yeah, I've had a number of ferrari's including an F430, ferrarichat is just as good for resources as rennlist and just about as many value threads
F430's are great cars overall, exhaust manifolds should have been replaced, that and the sticky buttons are very common

 

Definitely needs new tires.
Isopropyl alcohol can fix the sticky buttons.
If dent is small, a good pointless dent removal guy can fix that no problem.

I also recommend going over to F Chat.

I had an 07' for almost 3 years. Spider with DCT and only 2,500 miles. Not sure if my car was the exception or the rule, but it went to the shop probably 5 or 6 times while I owned it for misc stupid stuff. Couple grand each time, above normal maintenance. The last time it went in because it had a squeaky belt. Dropped it off and they called me mid day. "well, the belt definitely needs to be replaced ...which is $65...but because of where its located, it'll be $1,200 in labor". lol....geez

Overall it was a great experience and I think every car guy should own at least one Ferrari in their life.

Good luck!

 

I really like this review of the F430

 

Ive had a few 430s in the past. One thing that drove me nuts on the last few generations of F cars, especially the F430 is the leather shrinking on the dash near the defrost vents. Have them send you detailed pics of the defroster vents to see if the leather is shrinking and pulling away from the dash. In order to fix shrinking leather, they have to remove the dash and the fix is expensive. Otherwise the mechanicals on the F430 are really good...if headers crack its not to expensive to just replace with aftermarket. These cars really just needs to be driven and the F cars beg to be pushed when driving.

 

Had an F430 and a Scud. I think you have covered all your bases. Great cars but they get too much attention. Enjoy!

 

The transmission is fine, but the auto-selecting mechanism (they called it F1) designed by Maserati is just weak. It will break, and aside from a company in Eastern Europe, it needs a complete replacement with a cost of around $25k on parts/labor.

The clutch kit in the F1 cars doesn't last more than 5k miles if the car is driven as it should, rather than an ornament and C&C object.

At the current 458 prices, I would not touch a F430, unless it has a manual transmission, but then comes all other painful points: e-diff problems, self ingesting catalytic pieces in the engine, guaranteed cracking headers, weak brakes unless you have CCB then it is weak/expensive brakes.

On the few ones I have instructed, we have overheated the brakes in 6 laps around PBIR, got an exhaust overheat message then car going limp, and transmission temperatures run high. The mechanic that worked on the F430 Challenge car know a lot of tricks to make the street car more dependable, most of them are cooling related, but the wear and cost of keeping alive the trans/shifter/e-diff in the F1 car is too much (unless you have a warranty).

The 458 is a much better car, and its German Getrag DCT solves the e-diff, shifter and clutch wear issues in the F430/360/355 F1 cars.

There are plenty of solutions these days for the sticky buttons, Sticky-No-More is legit. I fixed mine (599 HGTE) with lots of cotton and Alcohol.

Shrinking leather is not a problem with proper Window Tint, keep the car away from heat and sunlight exposure for too long, and leather treatment products (I like the Chemical Guys stuff, but most products are pretty good).

I still have a wholesale account in Europe to buy parts, because FNA has such a massive mark-up. When I need something quick, RicambiAmerica is the place to go, they usually get weekly shipments if something is not in stock. At F dealers, they have a supply chain problem that they refuse to fix (I can fix it), it takes months to get some parts.

360 Manual, F430 Manual or 458. But a 599 is a better car (proper sound, best material) just cost prohibitive with a manual transmission.

 

This has been on F chat longer than it has here. Though I don't get as good of feedback than here, so go figure lol

Just not enough enthusiasts on the F430 forum I suppose. Not to mention, there are so many car enthusiasts on RL, I seem to get much better responses.

Thanks for the tip on the isopropyl alcohol.

I agree, and this would be my 1st F-car. So I have not experienced it first hand.

Thanks! I enjoyed this!

PPI checked for shrinking leather, they said the dash is the "best" they've seen on the F430's that have come through there. No shrinking around the defroster vents, and the airbag leather looks as good as new as well.

In regards to the headers, the PPI shop mentioned the same thing. Change out to Fabspeed for neutral sound, or Capristo (but they warned this option creates a lot more noise than most want; on an already very loud car.)

I would imagine lol

This car would only be a weekend getaway or b-road car. Might see the track if I'm feeling lucky, as I'd imagine feeling quite nervous if something breaks...

Thanks for this, very informative!

I use Porsche cleaners/conditioners on all my cars. I love that stuff!

Thanks for the tip with RicambiAmerica! I can note that for the future

I was told the F1 clutch can last around 40k miles, which would make sense. As the wear is at 35% at 8,300 miles. It's on track for about 30k miles to have it replaces. Car has CCB's, so that is good news. I'm sure they aren't as advanced as today Porsche ceramics, but much better to have than regular brakes on the F-car

I'm close to making a decision, I may be flying down to L.A. today 1st class w/ a mask & sanitizer lol then driving it back up 350 miles to No.California. I definitely assume responsibility for the high maintenance of an F-car. I'd say though, to be honest. That's a major turn-off when you really start to think about it...

To think a hand-built Ferrari built in the 21st century requires annual maintenance intervals and will always feel that risk of something breaking in the back-of-your-mind seems so off-putting. How can a car of such quality, that isn't "that old"; have SOOO many issues? Can someone explain that?

Why are Ferrari's such high maintenance?

 

Starting with the 458 and anything after, they have become more dependable and reliable. They were too proud in years before and anything needed to be from Italy, lots of Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo Maserati parts in the earlier years. These days, you have British, Japanese, German, American, and sadly Chinese parts.

40k miles in an F1 transmission is possible, by driving slowly, making gear changes as low throttle loads, avoiding the use of reverse, and especially avoid starts on inclines, or the worst one: backing up on an uphill (it will overheat the clutch in a few seconds).

The actuators problem with the Magneti Marelli SeleSpeed system is not avoidable, it is a design defect, all they did was to operate a manual transmission with actuators, sensors and computer programming, this was an early approach to sequential transmissions for street use, the only non-boutique company still making cars with such Transmission is Lamborghini in the Aventador.

Be aware that their diagnostic equipment doesn't do proper measurements, they read information from the multiple computers. For instance, CCB wear is based on units of times at a deceleration rate. If you were engine braking or braking on an inclined road, they won't factor these scenarios, neither they factor brake pads used, bnrake fluid used, air temperatures. I have seen cars with shot CCB rotors with good readings, and cars asking for CCB replacement when rotors are as good as nearly new.

The F430 is an old car, it was a revised version of the 360, a 21 years old car. Add the insistence on using anything made in Italy in the old days (with Fiat being one of the largest part suppliers), and lower levels of quality are expected. They cannot be remotely compared to a Porsche on Quality and sturdiness.

They are not high maintenance cars, it is just a business model that forces unnecessary and expensive basic services, and a massive mark-up on parts. The F430 engine doesn't need a rubber timing belt to be replaced every 2 years, the engine in this car is the best part, but this engine evolved even more in the Scuderia, and later the 458 which had the best spec (in the Speciale) before they went Turbo and lost the high rpm notes.

Another thing to consider, no one wants a 10k miles or more miles car, and the wholesalers and dealers go by this. Trade a 5k miles car and trade the same car with 10k miles, and the value drops immensely. This is an advantage, as you can buy a 15k miles car with proper care and maintenance for a fraction of the same car with lets say 3k miles.

If I were to buy one today, it has to be a 360 Spider manual. The next sensible purchase (value for the money) is a 458 but at its current price point, a 599 is a better car (and cheaper), and the F12 is now well priced. F12 is beyond good, I have tracked this one and going full throttle at the PBIR back straight and reaching 157mph (164mph indicated) is a magical sound experience. If you're not going to drive them, and just park them at C&C, any model is fine, in this case the Stradale is my favorite for the money and C&C factor.

 

Sounds like you found a nice car...enjoy it and appreciate what it is, not what you wished it could be. It wont shift like a dual clutch transmission and it wont be the fastest car out there. You may find yourself waiting for the transmission to shift when you hit the paddles...with that being said, its got character and soul...just keep it in perspective that the technology is 20 years old...hell my 328GTS is 31 years old, is slower than the Amazon truck, but dammit I LOVE driving it.

I think owning an Italian car, you also learn to live with the quirks. They ALL have their quirks...somehow you just learn to love them for what they are (sticky buttons...meh, cant see all the numbers on the rpm gauge...meh, button placement doesn't seem to make any sense...meh, but start it up, hear it come to life and drive....life is good.)

 

So more news. Turns out the fuel pump is leaking. They also pressurized the system and it failed. So now I'm on the fence. Anyone know how much it'd be for a new fuel pump w/ labor?

 

I wouldn't stress - a car at this price point should have all the legitimate defects and safety items corrected, or the price adjusted to compensate.

A leaking fuel component should be taken care of - relatively small $ in the grand scheme of things I'd think. Probably exacerbated in cars that don't get driven enough.

If the seller won't accommodate, I'd ask why. And if the cost of you replacing the fuel pump on your own dime gives you palpitations, maybe ask yourself if this type of car is right for you.

Good luck!

Cheers

Matt

 

The cost to repair doesn’t worry me. It just gives me cause to pause when thinking, if this car was well maintained or not. I’m still working out the details. So we will see. If I decide to buy, my 992S will be in the wind.

 

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