My 60k-Mile Track Rental BAT Scud Project!

Good eye Corey! Ironically, since the above pic was taken I've removed the (cracked) carbon fiber console, replaced it with a red one, removed the lower center console in favor of the console delete kit (I'm tall), and added the carbon fiber shifter LOL!

And thanks for all the kind words guys. Back from a mini-vacation and just trying to get some work done so I can get back home and get to work on the scud!
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Exactly! I actually spoke to that guy, and spoke to a former instructor at Exotics Racing in Vegas. Both confirmed that the usage these cars got was relatively easy as far as track driving goes (lots of soccer moms and first timers, no redline shifting allowed, sport mode only, etc...). The former instructor claimed that only 2 of 10 drivers had ever been on a track, and they were told to keep those folks in check so as to keep the cars in good shape. That put my mind at ease a bit too. Its not like these 60k track miles were piled on by some guy with a Hans system, driving suit, and data acquisition set up attempting to eek out every last 10th of a second! I'm super happy. Just changed the oil (holy crap what a mess, and I knew what to from Normal Guy Supercar's video!), pulled off some hammered clear bra areas, and have started replacing missing/mismatched fasteners. I have a four-post lift with a rolling bridge jack, so getting the undertrays off is pretty easy (thankfully...so many fasteners!).

Some good and not-so good surprises thus far. Capistro headers and heat blankets is nice surprise (needed to use some heavy wire to secure some of the blankets where the buttons had popped off though). Nut welded to front caliper bolts (at lest they painted it yellow), not so much. It also appears that the ac compressor just needs a clutch as its not engaging when the ac is "turned on" by pushing the "off" button LOL! (stupidest button description ever!), as refrigerant levels are good and I confirmed good power to the compressor. Replaced both door strikers, as the little plastic "inserts" were destroyed, and I have started replacing degraded rubber bits. Also removed the empty fire extinguisher and tucked it away for posterity (it was kind of in the way and just adds weight anyway!). Also tackling lots of little creaks and squeaks. Will start the headliner repair tonight! I need so start a new "build/refreshstoration" thread!

 

great question. When I ordered I noticed the part had been superseded with a revised part. Indeed the new part lacks the plastic sleeve and the new part is much thicker to account for the missing plastic sleeve. Works great and no rattles now (from the door strikers at least).
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Yup! A actually love the process of bringing a car back to life. Its one reason I have never once purchased a new car. So boring LOL (plus, I can't afford the cars I want when they are new!).

Last night I decided to removed the entire intake tract up to the manifolds and clean everything up. My experience with my lambo was that the throttle bodies are pretty sensitive to grime/oil/dirt so I decided to dive in and clean up everything, including shooting the MAF's with MAF cleaner and checking all the hose/vacuum line connections in the area (found four missing hose clamps and two were finger tight only...many of the otiker clamps have been replaced by normal screw drive, so the correct clamps are now on order from Ricambi!). No lights or codes or idling issues but its nice knowing that everything is clean in there to start off this journey. Little oil build up in the tubes and the throttle bodies were definitely dirty, but all clean now. No perceptible change in driving behavior afterwards but I can now stop obsessing about whether the intake parts are dirty!

I also scrubbed and then soaked the seat belts overnight in a mild dish soap solution. They were like cardboard and would not retract on their own they were so stiff from years of built up oils and grime. If you have ever had a car with "lazy" seat belts then a good cleaning to restore the suppleness almost always does the trick! Look how dirty that water was from soaking for just 8 hours! On my 1986 v8 swapped 944 you couldn't even feed the belts back into the "retractors" manually they were so dirty and stiff, and a cleaning made them retract like they were new. Fun times!
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Ok, very busy but productive weekend. I did take a few "steps back" though as I continue to find little things that will need to be addressed. But first, the car was virtually undriveable due to the sagging/unattached headliner. So I started removing the roof trim panels (starting with the b-pillars where the seat belts mount, and then the piece above the rear glass and then the sides and front panel last). When the panels came down the entire assembly literally just fell down. In other words, it was completely unattached. I scraped off all the disintegrating foam, re-glued the headliner fabric to the insulation pad using 3m Super 90 adhesive (super strong stuff, measure and mark twice and place once...will not come off once you position it), taped off the interior and sprayed the glue on the roof and the recently re-glued headliner pad (this is "contact glue so you spray both sides, let it tack up a bit, and then "marry" the two surfaces), and very carefully placed everything back into position. Turned out perfect! I didn't put any foam back and there is now a very, very tiny gap between the headliner and some of the trim panels, but its so dark up there you can't really see it and its totally acceptable to me. I just didn't want to introduce any other foam that would eventually just rot out and give up over time. Plus, I didn't want to risk a poor bond between the fabric and the heavy sound pad. The end result looks perfect with no creases, sags, dips, etc... I can't believe how much headroom I have in this car. I'm 6'4 and have 8 cars and this has the most headroom of any of them by far (with the exception of my wife's Escalade!)
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Since I had the roof trim panels out I had to address the sticky overhead console. HOLY CRAP HOW DOES THIS EVEN HAPPEN??? The thing was literally so sticky I could attach my allen wrenches too it just be pressing them onto the surface! Stuff came off very easy with Isopropyl Alcohol but the resulting finish was just a bit to shiny and inconsistent for me so I sanded it down, scuffed with a pad, and shot it with some of the automotive trim paint pictured below. Very happy with the result. I've used this product before and it is very durable and is fairly forgiving of sanding marks and surface imperfections. I also cleaned up the passenger airbag button/light and the microphone as they were also gooey. These needed no additional painting as I was super happy with the resulting finish (alcohol made these two items in the overhead console shiny but the finish was very consistent and "clean," and there was no unintended removal of any of the white lettering. While I was at it I also "de-stickied" the other two worst offenders (the smaller ac vents above the carbon ones). Believe it or not, there is not too much additional stickyness so its possible stuff had been replaced in the past.

Oh yeah, almost forgot to mention. While I had the roof trim panels out I completely reconditioned all of the leather in the car except for the seats (which I will need to remove to do a correct repair and refresh). There is no alcantara at all in my car as it was spec'd with full leather, and it is EVERYWHERE. The good news is that the leather cleaned up surprising well is now supple and rich. Appears Ferrari leather is high quality and holds up well even to a bit of abuse and neglect. Was particularly happy with how much I was able to clean up the yellow stitching!
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Next I cleaned, waxed and polished the interior carbon, which cleaned up very nice. Seems the carbon will stand up to a bit of abuse as well as I was super impressed with how nice it all looked after a polish. I also replaced the battery "trap door" with a good used one from Exotics Recycling since the one in the car had all the bottom tabs broken off, resulting in a very loose-fitting door. This greatly reduced the rattling in the cabin! I also noticed that the inner "sills" had been re-sprayed at some point with the wrong shade of grey so I got some "grigio corsa" paint mixed up (same color used on scud wheels and the F430 engine bay panels and will respray those when I remove the seats.Two new rear hatch struts have now transformed my rear hatch into a catapult! Seems there may be a different part for the lighter scud hatch, as two f430 struts were WAY too strong for the rear hatch (so for now I just put one of the bad ones back on and the tension now "feels" about right and it no longer shoots open like a trebuchet when you hit the hatch button! No more ghetto pvc pipe hatch strut!

Next I decided to install a new ac clutch as my compressor was not kicking on despite a good R134 charge and confirmed good fuses and relays. While I was at it I replaced the serpentine belt (easiest belt replacement I've every done). Good news: compressor now kicks on so the clutch was definitely bad. Bad news: still no cold air. Will take to a general ac auto place so they can properly diagnose. At least I fixed the compressor! While I had the undertray off I cleaned it all up and did some repairs with fiberglass resin as a few spots were cracked and damaged.

I also "re-positioned" the pininfarina badges as an eagle-eyed f-chatter commented on a prior thread that the badges were put back in the wrong location (they were correct for an f430, but the scud has them placed more forward). Couldn't have them in the wrong spot (came off easy with a bit of fishing line and went back on great with some of that thin 3m auto trim tape).

Now, the not so good. Both valve covers are leaking a good amount. Both motor mounts are squished and dead. And even worse, I noticed I'm missing 4 (yes four) header studs on the driver's side! Well, technically they are not missing as I know exactly where they are (at least the portions thereof that are still lodged in the head!). Gonna stop driving the car and will need to extract these. Should be fun. Just ordered a stud extraction kit that has the threaded tubes to ensure you drill on center in tight quarters. Also ordered two new mounts, valve cover gaskets and hardware, all new header studs, nuts, and gaskets, and a few oil re-circulation system hoses that were pretty "weepy." Gonna get her cleaned up as good as new. Engine should run better too without the pre-02 sensor exhausts leaks which are likely making the car run a bit rich and loose a bit of power. Good times!
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This: https://www.amazon.com/OEMTOOLS-24376-Screw-Extractor-Drill/dp/B01EM0C6RS

I’ll let you know how it works. Drilling on center with hitting threads in the head is my biggest concern.

Edit. This is what I ordered. Not sure the above will work for a stud recessed in a hole. https://www.ebay.com/p/595179791?iid=323259223274&chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&itemid=323259223274&targetid=930952841242&device=m&mktype=pla&googleloc=9030078&poi=&campaignid=10456221001&mkgroupid=109413765091&rlsatarget=aud-412677883135la-930952841242&abcId=2145999&merchantid=108598224&gclid=Cj0KCQjw6575BRCQARIsAMp-ksPzUXlRLXtXYSrsdyXX77g51ehf5KfCmMxWtNnzV70XBXYpkADXZ7YaAtnbEALw_wcB

 

Thanks! If this "refreshstoration" turns out half as good as my 996 gt3, I'll be a happy camper. That car is brilliant and this car will be soon! Also hoping I won't need to dump 25k into this one (but if I do, at least I will know its sorted!).