Ferrari 360 Spider

  To change the timing belts on the Ferrari 360, the cams have to be locked in place when the belt comes off. Failure to adequately secure the cams can result in major engine damage.  The Work Shop Manual for this car uses a pair of vice grips to lock the cam sprockets during the belt change. Unless the Vice Grips are really clamped hard, they can easily pop off. Too much clamping force might also damage the bearings at the end of the cam. I thought I could do something more secure and less damaging.  My thought was to create a locking mechanism that wouldn't put pressure on the bearing. To do that, the space between the sprockets would need to be filled with the clamp. I started with a picture and the measurements of the inner diameter of the sprockets and the space between them. This picture shows the areas the can be used to secure the sprockets.  Since this is a plastic clamp, the material bends easily under pressure so I had to come up with a way to move the for...

  One of the important jobs that need to be done periodically on the Ferrari 360 is a "belt service". The timing belts and the rest need to be changed every three to five years.  Once the crankshaft pulley is removed, a spacer needs to be inserted, and the bolt replaced so that the engine can be hand turned to move it to top dead center, and also, after the belts are installed, the engine needs to be turned over several times to seat the belts and checked for tension. Here's the bare crankshaft after the pulley has been removed. I found it cumbersome to turn the crankshaft using the large 36mm socket required as the crankshaft pulley bolt has a short head. With the large socket and heavy ratchet, it's really a two handed job to turn over the engine. Instead of using a short piece of pipe or washers to fill in the pulley space, I decided to make an adjustment that would allow the spacer to fit snugly over the crankshaft and lock into place using the key. To turn the cr...

  The Ferrari 360 is one of the first of that brand where changing the timing belts can be performed in the car, without having to remove the engine. This opens up this important task to the DIY owner and makes maintaining the car simpler. One of the tools required to perform the belt change is the Crankshaft Locking Tool (AV 3207), which allows taking off and torquing the crankshaft pulley nut.  The tool is available for purchase from several outlets with the Hill Engineering (HE) label, and it's a beautiful tool. Cost is considerable for a tool that's used exactly twice every three to five years. I'm certainly not one who scrimps on tools and I typically would buy such a thing. However, it looked like a part that could be 3D printed. Here's AV 3207. This tool protrudes into a gap in the clutch housing.  The first consideration is strength. The Ferrari style tool has a single protrusion that interferes with a single point on the clutch housing. That point has to take a...