Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 10:36 am, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
Hi all. Looking at a V8 31 to buy. Went and inspected it, was great except for a few noises. I've tried a couple of searches, but i'm not sure what to even look for.
Only when its in park/neutral, it will make this whirring noise. No sign of it when its driving, or stationary in reverse or drive. I've been told that it might be a loose pulley, does that sound right?
I also noticed that there's tapping coming from the engine pretty much all the way through the rev range. Lifters?
Gearbox was a little clunky too, i'm guessing just needs a service for that. Compressor is a bit noisy too- but i'm not worried.
Otherwise, the thing still goes like stink on a monkey, and handles great (tems makes a huge difference).
Any ideas to what i'm up against here? Will a trip to a mechanic be able to ID this stuff, or does it need to go off to S&L?
Apologies for the longish post- I like this car and really want to get it sorted.
Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 03:53 pm, by: Wafi Cheebo(Wafi)
Hi Alex, How many Km's are on this car? With the whirring sound can you hear it coming from the transmission area? For the gearbox it could just need a good service, there normally pretty strong. Has this soarer just come into the country or has it been here for a while?
Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 05:43 pm, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
Its one of the cleanest i've seen, can't find a fault with the EMV, the reverse camera is working,it has t/c, and its not green. Asking price is $8,500.
Od is reading 132,000kms, (the interior is in really good nick so it could be legitimate) and as far a I know its been here for a few years. Not sure exactly where the sound is coming from but it gets clearer as you walk from the front of the car to the driver's door.
Forgot to mention it got rear-ended during the week, so the rear bar is cracked and has moved forward - getting fixed by insurance (whole car is getting touched up too.)
Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 06:19 pm, by: David Vaughan(Davidv)
Tappet noise is common in a V8. It has no lifters, being DOHC. I know nothing about auto gearbox noises, sorry.
In a test drive have you tried accelerating (not dramatically) in a bumpy corner? If the air bags and dampers are good you might have a bargain, give or take a gearbox or so.
Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 06:28 pm, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
Thats what i was thinking David. Its the best riding soarer i've ever been in. It was like a cloud on normal, and nice and tight on sport. Went up and down really well too, delayed a few seconds on the fronts, but otherwise all level and decent height difference between high and normal.
So is that tappet noise a sign of things to come? Fixable?
Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 07:18 pm, by: David Vaughan(Davidv)
The noise is not immediately a problem but it indicates an aged engine and it seems it will cost upward of $1,000 if you want to fix it. I suggest you search on "V8 tappet" (partial words) or similar and read for yourself. It does not mean the engine is about to die, and the value of fixing it will depend on the general state of the engine. These V8s are of outstanding quality and will last for hundreds of thousands of kilometres with due care.
Sunday, December 09, 2007 - 07:57 pm, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
I think the current owners have missed a service or two...
I've been doing my homework- to bad i don't understand half of this engine stuff. So I should be able to just let it go until I get sick of it, then fix it or drop in a new one.
Can I take this to any mechanic, or do I need a soarer specialist to check it out?
Monday, December 10, 2007 - 02:33 pm, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
Yep, that's what i want to do, just gotta convince them to let me take their car to Ferntree Gully from Sunshine... I'll give them a call. Anyone know how long it takes to inspect it and what they charge? I've seen one of their reports on this site somewhere, looks like they give it a comprehensive check.
Monday, December 10, 2007 - 05:24 pm, by: Justin Wilson(Juzz51)
If you don't want all that hassle Alex, I'm putting my 91 V8 on the market very soon. Silver, 96,xxxkms. One of the cleanest you'll find as well. Radio unit is currently getting fixed. EMV is running perfectly. Just took it for a service, some small things need to be fixed, as well as one big thing, front left control arm. All these will be fixed before selling. I live up in the Dandenongs, so not far from Sports & Luxury, and that's where I'll be getting everything done anyway.
If you're interested let me know, if you got your heart set on this other one, then thats fine. I'll be asking around $9,000-$10,000.
Monday, December 10, 2007 - 08:16 pm, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
Its worth a look. PM me your mobile and I'll give you a call next time I'm going to be in the area. She's still getting this one touched up and it won't be going anywhere for 2 weeks.
Monday, December 10, 2007 - 08:59 pm, by: Justin Wilson(Juzz51)
PM'd you my number. As I said, I still got a few things to fix before I put it on the market, but I guess if you're interested, it'll really make me get my $hit together.
Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 01:03 pm, by: Alex Barbieri(Barbieros)
Well, the verdict is in. Doug said tappets as soon as it started. Transmission either needs solenoids or a complete rebuild- it would go under load, didn't want to kick down, didn't want to go over 80. Steering wouldn't self center, body work was rubbish, air-con had stopped working, traction control warnings, engine mounts broken and it just kept getting worse. So, I've given it a miss.
Don't buy a soarer without a check from Doug.
Daniel Lee Goo Roo Victoria Soarer GT Limited UZZ31 V8
Tuesday, December 18, 2007 - 02:13 pm, by: Daniel Lee(Son_gokou)
Also i think S&LC also have a few Soarers for sale last time i was there.
Doug is very passionate about Soarers and every time i went to get my Soarer back from getting a service, Doug always spent around 10mins chatting about Soarers.
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