You should ask Carlo about the one that has been in his shop for the last 8+ years! The engines are absolute crap according to Carlo--the engine in the LM002 he has in his shop came from the factory with helicoils to hold the head studs in! From the factory! He noticed it when tightening the bolts on the head and they kept pulling out! I admit that they are cool looking though--until they drop all their oil I guess...
It is the 4V Countach motor. With the exception of a few problems that were corrected early on like the chain tensioners, they had a good reputation. Many aluminum motors have inserts of one type or another where studs or bolts thread into the aluminum. Quite the contrary to being cheap or badly made it is seen as a rather extravagant method insure the fastener does not pull out of the alloy by spreading the load over a larger area. Ferrari does it in many places on their motors and transmissions. We have seen over the years many motors that we could not keep a stud in and it only happens for one reason. Someone overheated it bad enough or often enough that the aluminum was annealed. That is hardly the fault of the car, operator error is the only thing that causes that. Being designed for the desert the one system on that vehicle that is grossly over engineered is the cooling system. I boggles the imagination to think how brain dead one must be to overheat one. I have one of those and one thing that has not been any trouble is the motor. Considering how few were built and since many were sent off to military use, few have survived so they are surrounded by a great deal of misinformation. I can tell you from first hand information not only from having one but also servicing them from the time the second one landed in the US most owners I know would have to be killed to get theirs away from them.
All's I know is that Carlo hates that motor with a passion. An Italian's passion. Complete with flying expletives and wrenches. He was absolutely livid with it. Maybe it was the fact that they didn't helicoil all of the studs and only a couple of them? In any case, no one I know likes them, except as I do: From afar! Their tires reportedly cost in excess of $1000 apiece as well. As for their use in the Italian military, I don't really know how that went either.
It was not used in the Italian military. Saudi Arabia and Iraq are the only two I am aware of. As for the other statements, I said, they are surrounded by a great deal of misinformation. Maybe it would help if some of it should come from actual owners.
I recall hearing from several separate owners that Miuras also have a tendency to slip head bolts in the aluminum block. How can they compare themselves with an Fcar.
i love the thing and i wish i could buy it... but unless there is a 1,000 month 0 APR option ill have to pass. i just dont get how someone owned this and only put 6500 miles on it...
I have mentioned this before in other threads, and just in case some of you missed it. In order to do a proper oil change on that monstracity of ill-engineering, you have to remove the AC unit to get to the filter and with that, many other pieces of front facia. The labor involved is unthinkable for an oil change, I guess Lamborghini figure that their owners wipes their behinds with $100 dollar bills or something.
I literally had the cashiers check in my hands to buy one a few years ago when the PPI showed the amount of work the beast needed was nearly greater than what I was paying for it. It was insane how much certain consumable parts cost (if one can find them!). I can see why so many have very few miles. It was disappointing to find out that such a cool and unique vehicle was so difficult to be involved with.
Interesting, I have changed the oil in them many times and have never had the experience you describe but I suppose anyone can make a mountain out of a mole hill.
I have never found the ones I have been involved in servicing to be particularly difficult or expensive, with one exception, the clutch. But even that is easier than an early Countach. The parts prices are a bargain compared to Ferrari. I can do even a clutch in one for less than a 360 due to the parts prices. And do not forget it was designed as a military vehicle. When has anything been designed for the military with ease of maintainence in mind. BTW Besides that one near miss just how much direct experience have you had with them? I have been working on them since 86 and have had one for a few years. I do have a little real world, hands on experience, not just hearsay second hand rumors.
Well, I did stayed at the Holiday Inn three years, six months and 2 days ago while on vacation. BTW, that information I posted came straight from a Lamborghini dealership technician that I have know for a long time, so I have no reason to doubt him on this. Now if this is wrong than it is my bad or perhaps you are just so amazingly gifted when it comes to working on one of these cars. As for your crudentials, I honestly have no clue to who you are *shrugs*.
Doesn't matter who I am, I am just some guy that works on cars. I have had over the years quite a few work for me and with me and experience has shown me there are a great many people that would rather tell me how they can't do something than find a way to do it. For myself I take pride in not having the work ethic of a civil servant.
LM002 parts prices: Distributor Cap, Single coil wire: #LC0048 $649.95 Ignition Rotor, single distributor models: #LC9315 $369.95 ea Distributor Cap, Two coil wire: #LC0048-2 $689.95 Horn Button, 1 terminal, all models: #LM00231 $69.95 Thermostat: # FI4360881 $89.95 Water Pump, Countach & LM002, Re-built your core: #LM002WP-R $775.00 These are all the parts I could easily find. I wouldn't know where to begin to find switches, trim bits, etc. My only experience is as a buyer who did a few months of homework before purchase. Again, a cool and unique vehicle, just too much (for me) to be married to if it's going to be driven regularly.
Looking at the one at Carlo's, it seems that a built small block Chevy would fit in there just fine. Who knows about hooking it up to the rest of the LM running gear - but why not drop a GM 4X4 drivetrain under it? Mark
