G'day folks....again. Soo the "probably best in the country" 365 is back on the road with a recond auto diff until the dealer get's me a 4.3:1 CW & P but that's not the issue. When I picked up the car in January we had to have 2 people to open the fuel filler as the spring component has disappeared. I realise I can use something to wedge against the cap to pop it open but that's not the point. What is the actuator and where is it ? Thanx in advance. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Simon I can only speak for my Series II 400i (1984). I believe the 365 has a lot less electrical gimmicks. My 400i has a Fuel switch on the center console, along with trunk lid and hood. The switch activates a solenoid that is easily accessible from the trunk. I must say that I have spent a lot of hours in total getting the fuel cap to open 'remotely'. It often needs a credit card under the cap to get it to open, with our without my wife pushing the button at same time. There is a spring on the door hinge and it feels a bit weak for the job. I usually apply some light lube on the pivots and also on the latch at back. The alignment of the hinge and/or latch is very fussy, slight changes can go to easy open to now way! There are three things that can be adjusted:a) hinge to chassis bolts, b) hinge to flap bolts and c) the latch which is part of the solenoid. I have also replace the electrical switch in the console as these eventually burn out. I hope this helps some. Ken
Good day Simon, I will take some pictures for you, as my car (365) is close by. The release is all mechanical via cable on the floor between the drivers seat and the door sill. On my car pulling the level/cable springs open the fuel door... and springs it does. As I said, I will take some pics so you can see the door release mechanism. Also... your car does look quite nice! Cheers, Sam
Hi Sam,As you'll be aware I sold the non history car to buy this one so I'm aware of the opening mechanism. It's just the spring thingy and where it's located that's got me a bit buggered. I can't seem to find the relevant info on Dr Google ATM.
Hmm,the unlock mechanism is different but the spring thingy should be the same. I never had an issue with the 365 I'd had for 14 years
Good day Simon, Understood. I figured as much, but my thought/intent was to provide some pics in case you did not have an immediate car to use as a parts reference. With that said, here is a pic showing where and how the spring is installed on my car. I hope you will forgive the dust, etc... as I have not made my way to this area of the car just yet. Interestingly, the door opens not with a snap, but actually a nicely controlled opening with constant acceleration. It reminded me of some of the newer German cars where things like these were designed/engineered with opening speed and acceleration in mind. I suspect in my case it is simply an old spring that is simply stumbling to unwind itself Let me know if you need any other pics. Cheers, Sam Image Unavailable, Please Login
Great thanx Sam. Bit of WD40 fixed it. All new paint and lack of use for about 8 months until I bought it was the issue. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Now the bloody flap won't open! I can go through the boot but it ain't the same. Have to wait until I can get a second body here to see ,when I pull the lever,if there is any movement on the release system.
I owned my 1984 400i for 16 years. The item I worked on most frequently was the fuel door. Sometimes it was the switch or its connector. Most times it was in need of a little lube (light oil better than WD40; it's a water dispersant not a lube), and then there were the minor adjustments to the four little bolts holding the door in place. Those adjustments and a little Teflon lube usually did the trick. Once or twice, I worked on adjusting the solenoid holder in the trunk to change the angle or extension of the clip holder. In all cases it usually took 10-15 minutes to get the door to swing open on the first (or second) push of the button. I would go on a long trip and watch the door swing open 4-5 times, usually by the time I got home my wife was pushing the button while I used a credit card to pry it open. Back to steps above. I looked for a possible stronger spring but never found a source for that type axial spring. I tried to give it an extra rotation but no luck. In any case, it was one of the "pleasures of owning a 35+ year old Ferrari.
For emergency opening, in the trunk on the front left side, there should be a push lever to release the fuel filler cap door. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Umm it's only the bit from the lever to the release mechanism that is in question different to a 400,the rest was sorted by Sam on page one here.
365 GT4 2+2, 400, 400i 1979, trunk release and fuel trap release are made by levers and cables, entirely mechanical. There is an emergency back up in case the levers do not work: for the trunk release, ring and cable behind the fuel trap - for the fuel trap, push lever inside the trunk (similar to 400i 1982/412). Of course if trunk AND fuel trap cannot be opened from the levers, there is a problem Not very likely 400i 1982 and 412, trunk release and fuel trap release are made from push button switches and solenoids, emergency mechanical back-up by one cable for the trunk (see below) and the push lever mentioned previously. If trunk cannot be opened from its switch AND from the emergency cable, and if fuel trap cannot be opened from it switch, then problem. Not very likely Image Unavailable, Please Login
