Hi Mondial enthusiasts, I finally jumped in to the owner ranks after several years of looking around. I was originally looking at the 400i's etc cuz of their relatively low entry price and it is a V12. Then I stumbled upon this beautiful Prugna Mondial SN ZFFXD21A3J0077373, somewhat close to home. I had watched it for some time on auto trader and the couple of threads on Fchat. As the price dropped I was hopeful that I could purchase it before someone else did, but I was in the middle of a career change and moving to a new town. After my family was settled I contacted the owner and we made a deal. He is very pleasant to deal with and went out of his way to help. He sent lots of pics and we talked a lot on the phone, he arranged to get new tires installed and searched out the best deal for transport. If I wanted to wait longer he would have gotten the timing belts done as well but the mechanic was booked well into September. I received the car two days after it was shipped. It was very dusty but I hardly noticed. Put it on a trailer and trucked it home. Washed it the next day and went for a spin. I absolutely love it! the sound the smell, the colour- everything!. Now down to business. The car has 24200 miles on it and the timing belts were done last in 2006. The water pump was done then as well. Still waiting for the rest of the documentation . I was wondering if I should do the full 30k maint or just the belts? I can do the belts myself as per the birdman info. It does not leave oil on the ground but the chassis underneath has oil on it - pretty grimy. Probably do the seals and valve cover gaskets. Has anyone done the valve clearances themselves? It looks like a bucket and shim type. There is a loud tick that goes away after it warms up so there might be some wear. I will also have to contend with the sunroof not sealing and a good scrape on the fender. So thanks for reading and I hope to participate more on this forum. Chris Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
great looking car. Do the entire service. You won't regret it, and you'll find things that need fixing when you do. Art
It looks great! Congratulations. You'll get many opinions on the service. I'll throw in my two cents. 1st, look at what was done on the last service. That will dictate partially how far you want to go. Beyond that I will blend the comments of a tech I respect and my own words. Based on the age of these cars, each service is a service plus a minor mechanical restoration. That is why it's hard to get an exact amount for service cost because there are so many unknowns. The easy comment is to say "do what it needs" but then the question is what does it need. Fuel and coolant lines are an easy start. If original each person needs to decide to rely on 25 year old rubber or not. This is a great time to develop a baseline. For myself I wanted a no excuses driver and after going through my car I've put 20K trouble free miles on it going from coast to coast and up to Canada. It's been great. You are right about the valves. On mine I pulled the cams because the cam seals at the timing belt end were leaking and cam removal is required for new seals. I'm basically saying, do it all, develop your own baseline then you as the owner can decided what interval you want to go with and what you will do going forward. I'll leave it to you to balance your budget with the new toy
Great buy Chris! Prugna is a nice color with the tan interior combination it's gorgeous. For your clicking noise when cold try to spray something around the accessory belts to see if it stops. Mine is doing it and it's only the belts. I found it from another F-chatter who had the same problem. How can you leave your parking brake handle up? It should slide down by itself. Welcome in the Ferrari family.
Hi guys, thanks for the info and kind words. It is likely that I will do a lot of work as the winter is long here. I am waiting for some info on contacts in my area - N Alberta - Edmonton and Calgary. I certainly want to establish a baseline and go from there. I will be buying a lift - i work on my regular cars. I was thinking that I should drop the engine so I can really assess the whole thing. I will be budget conscience, but have enough to do what is needed now. Also the rear fender got too close to a cement post and there is a 5 inch long scrape on the fender lip. Mostly to the primer but some metal showing. I have to find someone who can make the repair virtually undetectable. when checking the accessory belts the other day I noticed the A/C belt was worn a bit with a few small bits missing along one edge. I will start it up and listen/look for the "tick" The E-brake does fall down - I don't know why it is up in the picture? And yeah that colour combo sure suits the Mondial. Ive always wanted a red Ferrari. Maybe my next one Chris
Congrats Chris, looks like a car well sold and bought. As for the maint answers, it will be best to evaluate as you go. These cars are not too hard to service with the engine in, but taking it out allows for more inspection and easier access. I've done my belts, cam seals and cam shim replacement with the engine in. I have a cab, so getting to the front bank is a bit easier. Also you level of comfort with the car as it is will change over time. When I first bought mine, I was very hot to repair the right rear window motor and guide, but it's such a hassle, and I never use the window that I've let it go for a while. I would say to start the belt job in the car, and see how it goes. If you get to a point where you can't do something you want, and it looks like access will be a serious issue you can take the engine cradle out then. The in-car belt job is not easy for large, or overweight people because you kind of have to crawl inside the wheel well for a few tasks. Having a life almost makes taking the engine cradle out superfluous.
Hey Doc thanks, I did get the car for a very good price. I promised to give the previous owner first dibs if I ever sell it. He wanted to give it to his son when he grows up. The car is parked until I can get it past inspection and registered. I probably should not drive it anyway with six years on the belt. The season is almost done here. I should not have too much trouble getting in the wheel well - I'm tall but not heavy. For parts would most of you recommend Ricambi? The belts and tensioners are a decent price. The 30k kit is $1500 - there must be some expensive gaskets in there LOL. Chris
I think that the coupes look really great, especially in non-red. Ricambi is good. T. Rutlands is my personal favorite... Well, that and eBay. Do the full service and enjoy the car. This way, you know what has been done and what hasn't. Good luck, and congratulations.
Gorgeous car, and welcome to the fold. I too looked into the 400's and 412's, but settled on the Mondial earlier this year because of its ease of DIY service as well as its mid-engine handling capability. This forum is a wealth of info and will assist you greatly in your ownership and enjoyment.
Chris, I'm in the same boat with a '92 Valeo Coupe that has 33k on it (bought it a month ago from org owner) and the "major" has not been done yet. No oil leaks but other minor stuff like A/C not working. I'm told prepare for the cost of the service + all the other stuff they find (50%) more. At least after all that you really know your car. Cheers mate and welcome to the board. Greg
Welcome Chris, After you get acclimated with your car, you will find that maintenance is on going as things start to show up like slow down lights, or rough idling, or squirrely electronics. Do the major service if you have the budget for piece of mind, if not, change the belts and use Hill engineering bearings. Enjoy the car, looks like you have a good one! Cheers
Congratulations Chris. Beautiful car there. You've been given very good advice from the crew. Just get it sorted correctly and it will be good back to you. I love the color. Your car's interior carpets do reconfirm just how much my carpets have faded. Enjoy.
She's a real beauty - great color combo! Before you jump into a major service, establish a relationship with a good mechanic, maybe repair a few small items at first. A qualified mechanic is hard to find. When I took delivery of my Mondial T, I immediately replaced the battery with an Optima, and I replaced the headlight bulbs with Phillips Crystalvision Ultra. Both were money well spent. Also, tires are a good investment - I went with Bridgestone Potenza RE970AS Pole Position which are good for cold climates. Most of all, get out on the road and enjoy!
Hey Chris, Congratulations and Welcome to the club! The color combionation is really nice, and the interior looks to be in nice shape as well... I think Art had it right, as long as you're into it you might as well do a few other things especially since as you get into it you might find other things. I would also check the injectors and give them a cleaning, the accumulator, filter etc. I had a few fuel issues with mine. Most of all...Drive it often!
"92 Valeo Coupe"??? When did you add the hardtop ???? There is a beauty of a Valeo coupe in Thailand, belonging to Pom. Cheers, Hank
There sure are a lot of friendly people here. Thanks for you advice and encouragement. One of the first things I noticed is that the interior is in fabulous shape for a 24 year old car. Just the drivers seat has some patina. While looking under the exhaust grill I could see what appears to be a tape line on the underside of the rear bumper and just the smallest amount of over spray. I wonder if it was repainted at some time. The rear grill definitely looks repainted as you can see rear chips covered and some sagging. Easy fix. I was wondering about replacing the belts. If I were to do it now (only belts and tensioner) so I could drive the few months left, would I have to replace them again if I take them off to do the seals bearings etc?(if it is needed). The manual states " always change the driving belts when their removal becomes necessary" . Reason given is that reseting the tension - the working play would appear the same but the deformation resulting from eventual adjustments would cause the belts to break. I really would like to drive it. I guess I could just drive the ol' Jag XJS but it just isn't the same. I am looking for small things to fix myself to get familiar with the car. Not much, maybe a hood strut, the glove compartment solenoid, etc For the injectors do you send them out? I used to have access to an ultrasonic cleaner, but now It would be just washing with solvent/injector cleaner. Then again I am not having problems there. Maybe I should just wait and have an experienced mechanic do an inspection. The previous owner said that his mechanic told him the Mondial was in very good shape other than the belts. He said to drive it until he could get the belts done but don't rev the snot out of it. Sorry for the length of my posts. I am just happy to chat about my car and its needs. Chris
Didn't you know it came with the hardtop option! Yeah, late night typo - thanks for catching it. Hoping to see Pom's next time in in Bangkok. Thanks for keeping me honest Hank. Greg
Hey Hugo, I see you are from Prince George. I just moved from there. I had not seen any Mondials around the area. Did you drive yours much in PG? I hope to drive mine back there next year to visit my parents. After the T-belt change of course. Where do you like to get your parts? I just went on a nice 100 mile tour of my area - nice and easy - or thereabouts. Its amazing how everyone with some type of performance car wants to race when they see me coming, either that or they stomp on it to let everyone know their car goes fast too. Mostly the younger ones in muscle cars and Asian cars. Chris
Hi Falco, great colour combination and welcome to the club. Like yourself i was looking at the 400 and 412 until i saw how complex that V12 was and maintenance costs involved. Then it was between the 308 GT4 and Mondial 3.2 and think i made the right choice as i have always loved the Mondial shape. By the way, i also have the 348 wheels which i recently put on and has totally transformed the feel and handling and makes the car look very modern. See pics in my profile album. Happy driving Peter
Yes, you will have to replace the belts the second time around. Later, when you go through it thoroughly, you wouldn't have to replace the new tensioners, just the seals, water pump, as well as the belts a second time. Another advantage to doing it this way, other than being able to drive the car with a clear conscious, is that you can begin to make a list of things you see that need to be replaced and/or repaired when you have more time. Perhaps your greatest concern should be fuel leaks. Its tragic when these cars burn up because of an inexpensive fuel hose that failed. At a minimum, if you haven't already done so, you should visually check as many of them as you can see.
