Annual maintenance

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330GT
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Annual maintenance

Post by 330GT »

Lowell Brown called me last night to pick my brain about the various places to grease on a 330. It has been a while since I did this on my car and the older I get, the less there is of my brain to pick.

So this morning, I went out and took pictures of the various fittings and created a couple of pages in the registry.

The first is the list of what I think needs to be done for annual maintenance on a V-12 Ferrari:
http://www.330gt.com/Maintenance.htm

The second is a page of pictures of the grease fitting locations:
http://www.330gt.com/Encyclopedia/GreaseFittings.htm
There are a couple of pictures missing as I didn't want to remove the belly pan, but hopefully Lowell will take them when he greases his drive shaft.

If I've missed any items, please comment so they can be added.
Regards, Kerry
http://www.330gt.com 330 GT Registry
http://www.parrotbyte.com/kbc/ferrari 250 PF Coupe 1643GT, 330 GT 2+2 8755GT, 308 GTS 23605
John Vardanian
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by John Vardanian »

Great checklist Kerry. May I suggest one more item?
-Check/adjust the chain tensioner.

Then there are these too (optional):
-Smear a whole can of Kiwi (no color) shoe polish on the leather and buff.
-Clean spark plugs, check/log condition
-Wash air filters in soap water
-Check the air in the spare tire
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Lowell
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Location: Santa Fe, NM

Re: Annual maintenance

Post by Lowell »

John Vardanian wrote:Great checklist Kerry. May I suggest one more item?
-Check/adjust the chain tensioner.
I was told by Carlo Durante to never, never touch the chain tensioner.
Lowell Brown
1966 Gold 330 2+2 Series II
John Vardanian
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by John Vardanian »

It's probably due to myths like that that most sprocket covers, when removed, will show evidence of scoring from chain lash.

john
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giovanni44
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by giovanni44 »

Group,
Could someone describe ,in detail, the correct procedure for adjusting the timing chain adjuster on the 330GT engines?

Thanks,

Giovanni44
John Vardanian
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by John Vardanian »

Mind you, adjusting the tensioner is not something you do annually which is why Kerry didn't mention it in his routine; but, I'd bet that most folks overlook it and over time there gets to be enough slack in the chain to cause concern.

Wished Dyke would chime in, but there really isn't much to it. (1) loosen the jam nut, (2) loosen the choker nut/bolt, (3) tighten the adjust screw so carefully until resistance is felt, and (4) tighten choker nut/bolt and jam nut.

Actually, unless the tensioner mechanism is stuck, you may not need to do the third step; steps I and 2 would self-adjust the tensioner since it is spring loaded. I do mine when engine is warm; i.e., when chain is elongated (not sure if warm/cold makes a difference).

john
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giovanni44
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by giovanni44 »

Hello John,
Thank you for your explanation on the timing chain adjustment. I had seen that procedure described at sometime somewhere but was not sure if it was a accurate or reliable method. So, thanks again for your input.

Giovanni44
DWR46
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by DWR46 »

OK John, I will add my comments. Your instructions on chain tensioner adjustment are correct. However, I would add a couple of comments. Over the years, I have found it very common to encounter tensioners that were frozen in their housings. This is primarily due to the fact that the housing is aluminum and this metal has no "memory", so when the clamp bolt is tightened to lock the tensioner in position, the aluminum housing is compressed to grip the tensioner shaft, but when the clamp bolt is later loosened, the housing does not spring back to the pre-clamped state and it will still grip the tensioner not letting it slide freely to adjust the chain.

You can still screw the tensioner into the chain, but you will have the chain too tight by the time you feel additional resistance. The only way I have found to be safe with the older cars (that's all of them now!) is to adjust the chain during a "valve cover off" inspection. Then you can actually watch the chain while you loosen the clamp bolt to see if the spring moves the tensioner to take up slack. You can then also slide a large screwdriver down the chaincase and try to move the tensioner against the spring after you have backed the "stop" bolt off by a couple of turns. If the tensioner moves and springs back, then you know the tensioner is not frozen and it will correctly adjust the chain. If the tensioner does not spring back, then you have to remove it and free it up by honing the housing bore to allow the tensioner to again slide freely.
John Vardanian
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by John Vardanian »

Thanks Dyke, as always. So, the best time to visit the chain tension is during valve adjustment, when the covers are off.

john
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Colin Angell
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by Colin Angell »

I usually slacken the pinch bolt and give the housing a smart tap to make sure the plunger is free. I would normally check the chain tension annually, depending on mileage, but anyhow it should be checked before making any adjustment to cam timing. My sequence with the cam covers off for a service would be to check roller cam followers and adjusting screws, replacing or repairing as necessary, then adjust the valves, followed by chain tension, followed by cam timing.
DWR46
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by DWR46 »

Colin: Add two items to your list and you have it covered:

1. Retorque Cylinder Head Studs: I do not unscrew them, I just put a torque wrench on them and give them a pull up to the spec.

2. After removing the camshaft rocker stands (one at a time) to check the rollers and screws, retorque the rocker stands. However, DO NOT torque them to the 23 lb/ft as shown in the shop manual. I have seen a number of studs pull out of the head at that torque setting. I use 18 lb/ft, as it is plenty tight for the cam bearings.

3. Then proceed to adjust the valves, check the chain and check the cam timing. Then you can button it up.
John Vardanian
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by John Vardanian »

I remember the first time I re-torqued the head of my car. The next day there was a small pool of green antifreeze in the valley. I had just bought the car and this scared me to death, but this never happened in subsequent re-torques. It goes to prove that repeated re-torqueing (at least initially) is important.

On the subject of torque specs, the old Apen-Rousch manual has a few misprints. One other thing that seems to be overstated is the torque spec of the spark plugs.

Hi Dyke, another questions for you... how about the lateral free movement of each rocker arm. How many thousands of a gap should one maintain for these? Thanks.

john
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DWR46
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by DWR46 »

Whow John, you are way above my job classification! I have no idea on a spec for lateral rocker movement on the shaft. I can tell you that I am much more concerned about things being too tight than I am being too loose.
As for spark plugs, they do not have to be as tight as some specs show. I use 168-180 in/lbs for mine on all makes of engines. There is just no reason to have them tighter.
John Vardanian
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by John Vardanian »

I am humbled, Dyke. Not many of us can claim to know as much as you. But seriously, see item No. 29 in this diagram (there are two per rocker), with the outside plug heads, you can presumably replace these soft little bronze washers and feel pretty assured that you're within factory specs, but the inside plug head (128D for instance) does not have these, so you need to be mindful of the lateral clearance, and do something about it if there is too much clearance.

john

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DWR46
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Re: Annual maintenance

Post by DWR46 »

OK John, you have pushed me into trying to do something productive! The factory shop manuals for 275 and 330 state the "axial clearance of rocker arm in the support" shall be 0.02-0.05mm with a wear limit of 0.15mm. I think this is the dimension you are looking for.
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