5.0 possible issues?
Discussion
Hi, I am considering buying a 20 yr old 5.0 that doesn't appear to have had any major work done to it, it has done about 72k miles.
What sort of issues might I face and what would be an approx cost to repair them?
I was thinking about chassis, cams etc after reading a lot of your posts on here
Thanks
Paul
What sort of issues might I face and what would be an approx cost to repair them?
I was thinking about chassis, cams etc after reading a lot of your posts on here
Thanks
Paul
Whatever the engine size right through the entire range from the 4.0 up to the 5.0, or mileage amount isnt really an issue with these cars, the only issues occur when the vehicle is left unused for long periods of time, especially outside they tend to fair worse off than a car kept in a damp free garage or in a dry storage unit. look past the bodywork as that can easily be repaired if you have access to a lift get the car up and have a good look underneath as these are the area's where water which has been resting for a long periods can rot the chassis and corrode the ancillary parts.
Edited by portzi on Thursday 17th December 17:01
Paulprior said:
Hi, is there any way to check the chassis without putting it on a ramp?
If the chassis or outriggers needed repairing does anyone have an idea of the cost?
Thanks
Paul
Obviously having a ramp is going to be best but, even then, there are sections that are very difficult to inspect - the outriggers where they're tight up against bodywork. An endoscope type viewer will help but even there will be sections you can't see properly - particularly if the chassis covered in Waxoyl...If the chassis or outriggers needed repairing does anyone have an idea of the cost?
Thanks
Paul
As for cost - at a specialist it seems to vary between around £1500-£1800 for out rigger replacement. If more chassis work required it will, of course, depend on whether it's repairable in situ, or whether full body lift/engine removal is required. Costs likely to be around £5K in this instance.
Good luck.
Ideally you would remove the rocker covers and measure the rocker movement with a gauge- but thats not quick or easy. Problem is the 5lt is so quick that even with a worn cam lobe you will hardly notice it being down on power. I do believe it can cause a shift in plug colours in the affected cylinders, as less cam lift means less air for the same mount of fuel, so the plugs run cooler and darker. Problem here is the TVR fitted plugs run pretty cold and sooty anyway so you may not see the difference. I think it can be picked up on a rolling road with a shift the torque / power curve. I saw a case where Neil Garner sports cars picked up on a worn cam on a 5ltr, Id of never known. Cost wise its aboyt £450 worth of bits and it was about £1200 with fitting.
Worth a read:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Worth a read:
http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Edited by blitzracing on Friday 18th December 19:15
Check age of tyres. When I bought mine the Bridgestones were 11 years old. Car tramlined like an elderly Christmas drunk, lethal with loss of front end grip. Like a drunk who forgot what he had ordered and slid slowly down to floor level in the bar.
My fault, I pinched his bar stool before he came back from the nuddy!! He thought it was still there. I apologisszeed and boughtt him another drinkyy.
These old tyres were so rock hard the fitter nearly had to saw them off. He eventually managed to lever them off without damaging the rims. New matching tyres front and back were a dream improvement. It was now a different car, safe and confident to drive. Also check the rubber fuel pipes where they bend to enter the fuel rail at the back of the plenum on the drivers side, are not showing any perishing cracks. If they do they need a new fuel pipe urgently. Cheers.
My fault, I pinched his bar stool before he came back from the nuddy!! He thought it was still there. I apologisszeed and boughtt him another drinkyy.These old tyres were so rock hard the fitter nearly had to saw them off. He eventually managed to lever them off without damaging the rims. New matching tyres front and back were a dream improvement. It was now a different car, safe and confident to drive. Also check the rubber fuel pipes where they bend to enter the fuel rail at the back of the plenum on the drivers side, are not showing any perishing cracks. If they do they need a new fuel pipe urgently. Cheers.
blitzracing said:
Ideally you would remove the rocker covers and measure the rocker movement with a gauge- but that's not quick or easy. ..........
Not really possible as the hydraulic lifters leak down so you don't get a true reading.If you remove the rocker covers on a cold engine you will find all the valves closed.
You would as a minimum need to remove the rockers and measure the lift of each pushrod but it becomes very fiddly and potentially inaccurate. Better still is remove the inlet manifold and valley gasket. In most cases you don't even have to measure anything as the worn cam lobes are visibly FUBAR (only visible with inlet removed). To measure you can often just use a steel rule held alongside the hydraulic lifter or end of the pushrod as you are not interested in fine accuracy as the difference between good and bad will be about 5mm. When I measure I have to use a Dial Test Indicator because my customer will expect to see figures with a decimal place or two.
[Technical] Cam shafts are 'Case Hardened'. The shaft is relatively soft so it will not easily break. It is then case hardened which is just a thin hardening of the surface (no more than 1mm). The shaft is then finish ground making the hardening even thinner.
If the wear on a lobe exceeds this thickness and breaks through the hardening the wear is then very rapid so a worn lobe is often almost completely round[/technical].
Steve
Steve_D said:
Not really possible as the hydraulic lifters leak down so you don't get a true reading.
If you remove the rocker covers on a cold engine you will find all the valves closed.
New knew they allowed that sort of clearance- effectively the whole lift of the cam then? I always assumed the pre-load gap was the starting point and it pumped up from there? If you remove the rocker covers on a cold engine you will find all the valves closed.
blitzracing said:
New knew they allowed that sort of clearance- effectively the whole lift of the cam then? I always assumed the pre-load gap was the starting point and it pumped up from there?
Your suspicions are correct Mark they dont 
can you imagine the racket the RV8 would make when left standing and waiting for the tappets to jack up whilst the oil pressure builds ? 
you can get a good indication of cam lobe condition by sump removal alone IMO Sardonicus said:
blitzracing said:
New knew they allowed that sort of clearance- effectively the whole lift of the cam then? I always assumed the pre-load gap was the starting point and it pumped up from there?
Your suspicions are correct Mark they dont can you imagine the racket the RV8 would make when left standing and waiting for the tappets to jack up whilst the oil pressure builds ? you can get a good indication of cam lobe condition by sump removal alone IMO Steve
Steve_D said:
If the engine stops with a lifter on top of the lobe then yes the lifter will leak down the whole lift of the cam. However, it does not leak any further so there will still be no clearance which is why there is no excess noise on startup. That valve will take a rev or three to to be fully open as the lifter pumps up but there will still not be clearance.
Steve
Not in my experience with healthy lifters so we will have to beg to differ on this one Steve
Paulprior said:
Hi
Thanks for all your thoughts and recommendations, i have now bought my first Chimaera and will hopefully pick it up in a few days, any thoughts on joining the TVR club or preferred insurers?
Thanks
Paul
Insurers - Classicline is my favourite. Classic policy. Call 01455 639000.Thanks for all your thoughts and recommendations, i have now bought my first Chimaera and will hopefully pick it up in a few days, any thoughts on joining the TVR club or preferred insurers?
Thanks
Paul
TVRCC - why not, but apart from the magazine you don't actually get a lot.
Come along to Burghley car show in April - over 600 TVRs there this year.
Loads of other events once the weather warms up.
A number of us who don't think polishing is an end in itself do track days together. Spot the threads....
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