Another eBay find: '81 400i BIN $19,500

If you are financially able to and willing to buy car with needs, in the long run it is better for the overall health of the hobby. More cars means more enthusiasts. Fix 'em, drive 'em.

 

I guess that's why they call them "enthusiasts"

 

We're also known in some circles as "mental patients".

 

Only those that buy and rebuild these.
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Got a lead on that car?

 

http://www.trabantforum.de/index.php

 

An extremely rare Trabant 601 SS/GT. I'll make you great deal on it.

 

Just curious, would valve guides be something that a PPI would find? My biggest fear (when the time comes) is that I'll have a PPI done and then be left siiting on the side of the road after the first drive or two (I kow valve guides would not lead to this, but I'm sure there are a million things that would). What if you buy a car from a reputable F-car specialist? Do you have a PPI done by another shop as well?

 

A thorough mechanic could find a problem with valve guides but certain pronounced indications would have to be present to warrant a closer inspection, one of which would be irregular compression ratios from one cylinder to the next because the valves aren't seating due to valve "wobble". It wouldn't leave you on the side of the road (unless you dropped a valve) but you would have an engine that would not run smoothly or strongly.

The same symptoms could be caused by burnt valves as well.

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150315084096&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWAX%3AIT&viewitem=

Han,
agreed, 'eyes wide open' is best. i spend most of my time in the 400 section and it is a pretty 'seasoned' group so i sometimes forget that there are lurkers out there who may be a little more naive about the notion of getting a $20K V-12 Ferrari that is 'all squared up and tickity boo'. the hardcores, which you are obviously one of, know that is extremely unlikely...but i've reposted the link to the ad again and damn if she don't look even better than i remember...a bit of chipped paint on the thermostat housing but, man, it looks pretty clean, no ? don't forget, there was no hydrualic self-levelling until the Series 2.
nice TR by the way.

Andy,
what Han said...but also she'd be a 'smoker' if she needed guides. if the milage is accurate (35,000) then i would seriously doubt it needed any cylinder headwork at all...but it is much more likely that it has 'rolled over' and ya know what, big deal if it has...these things are locomotives.
for $10K you could do the heads, reseal the w/pump, spend some time on the K-jets, do the shock and control arm bushings, send out the alternators and starter, turn the rotors and add new pads, wheel bearings etc., etc. in short, you could identify the lion's share of any future problem during a good PPI and likely address all of them and still be 'out the door' for $35K, IMO (the rubber is another matter...TRX's i think ?)
knowing that it was just done is the surest way to avoid the anxiety of wondering if you'll need a tow this time out.

 

I wasn't sure if all the 400's had the self leveling or not. I just remember a story of a guy that bought one that "seemed" okay only to find out that it would cost him close to 3k for a complete rebuild of the system. I think these were left overs from the 365 GTC/4 systems

 

Andy,

You asked an interesting question and I can answer it by sharing my experience.

My 330 had a rebuild by a known shop shortly before i bought it. I've put 15K miles on it. It always had a few quirks but did not smoke on start-up and always had great compression and leakdown numbers.

Earlier this year it made a funny rattling noise a little above idle. I shut it down and shipped it off to the mechanic I trust most. After poking around and not finding anythng on the outside of the motor, he pulled the heads. The noise was a cracked valve seat that was about to drop. We caught it in time - no head damage. However when inspecting the rest of the internals, he discovered the 'rebuild' was actually a patch job - mismatched valveguides, low grade exhaust valves, out of round pistons, poorly seated rings. This engine which had 'good numbers' is now undegoing a complete rebuild! For pictures go to www.tomyang.net and look at the diary entries from May.

Regards,

Art S.

 

Thanks guys. I figure when I'm ready to pull the trigger (or even start seriously looking) I will have $10K in reserve to deal with any unforseen dificulties (AFTER a thorough PPI), but these stories scare the heck out of me. These, combined with roughly double the operating costs of 3X8s make me really lean towards the latter. (I realize they ae completely different styles/experiences, but they both appeal to me... 5sp 400s have really grown on me the more I look into them...) I love how low key this car looks in silver though.

 

Get both, several of us have...

 

Last week I test drove a 365GTC/4. What I liked most was the engine and V12 experience, also the cockpit and seating position. In a sense, the 2+2's are at least as appealing because of their understatement. Quick question - how does the THM400 play with a 6500-7000 rpm engine? I've only good memories of the THM400's in the GM cars of my youth, and heaven knows that compared to manual trans rebuild, they should be dirt cheap. I'm guessing you can hold it in second and really let the engine sing at highway speeds?

365GTC/4 is listed at about 3800 lbs. Are the 365 and 400 2+2's 4000-4200? Do the injected engines have more grunt? I own an '86 930 with K-jet CIS. Here it's x2. Pretty reliable? Regarding parts availability, beyond model-specific body parts, are the major mechanicals and electricals shared or substitutive with other V-12 models of that period?

Thanks

 

365 is 1500kg. Normal mechanical parts are available, trim is spotty. So long as it is serviced and driven, I've found mine to be more reliable than my old W140 S class...

 

If they are using the same internals as a domestic GM Turbo400 you beat the hell out it all day below 6,000 RPM with excursions to 8k on occasion without any worries. If you really want one to last give it it's own dedicated cooler.

Many many fond memories of a number cars with those transmissions.

 

i put a performance shift kit in mine in '02 and i like being able to play around with it when i need a few more rpm's. left in "D" it shifts a bit hard on slow accleration but when you're 'on it' it holds the gear much longer and it shifts beautifully, absolutely seamless...and hasn't missed a beat since.
i still love my Automatic after 7 years and more than 75 000 KM's. it's the 'workhorse' amongst my cars.

 

My 400ia has a dedicated cooler, looks factory standard to me.

Sebastien

 

yup.

 

Is anyone going to buy this thing?

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1981-Ferrari-400i-V12-35200-mile-Mint-condition_W0QQitemZ350151423780QQihZ022QQcategoryZ6212QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Has anyone previewed the car?

 

It appears to have the original Ansa's on it, low miles too. This is a first to see the power steering res. can in front of the alternator.

 

A little known feature of the TH400 is that it will upshift violently to second even if the selector is in first. This happens at high revs apparently when pressures exceed a set threshold. Full pressure is applied to the second gear clutch pack resulting in a shift that will loosen your fillings. Discovered this on accident in my youth while thrashing my GS Buick. Tried it on others with mixed results, some hadn't shifted by the time the valves would float so I didn't persist. Way too much respect for potential repair bills on the Fcar to have tried it there.

 

I did the same thing in one of my cars. Took me by surprise but I understood why it happened. It was something i didn't make a habit of.

 

Brettski:

Sorry for my late reply. I just logged back on and replied to a post (1984 400i #050679 in LA ) and put some pictures of my 400 up. I am also planning on building a web site registry for 400 owners to keep track of vin numbers. I know you are very active so if you know some good reference material for me to look at let me know. As far as my 400 yes I had the heads redone. Since they had my car broken down to do one side I had them do the other and they replaced all of the valve guides with some new material?? I live in Orange County California and use a mechanic I trust and like named Larry who owns Ferrari Tech.