higher mileage 458

[Babw]

Hello all,

I'm considering purchasing a higher mileage (over 50k) 458 Italia. It will be used regularly including 3-4 trackdays per year and it's unlikely that I will ever sell it.

Assuming it has all the maintenance records, is there any particular component that I need to be weary of at this kind of mileage? I know the drivertrain is generally very reliable on these cars but suspension components, brakes etc?

I've discounted a Spider as after test driving there was noticeable sharpness to the Italia which the Spider lacked after on poor roads so at least the convertible mechanism is something I need not worry about.

[Trev450]

I haven't owned a 458 but do have plenty of experience with magnatronic dampers and at that mileage, they need to be carefully inspected for signs of leaking or misting.

[7GJR]

Gearbox oil seals can be a problem. Gibbo’s required a rebuild.

[BobTurner]

Trev450 said:

I haven't owned a 458 but do have plenty of experience with magnatronic dampers and at that mileage, they need to be carefully inspected for signs of leaking or misting.

Those dampers can require replacement at half that mileage….

[Trev450]

BobTurner said:

Trev450 said:

I haven't owned a 458 but do have plenty of experience with magnatronic dampers and at that mileage, they need to be carefully inspected for signs of leaking or misting.

Those dampers can require replacement at half that mileage….

Indeed. Mine failed at 22k miles and that is why I suggested the op has the ones on the car in question closely examined.

[Babw]

Any high mileage owners on this forum?

50k miles for a 2011 car is just over 4k miles per year and considering how useable the 458s are there must be a few higher mile cars running.

[MingtheMerciless]

There is a 458 group on Facebook and the issue of high miles 458s comes up quite a bit.

[Caddyshack]

25k miles and dampers failing makes it sound very fragile. My friends V10 R8 did similar, maybe it’s those type of dampers?

50,000 miles, that low mileage for most cars, you wouldn’t think twice about a 911.

[F355GTS]

Caddyshack said:

25k miles and dampers failing makes it sound very fragile. My friends V10 R8 did similar, maybe it’s those type of dampers?

50,000 miles, that low mileage for most cars, you wouldn’t think twice about a 911.

They have the same dampers


I'm approaching 30k miles in my 2015 Spider inc a few trackdays and it's been 100% reliable

[willy wombat]

I had both front dampers replaced under warranty at 6,000 miles (458 spider).

[Gibbo205]

Hi there

Things to look out for on a 458:
- Corrosion: Mainly appears in rear arches first, then front arches, any competent bodyshop can sort, budget around 1k per arch.
- Leaking dampers: Not sure on cost but budget around 5k per axle
- Engine: Some people have reported need rebuilds at 80k plus, something to mindful off if buying higher mileage, some people see 100k no issue.
- Gearbox issues: An issue with the DCT box, impacts quite a few models, from internal oil seals failing (happened to my 2014 26k mile 458) or sensors failing requiring rebuild, the scary bit budget 8-30k.
- LCD screens in cockpit: They can fail or go funky, big money as in 5k.


Though the 458 is generally quite reliable just like any supercar they can have issues.

In a perfect world you will find a 45-55k miles car which has had a gearbox rebuild, new dampers and zero corrosion, in theory this would be a great car for the right money, say circa 90-100k.

Personally carbon seats are a must, comfier for me and you sit much lower, they also look far better!

[Babw]

Gibbo205 said:

Hi there

Things to look out for on a 458:
- Corrosion: Mainly appears in rear arches first, then front arches, any competent bodyshop can sort, budget around 1k per arch.
- Leaking dampers: Not sure on cost but budget around 5k per axle
- Engine: Some people have reported need rebuilds at 80k plus, something to mindful off if buying higher mileage, some people see 100k no issue.
- Gearbox issues: An issue with the DCT box, impacts quite a few models, from internal oil seals failing (happened to my 2014 26k mile 458) or sensors failing requiring rebuild, the scary bit budget 8-30k.
- LCD screens in cockpit: They can fail or go funky, big money as in 5k.


Though the 458 is generally quite reliable just like any supercar they can have issues.

In a perfect world you will find a 45-55k miles car which has had a gearbox rebuild, new dampers and zero corrosion, in theory this would be a great car for the right money, say circa 90-100k.

Personally carbon seats are a must, comfier for me and you sit much lower, they also look far better!

Thanks for this, really helps.

The gearbox issues are a little scary and now I have myself looking at lower mileage cars….

Carbon seats and lift are a must for me. Anything else is just a bonus.

[Gibbo205]

Babw said:

Thanks for this, really helps.

The gearbox issues are a little scary and now I have myself looking at lower mileage cars….

Carbon seats and lift are a must for me. Anything else is just a bonus.

Lift is not required on a 458 I owned mine five years and did 16,000 miles in it and never once did it scrape and I did NC500, Wales and South in it without issue. Even OK in multi storey car parks.

The only time you’d need lift in a 458 would be boarding a Ferry with rough sea or if you intend to the lower the car which is easy as it’s on coilovers at which point lift would be handy to have.

[Trev450]

Babw said:

Gibbo205 said:

Hi there

Things to look out for on a 458:
- Corrosion: Mainly appears in rear arches first, then front arches, any competent bodyshop can sort, budget around 1k per arch.
- Leaking dampers: Not sure on cost but budget around 5k per axle
- Engine: Some people have reported need rebuilds at 80k plus, something to mindful off if buying higher mileage, some people see 100k no issue.
- Gearbox issues: An issue with the DCT box, impacts quite a few models, from internal oil seals failing (happened to my 2014 26k mile 458) or sensors failing requiring rebuild, the scary bit budget 8-30k.
- LCD screens in cockpit: They can fail or go funky, big money as in 5k.


Though the 458 is generally quite reliable just like any supercar they can have issues.

In a perfect world you will find a 45-55k miles car which has had a gearbox rebuild, new dampers and zero corrosion, in theory this would be a great car for the right money, say circa 90-100k.

Personally carbon seats are a must, comfier for me and you sit much lower, they also look far better!

Thanks for this, really helps.

The gearbox issues are a little scary and now I have myself looking at lower mileage cars….

Carbon seats and lift are a must for me. Anything else is just a bonus.

I would think the gearbox issues are as much age related as they are mileage related.

[Gibbo205]

Trev450 said:

I would think the gearbox issues are as much age related as they are mileage related.

Personally IMHO a gearbox should not be having a major failure on any car at under 30k miles, especially on a 100k plus supercar, so as far as I am concerned its a failure and an unexpected one and having been the victim of a gearbox failure on a 458 that was less than 10 years old and just over 25k miles on a car serviced every year on time, used on a regular basis I feel is a total failure and unacceptable.

The dealership did look after me and as such what some specialist quoted as a £12,000 bill a main dealer did for £7500, I got lucky as I spotted the issue and the car was not driven, others may not be so lucky and the bill can be has high as £30,000, not only that there are other points of failure, gentlemen with an 812 had a similar issue only 7000 miles and it happens, the gearboxes are not bomb proof and should be better really.

It is the risk we take, personally I don't think a gearbox should be failing on any road driven car within 100k miles, maybe I am just unreasonable with my expectations.

Still I don't want to take away from how amazing the 458 is, but just like any other supercar brands they can all have issues, some minor and some major, having owned several brands now I have to say they can all be as bad as each other, they can also be as great as each other.

[Trev450]

Gibbo205 said:

Trev450 said:

I would think the gearbox issues are as much age related as they are mileage related.

Personally IMHO a gearbox should not be having a major failure on any car at under 30k miles, especially on a 100k plus supercar, so as far as I am concerned its a failure and an unexpected one and having been the victim of a gearbox failure on a 458 that was less than 10 years old and just over 25k miles on a car serviced every year on time, used on a regular basis I feel is a total failure and unacceptable.

The dealership did look after me and as such what some specialist quoted as a £12,000 bill a main dealer did for £7500, I got lucky as I spotted the issue and the car was not driven, others may not be so lucky and the bill can be has high as £30,000, not only that there are other points of failure, gentlemen with an 812 had a similar issue only 7000 miles and it happens, the gearboxes are not bomb proof and should be better really.

It is the risk we take, personally I don't think a gearbox should be failing on any road driven car within 100k miles, maybe I am just unreasonable with my expectations.

Still I don't want to take away from how amazing the 458 is, but just like any other supercar brands they can all have issues, some minor and some major, having owned several brands now I have to say they can all be as bad as each other, they can also be as great as each other.

I completely agree. This is a major component we are talking about and should be good for many miles/years. Unfortunately we have to pay to satisfy our passions and supercar ownership is never going to be cheap.

[Gibbo205]

Trev450 said:

I completely agree. This is a major component we are talking about and should be good for many miles/years. Unfortunately we have to pay to satisfy our passions and supercar ownership is never going to be cheap.

Also agreed, it cost to play, but those cost should not be a gearbox rebuild.
I can accept stuff like corrosion as it happens on all aluminium and carbon cars, both my 360 and 458 suffered, my McLaren suffers as does my Audi R8 and I know that the Alpine's had had it too.