F-Chatters, I am proud to annouce that I have made my first Ferrari purchase. I have enjoyed the car very much the last 5 hours, but alas it is almost bed time, although one more run through town could still occur. I wanted to start by talking about the PPI. I'll just start with what was found wrong. Do you remember the scene from Ghostbusters where Dan Akroyd drives up in the Ghostmobile and describes all that is wrong with it, in such good Dan Akroyd style? Imagine that when you read this list: - Steering racking leaking - Radiator leaking - 2 Bad motor mounts - Timing belt needed (Time, not mileage) - Needs new tires (Age, not wear) - New suspension bushings - New front brakes and rotors My guess is by this time you have come up with some figure, or a general feel for the condition of the car. I'm not a Ferrari expert, but the car is in good condition, but it has seen some neglect. The previous owner put 1200 miles on the car in 4 years, which probably explains the rubber meltdown. As I have mentioned before, I am a former jet engine mechanic, so most of these jobs don't scare me. The only one that I'm not looking forward to is pressing the old bushings out and pressing new ones back in. I have thought about removing the suspension parts and paying for someone else to press in the new bushings. I may have paid too much for the car, but this poor baby needed a good home. Is it stupid to say that the car is solid, but still needing this type of work? That is how I feel anyway. I wanted to thank all of the F-Chatters that have helped me along my way (and projects to come). Special thanks to Tillman for inviting me to a Texas meet, and to Jimpo who gave me my very first ride in a Ferrari. That car happened to be a 328 as well, so after falling in love with his car I had to stay with the 328. Let me say this in closing: I will make sure that this car gets all of the attention that it needs - wait - it deserves. Since I plan on doing much of the maintenance myself, I plan on documenting that maintenance and how-to's on this forum. I know I will be asking for help, but I also want to give help one day too. Thanks again! Gene
Gene, Congrats. You know by now that the 328 is not going to make the awful noise of those Garretts of the C130's! Take your time and do it right. You'll have fun and end up with a winner.
Congratulations on your purchase, Gene! I look forward to reading your maintenance documentation and how-to articles.
Congratulations on the new purchase! I'll make you an offer: You finish the work on mine, and I'll complete the work on yours. Fair enough? LOL!!!
SUCKER!!! Just kidding. Congratulations! I had no idea our little spin was going to push you over the edge. From your perspective, Ferrarichat will now move from a research site to a support group. I'm Jim, and I'm a Ferrari-holic. Find the 328 Register thread and sign yours up. Then give us the details, year, mileage, colors, etc.
Here are a few pics from the original ad. I'll take some of my own when I can find a nice house to take pics with. Details on the car: 1986 GTS Rossa Red with Black Interior 36500 Miles Full Tool Kit, owners manual etc. 285 Ferrari: Where is yours for sale? How much? David: I'm guessing since you know what is wrong with mine, yours may be a bit more work. Now, I'm sure I'll find more wrong with mine, but what is right far outweighs the problems. Jim: I know I'm a sucker, but hey, I can bring this car back to life and feel good about it! Its too bad you can never meet my wife. Well, as long as I don't tell her that it was you that gave me the first ride, she'll love you. ** Kidding ** Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Congrats- and the car looks awesome! I love the red/black combo but I'm a little biased Sounds like the PPI was good enough to jump in. Steering rack- don't worry about it right now Suspension bushings- don't worry right now timing belts- do it as soon as you can. Any news on the last valve adjustment from the records? tires- I have no idea brakes- do the pads and machine the rotors and see if they are still servicable instead of replacing them leaking rad- where is it leaking? I would get right on this one too. engine mounts- I would like to know how to determine that a mount is bad- do they sag, leak etc? It's an easy fix, but you might need to adjust your gearbox after replacemnt if the location of the engine in the chassis changes. All in all- doesn't sound too bad, and you will enjoy the car more doing the work yourself. jwise
Oh for heavens' sake, don't be bashful! Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Seriously. I am in the process of relocation to our headquarters in California. I am crying while looking at realtor.com I wish I lived in Dallas. You can buy a mansion for $500,000.......on a golf course........with a pool.........and a guesthouse........complete with mistress.......
Not quite a mansion, but 4000 s/f isn't unrealistic. Guesthouse might be out of line too. Mistress is purely discretionary.
