95 F355 Valve Guides.....Fact vs. Fiction !!!

Excellent Thread. I have a 97 and had to do my guides. Fortunately, it was done under warranty.

 

My thoughts exactly, the 95 can be modified with chips also(they just pop right in the ECU's

 

Who makes chip for 95 F-355? What are the mods they program for? Or you just tell them what you have done and they send you the reprogram chip?
Back to the 95' vs. 96-99' issue, if the guide were replaced once than the issue would not appear period? I've been looking for a few months and still trying to figure out what year and what to look for beside major service, etc.
This is definitely a great thread, I did not know there are so many knowledgeable owners out there vs. someone just take their cars back to the dealer!
Keep it going...!

 

A) the numbers are fine; B) the numbers are a compression test, not a leakdown test. Compression is measured in PSI, leakdown is measured in %

 

What does it cost to replace the valve guides, and how long will the car have to be in service? Is it really as hard a job as people make it out to be?
Erik

 

I have had my '95 F355 for about 2 years....12,000 miles on the car.
No valve guide issues, no exhaust manifold issues, but I still can't stand the "lurching at slow speeds when hitting the gas pedal" issue.......and I've replaced the circular throttle opening mechanism on top of the engine.....didn't help very much, if at all.

Anyone solve this issue that I understand all F355's have.....(or is that a myth also?)

 

check the old F-chat archives on the 95 thottle issues. "bigheadeddennis" has done a bunch of work on his car trying to figure it out, and had a lot of info/research on it, and the various fixes. I believe he said the two big things to try is replace the linkage as you have and the entire cable (even if the cable looks good).

Here's one thread started by Dennis:
http://www.ferrarichat.com/discus/messages/256120/244696.html

 

When I was shopping for my 355 the first two Southern California Spiders I found failed their PPI leak down tests and I rejected them. One Spider had 20% leakage in 2 cylinders and the other car had 60% leakage in one cylinder. Both were 1997 red/tan Spiders and looked gorgeous otherwise. The mechanics told me anything over 10-percent leakage was unacceptable. Anyway, I finally found a 98 Spider that passed and bought it after paying nearly $2000 in all the PPI costs. In summary, the issue ought not be neglected by any 355 buyer. The answer can eaisly be found in the ppi & leakdown test. I am very glad I investigated the issue (through F-Chat and other means) before buying. Finally, I got a fax of a rebuild bill on a 1997 355 valve repair to prove that the specific repair had beeen done on a car I was looking at---the cost charged by Symbolic Motors (La Jolla) exceeded $20k. Ouch.

 

Grammar Police correct another myth via Hyperdictionary.
Definition:
misinformation \Mis*in`for*ma"tion\, n.
Untrue or incorrect information. --Bacon.

disinformation - no definition.

Don't sweat it, anybody - Wasn't nitpicking Jon, by any stretch of the imagination. My only intent was to demonstrate that Jon wrote a fantastic post - with 1 spelling/grammar error that is fairly common, and as such, accepted as correct - much like the myths Jon has corrected.

Ironically, the side-topic of information about disinformaton being misinformation has demonstrated how easily myths are accepted as fact.

Once again, excellent fact-based, well-researched Gospel, Jon. Never apologize for your English - your English is better than mine.

 

Jon, I don't own a 355 but greatly appreciate your post. There's a need for a snopes.com to debunk or confirm in whole or part some of the "common knowledge" about marques and models. Great harm can and has been done to values by casual and unexamined generalizations.

"Misinformation" also turns up in the Oxford English Dictionary, by the way. Can't wait to work it into a Scrabble game.

 

hey guys, that wasnt me who bought a 355 and got the valves replaced...i think it might have been scott from nj...

my car is 95...it had the valves done in 97 if i recall correctly...havent had any problems...

and same for me, i only wanted a 95 due to the better sound, few more hp, and obd1 and i wouldnt trade it for anything...

and if the valves do go, you get them fixed...these are expensive toys....not honda accords...

 

Mine does not have this problem. However, I solved the lurching issue by training my right foot to keep the heel attached to the stop that surrounds the gas pedal (like a dead pedal). In addition (and like some motorcycles) a little clutch and a little less gas while starting ameliorates the issue.

 

Dino, that sounds like a hell of a lot of $$$ to replace the valve guides, and even if you replaced the valve guides, the valves, and did a whole lot of work on the head it still sounds excessive, you could almost replace the engine for that much. Did the car in question drop a valve and damage other parts of the motor which pushed the cost through the roof? I have just replaced the valves on my TR with Manley valves, also doing the valve guides etc. and the cost in US$ is about $30.00 per valve for custom comp. Valves from Manley (better then OEM), about $1500.00, manganese bronze guides from SI Industries for US$9.95 each, about $480.00, the guy doing the head work about AU$500.00 (US$375.00), with shipping, gaskets, etc, it all comes in under US$3000.00, granted I am doing the rest of the work myself but I also have 48 valves and guides, etc, not 40. I can’t see how it could hit the $20K mark unless some major damage had been done to the motor or someone’s making a LOT of $$$ on the job. Sorry Dino, I’m not trying to start a flame, just wondering why so much, or maybe this can be answered by another thread: http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=2743 , Steve

 

My '96 355 GTS valve guides were replaced at approximately 10,000 miles, August 2003 at FofSF. The major belt service (engine out service) cost roughly $6500, valve guide replacement $4400, water pump $1400, slave cylinder replacement/rebuild $450. All of this took approximately one month (although they said it would only take 3 weeks). The major service shouldn't take any longer than a week, depending upon their work-load. I can't speak for the independent shops.

 

Valve Guides…….Fact vs. Fiction

Jon,

That was an issue when I bought my '95 355b and I was assured the dealer had done the leakdown and discerned no problem. 2000 miles and a few months later - no smoke, no leaks, no ticking and it IS FAST!

I may sell it soon and go back to the classics now that I got it out of my system and I will def. use your post to debunk the aura surrounding the '95 355's

Thanks again

 

Fly/Steve-

That particular car (I see now was a '97) had a burned piston that had to be replaced because the valve problem was not caught sooner. The invoice indicates the #7 piston was replaced and a new piston liner was installed and that alone was $7038. The total bill was $16,955.47. So, you're probably right that a 'normal' valve repair on these cars (without the piston work) is considerably less. Anyway, the invoice on this particular car did more to discourage me from the car, than encourage me to buy it! Also Symbolic Motors is top dollar on repairs in San Diego, which is why I avoid them.

Dino

 

Gregg.......those numbers are the result of a compression test, not a leakdown test. The numbers are good, but do not necessarily indicate good leakdown results. The leakdown test is performed in a similar manner, but requires extra equipment and a little more time.

Most good specialist service centres will have a leak tester, but the 10mm plug thread required catches some out. Many motorbikes use 10mm plugs, so if you can't find a mechanic, try a motorbike repair shop too. Race teams will also have a leak tester, it's the most performed engine test done by all good race shops. Compression tests are just a quick check.

Jon.......excellent post. THIS is exactly what this website section should be used for.

 

Dino, thanks for the feed back, I can see why you would avoid Symbolic Motors, although no doubt they probably do good work, but it seams like you pay dearly for it. Again thanks for posting back,
Steve

 

Unfortunately so true



Strong work Jon! Well researched and written.

Best regards,

Rob Schermerhorn


Ps, I also 'copy and paste' to MS Outlook blank email window for spell check. I'm an engineer, not an English Literature professor.

 

I believe that it is due to the vacuum of the throttle butterflies. My car has had work done to this effect and the "sticky throttle when feathering it on" issue is not present. I might be misquoting this but call Dave Helms at Thomas Vintage Motors at 303 449 9112 and he can elaborate. I believe it does have to do with the throttle butterflies, though.

 

Jon

If you are using IE, you can download IESpell. It is a free spell checker that works on any dialog box.

If you are using Mozilla (which by the way trumps IE so badly it is laughable) there is a new plug in called "Spell Checker Front End.2"

 

What a phenomenal post! As somebody who is in the market for a '95 355B, this was on the top of my mind. Your post has gone a long way to answer most (if not all) of my questions. Would love to see this added to the FAQ section if not already done.

Thanks again.

 

I will echo what Vik said a year ago. This is outstanding research! I'm glad that I stumbled upon this thread because lately I've been considering the step up to a 355 and I was concerned about these issues. To be honest, I almost completely scrapped the idea after seeing constant posting mentioning the valve guide issues. This gives me some more ammo for my mission and a little bit of relief as well. Thanks Jon!

 

HI
ANYONE WANTS TO SELL ME THEIR'S
1995 /355 COUPE
THANKS

MARK KAHN
(954) 551-8168
FT.LAUDERDALE
FLORIDA