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New Owner here - Will take all the advice that you experts are willing to share!

3K views 14 replies 8 participants last post by  Thehorific 
#1 Ā· (Edited)
Hi,

After years of hard work finally managed to scrape together enough money to buy "the cheapest Murcielago in america". In the words of Ed, "I'm trying to look like I won the lottery 15 years ago" :)

Anyways I just purchased a 2002 Murcielago In Giallo Midas with 29,xxx miles (gated manual since all the 2001-2003s were gated). Seems to be in ok shape but there's some unknown service history and all the common things that break are kinda broken, batwing motors broken, front trunk struts, the shifter knob is broken (and they did a cheap repair) all the coolant lines are old and cracking so they need to be replaced. I'm opting to have my independent ship out here go through the car. Since it's got almost 30k miles i was thinking i might have him do the valve service as well as a new clutch (in addition to all the fluids etc). The PPI i got from a dealer said there's not much else wrong with it other than what was listed above. Cosmetically the underside of the front bumper is pretty scraped up, side skirt intakes have a couple rock chips, but other than that it's cosmetically in decent shape for a 19 year old car with 30k miles. That being said i got a really really good deal on it so i felt like i had room to fix most things and still have quite a bit of equity based on current market values. I also plan to drive it quite a bit so having a couple scratches and scrapes don't bother me as much.

While I've owned quite a few performance cars this is the first "Italian" one so i'm hoping the veterans here could give me some pointers
1) things to look out for - maintenance that i should get done right away outside of what I listed above (PPI said brakes were good) - anything else prone to breaking that i might want to have addressed while my shop is already working on it?
1a) Any idea what an engine out service should cost me (ball park)
2) things to do that will help the car survive my ownership - i'm usually pretty hard on my cars but this one will be different (I go through a full set of tires every 5K on my daily driver X5M)
3) more importantly things to avoid doing to her that might make her unhappy with me :)

I had the car shipped in and delivered to my independent shop but they're pretty busy and I assume it'll take a little while for them to get around to my car.

Thanks in advance for your collective advice and pointers.

- The Horific
 
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#2 Ā·
Hi

all the things you have listed I believe there is plenty of information if you use the search function on this and other sites... engine out only needed if you need a clutch not sure why else you would have it out

for the front shocks I believe you will find links to a person in the USA who can refurb as replacing is quite expensive...
General servicing is just like any other car and quite simple to carry out, lots of tips and how toā€™s looking up on here as well as YouTube

happy driving
 
#6 Ā·
Hi,

After years of hard work finally managed to scrape together enough money to buy "the cheapest Murcielago in america". In the words of Ed, "I'm trying to look like I won the lottery 15 years ago" :)

Anyways I just purchased a 2002 Murcielago In Giallo Midas with 29,xxx miles (gated manual since all the 2001-2003s were gated). Seems to be in ok shape but there's some unknown service history and all the common things that break are kinda broken, front shocks leaking, batwing motors broken, front trunk struts, the shifter knob is broken (and they did a cheap repair) all the coolant lines are old and cracking so they need to be replaced. I'm opting to have my independent ship out here go through the car. Since it's got almost 30k miles i was thinking i might have him do the valve service as well as a new clutch (in addition to all the fluids etc). The PPI i got from a dealer said there's not much else wrong with it other than what was listed above. Cosmetically the underside of the front bumper is pretty scraped up, side skirt intakes have a couple rock chips, but other than that it's cosmetically in decent shape for a 19 year old car with 30k miles. That being said i got a really really good deal on it so i felt like i had room to fix most things and still have quite a bit of equity based on current market values. I also plan to drive it quite a bit so having a couple scratches and scrapes don't bother me as much.

While I've owned quite a few performance cars this is the first "Italian" one so i'm hoping the veterans here could give me some pointers
1) things to look out for - maintenance that i should get done right away outside of what I listed above (PPI said brakes were good) - anything else prone to breaking that i might want to have addressed while my shop is already working on it?
1a) Any idea what an engine out service should cost me (ball park)
2) things to do that will help the car survive my ownership - i'm usually pretty hard on my cars but this one will be different (I go through a full set of tires every 5K on my daily driver X5M)
3) more importantly things to avoid doing to her that might make her unhappy with me :)

I had the car shipped in and delivered to my independent shop but they're pretty busy and I assume it'll take a little while for them to get around to my car.

Here's a link to my youtube video i filmed if you want to skip me flapping my gums and jump to videos of the car skip to 8 minutes


Thanks in advance for your collective advice and pointers.

- The Horific
This is how their billing went...

in good condition the vehicle is $175k
You have $87K into it.

$175K-$87K = $88K

your bill magically allows you to break even on it šŸ˜€
Learn how to wrench.

just curious, is it true to change exhaust, the engine needs to come out????
 
#9 Ā·
So as you might have seen from the post above I have been working with an independent shop out here for the last year and a half as i was shopping. I think it'll be around $20K to fix/service most things. Since I bought the car for quite a bit closer to $100K than $150K i'll still be pretty good :) (based on my math)

Also i have no idea on the secondary cat install (if the motor needs to come out) - that's just what the dealer said ... I laughed at it... then moved on :)
 
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#7 Ā·
Given what I see with your car pulling the engine is the way to go. Find out your local shop's labor rate and factor one day in and one day out for the complete drivetrain. While some of the things you need to do can only be done with the engine out the others will eat up the in and out time quickly if you try to do them with the engine in place. My list would include:

1. Check and adjust valve lash
2. Check condition of the clutch and replace if necessary
3. Replace ALL coolant hoses especially the small ones that bleed the system
4. Replace fuel filters
5. Replace spark plugs
6. Replace serpentine belt
7. Have starter and alternator checked
8. Replace all fluids
9. Replace power steering reservoir filter
10. Repair shifter
11. Have injectors ultrasonically cleaned and tested (makes a BIG difference)
12. Degree the engine to verify cam timing
13. Source a used set of Cats and have them fitted
14. Clean throttle bodies
15. Replace air filters
16. Have front dampers re-built
17. Replace driveshaft bearings on engine
18. Replace brake hoses

I think a competent shop that bills by the hour should be able to do all this work with parts and outsourcing for at or below $10K (plus the cost of your used cats). Add about $5K if the clutch needs to be replaced as the parts are expensive. It is always best to do a service like this all in one shot. It is cheaper this way and it gives you a good baseline to start from.
 
#8 Ā·
Given what I see with your car pulling the engine is the way to go. Find out your local shop's labor rate and factor one day in and one day out for the complete drivetrain. While some of the things you need to do can only be done with the engine out the others will eat up the in and out time quickly if you try to do them with the engine in place. My list would include:

1. Check and adjust valve lash
2. Check condition of the clutch and replace if necessary
3. Replace ALL coolant hoses especially the small ones that bleed the system
4. Replace fuel filters
5. Replace spark plugs
6. Replace serpentine belt
7. Have starter and alternator checked
8. Replace all fluids
9. Replace power steering reservoir filter
10. Repair shifter
11. Have injectors ultrasonically cleaned and tested (makes a BIG difference)
12. Degree the engine to verify cam timing
13. Source a used set of Cats and have them fitted
14. Clean throttle bodies
15. Replace air filters
16. Have front dampers re-built
17. Replace driveshaft bearings on engine
18. Replace brake hoses

I think a competent shop that bills by the hour should be able to do all this work with parts and outsourcing for at or below $10K (plus the cost of your used cats). Add about $5K if the clutch needs to be replaced as the parts are expensive. It is always best to do a service like this all in one shot. It is cheaper this way and it gives you a good baseline to start from.
Thank you so much for your very detailed reply. Yes your quotes were in line with with my independent shop quoted before i bought the car :) let's just say i bought it for much closer to $100k than $150k so i think with my independent shop fixing it i should have some good positive equity in the car once it's finished being serviced.
 
#10 Ā·
I'd do some basic inspection before cannonballing into an engine out procedure. While the service manual suggests valve adjustment every 15k, most owners wait until after 30k. Personally, I'm waiting for my next engine out (clutch) to do the valve adjustment. All of my Murci's have been taken well beyond 30k miles without adjustment.

Engine In:
replace: plugs/coils/tires (Pirelli only if still AWD)/wiper blade/nose lift return hose above front diff
inspect: coolant hoses/brake pads & rotors/alternator fresh air ducting
filters: engine oil, air (aFe, BMC or RP intake), fuel, cabin air, clean out oil sump tank screen
fluids: oil (Rotella T6), coolant, brake/clutch, power steering (operates nose lift), trans, front & rear diff

Engine Out:
What Nuvolari said;
Replace engine mounts;
Good time to replace primary cats, either with stock or aftermarket; &
Entire exhaust comes off, so this is a good time to change if you want to.
 
#11 Ā·
Thank you so much. Yes my next step is to have my shop do a full inspection. I will take what the shop recommends to get done first and cross reference with the compiled list of what you veterans have recommend.

AS far as the valve service since i'm rolling up on 30k miles and i have no idea if they've ever done the valve service I would likely have them do that in the first round of stuff we get done.
 
#12 Ā·
Ok so it's been quite a while. I've got the car back and it's been running great. I put together a youtube video discussing what's been done so far. I've learned that video editing is way harder than it looks so please excuse appearance :).



So far I've been having a blast with her though! I'm now up to about 700 miles in the last couple months
 
#13 Ā·
Ok so it's been quite a while. I've got the car back and it's been running great. I put together a youtube video discussing what's been done so far. I've learned that video editing is way harder than it looks so please excuse appearance :).



So far I've been having a blast with her though! I'm now up to about 700 miles in the last couple months
John Custer is my man!
Ps
For the shifter, I would have gone to a machine shop and saved $1800. šŸ˜Ž

nice car!
 
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