Complete overhaul and first start-up: Lucien Laboisserie’s Ferrari 612 is back on the road

Lucien had ordered all the parts directly from Ferrari. Here’s what arrived at the workshop: two accessory belts, two pulleys, a water pump unit with an integrated thermostat, a new water temperature sensor fitted to it, and a gasket that was missing and which we were expecting on the day.

The two accessory belts are small, which may come as a surprise on a V12: a 5PK belt driving the water pump and power steering, and a 6PK belt on the alternator and air-con compressor side. The pulleys, meanwhile, are sturdy, well-made components, featuring a mechanical tensioner (there’s no hydraulic tensioning system on this model, so no hydraulic tensioner to replace). Both pulleys share the same part number.

The water pump assembly comes complete with the thermostat and sensor, which simplifies removal: you simply take the whole unit out and fit it back in, without having to work on it piece by piece.

That’s the basic rule, and there are no exceptions for a customer’s car: a timing belt that’s been slackened is a belt that needs throwing away. It must not be refitted, even if it looks to be in good condition, even if it has only just been fitted.

The same principle applies to all components in the kit: idler pulley, tensioner pulley, hydraulic or self-adjusting tensioner, and crankshaft pulley bolts. Anything that has been loosened goes in the bin. The crankshaft pulley bolts have a specific tightening torque: on the second installation, it is no longer possible to guarantee this torque, as the bolt has stretched, and the risk is very real. These must also be replaced.

On diesel engines or recent petrol engines fitted with a damper pulley, the pulley must always be replaced. When it develops play and decides to fail, it flies into the timing mechanism, causing a sudden impact and ruining the engine. There’s no such thing as ‘maybe it’ll hold’ with this type of part.

To find out more about the rules for replacing timing belts and chains, we’ve put together a comprehensive guide: Timing belts and chains: everything you need to know.

When the water pump is driven by the timing belt, there’s one golden rule: you must replace the water pump at the same time as the timing belt. There’s no room for negotiation on this.

The reason is simple. If the water pump fails shortly after the timing belt has been replaced, you’ll have to take everything apart again to get to it. It’s better to do it all in one go. And above all, a failing water pump doesn’t always give warning: it can stop running without any visible leak or unusual noise, and the engine will overheat for no apparent reason. On a V12 of this calibre, you don’t take that risk.

On the 612, the water pump unit comes with the thermostat and temperature sensor integrated. It’s a fine component, easy to refit once you’ve made some space in the accessories bay. The new temperature sensor supplied with it: keep that one; don’t refit the old one.

The battery was completely flat, which is hardly surprising in a car that hasn’t been driven for a while. A 100-amp jump starter wasn’t enough to get the V12 running: we had to let it charge properly before attempting to start it. It’s a big engine, so it needs plenty of power to get it going.

On the first turn of the key, the oil pressure is good. The dashboard is showing faults (TPMS and others), which is normal at this stage: the car was run on an insufficiently charged battery during the first attempt, so the ECUs have recorded faults that do not reflect the engine’s actual condition. These are cleared once the car is running properly at operating temperature.

The V12 starts up. No vibrations, no misfires. The timing is spot on. The smell of stale fuel in the workshop serves as a reminder that nobody has topped up the fuel tank for a long time: it is this smell of stagnant fuel that is coming out of the exhaust, not a mechanical problem.

A dynamometer test isn’t possible at this stage: the braking system has been completely dismantled. Moving the car in this condition poses a risk we’re not prepared to take. We’ll wait for the next stage.

Before we can put the 612 on the test bench, we still need to rebuild the entire braking system and bleed the whole system. Once the brakes have been refitted, we’ll check the fluid levels whilst the engine is running (engine oil, gearbox) and put the car on the test bench to see how the V12 performs after the work.

After the dynamometer test, we’ll head to Lucien’s for the bodywork: the car has been handled by several people during the work, so it will need a thorough decontamination before any repainting to prevent reactions beneath the clear coat.