Pinpointing Problems, Parts, Prices, and Purveyors for Project Ferrari Dino 308 GT4

By Sam Barer

Sound Classics

With detective work regarding the history of the Sound Classics project 1975/1976 Ferrari Dino 308 GT4 finished, it was time to open that mid-mounted engine hatch and dive in with reckless abandon. All I learned during the buying process was that the car ran like a flatulent hippopotamus with a bad hip.

Actually, to avoid making an extremely costly mistake, it is very important to have a good method to the madness even before one buys a classic. From the time I first started the car at the seller’s house, I had a pretty good idea of the possible culprits, as well as sources and a ballpark cost estimate for the parts necessary to put it all right.

Continue reading after the jump!

First I removed the air filter housing and trumpets covering the four Webber carburetors, which revealed that the choke linkage had obviously been connected by a tuning-challenged individual. The left two carbs were not getting full choke, while the linkage prevented the right carbs from ever running with the choke entirely disengaged. Given this, the chances that the carbs were appropriately tuned for perfect mixture and idle seemed on par with my chances of scoring with Jennifer Aniston.

But as the old saying goes “90 percent of carb problems are ignition”, so off came the plug wires (old and corroded), plug extenders (fine), plugs (more fouled than that toilet in the movie “Trainspotting”), as well as caps (perfect), rotors(good enough), points (new), and condensers (fine) from the two Marelli distributors. One of the original ignition coils, however, was toast — its top cracked and internal oil leaking.

The timing covers came off next, a fairly easy task that requires draining much of the coolant, due to a pipe blocking the removal of the rear cover. While everything appeared to be fine at first glance, Madrona Autoworks owner (and former title-holder of a 1981 Mondial 8 coupe – the model that replaced the 308 GT4 in Ferrari’s lineup), Bret Swearingen, noticed that the timing gears (the pulleys on the end of the cams) were reversed. The gears that should have had inside lips had them on the outside, and vice-versa.

After removing the seemingly hundreds of bolts securing the cam covers, it became apparent that the misplacement of pulleys didn’t affect timing. However, it the pulleys weren’t helping to keep the belts on securely—a definite need on any interference engine. Also on close inspection, one pulley revealed a crack in its plastic lip, which was most likely from being dropped or banged with a tool during the last engine rebuild.

In an exercise of general curiosity, Bret ran a quick compression check on the rear cylinder bank, which delivered spectacular news: as-new specification numbers.

Next I made a list of needed parts. Usually it’s the fear of where to find spares and how much they’ll cost (if and when you find them) that scares off potential car hobbyists. Like most classic marques, Ferrari has a number of great part suppliers. With a list in hand, I chose to call Arizona-based GT Car Parts, my favorite vendor for new and used Ferrari spares. (They also specialize in Lamborghini parts.)

No doubt I could have gone on the cheap, but I decided to do it right to minimize future headaches. I ordered four carb rebuild kits, a cam-cover gasket set, a replacement timing gear (at $130, the most expensive part), a new cold air-intake bellows, new timing belts, and a couple of other small odds and ends for the engine bay. While the timing belts and tensioner bearings had been done in 2007, $80 in parts with a documented install date can often translate to an additional $5,000 in value in the world of Ferrari collectors.

A key to classic ownership is to know when it’s better and cheaper to get non-OEM parts from standard auto parts shops. Nearly identical looking (and certainly better performing) red Accel plug wires were sourced from Cut Rate Auto Parts for $45. (OEM wires, if you can find them, can run $200-$400.) NAPA got me OEM-spec Champion spark plugs. Bosch Super “Red” Coils, a far superior replacement for the $150 Marelli units, were ordered from Victoria British online for $40 each.

After about a week of waiting, the final shipment of parts arrived today via UPS. The combined parts receipts total just under $500 — not too shabby for car brand infamous for “expensive” parts.

This week I’ll dive into those four Webber carbs. Fixing the pulley arrangement and replacing the belts will fall next on the to-do list. Then I have a couple surprises in mind!