360 My pre-cat cataclysm: cut losses or double down?

I let my engine idle for approx 5 minutes before calling it a day. Noise was very loud when it first started up, it did quiet down a fraction but was still loud! Could hear it in the cabin very noticeable.

Did not drive the car nor move it. Just idled for a bit, gave it a little rev to 3000RPM which the noise follows the engine speed before shutting down.

 

Pre-cat trouble can be confined to the header. Mine rattled a bit when cold. When I took the header off you could hear the cat core rattling around when you shook it. No other damage. I wish you the same.

 

basscase, very sorry to hear this news. The advantage of an engine swap is that you have a spare and taking the necessary steps to prevent it from happening again. Without considering the cost of a rebuild vs. a swap there are clear advantages in swapping the motor if you want to keep the car.

A rebuild might impact resale less than a motor swap if you choose this route, but you are losing three ways: you won't be driving it and enjoying it, the new owner gets a rebuilt motor that will last that won't suffer the same issue, and you take a loss in both the repairs and potentially on resale. If you swapped the motor and keep the car, you lose out the least, have a spare, and don't have to play the if-but-when game.

 

Bad news but **** happens, its just a lesson in life..and if you chose a clean car your wife really shouldn't think you are foolish, this can happen to anyone!

I had the change out the cats & headers in mine, when they scoped the cats one of them was already disintegrating at the edge or whatever..thank God i avoided that grenade...but it was expensive & i was surprised since my car was a very clean car. Pretty much on these cars you need to do the headers & keep inspecting original cats with each service to avoid this hassle ( i had 200 cell cats installed as mine were far gone, and i don't like their sound)

Dont really have advice to give you, but i think when something like this happens, it leaves a sour taste in your mouth & kind of effects your relationship w the car..i just sold my 360 today after doing all that work headres/cats and a bunch of other stuff to it as i was just over it (bought a 458)

I'd say you maybe best off just selling it as is if you dont' have the time and dont' want to deal with headache of rebuild..or you can buy a new good used engine which will probably be the least expensive option you go with

 

Used f car ownership will test a relationship for sure. You are not foolish. Shiz happens... unfortunately f shiz is $$$.

agreed on engine swap
Allow option for new owner to keep the old engine if you sell.

also if you did a ppi, to me this just shows the limitations of these inspections. Not saying to skip it.. but know it’s just a check and no guarantee.

if my car did this— I would pull the engine my self. Then use this failure as an opp to address any main pm’s with the engine out. Then when done you will have a true bullet proof car for many years... and a perhaps better than stock performance.

this is how I’d sell it to my wifey.

hang in there.


...

also I’m seeing 360 engines for 10-15k.

be sure to do proper due diligence on used engine. Ideally buy from wrecked but running wreck. Leak down test, scope cyls, check vin, etc etc..

 

Also- repairing your engine should not be doubling down.

If this was a race car it would just be a service event. Again I’m rationalizing.

 

Sorry to hear it. I am a buyer if you decide to sell it as is, looking for a project.

 

After having a similar but less catastrophic incident, and realizing what my car sounded like before and after, I think I can identify the sound of a failing pre-cat. There is a distinct rattling metallic sound that is not present on healthy cars. It’s easy to overlook and dismiss as normal because it doesn’t sound bad, and over half of the cars I’ve listened to since have had the same noise. So while I used to think this is a rare event that only affects cars driven hard, like at the track, I’m thinking now it’s more like if you have that noise, it’s only a matter of time.


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damn sorry to hear this....guess I dodged that bullet as well. Try exotic car parts in Rancho Cordova CA, they have motors I believe or Ferrparts in Sacramento. Your in Calif yes?

 

Need4speed - can you post up some sounds clips? I'm sure this thread is getting a few 360 owners into -pro-active-mode-.....

 

From my own experience, during my last annual service (6 months ago), Brian had noticed a sound which ultimately was diagnosed as an early sign of pre-cat failure that he caught before any damage was done.

I decided to replace both pre-cats and that was very expensive. My plan was to then sell the Ferrari and my daily driver this year and get one fun car that I drive on a daily basis, ideally with 4 seats.

After contemplating a number of different options, my current thought is to just keep both cars. The logic is even though you can get hit with some expensive repair bills, the 360 depreciation is relatively low. Any other car that would remotely get me excited, would have a much higher depreciation that would offset any savings in maintenance.

So whether you should sell your car or double down really comes down to whether you still enjoy the 360 and what other car options you find exciting.

Hope this helps....

 

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F223644139223

£6500 for a job lot including a newly rebuilt 360 engine, 360 gearbox, and probably a few $$$ in extra parts. Looks like a steal to me in your regrettable position.

(For the avoidance of doubt, I have no connection to the seller.)

 

Brogen - good find!

 

If I may ask, what caused your engine to run so badly? Did material from the precat get into the engine? It would be nice to have more of a post mortem on your repair. Thanks in advance.

 

Happy ending!

 

Like I said, mine ate both and there was no problem. They took the heads off and did a little cleaning of the flecks of metal that stuck around the cylinder heads, but it was basically a nothingburger compared to the doom and gloom I was told to expect.

 

What does "pre-cat material" look like?

is it white powder substance?

 

H

It looks like this (from a 360 CS)


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Yikes!


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I just happened upon this thread and had read the whole first page before I realized how old it was. I am so pleased to have reached the end and there was a happy ending. Thanks for the glowing kudos for Brian. People give him a hard time, he seems quite knowledgeable and willing to help, which is sometimes rare.