Ferrari 550, 1 owner, only 109,000 miles FSH.Well would you?
Discussion
BigTom85 said:
Great update, thanks.
Some insight into the costs for the various bits and bobs would be interesting. It certainly doesn't seem to be ruinous...
Of course, I do not have every bill to hand for every nut and bolt but for the work detailed above the numbers are roughly: Some insight into the costs for the various bits and bobs would be interesting. It certainly doesn't seem to be ruinous...
Front Tyres (255/40/18): £290 fitted
Rear Tyres (295/35/18) : £340 fitted
Water Radiator Re-Core and Rebuild : £468
Oil Cooler Power flush, repaint and recondition : £144
Various gaskets and seals for the top coolant manifold : £34
Ancilliary consumables (paint, polishing compounds, polishing pads, wet and dry paper, nuts, bolts, jubilee clips, a few lengths of silicone hose) : £100
Service Kit (all OEM Ferrari parts): £100 (2xoil filter, 2xair filter, 2x fuel filter, sump plug washer) : £95
Fluids (brake, steering, engine oil - Shell Helix Ultra, engine coolant): £115
Total : £1586.00 + labour.
Labour was circa 35 hours when all was said and done and none of it was rushed at all. Price that how you will but none of the work was beyond the ability of a capable home mechanic with patience and the right tools.
So, not an insignificant amount of money but equally not ruinous considering that price essentially includes fresh tyres and fresh radiators. That is not to say Ferrari 550s and Ferraris of similar vintage can be run altogether that cheaply though. If one was not mechanically inclined, I note eurospares' price for a new water radiator for a 550 is £2160.00, an oil cooler £864.00. Plus fitting you would be staring down the barrel of £4500 for that work alone. Add the £1,100 that HR Owen are offering to service your 550 and you are up to £5600. Throw in the work under the intake manifold and you'd be pushing £7000...and thats before you have bestowed some TLC on the lights, improved just about every piece that was removed in some way, restored the fan cowling, stripped, repainted and improved front grill (the old prancing horse had been stoned to death!)...the list is endless. As always though...the ends justify the means ten times over. This view will never get old!
Edited by PHAB on Monday 7th September 02:18
Many thanks for the pricing info.
As a keen DIY mechanic I have to say how un-intimidating it all looks. It's easy to get scared into thinking 'it's a Ferrari!', but at the end of the day it's just nuts and bolts, and it all looks reasonably sensibly assembled.
Those prices are incredible for DIY, I was expecting double that! Specialist pricing on the other hand is exactly what I'd expect.
Do keep the updates coming.
As a keen DIY mechanic I have to say how un-intimidating it all looks. It's easy to get scared into thinking 'it's a Ferrari!', but at the end of the day it's just nuts and bolts, and it all looks reasonably sensibly assembled.
Those prices are incredible for DIY, I was expecting double that! Specialist pricing on the other hand is exactly what I'd expect.
Do keep the updates coming.
snoopy25 said:
Just read this from start to finish! amazing!
what was the reason for the unexpected totally dead car in the middle of Cannes at 2pm? lol
The unexpected dead car in Cannes....erm best to start from the beginning on this one. what was the reason for the unexpected totally dead car in the middle of Cannes at 2pm? lol
The trip began on the usual route down through France from Calais along the E17 - A5 - A31 off to Pontalier and down to Lake Geneva, with the first stop at Vevey. Thankfully no dramas or any issues with the car for the 500 or so miles other than a persistent vibration in the steering at anything over 90mph. Quite handy because it prevented any run in with the local gendarmerie and since there was no rush it wasn't a bother. 95% sure on of the front wheels is slightly flatted but I am still not certain because its so minor that its only really detectible on french roads. Sometime over the winter I will send the wheels down to Lepsons to check as 2 of them need a refurb to remove bubbling around the metal valves. Most pleasing though was that even in 36C heat the engine was a steady 90 on the dial and the air con blew nice and cold. The needle did show signs of creeping up a bit in traffic but the ambient temperature was probably close to 40 and absolutely searing hot so I was not overly concerned that the car was feeling it a bit....yet!
some great roads around Pontalier, excuse the poor photography. Lost count of the number of GT3s being thrashed through the mountainside on this particular route. Needed a go pro!
I gave the car a very good once over in Vevey to remove 500 miles of grime (at the most incredible car wash "center" behind the town - featuring 4 post lifts with every jetwash and de-ionised water as standard - the Swiss really do know how to do things properly!) and headed back to the hotel, parked up, locked the car and...alarm. Alarm alarm alarm. I could not get it to stop beeping. Got in to start it and noticed the engine was extremely laboured turning over...I knew the battery was slightly tired but given it is on a trickle all the time at home I had never had problems. All the time the alarm wouldn't stop...so ran the car up a bit, switched off and re-locked with the spare key and hey presto...the alarm stopped beeping. Since I did not have time to change a battery in Vevey I parked the car in the shadiest spot I could find (it was 35C) and hoped Id be ok until I got back into France. Heat, batteries and starting large engines are not good companions.
The next morning the car started ok, much better than the day before but still not with a fizz so to speak and we headed out of Vevey towards Simplon and over the Simplon pass. The weather was much better this year but a never ending moving road block of tankers and heavy lorries winding their way up and over the pass spoiled the journey entirely. For another year what should have been enjoyable was anything but. If there is anyone out there who knows of a route over the Alps that can end up at Lake Maggiore please please tell me what it is. Ive sworn never to do the Vevey-Brig-Simplon-Domodossola route again. Other than the traffic and oppressive heat this bit of the journey was uneventful. Somewhere I have a picture going over the top but given how fed up I was that I had done the entire journey at 20mph it probably isnt a very good one!! From there it was down to Lake Maggiore for the next stop before heading down past Milan and onto the coast towards Antibes.
A Ferrari in Italy near Maggiore....magical!
It was on the journey from Maggiore to Antibes that the first real scare occurred when just behind Ventimiglia on the autoroute along the coast at the French border we hit 8kms of very very slow moving traffic, all waiting to go through the border. All of this in 40C heat, much of it in tunnels with very little ventilation. I don't know what the exact outside temperature was in some of the tunnels but it was absolutely stifling and as we crept along...so water temperature needle crept up...up.....up and up some more. By the time we had got to the border an hour later I had already boiled over in blind panic with visions or radiator caps flying off, warped heads, split hoses, perhaps even a ruptured main hose under the intake manifold (thank god Rardley installed an armoured one) etc. The most frustrating thing was not being able to pull over to cool down as we were stuck in a tunnel. All drastic measures were taken - aircon off, heaters up to full and fans up to full. The car sounded more like a hovercraft than a Ferrari but with just about everything crossed and pouring sweat we passed through the border with the needle just touching red. To say I breathed a big sigh of relief is a huge understatement. I have no doubt whatsoever that had we not tended to the radiators this may well have been the end of the trip. Fate is a funny thing.
Once in France the car I checked end to end again - fluids etc, washed it and went hunting for somewhere to check the battery. I cannot stress enough how good the service was that I received at the particular SPD garage I visited on the Route de Grasse behind Juan les Pins. Perhaps it was the car but with a little Franglais and an indication that I knew a driveshaft from a head gasket it became a team effort to diagnose and sort out the starting problem. Thankfully, as expected, it was the battery that had expired, finally giving up the ghost in the heat. On test it was only throwing out 235A starting power and barely 9V under starting. Sadly they did not have a Varta battery (surprise!) so I opted for a German equivalent with the correct specification. From memory 75AH and 800A starting power - dont quote me though. The mechanics could not have been more amenable, recounting stories of working for Mr Fiat and delivering him his 550 Maranello in 1996, (which happened to be TDF blue), whilst expertly and carefully removing the old battery, repairing some rubber supports for the battery carrier and reinstalling the new unit. Whether the wonderful stories were true or not, they had proved an absolute lifesaver and so get a special picture on the thread! Fellow mechanic also taking a snap...a change from their routine of Renaults and Peugeots I would imagine.
We stayed for a week around Antibes and the next part of the journey took us just along to Cannes for a night....where the car decided to cause me a huge amount of grief. More to follow!
Edited by PHAB on Monday 7th September 14:01
Edited by PHAB on Monday 7th September 14:46
Edited by PHAB on Monday 7th September 22:44
SydneyBridge said:
Just read the thread from start to finish (er.. sorry boss...)
Love the headlamps in the kitchen photograph above.
Over the past 3 years, you must have had the last laugh, I don't know what the car is now worth, but it has proved a very good investment
Haha thanks. Needed a good worktop to do the job properly Love the headlamps in the kitchen photograph above.
Over the past 3 years, you must have had the last laugh, I don't know what the car is now worth, but it has proved a very good investment
I too have no idea what the car is worth - its pretty hard to gauge as the mileage is pretty unique. I suppose one day that number will be all but irrelevant and it will be easier to put a value on it but yes, going by the one that sold on the weekend at Silverstone for a huge sum I have been very fortunate and it has obviously worked out as a good buy. It wont affect how I run the car though, these machines need to be driven, loved and shared and thats what I will continue to do. Last laugh? Perhaps...although I must admit I was already laughing when I picked the car up from deepest darkest Cornwall and squeezed the throttle for the first time
Right.... Cannes. This is like recounting a nightmare but I will do so anyway. 35C heat in Cannes in July on a Sunday (typo ealier saying Saturday). Sitting at a set of traffic lights and with no warning whatsoever...the engine dies, and will not restart. Immediate panic as it has never done anything like this before. Panic builds as the lights go green and the rosbif 550 isn't moving. Cue hooting, cue a lot of people staring as a 550 starter motor whizz's over again and again, half catches, then dies again, again and again and again. Cue very red faces and this time nothing to do with a V12 reaching boiling point and a lack of air conditioning.
I wont repeat the of expletives but suffice it to say quite a few four letter words were muttered as I got out and pushed the car from the A pillar forwards and left down Rue la Fontaine (funny how the names stick with you), around the corner and to a stop outside a hotel called Le Cristal. Googlemaps will give you an idea. I wish I had a picture of the kind gentlemen who helped me but unfortunately getting pictures wasnt a priority at that moment. Having quickly popped into the hotel to let them know I was not intending on checking-in but just borrowing their forecourt, I set about working out what on earth to do. Not only was it a Sunday, a day on which not even the keenest french mechanic comes to work but I had also booked and paid for a fairly special hotel in Marseille that morning, something which was certainly not going to be refunded if I didnt pitch up that evening. If the hovercraft incident at Ventimiglia was 10 on the stress scale...we had just hit 11.
First things first I checked the obvious - fuel level...had the gauge got stuck and given me a false reading? No...not only did it read half full but I had zero'd the trip odometer and definitely had plenty left. Next item..fuel pumps. Perhaps they had packed up...wait a minute..."they". What is the chance of both packing up at once. Unlikely but I supposed possible and ah...I remember smelling a fuel smell going over the Simplon Pass 10 days beforehand, perhaps it was related! With my less-than-impressed companion deposited into the hotel with a drink I therefore started at the back. Having unpacked the boot I removed the interior trims and piece of ply that exposes the back of the tank and the two pumps. Both of which looked to be in fine condition although not making any nice ticking noises when the ignition was turned on...which I took as an indication that either they were primed or they were dead. So I repacked the boot and went back to the drawing board, convinced it was to do with fuelling.
Having feverishly tapped away on my phone and read a few forum threads I then got onto the fuel pump relays. Better check those. Where are they? Under the passenger footwell. Remove passenger footwell and expose the octopus of cables, fuses and relays. Remove and check every fuse and inspect the relays and all is well. Real head scratching now. More forum reading and more inquisitive people taking pictures of a very tidy 550 with the bonnet up and innards exposed. Next item, fuel cut off solenoid. I note Evo had this fail on their long termer and had to have it flat-bedded back to Maranello. Its the system by which the fuel supply to the engine is cut if it detects roll or impact. Where is it? Located bang underneath the battery, mounted on the inside of the wing. Ah! My mechanic must have given it a knock installing the new battery...find it and check it...its ok and the reset button hasn't been tripped. Real panic/despair setting in now. I should add between every check prod and wiggle I tried to restart the car... and each time more heads turned as the engine fired and then died in the same moment, with the starter still whining. Double and then triple checked the immobiliser was being deactivated and then remembered if it was engaged the engine wouldnt even be turning.
One scantily-clad lady in particular sticks in my memory. She walked past with her young son and said "My son loves your car"...to which I replied - whilst lifting my very red sweat covered face and grease covered burnt hands from somewhere under the bonnet, "I would too if it would start."....to which she quipped, "But its a Ferrari no? and arent all the best looking things in life supposed to be unfaithful!?" good one.
Back to the car. Im now thinking blocked fuel line. By this time a friend who had driven down in convoy with me had arrived from Antibes with a few basic tools and also the spare key to the car, which I had left with him incase the alarm went off whilst at his property in Antibes and I was out (ala Vevey). To check fuel lines I checked the fuel pressure by unscrewing the ends and squeezing the valve on each one. Psssssst both rail valves shoot a jet of super unleaded straight down my shirt. So that was that nothing wrong with the fuel pumps, filters or lines.
At this point I ran out of ideas, tried the car again and again no joy. 2 hours or so had passed and I must admit I was resigned to no dinner in Marseille, a very irritated concierge and the thought of trying to get a sick 550 1000 miles back to the UK with an undiagnosed problem which I had now decided was electrical; worst kind for a DIYer. It was just then as I sat defeated in the drivers seat, looking skywards sighing that my friend from Antibes handed me the spare keys and suggested I try them. So what the hell I thought...lets try them.
.....turn the key and foot flat on the floor in frustration and catch and VOOM. I think a couple of people behind the car jumped out of their skin as it exploded into life and shot to 6000rpm.
This post has gone on long enough but to complete it I drove back to Antibes following my friend for precaution to see if it would re-occur...and it didnt. It didn't occur at all and hasn't ever since, 2000 miles and countless trips later. To this day I have no idea why the spare key did the trick or whether it did or not...the normal key worked just fine afterwards as well. If anyone has any thoughts on this I would absolutely love to hear them. So that was that. We zipped down to Marseille, made dinner and everyone lived happily ever after. The journey back after that was blissfully uneventful other than being caught in Operation Stack, so I just have one photo from the obligatory stop in Burgundy to pick up something to ease the post holiday depression. This year we pitted at the stunning Chateau Meursault...a fitting final photo from another great trip in the 550!
As an afterthought....Had I not replaced the battery it would have almost certainly given up before I would have got the chance to try the spare key...fate again perhaps.
Edited by PHAB on Wednesday 9th September 15:24
My new PH hero.
Great read thanks for taking the time. I'm wondering has the keys got a rfid type chip in them like most cars these days which turns off the immobiliser. Not sure how the original key would work but I recently had similar because previous owner of a car had a key cut not realising ( or caring) that it should be chipped and programmed. It would turn over and not start.
Also interesting that it only started over heating after the re core, was the radiator rebuilt to the same sped as original?
Great read thanks for taking the time. I'm wondering has the keys got a rfid type chip in them like most cars these days which turns off the immobiliser. Not sure how the original key would work but I recently had similar because previous owner of a car had a key cut not realising ( or caring) that it should be chipped and programmed. It would turn over and not start.
Also interesting that it only started over heating after the re core, was the radiator rebuilt to the same sped as original?
Edited by Pesty on Wednesday 9th September 03:41
Pesty said:
My new PH hero.
Great read thanks for taking the time. I'm wondering has the keys got a rfid type chip in them like most cars these days which turns off the immobiliser. Not sure how the original key would work but I recently had similar because previous owner of a car had a key cut not realising ( or caring) that it should be chipped and programmed. It would turn over and not start.
Also interesting that it only started over heating after the re core, was the radiator rebuilt to the same sped as original?
Perhaps but it doesnt explain why the engine was running fine and then died before not wanting to restart. Both keys now work fine again too. Great read thanks for taking the time. I'm wondering has the keys got a rfid type chip in them like most cars these days which turns off the immobiliser. Not sure how the original key would work but I recently had similar because previous owner of a car had a key cut not realising ( or caring) that it should be chipped and programmed. It would turn over and not start.
Also interesting that it only started over heating after the re core, was the radiator rebuilt to the same sped as original?
Edited by Pesty on Wednesday 9th September 03:41
Re. the rad, yes it was recored to the same spec. I am going to replace / re-core the air con condenser this year as well as i think it is inhibiting airflow quite significantly, especially from the electric fans. I should stress again though, the car probably sat for an hour in 40C heat with zero airflow, only breathing in the heat exhaust from the 1000 other cars infront. It was a fairly unique situation and one I never plan on encountering again. I note that on another 550 owners forum there is quite a bit of talk about upgraded spec rads for people in California who have also had temperature issues - something with the beauty of hindsight I probably should have considered.
Great thread, thoroughly enjoyed that! If it was the 20th July that you had the horrible journey into France on the coast motorway, we too were stuck in the 3/4hr queue - and we also sat in the 40deg tunnels panicking that our old SL was going to expire. I also had a 6mth pregnant wife to contend with as well as the heat and worry!
It may well have been the 20th - you poor soul! Which old SL were you in? I picked up an R129 SL600 for a bit of fun over the summer and have done quite a bit to it....great cars built in an era where MB were in a class of their own. The V12 in the 600 is a work of art too....no wonder Pagani picked it up. Works documented here: http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/general-discussion/... . There were definitely times when I wished I had taken it and not the 550 on the trip. Maybe next year.
Edited by PHAB on Wednesday 9th September 15:21
PHAB said:
It may well have been the 20th - you poor soul! Which old SL were you in? I picked up an R129 SL600 for a bit of fun over the summer and have done quite a bit to it....great cars built in an era where MB were in a class of their own. The V12 in the 600 is a work of art too....no wonder Pagani picked it up. Works documented here: http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/general-discussion/... . There were definitely times when I wished I had taken it and not the 550 on the trip. Maybe next year.
I've previously posted on your thread over there. I too have a 129 but did our eurotrip in the 107, which took 2800 miles in its stride. Impressive! The lack of AC was tricky though. Edited by PHAB on Wednesday 9th September 15:21
PHAB said:
Perhaps but it doesnt explain why the engine was running fine and then died before not wanting to restart. Both keys now work fine again too.
No it doesn't at all, I was just wondering if the receiver ring wasn't picking up the original key or something was stuck. With the unchipped key my car replicates exactly what yours does then it takes a while for the real key to catch after trying to start with it. I knows nothing. Hmm anyway glad it's working can we get it to 200k miles please.
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