[DeTomaso] Repair Costs - New vs. Old

[Mikael]

I second that. I had my MME CHI engine drop a valve in 2012. Really drop it, valve head broke off, turned 90 degrees and got launched into the port. New valves, rocker arms, piston, parts bought at MME, head fixed locally, gasket set, bearings just while it was out. Just over $2k and my time of course. My friend has a 348, he doesn't dare race it, can't afford the Ferrari tax either.

BTW, just saw that Ferrari is the world's strongest brand, above Coca Cola. Any thinking person understands that when you shop for something with a strong brand, you pay a relatively high price for thin air. The stronger the brand, the lower the value for money.

Mikael




> 
> 
> On Mon, Mar 4, 2013 at 9:07 PM, Will Kooiman <will.kooiman at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Jack,
>> 
>> I just read your newsletter article title, "Failure Analysis of a 
>> Home-Built Stroker", and I really enjoyed it.
>> 
>> What I enjoyed most was the stroker destroying so many parts, and 
>> still only setting the owner back $2511.  That's a lot of money, but 
>> let me put it into perspective.
>> 
>> I had my Viper on the track a year ago, and it started running rough.  
>> I didn't know what was wrong.  It didn't pop or crunch.  There was no 
>> oil on the ground.  I just didn't like the way it sounded.  The plugs looked okay.
>> So, I drove it home.  I know   stupid, but what's life without a 
>> little spice?  When I got home, the catalytic converters were hot and smelled bad.
>> I suspected plugged cats.  I was thinking about taking it apart, but 
>> Tomball Dodge is in town, and they are one of the premier Viper 
>> dealers in the world.  Morgan at Tomball is excellent.  Hennessey is 
>> also in town, but they are further away.  Morgan replaced the 
>> computer because mine was showing codes.  Then once he had a good 
>> computer, he found a cylinder that was running rich.  The old 
>> computer wouldn't show a code for that cylinder, but the new computer 
>> did.  He checked the injectors, but they were okay.  He finally 
>> pulled a head and found one keeper had split in half and the intake valve had slightly dropped.
>> 
>> The damage wasn t bad.  If I remember correctly, there were 2 bent 
>> valves, a cracked guide, the bad keeper, a slightly scarred retainer, 
>> and a few minor dings in the head and piston.  Of course, I did all 
>> of the necessary repairs including having the head checked for cracks and straightness.  It was fine.
>> The total bill was $4,000.
>> 
>> I really like the Viper, but $4,000?  Morgan helped me out with some 
>> of the parts too.
>> 
>> We are currently moving to the Miami/Ft. Lauderdale area.  Once we 
>> get settled, the Viper is moving on to a new home.  The proceeds will 
>> go towards a new Porsche for my wife (hers was totaled last year).  
>> And I'll replace my loss with a simpler/cheaper daily driver.  #1 in my list is a 67 Mustang FB.
>> #2 is a 65/66 FB.  #3 is a 69 AMX.  At least with these cars when I 
>> break something, it won't also break the bank.
>> 
>> --
>> Will
>> 
>> 
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