Bought this car after it hydrolocked from a storm in Florida. Now up with me in KC and getting a full engine rebuild. I will post some more pics. The fourth cylinder back on the drivers side caught the brunt of the issue. I will pull apart the block tomorrow. - Jason Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I will continue to document for any interested parties! So, for background, I own a bunch of Pininfarina designed cars. 1973 Alfa Romeo Spider (bought in 1992 and restored while in college), a 1995 Alfa Romeo 164Q, a 2007 Maserati QP F1, and now the 2006 612. I've been a mechanic since age 12, a an mechanical engineer and am an ex-automotive engineer from Ford (now fully over to the business side of affairs for the last 15 years). I founded and run a charity in Kansas City that fixes up cars for the poor and unfortunate. The pictures are of my new shop which I rent and donate to the charity. I am also working on getting a new automotive service concept off the ground via this shop and associated office space. But, I digress. I have always wanted to rebuild a V12 Ferrari so I found this car (in Florida) that had been hydro-locked in a serious storm about a year ago. There were actually two 612s that were up for sale at the same time that had been hydrolocked in the same storm! Here are a few starter pics of when I got the car (about a month ago)... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
More... Notice the water in the intake ports of two cylinders on driver's bank (even though cylinders at TDO of compression stroke). So these did fine... but #4 back on driver's bank got whacked. Jumped timing too on driver's head with many bent valves (can't even see the bend with your eye, just via testing- leakdown, etc.). Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
some more of driveline coming out... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Not sure how great of a deal I got (anyone can go to ebay and look at closed items to see). But the car will be rebuilt well. I am completely anal about my work and nothing will be left to chance. It will be months before this thing is put back together but I am making steady progress on the teardown part!
BTW, it is worth mentioning to ALL 612 owners and drivers that the reason this car is in this predicament is that the car's intake scoops (left and right) are both down VERY low in the front bumper. Basically, the car scooped air from 5" off the ground and then sends it up about 18" to the air boxes. Don't event THINK about driving your 612 through and appreciable standing water or it will be a dead 612.
Great advice! I don't even drive when it rains, but good to know in case I ever get caught out. Fortunately in south Orange County, we've only heard about rain in the history books and on the weather channel
Money shots! Pulled the engine partially apart today. Anything wrong with this piston and rod?! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Yep, very common in modern cars.. We call it the River Oaks Wife Syndrome, when a sudden Houston storm takes down a BMW. They have 12s too you know. Actually I had to give my daughter the same warning on her Saturn Sky. Thanks for starting this thread, there's folks watching that know every nut of that car. Hopefully they will chime in!!
It was running, so figure the nameplate HP rating, hitting a wall.. BTW, I love the look on your son's face: "My Dad, he has an awesome set of tools!" You know of Chris Parr, in KC there??
Always interesting to actually see work in progress on any model of these machines. The bent rod and piston brought back bad memories. I still have an almost identical looking bend rod and cracked piston from a Maserati Merak. An idiot self proclaimed Maserati mechanic from Redondo Beach adjusted the timing chain...next day.....BAMM! Good luck with project and do keep the pics coming if you can.