4/17/12
A New 330 at the Shop

330GT
A car arrived over the weekend from Pennsylvania. The current owner has owned this car for over a dozen years, and wanted us to do a thorough service. Francois drove the car over the weekend, but I got my chance first thing Monday morning. On initial drives, I make a mental checklist as I start the car, put her in gear, and drive the car in our normal test loop. As the car warmed up, I noticed the engine didn't seem to be pulling as strongly as it should. The carburetors needed an adjustment, but I felt there was something more that was a miss.
valve adjust
As customary with a new cars to our shop, we did a compression test to get an idea of the general health of the engine. The numbers came back pretty good and even at about 140-150 lbs on all 12 cylinders. The good compression numbers ruled that out as a reason why this car seemed to be down in power, so I turned my attention towards the ignition. The plugs were gapped a little wide for the stock ignition system, but the main problem I found was in the distributors. The point gap was wide, and the points were out out of phase by several degrees. With a Ferrari engine, power is made at higher rev ranges, so small differences in tolerances or specs can make a big difference when looking for more power in these engines. Owners often don't know the full potential of their V-12 engines because they've never driven another one for comparison. When the ignition and carburetion is working in unison on a healthy engine, look out!
before after
The carbs were pretty crusty, and needed a good cleaning. I disassembled them one at a time, soaked them in carb cleaner, cleaned them out thoroughly, reset their float levels, and reassembled. You can see the difference with the right carb being finished and ready to be put back into service.
studs
A couple of studs were stripped in the carb tops, so they needed to to drilled and tapped.
time sert
We like to use "Timesert" inserts for the carbs because they make a nice solid connection to the soft alloy of the carburetor. After I took this picture, I installed the stud with a little "Loctite" thread locking compound.

Bugs of honor
Speaking of 330s, I took my 330 America out for nice long drive over the weekend. I attended the "Caffeine and Carburetors" event in New Cannan, CT. It was over a 200 mile round trip, and it was nice to get my Ferrari out to stretch her legs!




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Set the Date!
Saturday May 5th 2012
The Radcliffe/Tomyang.net Spring Car Show
The 5th Annual show brought to you by car guys, for car guys
12340 Owings Mills Boulevard
Reisterstown, Maryland 21136
Phone: 410-517-1681
Register Early for Show Cars, spectators are free!




Reminder: If you have a Ferrari related project, car, or idea you'd like to explore, I'd love to talk to you. I can also help if you're thinking of buying or selling. This website represents what I love to do, and now it's how I make a living, so if you'd like to do something together, let me know. It all begins with an e-mail!





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