I have seen this style final drive differential on later Ferraris like Lusso’s but didn’t realize that early cars like the 212 had this odd arrangement. Instead of spider gears and side gears, the car has these “chicklet” metal tabs that are forced between the axle drive hub and the outer case of the differential carrier. The inside “hub” has a different number of relief cuts in comparison to the outside case of the carrier so there is always pressure to make the car go forward while acting as a limited slip mechanism. You will have to study the photos carefully, we didn’t take great pictures of it all together so let your imagination do the work to understand the process

Ferrari attempt differential

Ferrari 212 differential

We just finished another 330 engine, 330 cubic centimeters per cylinder multiplied by 12 cylinders equals 4000 C.C.’s or 4.0 liters. Actually, Nate did most of the work and this one runs so well without the requisite head gasket leaks!!

Here is a YouTube clip of it running:

Crank in 330

Ferrari 330

The power of the internet and the reason I do these blog posts became apparent on this particular project.

Similar to almost all of the other Ferrari shops in the country, we were having a hard time getting the head gaskets to seal on the V-12 engines. The gaskets that come in the gasket kits are ELRING brand that are very fancy looking and fit nicely but are too hard and do not compress and seal like they should. I am sure they work well on a BMW with a cast iron block and head bolts that torque to probably 100 lb/ft, but on a Ferrari engine you only go to 65 lb/ft and are working with a very flexible cast aluminum block.

The leaks we had experienced was not water getting into the combustion chamber but it allowed water to leak between the block and head and often times leaked water into the oil. Considering that replacing the head gaskets on one of these engines is a $4-5000 job, we had to come up with a solution which we now have.

2 years ago a man called me to talk about head gasket leaks on his 330, I explained that we had the same problems and that he should get the car to me to be repaired. The car was tied up at another shop and I didn’t hear from him again. Fast forward to February 2010, the mystery man rings me again and asks me to help him sell the car! He told me that the shop fixed the leaking gaskets again and the car is sorted and ready to go.

I had 3-4 immediate buyers for the car but upon close inspection I found that the gaskets were still leaking! We could have been the shop to repair the gsakets, get them right, and get on with it, but it turned out fine when I sold the car to a local man who asked that we overhaul the engine and set things right.

The car was described as having an overhauled engine and in need of nothing, but we found that wasn’t the case. With the wrist pin bushings wiped out, the pistons worn and overall sloppiness in workmanship from the multiple attempts at remedying the head gasket leaks, we were disappointed in the prior repair, but will set things straight. These photos show the water mixed with oil inside the cam covers.

330 head gasket leak V-12 Ferrari

V-12 Ferrari head gasket and overhaul

An often missed detail when shops overhaul engines is drilling the plugs on the crankshaft to clean out the oil passages. When the crankshaft is being fabricated it is drilled to allow pressurized oil to be directed at the bearings but because of the shape of the shaft, many of the holes have to be plugged after the drilling process so the oil only comes out where you want it to.

When the crank comes out of the engine and sits on a shelf while waiting for re-assembly, the residual oil in these passages dries out and gets crusty which could plug the passages and starve the bearing of oil. Also, when if you have to grind or polish the crank, the grit will get into the passages and quickly wipe out those brand new bearings.  One more thing, if you are going through the process of overhauling an engine, it makes sense to clean it and inspect as thoroughly as possible.

Repairing a crankshaft

330 Crankshaft billet

everything

Still looking for someone to explain to us why Ferrari went from the compact light weight and wonderful shifting transmissions in the early 166/195/212/225 cars to enormous and heavy cast iron transmissions on the later 250/330/365’s. Here are photos of the 330 2+2 5-speed and a 166 5 speed. There is about 100 lbs difference in weight and a considerable size difference. Did Ferrari use some truck or tractor transmission for these later cars?

The blue 330 GT 2+2 that came in earlier this year ended up needing an engine overhaul but I was fortunate to be able to drive the car prior to breaking it down. The transmission shifted perfectly but on acceleration/deceleration the shift lever moved back and forth significantly. As some may remember, this same thing happened to a 330 GTC transmission a few years ago and it turned out to be a loose ring nut on the main shaft.

I was certain that we had the same issue on this 330 2+2 and when I took off the top cover, it was instantly obvious that the ring nuts at the back of the main shaft holding the gear cluster on were totally backed off. They are doubled up to jamb together to prevent loosening plus there is a locking tab for extra protection on backing off… but still, someone managed to mess this up. Thankfully no damage was done to the internals.

Huge Ferrari transmission

Early Ferrari 5 speed aluminum transmission

loose ring nuts on a Ferrari transmission

Here is a lovely Ferrari 330 GT 2+2 that just came in for some minor work and to put on the market. The owner has asked us to sell the car and we are happy to oblige since it is so incredibly nice.

It is a late model 2+2 with the 2 mount engine and power steering. It does not have A/C but would be an easy retro-fit since it has the rocker switches located to the left of the steering column allowing room for the evaporator under the center of the dash. We installed A/C in an earlier car with the rocker switches in the center of the dash and it was an effort to make the evaporator fit properly.

330 GT 2+2

330 GT 2+2 interior

We typically have to clean up and weld castings to make them serviceable but these 250 water pump parts are too far gone. The material around the 6mm stud has deteriorated so it just fell out, and the pitting at the impeller surface negatively effects the flow of water through the engine. The bearing support plate is trash, it must weigh 40% less than it did when new.

With corrosion this bad on these castings, imagine what the inside of the engine block looks like! We are pulling the sleeves right now in order to inspect the block and possibly replace the sleeves if the wall thickness has been compromised by the rust.

I ordered some brand new castings to replace these and am anxious to see how they look and fit.

Casting aluminum

Corroded aluminum

A California man is the proud new owner of the 330 GTC that was in a post a month ago, http://www.ferraricraft.com/2009/12/a-nice-photo-of-a-330-gtc-that-we-have-for-sale/ and now it is time for me to market another dark blue GTC. Similar to the last car we sold, this one had lots of cosmetic work done by another shop and when we acquired it, nearly every mechanical component needed attention!

There was a large oil leak at the engine when we first got the car, here is what we found jammed between the timing chest and the head! Once we removed the heads, we noticed bad bearing wear, terrible sand cast “el-cheapo” pistons and a plugged up cooling system. Needless to say, now the engine is completely overhauled and after a few years and 2-3000 miles, it is sorted and runs beautifully.

Here is another post I did on the transmission to this car. http://www.ferraricraft.com/2007/08/ferrari-330-gtc-transmission/

With a new radiator core, all new A/C components, axle boots, tires, clutch hydraulic components, this is an outstanding car!

Dark Blue GTC