My experience: Testarossa belt service | FerrariChat

My experience: Testarossa belt service

Discussion in 'Boxers/TR/M' started by c4b4the04, Jul 10, 2019.

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  1. c4b4the04

    c4b4the04 Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Jun 9, 2017
    383
    Northern Virginia
    Full Name:
    Cassidy
    So I’ve been putting off writing this up. I’m going to get all of the basics out of the way;

    -Yes I I understand the WSM has a specific method to perform this task. I chose another method

    -I understand this does not index/time/check the cams. I understand this only replaces the belts to the exact locations they currently are

    -I am not responsible for your motor out service, nor do I endorse avoiding a Ferrari specific service procedure

    -I am an ASE Certified/Virginia DOE-endorsed automotive instructor and feel quite confident working on just about anything. I also teach robotics and often engineer/create my own parts. We have a 2000 Corvette World Challenge spec race car that I have built from frame-up. In other words, “it isn’t Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login my first lemonade stand”....

    With all of that said: I did my belt service very successfully in just a few days. I purchased the car knowing it needed belts immediately and I had limited resources to a)visit and pre-purchase inspect, b) transport and c) purchase the vehicle. I am an automotive/engineering teacher and had a very limited window to perform all of these tasks.

    Before the car was delivered, I purchased a set of timing belts and tensioner bearings, all new filters, new alternator and ac belts and a few other small things I would use along the way. The job started on a Tuesday morning using a lift. Motor was out about 9 hours later. It was my first time dropping it out and I had to get some very large wrenches for the oil lines. I didn’t have that large of open end wrenches and had to drive across town to get them. I could do it much faster next time.

    Without a full reflective write up on dropping the motor, I can say I used a shop table to hold the motor cradle on some 4x4 wood chunks. It held the driveline and cradle perfectly. Strapped the rear frame down to the lift so it wouldn’t tip off when I disconnected.

    Once I got into the timing belts, I could see there was a mark on the crank and marks on each cam cover. I decided to use white paint and make a chart of how many teeth were between each gear. There was a pattern. Makes sense. I set the crank to TDC and noted where the cam gears were with white paint. I marked the belt as well.

    Using a set of timing gear holders from Amazon, I set the locks to hold the teeth still. Easy. I bought two of these. Expensive but very high quality and fit perfectly:

    OTC (6679) Cam Gear Clamp and... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00C6R1ORI?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

    The belts I had were 18 years old. Lots of stretch. But because I had the belt marked on the exact teeth count, I counted the new teeth and matched it back up. I cannot emphasize this enough; exact count matters. You are forgoing a major step from Ferrari. By counting the teeth you are able to replicate the current gear relationship (but not verify it against cam position). I marked my new belt the exact same way the old one was marked. The teeth had to move slightly to compensate for the slack in the belt but not very much. A second set of hands really helps here.

    Repeat the same procedure on both banks of cams. Process for setting tension is pretty easy, similar to many other timing belts. I usually crank the motor over forward and then, without rotating the crank backwards, turn the wrench to reverse direction. It takes the slack out of the un-tensioned side of the belt and transfers it to the tensioner side. That makes the tensioner extend. Clamp it down tight and then rotate it forward. You’re good to go. Hoping that step makes sense. Once you put a wrench on the crank you’ll feel it.

    I did the job with spark plugs in the motor, valve covers on the heads and the motor was back in the car in 36 hours (including sleep and commute to and from work site).

    I am currently building a 2 car deep garage with a lift. Once that is done, I will start collecting parts for my 30k major service (currently at 25k). This service was a triage for the car. I’d had to wait 6 months to drive the car if I hadn’t done what I did and when I did it. My hope is to demystify some of the issues that keep people from diving in. I started with a good running car and ended with a good running car. If you’ve got reason to believe the belts have skipped a tooth or things are out of alignment, please use the proper procedure.

    Not too shabby for my first week of ownership. I’m extremely pleased with the car and needed this done to make it reliable to drive.


    More pics to come


    Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat.com mobile app
     
    greg328, spaceship, JimEakin and 2 others like this.
  2. turbo-joe

    turbo-joe F1 Veteran

    Apr 6, 2008
    8,866
    southwest germany and thailand
    Full Name:
    romano schwabel
    so you only put on new belts and tensioners and rely on that the timing has been correctly before. if the timing at the cams are only 3 ° beside then at the crankshaft you just have 6 ° before and also 6 ° behind. I would never do this timing belt change without degree wheel and of course for this remove the valve covers.
    when you never worked before on a ferrari engine then you may look in the parts catalog or the WSM and you will be surprised how easy ferrari made the possibility for adjusting the timing correct
     
  3. xplodee

    xplodee Formula 3

    Jan 3, 2017
    1,101
    Allentown, PA
    Full Name:
    Tim
    What did the water pump seal look like? I bet it was shot
     
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  4. blkdiablo33

    blkdiablo33 F1 Rookie

    Jul 12, 2004
    4,348
    wow 18 year old timing belts thats impressive
     
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  5. c4b4the04

    c4b4the04 Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Jun 9, 2017
    383
    Northern Virginia
    Full Name:
    Cassidy
    I had the kit but the weep hole didn’t show enough to warrant another variable. Time was of the essence. I have the later edition kit for when I pull the motor again and do a full service.


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    f355spider likes this.
  6. flash32

    flash32 F1 Veteran

    Aug 22, 2008
    5,561
    Central NJ
    Full Name:
    Dominick
    How many miles on belts

    Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk
     
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  7. MS250

    MS250 Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa

    Dec 10, 2003
    26,120
    Full Name:
    Avvocato
    Not uncommon, met a few that have gone longer.

    Beyond my comfort zone for sure

    I personally draw the line at 10
     
    sherrillt and blkdiablo33 like this.
  8. c4b4the04

    c4b4the04 Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Jun 9, 2017
    383
    Northern Virginia
    Full Name:
    Cassidy
    About 4K on the belts in all those years. The bearings showed signs of surface rust. The car was in Florida. Glad I did it when I did. When I test drove it, I kept the engine under 3k rpm and was very conservative once it arrived home. Motor was out in 72 hours.


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    flash32 likes this.
  9. vincenzo

    vincenzo F1 Rookie

    Nov 2, 2003
    3,373
    Been there...
    done that...

    did it over.
     
  10. bpu699

    bpu699 F1 World Champ
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Dec 9, 2003
    16,205
    wisconsin/chicago
    Full Name:
    bo
    I dunno... I did everything the right way and don’t regret it. Took forever. Car runs great. Had 10 years and 3000 miles...

    Next time, I’m just swapping the belts...

    These cars get driven 1000-2000 miles every 5 years.

    If the car in the thread had gone 18 years, really ought to have everything done...
     
  11. xplodee

    xplodee Formula 3

    Jan 3, 2017
    1,101
    Allentown, PA
    Full Name:
    Tim
    Exactly.
     
  12. bpu699

    bpu699 F1 World Champ
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Dec 9, 2003
    16,205
    wisconsin/chicago
    Full Name:
    bo
    Me too. 10 years sounds reasonable... you pick a number and ride with it...
     
  13. Gary Sandberg

    Gary Sandberg Formula Junior

    Hi Cassidy:

    Congrats on a job well done. I had to have a safety check done (even in Canada the provinces almost act like foreign countries) so a few issues for me as well.

    But, on a 29+ year car, what do you expect.

    Can't wait to see more pics.
     

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