Joe, please go back to your delusions on the DD thread. You continue to hallucinate about how superior the DD is. Next thing will be how the DD should be compared to a BBLM......really ???
Can you tell me where you are getting the hiem joints. I got some new ones recently and they did not last a few hundred miles
Leave the guy alone. I mean the DD is magical. Its the only car in the world that can go from a Top speed as tested as low as 166mph, to going over 195mph with only 20hp extra!
Rest assured, just the GTO, The Downdraft was the most powerful production Lamborghini in the same era that the GTO was Ferrari's most powerful production variant, so those two are perfectly-suited for the mid-80s Ferrari vs Lamborghini comparison, which is exactly why we used them in the July 2018 Octane magazine piece. The Fuelie on the other hand is an apt comparison with the same era TR, which is why Allan Lambo plans on doing just that. The BB LM isn't an apt comparison with any of the aforementioned street cars, as it is a dedicated race car.
I just made up some longer tubes from T45 CDS and then used off the shelf M14 heim joints all in job was about £900 inc materials, welding and the joints, so approx. 4 off junk OEM joints!
also,it will be compared with your DD, wich will be fun,knowing the only basic differences are very exited reg the comparo to your car,with Alans car sporting the real exhaust and no cats, like yours,(i guess non of you really have factory headers,but non the less headers) it will be fun, beeing their induction are both factory original,with compression and camspecs to match. Also no epa handicap in either car,fun fun, we are all very exited,
The GTO performance thing,i do not get,i drove one not to long ago,i will admit one drive does not qualifie for a good judgement,but i honestly think my car felt more responsive and wild/quick,if you like, poss better top end on the GTO, but as punch off the line and acc,i give my car the up.
5.2 liter V12 vs. 2.9 liter turbo V8.... makes sense your Countach feels more responsive off the line.
I think all of us are waiting with baited breath for an alternative heim joint to the OEM parts. I just shake my head in disbelief when I see USA companies advertising heim joints with incredible build quality for under $10.00 a joint (that can be either self lubricated or have a small grease nipple) and yet Lamborghini wants over $200 per joint. For example VXB has sets of 4 (2 LH & 2RH 8mm) for $24.95 https://www.vxb.com/4-Male-Rod-Ends-POS8-8mm-2-Right-and-2-Left-Hand-p/pos8.htm Whatever became of the sets Kurt was making up? I had heard some good reports and some bad.... Mike
He sent me the improved set, which is a great deal tighter than the old one. They are better, but really the solution is to do what others have done & have new tubes machined & switch - if you want to fix it.
What Mike said! I have wondered what we owners are to do about this. That Kurt guy really dropped the ball and disappointed everyone.. i heard some sent the parts back and never even received a refund!
The Kurt guy was a liar and a con man. He sold those junk joint sets to a number of people including me. I got the original set, which were garbage from the get go. They were loose without even driving the car. He sent me the "New and Improved" set, and they lasted about 200 miles before they were completely shot. Complete junk. There was never any offer of a return of any kind, and certainly no remuneration for the thousands of dollars in labor to swap all the joints out multiple times. In the end I went back with a set of the factory joints, and those have lasted about 1,500 miles and some in the rear are starting to get a little wayward. If you can only drive on perfectly smooth roads all the time, and hit no bumps, then the original joints will work, but we all know that is impossible. In fact, all it takes is one decent bump/pothole/seam etc. to start the degradation process.
Well then we need someone to pick up this ball and run with it...? Simon? You game? Maybe the Europe guys have dealt with this already?
Poss a stupid question,but here we go, how is it poss for guys like Harry to put all the miles on his car? Does he replace these parts 4 times a year? And what did Joe do in his restoration? Not to mention the French car with 200 000km and the list goes on, ,probably driven on French country roads all the time, do they not know the difference, just curious. My car feels tight,but driven on smooth Florida roads.
Hate to disappoint you but you're excited for nothing, you proposed it and I declined, perhaps you missed my thoughts on this I posted just a page or two ago https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/posts/146288353/ , then Allan Lambo chimed in and said he's going to use a Dragy GPS to race his Countach & TR, which I happen to think is an excellent comparison, the right one for a Fuelie, so at least you'll have that to look forward to. Agreed, it really doesn't. A GTO that is fully-maintained and operating like one should is actually faster than the Countach Downdraft for the periods when it is spooled-up and on-the-boost. As a V8 twin-turbocharged car, it has a completely different power-delivery characteristic off-the-line to a normally aspirated V12 Countach. The two cars both require a certain amount of skill to extract the best from, a different driving style is required for each one, personally that's what I love about them, they are chalk & cheese, so different, but I'd say the GTO requires more skill to drive at speed, once you master it, the car becomes a road-rocket. Of course the Countach should feel more punchy off-the-line, there would be something seriously wrong with your Countach if it wasn't! But once the GTO comes on-boost it catches right up. As you say, a single drive in an unfamiliar car which you have no way of knowing is running optimally (like any 80s cars, many GTOs don't) is no basis for any conclusion. As you might imagine, I'm extremely familiar with both the Countach Downdraft and the 288 GTO, and I daresay they are great adversaries, not just in terms of overall performance capabilities in which they are similar, but from a logical standpoint as they are the most powerful cars from Lamborghini & Ferrari of that era, ergo the apt comparison. In the same way that some people don't get the Countach, not everyone gets the GTO, but some do, and they pay $2m to $3.5m for the privilege of ownership. I get them both. I posted all the details of every aspect of my car's restoration including the complete suspension restoration to factory specs in the Downdraft thread for all to see. You can check it out there, or ask Dugan Specialties, or just call me and we'll chat about it! Short summary, they were remanufactured in Italy to a high standard to factory spec, but the problem is, they were quite expensive. I went ahead on the grounds that the Countach is not a cheap car and the full restoration was going to cost me the best part of $300,000 anyway. Meanwhile, I'd advise you to do your homework, until tried & tested over considerable mileage, some of the stuff that is now being remanufactured for cheap may turn out to be just that, however, I'm all for getting costs sensible if possible.
Jack your car up. If the joints are bad, you can visibly see play by grabbing the back tire & moving it around.
Harry replaces joints frequently it seems updated parts from carrera sport. No problems sorting out dims for new tubes for anyone and then any regular m14 joint can be used
I have had it up on the lift and do check for movement.. so far none to report, but like Nils said we have pretty good roads here in Florida.. I just know there will come a day.
It was an extra production of 20 piece fo me at the German Kugellagerfabrik. I installed them will test and let you know.
Picture my dad took in 1987 of a Countach that Chrysler brought to a Detroit Chrysler plant. I believe it was for Lee Iacocca. I am looking for more pics I have of the car. Image Unavailable, Please Login
