Valve Guides Replacement?

If/burning oil/20K

For more detail try taking a look at all the other threads covering the same or you could ask whoever you say you heard about this issue from

 

leakdown test will tell you. If you are at >30%, then you have it.

 

Do a leak down when your engine is out for service. The thing you have to remember is that the leak down may be bad but once the car warms up, it more than likely makes no differance. If I was you, I wouldnt worry about it until you start burning more than the usual amount of oil. Another way to tell is when you start your car after sitting for a few days and it smokes for longer than a few seconds and Im talking about blue smoke that smells like oil, not condensation steam. If your car has been sitting for weeks then it may blow some smoke on start up for up to a minute or so. Nothing to worry about.
So many make a big deal about the valve guides and header problems in the 355. What they are forgeting is that this is a high performance car that runs on the edge. That is what makes them so much fun to drive. One could take it to the extreme and look at all the problems an F1 car has. Wow I would never want one of those....The damn engine has to come out every week!
Do the valve guides if and WHEN the time comes. Replace the headers with a good quality(I like Tubi) pair WHEN the time comes. Once this is done, you will once again be driving one of the best and most fun cars Ferrari ever made. While driving this amazing car you might want to do some other things that make it even better such as perfomance cats or straight pipes, Dave Helms's gold connector set....ect ect and you will continue to enjoy your 355.

 

Do you guys think it could be that the valve springs Ferrari uses aren't all that good in the upper rpm ranges? Could it be that they are allowing some valve float, or right on the edge of valve float? Maybe the springs need to be pulled, and then tested to see if they are still up to the task? Or if they were up to the task in the first place.

 

I can tell you this;

On a F355 with 62K total miles, and 5K race track miles, and had 20 minutes accumulated time over redline--one overrev after another; the springs were tested for spring-rate according to the WSM and found to be within WSM tollerance--not just one or 2 springs, all 80 of them.

 

Ernie- If you had much valve float, you might have piston to valve interference and expensive noises.

Taz
Terry Phillips