I did the major service on my 612. Here are my thoughts...

Hello Gents,
I’ve recently completed a few service items on my 612 and I thought I might bother you with my observations. When purchased, my car had a timing belt change within the last 2500 miles, but over 7 years ago. It bothered me that my belts were “aged out”, so I decided to change them. I was also concerned that the upper cooling hoses (the ones under the intake manifold) were ~17 years old so I decided to replace them as well. Apart from leaking low-pressure power steering lines, the car was running and driving great, so most of this work might be considered simple preventative maintenance along with routine annual service. I did the following maintenance items mostly by myself in my garage at home.
- New timing belts and tensioner pulleys (w/bearings)
- New accessory belts
- New low-pressure power steering hoses
- All new upper cooling hoses
- New intake manifold gaskets
- New spark plugs
- New engine air filters
- New cabin air filter
- Engine oil + filter(s) change
- Gearbox oil change + filter screen cleaning
- Coolant change
- Power steering fluid change
- Brake fluid flush
- New battery
Skipping forward to the end I’ve driven the car over 300 miles since completing this work. Pressures
and temps are normal, there are no fluid leaks, no faults and no CEL. Here are some of my observations:

1. Having a good vehicle lift was essential for this job, as I had to go back and forth from above the
engine bay to underneath the car over and over and over again while trying to access various
components. I used the Liftjack 7000TL, which is an amazing piece of kit and highly recommended.

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2. The radiator and radiator support (upper crossmember) created clearance issues that prevented removal of the belt covers (you cannot remove this bolt, for starters...). I drained the coolant, removed the radiator supply and return hoses, then carefully pulled the radiator forward and secured it with a rachet-strap.

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3. With the radiator out of the way, the crossmember must be moved about an inch forward to have the necessary clearance to remove the plastic belt covers. The crossmember is secured by a total of eight fasteners, four of which are difficult to get to. I cut the handle off this tool so that I could turn it with a 1/4" ratchet and extension.

https://www.autotoolworld.com/Bondhus-Corp-13168-Ball-T-Handle-6Mm-105-Oal_p_128975.html

in order to get to the top fasteners. I didn’t need to remove the plastic air ducts, but did need to
forcibly pull them up and out of the way in order to access the top fasteners. This can be done
without damaging the air ducts as long as you are careful. I modified this 5mm allen key to get
to the crossmember bottom fasteners, which are placed at an awkward angle and which were accessed by reaching way up from underneath the car.

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With the fasteners removed and the radiator out of the way, the crossmember can be slid forward to give the necessary clearance to get the belt covers off and to get a good look at the front of the engine.

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4. I Carefully cleaned and vacuumed the upper engine area as best as I could before removing the
intake manifold. I followed the WSM procedures. The 24 manifold bolts were removed by using a shallow magnetic 10mm socket, ¼” universal drive, and ¼” extensions of various lengths. This was slow, backbreaking work and I was very, very careful not to drop any of the fasteners. 100% accountability for the removed
fasteners, washers, clips, etc is required here…you don’t want to leave anything to chance.

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Before disturbing the manifold, I vacuumed the area once again very carefully inspected for any
debris. The manifold is large, heavy and awkward. This job would be much easier if an engine hoist was used to lift and support it. I’ll definitely use an engine hoist if/when I do this job again. During the process, I took numerous pictures and made a few sketches so that I could get everything put back together again when it came time to reinstall the manifold.

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4. The power-steering rack makes it difficult to access the crank pulley bolt, so
I modified (turned-down on a lathe…) this 36mm socket so it was just the right length to be flush
with the harmonic balancer face when the socket is placed on the crank bolt. This gave me just
enough clearance to get a 1/2” drive ratchet on the socket while clearing the power steering
rack. I did take front stabilizer bar loose and moved it out of the way for more clearance, but in
hindsight I think this really wasn’t necessary.

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5. I accurately found TDC on cylinder #1 (compression stroke) while using this tool, and verified proper cam timing by reference to the factory punch-marks on the front/top of each of the cam pulleys.

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https://www.ebay.com/itm/204103437081
https://www.ebay.com/itm/204301451285

6. I found the Hill Engineering flywheel holding tool to be essential for this job and consider it
money well-spent: https://www.ricambiamerica.com/95973546-flywheel-lock-tool-550.html

The crankshaft must be turned to a point where the tool will fit into place on the bellhousing…which means that the engine will no longer be at TDC. That’s ok because I had already verified the cam timing at TDC and the crankshaft will not be moved again until after the timing belt change is complete. Cam timing will be verified again at TDC after the belt change and before the engine is started.

7. With the crankshaft locked, I was able to loosen the crank pulley bolt by using a 36mm, 6-point,
shallow impact socket and my Power Bar

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00OAHHMR8?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details

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When inserted from the top of the engine compartment, the unique geometry of the Power Bar allows for access to the crank bolt while also clearing the power steering rack. You smack the top of the Power Bar with a hammer to provide the impact force. My 2-lb sledge was not enough, so I ended-up using a full-sized
sledgehammer. Yes, I used a sledgehammer on my Ferrari 612…I was VERY careful! It worked perfectly. I proceeded to replace the timing belts and tensioner bearings in accordance with the WSM. I did use the vice-grip method on the cam pulleys, which was not mentioned in my WSM.

8. I reinstalled the crank pulley bolt so that it was snug before removing the flywheel lock and rotating the engine through to bed-in the cam belts. I was a bit concerned after reading this thread https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/disaster-mystery-on-my-575.445157/ so I was very careful not to rotate the engine until the harmonic balancer was properly positioned with the crank bolt snugged-up. I carefully rotated the engine while watching the belt motion and timing marks and feeling for any internal restrictions. It all felt and looked good.

9. I used the MotoReva tool (insert pic) to set the tension on each of the engine belts, using the tension readings specified in the WSM. The flywheel lock was re-installed before torquing the crank bolt to the final value. My cut-down 36mm socket allowed me to fit the torque wrench from the top of the engine compartment. I used red LocTite on the crank bolt. The flywheel lock was then removed, and I must have turned the engine over a hundred times during the tensioning process for the belts.

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10. New intake manifold gaskets were installed after giving them a thin coating of Loctite 518. All of the mating surfaces were carefully vacuumed and cleaned with denatured alcohol. The manifold was reinstalled in the reverse of the removal process. I could not source the required (24) new mount bolts, so I reused the originals but decided to use blue Loctite on each one. I did this because (1) many people believe you should not re-use nyloc nuts in a critical application, and (2) I’ve read several accounts of these nuts working loose on the F116/F133 engines and I did not want that to happen to me. Since you cannot get an accurate torque value
while using a universal-joint adapter, I tightened them by hand while being careful not to over torque them.

11. Changing the coolant lines was straight forward but it was very difficult to source part # 199505

https://www.ricambiamerica.com/car-diagrams/ferrari/v12/gt-group-2-2/612-scaglietti/air-conditioning-system-water-pipes/199505-shaped-tube.html

I was finally able to find one in stock at Miller Motorcars (thanks, Lonnie!). I used Gates Powergrip clamps in place of the metal hose clamps. The Powergrip clamps are quality items and have proven to be leak-free so far.

12. After all of the belt covers were reinstalled, I checked the cam timing marks once again by rotating the engine several times and stopping back at TDC for cylinder #1. The factory chisel makes were visible through each belt cover inspection slit and I was confident that the cam timing was correct.

13. After everything was hooked back up (but before the air filter housings were installed, I smoke checked the entire intake manifold using my smoke tester.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07JVT1NG2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 No leaks were observed.

14. The cooling system was filled with Zerex G06 and the system was statically bled.

15. The battery was charged and reinstalled. Master cutoff switch was placed to “on”. Position II was selected on the ignition switch and faults posted for Twilight Sensor and Rain Sensor. I didn’t worry too much about that and I proceeded to start the engine while my wife watched for fire or obvious leaks. To my relief, the engine fired right up with good oil pressure and the CEL extinguished after the normal amount of time. With the engine idling I did a real thorough leak check of the engine compartment and everything looked good. I then completed the engine-running portion of the coolant bleed procedure.

16. I did a 10-minute road test (with the undertrays off) to get the engine and transmission oil temps up prior to doing the respective fluid changes. I bought this inexpensive tool (add link) so that I could properly torque the oil filters. https://www.ebay.com/itm/165165255296

17. The transmission oil filter was a bit of a challenge, since the F1 actuator makes it difficult to completely remove from the transmission case. As Brogenville has reported in another thread, the filter screen can be successfully removed by properly orienting the flange-head. Once removed and cleaned, I chamfered the plastic filter screen body a little with a file to make it easier to reinstall. A new O-ring was used.

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18. I replaced 50% of the F1 actuator fluid. The reservoir is not as hard to get access to as I had read, but the rear undertray crossmember and the left exhaust heat shield need to be removed to allow access. The reservoir contained “amber” colored fluid, so I refilled it with Petronas Tutela CS.

19. After the engine and transmission oils were changed, I did another 10-minute road test (with
the undertrays off) to get all fluids up to temp before doing a final leak check. Everything looked
great from nose to tail so I installed both undertrays and finish-up all the little odds and ends in
the engine compartment.

20. After 2x battery resets I still could not get the Twilight and Rain sensor faults to clear. To make matters worse, my trunk release button stopped working so I had to manually release the trunk lid with the release cable behind the rear seat arm rest. This is difficult, as you have to pull like hell on the cable before it releases. I knew my battery was old, so I bought and installed new battery. The faults were still present and my Autel AP200 wouldn’t clear them. The faults finally cleared on their own after a ~40 minute road test and an additional battery reset action. They have not returned since and the trunk release button works like normal.

21. The final job I did was a full brake fluid flush. I used the Motive Powerbleeded for this and the job was easy and quick.

So that’s it. I feel a lot better now that I’m not so worried about my timing belts or cooling hoses. And the car is running absolutely perfectly. This job gave me a good opportunity to bond with my car while inspecting, cleaning, and repairing as necessary. I'm thankful that the 612 is from a generation where an owner really can do the majority of work on their own car.

 

Thanks, Sunshine1! I figure that I saved many thousands of dollars by doing this work myself...possibly around $7500? On a side note, I did find clear evidence of past shoddy maintenance. That surprised me because my maintenance records indicate that this car had only been serviced by "top name" dealerships in its past. Anyway...I doubt somebody else would give my car the same level of care and attention that I would give to it myself, so I was glad to tackle this job. It was interesting and extremely gratifying. A shout-out goes to Daniel at Ricambi America. Daniel runs a world-class operation and he came through for me over and over on this job. Thanks, Daniel!

 

I was asked about the F1 fluid change, so I thought I should add some detail on that. Please note that this is not a factory Ferrari procedure. I did it this way only after lots of careful research and after reading several F-Chat posts on the topic.

I only changed-out slightly less than half of the fluid so that I can avoid doing a full F1 actuator bleed. I'll have to do the full bleed procedure in the future, but I will need to do more research and probably buy more tools before I make the attempt. So, the partial fluid change is really only a stop-gap procedure. I plan to repeat the procedure 3-4 times during the course of the next few months and will have changed most of the system F1 fluid at the end. After removing the left rear wheel, the left heat shield (item C) and the crossmember (item 2), I reached my arm way up from underneath the car, past the left half-shaft until I could feel the cap for the F1 reservoir. I cleaned the cap carefully with a rag before removing it. The cap was only hand-tight and not difficult to remove. I made the drain-tool from 1/4in copper tubing, bent to shape as shown in the pic, plus some hose material (available in the Walmart fish aquarium section...). It took a little work but I threaded the copper pipe up and over until the end dropped into the F1 reservoir. The curve in the copper pipe allowed it to hang on the reservoir without falling out. I then applied suction (the "old fashioned" way...) to the end of the plastic pipe in order to start the fluid flowing via siphoning. I let it flow into the container until it stopped. I was able to get 300cc of fluid out, and it was fairly dirty. I had hoped for ~400cc or more, but the reservoir may have been a little underserviced to begin with. Using the Horusdy syringe and a length of clear tubing, I refilled the reservoir with 300cc of fresh Petronas Tutela CS Speed. I couldn't easily see the level in the reservoir, so I slowly pumped-in more fluid (maybe 75cc?) until it slightly ran over, then I drew about 30cc back out so that the reservoir level was slightly below the filler neck (the system was unpressurized..). I had a bit of a mess now, so I carefully cleaned-up all of the fluid that had overflowed and replaced the cap, hand-tight. I spent a good bit of time carefully cleaning the entire area before putting everything back together. I did about 100 miles of (mostly) city driving afterwards and the F1 system worked normally and with no faults or leaks. That's it, I hope this helps.

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Thanks, Terry. I'm due for a full F1 fluid change but I'm trying to determine if I can do that job by myself or not. I'm considering the Launch X431 Pro Mini for that purpose. I'm a little hesitant to do that job because my F1 is working fine and I don't want to mess it up. And the PIS optimization...that's another one that concerns me. Boroscope inspection of my throwout bearing shows plenty of clutch life left, and I'd hate to accelerate my clutch wear by making an incorrect PIS adjustment. I'm researching these tasks now and I should make my decision soon. If I do that job, I'll take lots of pictures and document it here.

 

Hi Taz. I had originally intended to remove the four access covers at the rear of the heads in order to visually check the timing mark in each cam. On my car, there was VERY little clearance which made removing the cam access covers incredibly difficult. Instead, I verified TDC cylinder 1 with my dial indicator, then observed that all four punch marks on the cam drive pulleys were visible through the inspection slits on the plastic cam belt covers (reference Figure 2 on the excerpt from the service manual). I performed this check multiple times, rotating the engine several times before stopping back at TDC #1 on each try. The punch marks aligned with the inspection slits each time. This gave me confidence that my cam timing was adequate and that additional cam-timing work was not really necessary. The inspection slits are very narrow so the cam-timing was absolutely "close enough".

Yes, I realize that by saying "close enough", I have certainly exposed myself to ridicule on this platform, as there are lots of strong opinions on that topic. But I was not careless with this job. I thought it through, used sound reasoning, and triple-checked my work. The car ran great before the belt job, and it runs great now with 4k miles on the job. I guess the work I did could be called "a really careful lock-and-swap"? I agree that my car MAY benefit from a careful degree-ing of the cams, but I have a hard time convincing myself that it is really necessary. I use this car as a GT car and I rarely drive it really hard, so I'm not sure I would even notice a minor performance gain. I plan on degree-ing the cams when/if I ever need to replace the cam-cover gaskets, but they aren't leaking now so it might be a ways down the road.