And now for something completely different

Now that is cool!! If I had one of these I would consider something similar, and use that big v12 as a coffee table..What a great swap!!

 

#18777
Great engine but wrong music

 

Oh, no...a 6 banger
It should be titled "Not something you see every day

 

Good day All,

Just documenting these cars, as they come up...

The car sure looks "clean" in the pictures... however, I would have left the original mechanicals, as this is part of the charm.

Cheers,

Sam

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Ferrari-365-GT4-2-2-1973-2D-Coupe-5-SP-Manual-/221130914356

http://motoringconbrio.com/2012/10/04/ferrari-365-gt4-22-with-something-unexpected-under-the-bonnet/

1973 Ferrari 365GT4 2+2
Color: Marrone with Tan Interior
Mileage: 60000 KM
Location: Somerset West, Western Cape, South Africa

Chassis: 18777
Asking $22000 AUD ($22571 USD) Buy It Now

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For lack of the "proper" motor, I think it's a much better fate than the crusher or breaker.

 

I honestly cannot imagine the appeal of one of these without a Ferrari 12 Cylinder under the hood...

 

The only way to describe this is 'nightmare'...

 

Nothing quite like M-power,,,,

 

Curious if this series would bring in the resto mod crowd ?

Maybe in a few year, we will some of these 400s with 350 ls1 engines , and 22 inch chrome wheels ?

I would be interested to drive this car around the block.

 

Better get a paper bag...

 

Lol, this one looks good and has a bimmer engine that probably runs....I would drive it without the mask over my face

 

I can understand why people do this...I just spent over a month sorting out a seriously butchered 400i. She came in 'dead' from one of our local experts who 'gave up' on her. No fuel, erratic weak spark...and more electric 'gremlins' then I've ever seen on one car. I was at my breaking point too and considering throwing in the towel. But, after much, much work and head scratching, the Ferrari engines remains and she runs quite well, thank you.

 

There is a real 308 with a Fiero 2.8 V6 engine out there. Do a search and you'll find it...

But I have to ask: Why bother? You get the best and worst of both cars....

 

Because its there.

 

This is not going to be a happy marriage. According to Wiki the 286 hp M88 -- OE in the '83 to '89 M5 and M635CSi -- produces just 251 lb-ft of torque @ 4500 rpm. The hp peak does not arrive until 6500 rpm. If you think your 356 GT4 or 400 is slow off the line with a 320 hp 4.4 liter or a 340 hp 4.8 liter, imagine what it would be like with a 3.4 liter with 50 fewer horses. A rule of thumb for cars in the "peppy" range of performance is that one horsepower is the rough equivalent of 10 pounds of vehicle weight. To subtract 50 hp is like adding 500 pounds.

 

That was exactly my thoughts. If you have to substitute an engine, at least go up in horsepower. One could at least stay in the stable by using a more modern Ferrari power plant.

-sc

 

Even if someone gave it to me for free I would not even drive it. Its a abomination.

 

The car is mine guys, and it's time to own up.
Brief history of 18777 follows:
It was imported to South Africa direct from Italy and first registered here in Jan 1974, therefore making it 1973 manufacture although not sure exactly how early that makes it in terms of overall production.
The original owner is a wealthy Cape Town financier and he kept it garaged all the way up to 2007 when he eventually sold it to make room for a Bugatti.
He asked the local Ferrari agents Vigliettti to buy it however it was simply too old to fit their mix despite the very low mileage. Instead they recommended the owner contact a collector in the north of the Country who bought the car over the phone.
It was simply too good a deal to pass up.
The new owner, father of a well-known Springbok rugby player (and mate of mine), has a fantastic collection and wanted the pristine engine and gearbox for a P4 that he was building at the time.
In March of the following year I went to stay with him, he has a safari lodge, and on my birthday he invited me to check out his ‘toy cupboard’, and there she was.
A couple of whiskies later he told me the car was for sale and I bought it there and then.
F-chatters may remember that I posted images of the subsequent road-trip when I drove all the way back the following month to take delivery.
When I returned home with her on the trailer, the advice came thick and fast as to how she should be ‘restored’. A V12, a V8, a Straight 6, Ferrari original, Chevy, Lexus, Jaguar, you name it, everyone chipped in their two cents.
I finally ended up buying a South African built 1986 BMW 745i, they only made 210 of these and each had the phenomenal M88 Motorsport engine.
It seemed like a good marriage at the time…don’t they all ?
Four and half years and countless thousands of dollars later the car goes like thunder, but it’s not a Ferrari, and I accept that.
A friend suggested I put it up on the Australian eBay site and I had over 30 ‘watchers’ until the ad expired this morning.
So, what now ?
I could strip out the M88 engine and Getrag gearbox and part it all out, honestly I don’t know at this stage quite what to do anymore.
Feeling guilty and embarrassed that I wasn’t more honest with you guys earlier, my only excuse being that you are all such dedicated enthusiasts, what I was doing was obviously an abomination in your eyes, just didn’t have the guts to admit it.

 

If you did it to a Testarossa, or a Daytona, then it would have been an abomination, but since its a 400 it's ok - the 400 is the donor car

I still think it looks like a cool project, good luck in your sale !

 

I think it's OK, not an abomination. I have a great respect for that engine and it makes those M cars go like hell or they would not have done it.

Just think of all the great fanfare when those were new. I still remember reading of them.

So how does she drive? That's what would convince me. I'm not such a purist that I don't accept what hot rodders do. In america we love hot rodders. Did this go the other way? Is performance wanting?

 

The abomination in this is the "collector" guy who pulled an engine out of a low mile 365 to put in his replicar plaything. (I can't even imagine how you could use the gear box from a front engine car in a short wheelbase mid-engine car.) I hope he finds the few hundreds of miles he puts on his counterfeit racecar are worth the destruction of a rare survivor Ferrari. 3wings Mike, however, has done a proper job of filling the hole where the Colombo engine used to be. The loss of 34 horsepower and the torque from a missing liter of displacement must have hurt the car's performance, which is not high to begin with. But at least a six, at 7,000 rpm, will make a Ferrari-like sound.

 

Good day Mike,

Thank you for the post and the closing the "loop" on what happened the the car. Further, please do not take what was negatively said personally, as I believe the intent was directed at the transplant and not a you directly. As for your other comments about being embarrassed, guilty, etc I say this is nonsense and unwarranted. You took a car and utilized what resources you had and made the car driving again, which I think you should be commended for all your hard work and efforts. After all finding a OEM replacement drive train would have and is still no small feat in terms of time and $$$ regardless of where you live.

You asked what to do now? This is a tough one. Restoring the car with a OEM drive train would be an option, but the cost and effort to do so would be a lot of $$$... with also a small market. I suspect you will eventually find a buyer for the car as it is, as it does look very "clean" and will appeal to someone who likes the cars esthetics, etc.

Cheers,

Sam

 

My post about the paper bag was an inside joke between me and Big Red. My apologies.

Personally I wouldn't do the transplant but like you said "what to do now?". That's the problem with hot rodding a Ferrari....it becomes an even smaller market.