Ferrari F430 Spider
Discussion
Catching up on some updates on a road trip into Europe. We left around 5am to catch the LeShuttle. The UK roads were pleasantly clear.
Obligatory Reims-Gueux shot.
We went down through the Forêt d'Orient national park. It was absolutely sweltering so roof up during the midday sun - wife was pregnant during this trip.
Stopped for a drink here. I didn't plan anything in-between accommodation stops - we just went with the flow. It was very traditional French backwater inside, which I like.
Next step Switzerland...
Obligatory Reims-Gueux shot.
We went down through the Forêt d'Orient national park. It was absolutely sweltering so roof up during the midday sun - wife was pregnant during this trip.
Stopped for a drink here. I didn't plan anything in-between accommodation stops - we just went with the flow. It was very traditional French backwater inside, which I like.
Next step Switzerland...
_Bart_ said:
I'm beyond happy to see an update. One of the best reader's cars thread, ever.
Glad you, wife (and pending bambino?) and car(s) are well.
Thank you! All are well. Parenthood was quite the adjustment, but enjoying it now Glad you, wife (and pending bambino?) and car(s) are well.
Boleros said:
What wheels are those? They do look rather smart.
markiii said:
look like F458 Italia wheels, and they rather suit it
Thank you. They are original Ferrari wheels released for the 16M, and were an option. The 458 Italia wheels were the 16M wheels in 1" larger diameter (20").
I've got the Challenge Stradale wheels on mine in matt grigio silverstone (to match the car)and whilst they look ok (esp with yellow calipers) I can't help but feel that the car would look better with something else. Quite what that is I don't know but those 16M wheels do work very well
markiii said:
I hate to think what they charged you for those, can't be a huge amount of 16M wheels knocking around
Parts availability can also be an issue. I don't think I'd be able to complete this project again if I started now.Boleros said:
I've got the Challenge Stradale wheels on mine in matt grigio silverstone (to match the car)and whilst they look ok (esp with yellow calipers) I can't help but feel that the car would look better with something else. Quite what that is I don't know but those 16M wheels do work very well
The CS wheels are nice, but maybe best on the 360 or earlier.Boleros said:
What is the F1-S on the dash? Not seen that before.
There are a few things going on there:RACE = drive mode
Car with waveform underneath = Bumpy road mode on. This is when the suspension is put into soft independently of the drive mode (normally RACE turns the suspension to hard).
F1 - S = the conditions are met for the Superfast 2 60ms gear change. I need to be above a certain RPM or speed for it to be available.
The second two items in the list are Scuderia specific.
mwstewart said:
There are a few things going on there:
RACE = drive mode
Car with waveform underneath = Bumpy road mode on. This is when the suspension is put into soft independently of the drive mode (normally RACE turns the suspension to hard).
F1 - S = the conditions are met for the Superfast 2 60ms gear change. I need to be above a certain RPM or speed for it to be available.
The second two items in the list are Scuderia specific.
Thanks, I'm going to have go back over thread as I could have sworn that your 16M wasn't a 'true' 16M. My memory clearly isn't what it used to be!RACE = drive mode
Car with waveform underneath = Bumpy road mode on. This is when the suspension is put into soft independently of the drive mode (normally RACE turns the suspension to hard).
F1 - S = the conditions are met for the Superfast 2 60ms gear change. I need to be above a certain RPM or speed for it to be available.
The second two items in the list are Scuderia specific.
Boleros said:
mwstewart said:
There are a few things going on there:
RACE = drive mode
Car with waveform underneath = Bumpy road mode on. This is when the suspension is put into soft independently of the drive mode (normally RACE turns the suspension to hard).
F1 - S = the conditions are met for the Superfast 2 60ms gear change. I need to be above a certain RPM or speed for it to be available.
The second two items in the list are Scuderia specific.
Thanks, I'm going to have go back over thread as I could have sworn that your 16M wasn't a 'true' 16M. My memory clearly isn't what it used to be!RACE = drive mode
Car with waveform underneath = Bumpy road mode on. This is when the suspension is put into soft independently of the drive mode (normally RACE turns the suspension to hard).
F1 - S = the conditions are met for the Superfast 2 60ms gear change. I need to be above a certain RPM or speed for it to be available.
The second two items in the list are Scuderia specific.
mwstewart said:
Your memory isn't failing: the car did start out as an F430, but I've fully converted it - it wasn't just a cosmetic makeover.
Had a quick scan, I knew that you had gone full on (your reputation precedes you 
) but I hadn't realised you'd gone for the full gearbox conversion - that is seriously impressive. I remember having a chat with AV about the updated software and whether it was compatible with my standard F430 and of course then learnt about the quite significant differences between the two. Interesting stuff. I'd like to switch my wheels, Daytona seats for racing and steels for CCMs but the costs can seriously mount up. That's if you can find the parts of course!Our route into Switzerland was via the Mont-Blanc tunnel, as this would save us a little bit of time. It was still fairly chilly at altitude - very different to France earlier that day.
We arrived at the hotel later in the evening as I'd been distracted by a few nice back roads The kitchen had closed, but the owner opened it for us and served dinner and a drinks.Excellent.
It was very nice to wake up to clear skies and a nice view.
I normally plan these trips outside of peak time and school holidays, but even so we were extremely lucky with the traffic situation; the Swiss passes are well-known in motoring circles so there's always a bit of traffic, but I had several of the passes completely to myself. I had to be a bit careful to not shake my wife around too much, but I turned round to drive some of them more than once. Despite not going anywhere near 10/10ths these were some of my most memorable drives to date.
Out of season ski resorts always have a '28 Days Later' feel about them.
Some of the scenery and a view looking down at one of the passes.
A fantastic piece of civic architecture.
We came across a group of UK registered Porsche's driving through the passes.
Some general shots of the car. By this point the car was quite filthy from all of the melt water and dust.
Beer O'Clock. One of my favourite aspects of a road trip is mooching around at our own pace; I don't like to plan in lots of activities (keep that for work!). It's nice just to explore and see life in general being lived in a different place.
I can't remember if I updated in a previous post, but I prefer to not use the mesh grille in the rear bumper as I like the two air vents either side of the diffuser which are normally hidden. I repainted this area in grey to match the wheels, and I'm happy with how it looks - in factory trim it all looks a bit too black.
Next stop, Italy...
We arrived at the hotel later in the evening as I'd been distracted by a few nice back roads
The kitchen had closed, but the owner opened it for us and served dinner and a drinks.Excellent.It was very nice to wake up to clear skies and a nice view.
I normally plan these trips outside of peak time and school holidays, but even so we were extremely lucky with the traffic situation; the Swiss passes are well-known in motoring circles so there's always a bit of traffic, but I had several of the passes completely to myself. I had to be a bit careful to not shake my wife around too much, but I turned round to drive some of them more than once. Despite not going anywhere near 10/10ths these were some of my most memorable drives to date.
Out of season ski resorts always have a '28 Days Later' feel about them.
Some of the scenery and a view looking down at one of the passes.
A fantastic piece of civic architecture.
We came across a group of UK registered Porsche's driving through the passes.
Some general shots of the car. By this point the car was quite filthy from all of the melt water and dust.
Beer O'Clock. One of my favourite aspects of a road trip is mooching around at our own pace; I don't like to plan in lots of activities (keep that for work!). It's nice just to explore and see life in general being lived in a different place.
I can't remember if I updated in a previous post, but I prefer to not use the mesh grille in the rear bumper as I like the two air vents either side of the diffuser which are normally hidden. I repainted this area in grey to match the wheels, and I'm happy with how it looks - in factory trim it all looks a bit too black.
Next stop, Italy...
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