My 75 GT4 is almost ready to go on the road...(it still needs a brake system flush and to have the registration renewed). But then I'm gonna need a fair number of other items looked at right away...like timing belts, shocks, other belts and hoses, checking shape of engine in more detail...and so on.... So...please pass on your recommendations for Ferrari service shops and/or mechanics in the SF Bay Area, (I live in Silicon Valley)...and like everyone else, I suppose, I would like good service done at a fair price with estimates provided before hand etc....someone who really knows their way around 308 and GT4 carb cars would be the ticket, I'd say.... Thanks in advance for any help or advice that you might be able to provide....
If you want to stay local to the valley then Grand Prix in Campbell is a good one. Roselli is another one with a good reputation. I am a customer of neither but heard good things about both.
Thanks a bunch...I read some reviews yesterday for Roselli and for another place in Los Gatos...but somehow I missed Grand Prix completely...I'm gonna go over there sometime soon and chat with them about my car....
Dino Motors in San Mateo is the only place I would take my 308 - they do wonderful work and are very upfront and easy to deal with. Both Johannes (owner) and Danny (tech) each own 308s... They're each one of us! I highly recommend them! Cheers! Ruben
Non of them will be cheap, some seem more reasonable at first but in the long run anything a shop does will cost a lot. $100+\hour adds up quickly. It's a time and money trade off. Your time or your money. Robert Roselli in San Jose is great but can be slow because they are so busy. Plus your car will sit outside. Larry Buskirk (415-883-8575) is in Novato and he worked at the dealer back in 75 when the GT4's were new. He also has a very nice 75 GT4 in his shop right now which just had everything you are considering down over the last 4 months. PM me if you want to chat more. One place I would avoid is Performance Shock Inc (PSI) at Somoma Raceway to rebuild your Koni's. They are crooked and they do poor quality work. Quoted me $1,300 to rebuild by original shocks and they charged me $2,100 when I picked them up. I would have let them keep them but they would give me back all my bushings so I had no choice. They scratched them when putting on the springs and the stickers face the wrong direction. BTW - I have a brand new set of Koni's for a GT4 if you're interested. I bought them before I found out they wouldn't give me back my springs and bushings unless I paid my overinflated bill. My suggestion to anyone is send them directly to Koni. Much better and they will stand by their work. You do have to be very specific to get them painted the correct color and the correct stickers.
A +1 for Dino Motors. I bought my (recently sold) 1977 308GTB from them. When Johannes realized the car was leaving CA he re-jetted and put a much better tune up on the carbs. He didn't have to and didn't charge me a dime for the extra work. I drove it on the CA set up while inspecting it and then on the other set up when it came off the truck here in MD. Wow, what a difference! She ran flawlessly for the 2 years I had it. If I were in the area with a carbed car he would be my first choice.
+1 my plug for Dino.... serviced my car for many years through 3+ owners. straight shooter. Keep in mind with good mechanics patience is key. I wouldn't ask my Dr. to rush a surgery....
Thanks for recommendation...yeah, my car has been sitting for a long time...but now you guys are bringing back some of the memories of my past service experiences, and how long they took etc... Edit: I agree, taking time is OK as long as the job gets done right....
For CIS Fuel Injection issues, I can recommend Bacchus British in Dublin. They are experts in CIS through their work on older Rolls and Jags and did a good job putting my mixture and CIS system back in tune after my 308 failed CA smog. ... A niche recommendation, but I was impressed with their dilligence, quality of work and pricing. (I should note that my CIS was out of tune because the prior owner's tech had adjusted the air/fuel mixture screw. Although I try to do all of my own repairs, I do not have a gas analyser so decided to take it to a shop. Hopefully it is a "permanent" fix.) (Ha!)
No CIS on a GT4, except for my old bastard GT4 - the only one that I know of and I wouldn't be surprised if the new owner has put carbs back on by now. Juan at Grand Prix is at least close to you 308GT4++. I've never done actual business with him but I've stopped by and he has always been great to talk to. I always drive by and slow down to see what's parked about the shop. It's always an impressive collection.
No CIS on a GT4, but with four double barrel Webers, you still have plenty to scratch your head about.
Grand Prix is really good, Juan knows the classic Ferrari's inside and out. I would trust him more than a Ferrari dealership with a classic Ferrari. Had my 30k service done with them last October and I'm very happy with the work done. Roselli's looks to be a good shop as well. I did stop by Robert's place to check it out and I liked what I seen. The shop has been around for sometime.
I have to throw in another endorsement for Juan @ Grand Prix Motors in Campbell. He's taken care of my car for the past 5+ years, and every time my car comes out of there, I feel as though it's worth more. He truly makes it better - doesn't just "fix it." Juan's passion (IMO) are 246 Dinos, though he restores/rebuilds them all. From my conversations with him, our GT4s share much in common mechanically with the 246s, and as such, Juan has a particular knack for caring for them. Johannes is great, as well - he used to service my car before I discovered Juan. As a San Jose resident, it just makes so much more sense to send my car to Campbell than San Mateo, and with the service I've received since - I've had no reason to look elsewhere.
Thanks for all the suggestions and recommendations...I hope to have my car moving and re-registered in about 2 weeks...and then I'm going to move forward on the required service...I can't wait to be driving it again...soon enough though, I guess....
Just wanted to clarify Dino takes the time to do it right and in my experience they also move quickly to get the car out. Best part is the communication when they call to give updates on progress on part orders or solving the albeit crazy things that come up. That is even more appreciated. With those suggested in this thread you cant go wrong.
