TR engine out by do-it-yourselfer...

Thats a nice red/grey square on your garage floor....!!

That wrinkle paint gets everywhere eh?. Makes all the hairs on your arms stick together too!

And lets just say... don't do it in an open shop where there are other cars around......

 

Your absolutely right Phil.....that red crinkle is nasty stuff. It's very hard to remove once it's cured. I open up the bay door of my little shop about an inch, and with the furnace creating hot air that rises, there is a nice slow flow of air downward and out under the door. It doesn't control all of the overspray but gets the majority of it. Never the less I have the TR and my old Beetle covered in plastic along with any other item of value to me.

Oh on the subject of the red crinkle. You may recall that this paint is a darker shade of red than the original Ferrari color. So I debated on fogging on a lighter shade of red over it, since the cam covers looked great despite being "incorrect". Well the other day I got some high temp satin red enamel and misted it over the cam covers, the results were very good. It did slightly change the texture by filling in very tiny fishers and cracks, but unless you really studied the finish and knew what to look for, you'd never know. I'm glad I did it as the brighter red does look better. More pics to come in a day or two.

 

On 4/9 Carguy said:
"...Now crank the motor over while watching the tensioners carefully...you will see some slight fluctuations in their position. When you see the tensioner at the most inward travel point, tighten down the retaining bolt and lock it into this position.... "

Carguy's logic seems sound, but I wonder if this process is commonly used. Do most folks out there rotate and lock at the point of greatest slack - or do you mearly lock 'em down based on initial spring pressure?

Rgds,
Vince
PS: Carguy - Thanks for the thread, I very much appreciate the extra effort and time it takes.

 

Vince, I think you are misunderstanding what Jeff is saying, actually it is the opposite of what you are stating "the most inward postion" is when the tensionor bearing is at its tightest against the belt not at the most slack postion. This is done without any human input other than rotating the crank clockwise and allowing the tensioner spring to do its job. Regards, Vern

 

Sorry for the confusion...

I read Carguy's:
"tensioner at the most inward travel point"
as being the point at which the belt is:
"at the point of greatest slack".

I think we are saying the same thing - lock it down in the position that removes the most slack from the belt.

Thanks for the clarification,
Vince

 

Oh....this brings back memories of dropping the TR and 348 drivetrains in my back yard.

If I remember with the TR we really didn't have to get the car that high up....we just took the rear bumper off and were able to slide the wole thing out the back.

 

Just how high does it need to be to pull the engine out? I've read/heard that it is all but impossible with out a lift. True?

 

It can be done, but with a lift the car raises vertically, as designed. On the ground, the angle of raising the rear makes many more complications and risks.

The extra time taken to do it on the ground makes it only for emergencies IMO.

On an occasion where I didn't have a hoist, I arranged to take it to a friends place to do one (TRossa). I got all parts up front, worked really efficiently and hard and did it over a weekend and didn't interfere with my mates work at all.

Although, when 355C were being raced in the challenge series, a late night walk along pit lane would be very interesting!!

 

I agree with ferrarifixer, I wish I had a hoist, things would be much easier for sure, but I don't. Things are progressing along. I spent most of the day stripping and wire-wheeling the fuel lines...they were very corroded as you may recall. Then I washed them in solvent really good, masked off the flexible portions, used some etching primer on them and then painted them. They aren't "correct" but look much better...pic is attached. This was NOT a fun job at all, very tedious and time consuming. I also refinished the throttle bodies and the fuel distributor lower air diffuser housings. I cleaned up the wiring harness and carefully laid it out on the motor. Then I installed the water pipes, and fuel metering system. It's finally starting to look like a motor again! I also refinished the motor mounts. I'm using new stainless fasteners where it's practical and feasible....which is just about everywhere. Again I welcome any constructive comments and suggestions...Thank You.
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Looking good.

Be sure the sealing washer surfaces are perfect (no paint build up) for the metering unit connections.

How's that time log looking??

 

Great Job. That engine looks awesome. Wow! Thanks for sharing.

 

Well, I was thinking of pretty much doing everything you have done so far , at some point in the future! But, I am getting tired just watching you! Wonderful work, this must be taking quite some effort.

Any issues with the paint holding up in a testarossa engine bay? It gets awefully hot in there.

Did you ever consider one of those home sand-tumbling units Eastwood sells? Perhaps an easier way to prepare some of those parts for paint.

What about a home zinc-plating kit? Might save you a small fortune on replacing some of those screws!

Keep it up!

 

Thanks for the tips and comments everyone. Many of your suggestions have occured to me as far as equipment. I'd really hate to do this for a living unless the pay was pretty good. Today I assembled the fuel lines onto the distributors, and bolted up a few other odds and ends. One fuel line to the right side pressure regulator broke at the fitting....I cursed quite loudly at that point. So I will be ordering another one Tomorrow. Pics attached for your amusement.

bpu699: I've thought about replating fasteners, but stainless is good forever. Plating is okay and that's how things came from the factory. But it sure didn't hold up to the previous owner's "acid bath" very well. So I'm overkilling it a bit because I DONT EVER WANT TO DO THIS JOB AGAIN !

ferrarifixer Phil....I'm afraid that with all the tedious work, and my lovely girlfriend Karen stopping by, I haven't kept an acurate log of time. But when all is said and done I will jot down a pretty good estimate.
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Be sure to grease the throttle spindles and linkages.

Don't forget to set throttle butterflies to ~.003" each side, and clean the idle bypass screws and passages thoroughly, then synchronise the linkage (when pulled from cable attachment, NOT pushed by one of the link ends) and check throttle switch "click" on take up.

You shouldn't curse a broken fuel line. Be thankful it didn't happen later on the road... where you would probably lose the car to fire.

Tip... Gently scrape the paint off from the head gasket edge with a narrow screwdriver... it'll look less "fake".

Good work.

 

Looking good Jeff.............Looks like it will be very shortly that I will need to remove the engine here also..........many oil leaks and coolant leaking some where in the timing covers now. Kerry

 

Car guy, you probably know this already, but just a reminder to be careful where you use stainless hardware. Stainless reacts with aluminum, so you should never use stainless anywhere where it will be threaded into aluminum, such as the engine block. In a few years it will be permanently bonded and will be nearly impossible to remove.

Birdman

 

ferrarifixer: I'll try and clean the edge of the head gaskets and see how it turns out. I will grease the throttle linkages, and adjust if needed once everything is tightened down.

HELPFUL HINT: When I disassembled the fuel distributors from the lower diffuser housings, I did not mark them....my mistake. You could theoretically swap the distributors from side to side....but unless both sides were set EXACTLY the same (doubtful) you would need to make adjustments to get proper mixture balance. I realized my error once things were apart. I measured the plunger height on each fuel distributor, and also the depth of the roller contact in the diffuser housing. It was hard to repeat the measurement so I did it 5 times over. What I found was that one fuel distributor plunger was about .006" different than the other, and the roller contacts in the diffusers were also about the same difference. Once I determined this I was able to match up the distributor to it's proper diffuser.

One thing I did while the diffuser housings were apart was to carefully drill out the factory plugs over the mixture adjustment holes, and screw in some bolts. This way if I have to adjust things later on I can. I'd hate to remove the plugs with everything on the car...and maybe get little shavings down in there!

Birdman: That is an excellent point about the dis-similar metals bonding together. For the most part I'm only using stainless nuts with plated steel washers so things should be fine. The only place that stainless threads and aluminum will be in contact is the upper intake bolts. I'm going to coat the bolts with a copper anti-seize. If this is not a good idea please let me know.

kerrywittig: The car is leaking oil AND coolant !! Could the oil leak be from mainly just one spot and blowing back to other areas giving the appearance of several leaks? The coolant leak could be from a number of places. There is a "weep" hole from the water pump around the right front corner of the block...hopefully no water is coming from there. But for coolant to be coming from inside the timing belt covers it would have to be the waterpump, a seal, or it's hose. Sometimes its hard to trace the true source of a leak. If you do pull the motor, be sure to retorque the heads, you'll need a funky crow'sfoot attachment to do it.

SPECIAL THANKS to Daniel at Ricambie, he has been very helpful in answering questions and getting me the correct parts. Great service!

I'll keep everyone posted...the saga continues...

 

All the time and effort is really paying off, the engine looks brand new. The pictures are great to look at, but don't tell the story of how many hours of work are involved, keep up the great work, can't wait to see the engine back in the car again.

 

Hi Jeff,

I've been doing similar work to my Boxer, and just wanted to say "well done" in getting in there and achieving what you have. I had the missfortune of finding the valve clearances not quiet correct on mine, and following a dismal leak down test am in the process of replacing vlaves, guides...the whole engine...but now's the time!

Regarding time taken, think of a number and multiply it by 100...I took the engine out in Jan ('06...lol) and still havn't got the heads back on..getting close though.

Must say, I've thoroughly enjoyed it though; wonderful engine! I highly recommend the book 'The Engine'..well worth buying for the pics alone.

Keep up the good work, Robert

 

Well today I was hoping to get a lot done on the motor, but ran into a problem. Before installing the distributor caps and wires, I checked their resistance and only found 5 out of 12 okay, the rest were out of the ball park ohms-wise! The car ran good, or so I thought. I struggle to make ends meet and can't afford to spend hundreds on new plug wires. So I made my own wires this evening. I went to our local Napa store and got plug wire in bulk, along with new connectors. They just let me take the whole reel of wire and said keep track of what you use and bring the rest back. You'll need about 45 feet of wire for the job. I've attached a lot of pics and hope you don't mind if I overdid it a bit...but this may help others out there in my situation. The only tools you'll need are special crimper pliers, needlenose pliers, a small flat screwdriver, wire cutters, maybe a utility knife...maybe not, some silicone spray, and lastly a multi-meter to measure resistance. First remove the lance screws retaining the wires into the distributor caps. Then roll the outer sheathing off of the plug boot, once off...you can then pull the outer sheathing off of the old plug wire. Next using pliers reach into the plug boot (through the spark plug end) and grap the spark plug terminal and pull it and the wire out...this is kinda hard to do but be patient and it will come out. Once it's out just cut off the terminal with wire cutters. Now you can pull the old wire out of the spark plug boot. Now use the old wire to determine the length of the new wire and add a few inches just in case. Spray some silicone into the plug boot and shove the new wire through from the end opposite the spark plug part. Then secure a new terminal and crimp using the special crimper pliers. Now gently pull the wire back until the new terminal is in the proper position inside the plug boot....I use a screw driver to push the terminal into position because I just don't like pulling on the wire if I can avoid it. Next spray some silicone into the outer wire sheathing and slide it over the new wire, and roll the end back over the plug boot. This will take a bit of effort but go slow and "message" it onto the boot (no jokes please....I know what your thinking). Now repeat these steps for the rest of the wires. Next I bolt the dist. caps onto the motor, and install the wires and the rubber dist. cap boot, and begin test fitting everything until I get a nice fit without any slack.....it takes time but the results are worth it. Once all the lengths are where you want them, remove the dist. caps and "really" install the wires using the lance screws. Work carefully and remember that the rubber dist. cap boot groups the wires into a tight bundle so allow for that. Once everything is properly connected, use your multimeter and verify the connections. Check resistance from the dist. cap to the end of the plug extenders. Also verify that you've got the cylinder numbers right on the wires and caps. I had to redo one connection that had infinite resistance even though everything appeared right. If you do a nice careful job you should complete everything in a few hours, and you have a new set of plug wires that are probably better than the originals for less than $100.
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Jeff, first I have to tell you this is a great thread. Second, I don't mean to rain on your parade but I hope the TR is different from the 328. I purchased a new set of OEM plug wires (Cavis) from Ebay & replaced originals. Got determined to "rebuild" the originals (the original silicone sheath/plug covers were a slightly different shade of red) so bought I think it was 7mm plug wire from NAPA, reused original plug covers/sheaths with new brass terminals. Took off new set and installed old set and...car wouldn't run. Turns out the Cavis wires have specific low resistance values which are apparently critical. Re-installed the previous one and engine runs fine.

Don't want you to potentially puts lots of work into the car and not have it run properly. I understand the Cavis wire is available separately in bulk?

Best,

Carl

 

Microplex ignition is sensitive to resistance on wires and also RF interference produced by them. Wires should have between 600 + 2k ohms.

 

It is also available pre-built with the little booties and everything. I know a dude who has some on the shelf.



(Please note, plug wire booties <> plugging some booty)

 

What kind of performance exhaust is in the corner of the picture? Would you post a picture of it? Thanks -C

 

Thanks for the information about the low resistance needed. I made wires for 2 other TRs in the past using the same stuff and didn't notice any problems. On my last TR I drove for 3 years on a set and never noticed any abnormalities with how the car performed. Never the less this information does alarm me a bit. What would the effects be using wires with little to no resistance? Is the low resistance of the Cavis wires simply for RF suppression? I will make another set of wires if needed.

What are the approximate costs of buying the "proper" bulk wire and terminals? Is the red outer wire sheathing available in bulk too?

As for a new set of pre-made wires I recall prices around $600 to $800 or so....too much for what you get in my opinion. These things aren't rocket science or anything with exotic materials.