Modified Ferrari 348
Discussion
As previously said, the engine was rebuilt 2 years ago and not driven since.
The valves are brand new without a single mark on them.
Once we get the engine timing figures, Raj will be taking the belt and other bits off and re-checking the timing. We'll be taking pictures of the process and may even do a video of it being done.
The valves are brand new without a single mark on them.
Once we get the engine timing figures, Raj will be taking the belt and other bits off and re-checking the timing. We'll be taking pictures of the process and may even do a video of it being done.
The eagle eyed amongst you may have noticed something about the cambelt.
Well.. it's not a Ferari cambelt. Seemed that the 348 belt I sent to them didn't fit, so they used one for anm Alfa Romeo that does fit.
If you look at the lowere cambelt pulleys you'll understand why. They aren't custom made.
Pic of my existing engine that I took a few years ago
Here's the Le Mans engine
Well.. it's not a Ferari cambelt. Seemed that the 348 belt I sent to them didn't fit, so they used one for anm Alfa Romeo that does fit.
If you look at the lowere cambelt pulleys you'll understand why. They aren't custom made.
Pic of my existing engine that I took a few years ago
Here's the Le Mans engine
The engine did come with a set of cambelt covers. Unforunatly a pair of the back bits are missing so will have to use them from the old engine.
However, they will be a bloody hard thing to fit due to that cross bar on the two lower pulleys!!!
The waterpump is a new one from Eurospares. www.eurospares.co.uk
They now do copy 348 water pumps that are around a quarter of the price of new ones. Maranello was asking around £1,000 for 1 waterpump!!!
In case you are wondering what the crossbar is for...here's Raj with an explanation he posted up.
"The purpose for the cross bar is:
1: Strenthen and support the extra strain on the front of the pulley mounts
2: Stop/reduce flexing of the bolts under acceleration and deceleration
3: Take up some of the load from the engine front casing, as the pulleys are bolted directly into the front of the engine block
4: This has been added as a safety and strenghtening device for the race engine as it was under high stress, constantly used at high acceleration and high vibration
5: Reduces the stress on the top side of the roller bearing in the tensioner, making it wear evenly and not just on the top side, this wear can be caused by the bearing alone taking up the minute side to side movement cause by the bolts flexing"
However, they will be a bloody hard thing to fit due to that cross bar on the two lower pulleys!!!
The waterpump is a new one from Eurospares. www.eurospares.co.uk
They now do copy 348 water pumps that are around a quarter of the price of new ones. Maranello was asking around £1,000 for 1 waterpump!!!
In case you are wondering what the crossbar is for...here's Raj with an explanation he posted up.
"The purpose for the cross bar is:
1: Strenthen and support the extra strain on the front of the pulley mounts
2: Stop/reduce flexing of the bolts under acceleration and deceleration
3: Take up some of the load from the engine front casing, as the pulleys are bolted directly into the front of the engine block
4: This has been added as a safety and strenghtening device for the race engine as it was under high stress, constantly used at high acceleration and high vibration
5: Reduces the stress on the top side of the roller bearing in the tensioner, making it wear evenly and not just on the top side, this wear can be caused by the bearing alone taking up the minute side to side movement cause by the bolts flexing"
Edited by Angelis on Wednesday 3rd March 08:17
Here's something else I found quite interesting.
Raj does a lot of repairs on Lamborghini's, especially Murcielago's. He had a black one in last week that had already been to two other specialists in order to fix an engine problem. The owner had spent close to £8,000 getting it repaired, without success. As Raj is a diagnostic specialist, he found the problem fairly easily in this instance.
Turned out the problem had been the spark plugs.
The picture below shows what happens when you install a spark plug with the wrong heat setting. Instead of using a heat setting of 9, someone had put in plugs with a setting of only 7, which meant the tips melted.
The one on the right has the melted tip.
This leads me into the spark plugs for the Le Mans engine.
A Murcielago requires a heat setting of 9 (higher it is the more heat it can handle), whilst the Champion race plugs one the LM engine are 11. Plus they don't make the Challenge plugs anymore.
However, we won't be using race plugs as they will cause fouling on road driving so we may end up using a set of special Lambo plugs instead.
That's all for now. We start work again on it this weekend.
Raj does a lot of repairs on Lamborghini's, especially Murcielago's. He had a black one in last week that had already been to two other specialists in order to fix an engine problem. The owner had spent close to £8,000 getting it repaired, without success. As Raj is a diagnostic specialist, he found the problem fairly easily in this instance.
Turned out the problem had been the spark plugs.
The picture below shows what happens when you install a spark plug with the wrong heat setting. Instead of using a heat setting of 9, someone had put in plugs with a setting of only 7, which meant the tips melted.
The one on the right has the melted tip.
This leads me into the spark plugs for the Le Mans engine.
A Murcielago requires a heat setting of 9 (higher it is the more heat it can handle), whilst the Champion race plugs one the LM engine are 11. Plus they don't make the Challenge plugs anymore.
However, we won't be using race plugs as they will cause fouling on road driving so we may end up using a set of special Lambo plugs instead.
That's all for now. We start work again on it this weekend.
Cartard said:
What does the LCD display do?
That's my iTouch. I just placed it on there for showing scale.
Hope Raj don't read your comment as it'll give him ideas. Already had to stop him from installing a Head up Display in my car!!!
Looks like things will be speeding up now. He'll be stripping the entire engine down over the next few days. Then the following weekend, we'll take the engine out of my car.
) the end result - if there is an end result and you don't just keep on modifying it! 
Angelis said:
Here's something very interesting and something I've never come across.
This is the fuel injector that Raj is holding. We checked the part number and it's the same standard part on my existing 348 engine. I was expecting it to be a more "race specced" item.
The little red part is the filter which can often get blocked. We'll be sending the injectors off for testing and refurbishing, once we ascertain the cost of new ones as it may be cheaper just to buy new ones.
Hi there, great project, it's going to be a lovely set up once you're done with it. This is the fuel injector that Raj is holding. We checked the part number and it's the same standard part on my existing 348 engine. I was expecting it to be a more "race specced" item.
The little red part is the filter which can often get blocked. We'll be sending the injectors off for testing and refurbishing, once we ascertain the cost of new ones as it may be cheaper just to buy new ones.
I'd be amazed if you need to buy new injectors. We run 8 on our hillclimb engine and have them regulary serviced, this means new o rings, new last minute filters (the red ones on yours) and an ultrasonic clean followed by a spray pattern and volume test to make sure everythings' in order. Our injectors cost £80 each and I'd guess yours are probably going to be similar or maybe more, we spend £10 per injector cleaning them. If you're in the northampton area I could PM you the guy who does ours. Cheers.
DuncanM said:
This has to be the coolest project on PH!
I love reading about your car and what you're doing
Duncan
Second coolest ... and then only a close second to what Flemke is apparently doing on his McLaren F1. Not every day that you hear of someone doing inspired modifications to a Ferrari.I love reading about your car and what you're doing
Duncan
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