is no way to know. The procedure is what I would consider somewhat intuitive for a person with mechanical knowledge but I would say the same for installing an oil filter and do you know how many of those have been blown off 550's?

 

Cheers to all again. The wheel arches nearer to the passenger side door (if u know what i mean) were worn down quite a bit. Dunno whether they could rework it back to shape or needs a new wing.....and the wheels.....and the brake discs....and the brake caliper...and so on and so on an so on...........

boohoo.............................................when will I see the car again...........

 

Hi,

Glad to hear that you are alright. As an owner also of a 87 TR, I would like to know if it
is common problem when the wheels are change to an aftermarket wheels and wheel
size upgrade. Im considering replacing the original wheels to a bigger aftermarket, but
if it is not made by Ferrari or tested by Ferrari, it might not be as good as the originals
even though it is mounted correctly.

Jr

 

originality holds the better price, why play god when the son of god put good wheels on it from the start ')

 

Your aftermarket wheels will need the hubs from the original wheels swapped over to mount them to the car so you will have achieved nothing in terms of correcting the mounting situation.

You will however have given yourself the ability to buy high quality tires. No one makes them anymore in many 16 inch sizes.

 

Hi guys

Got an email form the dealer that the car is repaired to as new condition. Haven't seen it myself as I'm in the States at the moment. Will be end of month and will keep yall posted. Will try to post pictures of the newly repaired wing and see if you guys think it's a good repair job. (Really hope it is) If not, please do not hesitate to tell me so that I could go back and tell the dealer to fix it to the proper standard.

Cheers for all the help and advice again.
Al

 

A knock-off wheel will never come off as long as it is torqued on correctly. I have owned several knock-off wheel cars over the years and have never had a problem. TRutlands makes a great socket that will fit either the earred or octagon knock-offs that you can mount to a torque wrench so you can torque the wheel on at the correct 175psi. Since the knock-offs look so much more exotic that the American style 5 lug wheels, I would never change them out...just torque them on correctly.

 

Al,

Glad to hear she's back in proper condition. Hopefully, you'll never have that problem again. I'm sure you won't have to post a note in the garage to remind yourself to check the knockoffs from time to time and make sure they are on tight.

BTW, a note of interest (hopefully) -- Jaguars, like all cars with knockoffs, have left and right hand threads on opposite sides of the car to use the natural forces of the wheel to tighten the nuts as you drive. Jaguar always warned against having a car towed backwards. The reverse spin of the wheels could cause the knockoffs to unwind and the wheels to fall off.

 

Frank you just gave everyone the wrong torque spec. At 175 I can pretty much guarantee wheels will be falling off.

 

And a TR is not any knock off. It was a well known problem so much so that Ferrari changed the design and to deny the problem is a dangerous disservice to anyone who owns one.

 

I'm looking for a source for a socket to fit the TR wheel nut ('87TR). Stainless Steel Brakes used to make a socket/torque wrench combination but have discontinued product. I've check some of the Ferrari parts sources -- but they only seem to have a factory socket for close to $700.00. Any suggestions as a possible alternative.

Thanks,
Paul

 

Watch ebay for a torque wrench. You will need one that goes to about 600 lbs and can torque left and right. Few can do that.

Try Ricambi America and see if he can get sockets from Hill Engineering.

 

Like many things Frank posts this is not true.
There is a problem with some 88.5 TR hubs.
I too lost a wheel at speed in mine.
The wheel was properly mounted, torqued and the spline was lubed.
Ferrari investaged this occurance and replaced all four hubs as well as repairing the damage.

Having modified Ferrari's design by using a aftermarket wheels you may not have this recourse.

Having the damage repaired may not be enough. Proper torquing etc. may not be enough. I'd have a chat with Ferrari and at least get new hubs like the one's they put on my car. I never had a problem with the new hubs. The
wheel came off at 10K miles and I drove well over a 100K more without incident with new hubs.

As an aside AS SOON AS YOU SENSE A WHEEL VIBRATION GENTLY BACK OFF THE THROTTLE. DO NOT BRAKE IF POSSIBLE. MAKE VERY GENTLE STEERING MOTIONS. COAST TO A STOP AND INVESTIGATE.


Good Luck

 

Very good important point.....

 

How do we get this new hub??? Are they custom made or OEM???

 

Belive it or not I just 10 min. ago received my socket from Ricambi America. I'ts a beauty, $140.

 

I put more than 40,000 miles on my '86 TR, purchased new. I never had a problem. However, I never felt very confident in the TR system with its big male center bolt which was even tapered, if I remember correctly. Consequently, I would be extra careful in mounting the wheels, making sure the center bolt was tightened before I let the wheel touch the ground, and then tighten it some more. I also took the wheels off at least every 6 months and lubed the splines. Plus, I swung the old lead hammer against the big box wrench once a month, just to make sure the center bolts were tight. One also has to check that the bolts attaching the center hub assembly to the wheel were tight and didn't stick out to bind.

I didn't like the TR system the moment I saw it. I never had any problems with my Daytona or GTC/4 wheels and liked their system much better. I learned at the time that the change was forced in response to a stupid new U.S. government regulation. What else! Just as Rifledrive pointed out.