Theiler Auto Technik | FerrariChat

Theiler Auto Technik

Discussion in 'Technical Q&A' started by snj5, May 17, 2008.

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  1. snj5

    snj5 F1 World Champ

    Feb 22, 2003
    10,213
    San Antonio
    Full Name:
    Russ Turner
    There used to be a Ferrari tning house called Theiler Auto Technik, which by word of mouth had some very good results. I've heard they closed.
    Anyone know anything about the shop or the automobiles they built?
    thanks
     
  2. Steve-Race Engine

    Feb 25, 2004
    65
    Oceanside, Ca.
    Full Name:
    Steve Demirjian
    #2 Steve-Race Engine, May 18, 2008
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    Russ, Theiler passed away a few years back.

    I sent Nick a link to your post. I'm pretty sure he knew Theiler.
    I have a few photos of his projects, one of which I attached for you.
    Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
  3. snj5

    snj5 F1 World Champ

    Feb 22, 2003
    10,213
    San Antonio
    Full Name:
    Russ Turner
    Sad to hear.
    I've been reading that he was quite talented.
    Thanks for the reply.
     
  4. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner

    Aug 10, 2002
    26,294
    socal
    Theiler was kinda wild. He built some pretty out there ferraris. Some worked some did not but it was always a work in progress. He did lots of his own custom machining, made tools to get jobs done etc.... Many shop guys did not like him but I spent time with him and he was a very nice knowlegable guy very free with his information. I think Theiler's problem was no informed consent. He was thinking at the college level and we are grade schoolers. mechanics were so basic to him he left obvious stuff out he thinks we know. So he would say things like we could flow your heads and get you extra horsepower and you would say yes please. Then the bottom end would blow out and you would be mad because you did not understand that everything had to be designed as a unit. Now your car was back in the shop. Nothing wrong just a communication failure. He was the nicest guy and a loss to the community.

    We lost JRV too. Another really nice mechanic who basically was driven off Fchat like so many other pros.

    If you are looking for somone in the area Joe SanPaolo @ Concours Auto was right next to Theiler's shop in LaHarbra, Ca.. Both had Ferraris plugging up the neighborhood. Joe is an awesome mechanic. He is very smart in that he sticks 99% of the time to fixing Ferrari's right and then is very selective of who he takes on as that 1% customer out there on the fringe who wants to build a Ferrari racecar. He does this because he knows that racing is a bottomless pit of money and frought with mechanical compromises and you have to have excellent communication between the mechanic and the owner. When I have Ferrari questions I ask Joe.
     
  5. Nick

    Nick Formula Junior
    Sponsor Professional Ferrari Technician

    Oct 31, 2003
    506
    Full Name:
    Nick Scianna
    I knew him for many years, he was relocating from Cali up to Washington to work with me, he lived at our home for approx 3 months while we were trying to get things set up, he want back down to Cali to get his car & some more personal belongings tools etc & passed away while in Cali, he was in his late 50's I believe.

    He was talented & a very nice man, he left me so much technical info about Ferrari's, he used to make sway bars, custom water pumps, heat exchangers etc, built some twin turbo 348 engines, just all kinds of cool stuff, He was very big into suspension, not just engines, I have hundreds of pictures of projects, engines, body parts etc that I should post on my site as a memorial to him at some point, I really miss him. To sum it up, he was ahead of his time with respect to Ferrari mods.
     
  6. snj5

    snj5 F1 World Champ

    Feb 22, 2003
    10,213
    San Antonio
    Full Name:
    Russ Turner
    Thanks so very much, Billybob and Nick.
    I'll be looking forward to the photos someday as he seems to have been an amazing man.
    best
     
  7. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner

    Aug 10, 2002
    26,294
    socal
    Theiler was always pushing. I remember one of those custom waterpumps for a 308 with this weird black aerospace coating which claimed all kinds of cool things. Later I saw him use the stuff on piston tops and some other things. They were going for big turbo horsepower and succeeded. I think mad scientist of Ferraris is a good discription and I mean that in only the best way. What was his wife or girlfriend's name? I forget she was really nice too.
     
  8. ernie

    ernie Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Nov 19, 2001
    22,574
    The Brickyard
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    The Bad Guy
    When I first bought my 348 Nick gave me his number. Theiler was such a nice man. As the others have said he REALLY knew his stuff, and was VERY open with his information. Sometimes he would give me a call just to shoot the breeze, nothing Ferrari related, but just to see how things where going and talk. He is missed.
     
  9. ernie

    ernie Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Nov 19, 2001
    22,574
    The Brickyard
    Full Name:
    The Bad Guy
    On a side note.

    Hey Nick do you still have some of his old suspension stuff?
     
  10. finnerty

    finnerty F1 World Champ

    May 18, 2004
    10,406
    I had several long phone conversations with Herman back in the late 90's. Hell of a generous guy with his knowledge and his time to me... He even sent me copies of his "catalogs" and spec sheets of all the designs and mods he had worked out --- funny, because no one out there today is doing anything new with 308s that Theiler hadn't already cooked up earlier (with one exception being EFI kits). He also did run into financial difficulties which forced him out the F-car game before his death.

    FYI --- here is one reason why he was so talented --- When he was younger, he actually was one of the original factory Engineers who designed and developed the 512BB LM for Ferrari. He was Swiss, I believe, and worked for Ferrari off and on during his earllier days before coming to the States.
     
  11. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner

    Aug 10, 2002
    26,294
    socal
    Actually not true. He did at least one electromotive unit I believe to a paint guy named Nick in a 308 because I rode in that car. It was sweet. That was a killer car with *****in wheels that Theiler machined Ferrari center caps for since none existed. That was about a year before financial difficulties.
     
  12. hyenahf

    hyenahf F1 Rookie

    May 25, 2004
    2,603
    I first met Theiler in the early 90’s years at his shop in la harbor. It was nice of him to take an hour or so to show me the various projects in his shop in LaHarbor. I recall there was another Ferrari shop right next door that he was ranting about. He’d mentioned that everything the other shop owner knew of F-cars came from him and said that man just burnt the bridge between them. Although I don’t know the details, I sensed he was bitter about being betrayed. I hope this person is not Joe.

    He gave me one of his catalog which had different stages of engine upgrades, suspension kit, etc… there where numerous reprints of letters from satisfied customers of his high output water pumps which seem very popular hot climate area’s like Texas, Nevada, Hawaii and the Middle East. I think I have this catalog stored away somewhere in the attic.

    Im not sure if he was German, Austrian or Swiss, I vaguely remember him saying he first came to this country in support of the all conquering turbo 917-30 in the early 70’s and was heavily involved with its development. He mentioned a lot of want they learnt went back to the factory and directly in the production 930. Although he had vast experience with turbo’s, I thought he preferred his N/A motor packages. Another interesting note was that he did tuning work on the 3 liter Urraco motor. He had said there where some sort fundamental problem with the cam drive. He had showed me some mechanical drawings in this huge binder of solutions that he drafted out for a fix.

    A man truly passionate about his work that will be sorely missed….
     
  13. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner

    Aug 10, 2002
    26,294
    socal
     
  14. hyenahf

    hyenahf F1 Rookie

    May 25, 2004
    2,603
    Billybob

    I hope I didn’t offend you from sharing my experience with Theiler. I was just recalling my visit with him at his shop. In no way was I trying to challenge or contradict your opinion about joe or your views in this arena. I just thought it was strange of Theiler to share this personal matter with some guy he just met. It was purely incidental if I offended. That was not my intention. I did say, “ I didn’t know the details” and at this point I don’t think I want to.

    Respectfully

    H

    Btw what r your lap times at Big Willow?
     
  15. fatbillybob

    fatbillybob Two Time F1 World Champ
    Consultant Owner

    Aug 10, 2002
    26,294
    socal

    No offense taken. I respect both Joe and Theiler. They are just very different animals.

    As to laptimes in my stock engined 348 racecar I was down to 1:38+. There was still a couple seconds left to go in my personal skill. I was only at about 130 at the end of the front straight and 90 at T9, 120-125 T8. Still the car could be lighter too and I rarely ran a decent set of tires. I ran mixed scubs because I could never find slicks that would fit the challenge wheels unless I bought new Pirelli slicks for 350-400 a piece. I did things like mix goodyear rears with hoosier fronts and tuned the chassis to compensate. Still I was faster than any 348 I've been on track with and never been beat in a race by a 355 or lower Ferrari but I was at about 2800lbs wet too. In my stock C5 Z06 vette I got it out on the big track about 2 weeks ago for the second time in 4 years and in 3 laps I was already faster than my 348. So for now I'm gutting the Z and welding a cage in there next week and do SCCA T-1 racing. Rob will be in T-1 in the Texas area in his 355. I hope to run with him on track sometime.
     
  16. hyenahf

    hyenahf F1 Rookie

    May 25, 2004
    2,603
    cool I was hoping to clear the air...

    anyways... 38's are a pretty decent time for a stock motor 348 even with race rubber or r-compounds. obviously its no match for the Z06 but not much else is either regardless of price. im just glad to see people running dated exotics and getting pretty respectable lap times out of them. I watched a few ferrari challenge races in donington and saw a blue 308gt4s running quicker than 512M, 360 and 355' challenge cars

    do you reckon your 348 is about as quick as a 355 challenge?. the 2800lbs wet weight is enough to cancel out the power, gearbox and aero advantages of the 355? I havent tried it myself but i hear a big rear wing sure cuts down lap time around big willow. turn 2, 8 and 9 goes around forever.

    It would be great to see some sort of thread of recorded lap times of track days and club races of F-Cars on regional tracks.


    cheers

    H
     
  17. luckydynes

    luckydynes F1 Rookie

    Jan 25, 2004
    3,930
    CA and OR
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    pit bull
    Wish I would have met him . . . he sounds like the real deal.
     
  18. snj5

    snj5 F1 World Champ

    Feb 22, 2003
    10,213
    San Antonio
    Full Name:
    Russ Turner
    I really think it is very nice that a question thread turned into a warm tribute to such a good man.
     
  19. Du_Man

    Du_Man Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Apr 23, 2003
    278
    Dallas, Texas
    Full Name:
    Derek
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    I'm reviving this old post for a little detective work. I just newly acquired 32001 - 80 308 GTSi. I noticed this nameplate riveted to the custom painted red valve covers and the stamped number 1218. Interesting post about Theiler. I know through an Autocheck report that this car was emissions recorded in California in 1998-2000. I assume Theiler customized something on this car during the 90's. I plan at this point to restore the sad 308. It seems like a cool story waiting to be discovered for this 308.

    Anyone have info/clues on the meaning of the stamped number and what could mods could be on this engine? thank you!
     
    lm2504me, hyenahf and JuLiTrO like this.

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