buying my first Ferrari - a 458 - tips

[MingtheMerciless]

I'm going to Scotland next weekend and will put maybe 1000 miles on it. I can't wait. Don't care what the effect on value is.

Edited by MingtheMerciless on Friday 14th September 10:33

[PrancingHorses]

Awesome - I did the same in July! Awesome roads up there! Enjoy....

[BlackR8]

so looks like we all have similar experiences buying from a Ferrari Main Dealer. Thats good, because I don't feel as bad now having not been able to get anything off sticker when trying to negotiate on a Ferrari I was interested in. They will throw in Ceramic Coating and a tank of fuel in for you if that means anything

[nbot]

Hi all
So test drove a 458 - the car has had all its services last one a couple of months ago - I have the report from the dealer and baring a couple of minor cosmetic niggles they mention everything was in the green - most importantly all the engine related items. The car has been in the dealers garage for 2 months not driven - I took it out for a test drive and all was great other than I felt the breaks were extremely stiff.... the dealer rep said it takes time for the cc breaks and the fluids to get up to temperature.... I’ve had carbon ceramic breaks before on a 911 Turbo S and don’t remember them being this stiff.... is this a Ferrari thing... is this common on 458’s. appreciate any views on this.

Cheers.

Edited by nbot on Saturday 29th September 15:54

[F355GTS]

nbot said:

Hi all
So test drove a 458 - the car has had all its services last one a couple of months ago - I have the report from the dealer and baring a couple of minor cosmetic niggles they mention everything was in the green - most importantly all the engine related items. The car has been in the dealers garage for 2 months not driven - I took it out for a test drive and all was great other than I felt the breaks were extremely stiff.... the dealer rep said it takes time for the cc breaks and the fluids to get up to temperature.... I’ve had carbon ceramic breaks before on a 911 Turbo S and don’t remember them being this stiff.... is this a Ferrari thing... is this common on 458’s. appreciate any views on this.

Cheers.

Edited by nbot on Saturday 29th September 15:54

There are a number of threads running on Ferrarichat and CS about 458 brakes. I've experienced poor braking on mine and 2 dealer visits has not resolved it, thoughts seem to centre o poor/ leaking vacuum to the servo or a faulty servo

[BobTurner]

nbot said:

Hi all
So test drove a 458 - the car has had all its services last one a couple of months ago - I have the report from the dealer and baring a couple of minor cosmetic niggles they mention everything was in the green - most importantly all the engine related items. The car has been in the dealers garage for 2 months not driven - I took it out for a test drive and all was great other than I felt the breaks were extremely stiff.... the dealer rep said it takes time for the cc breaks and the fluids to get up to temperature.... I’ve had carbon ceramic breaks before on a 911 Turbo S and don’t remember them being this stiff.... is this a Ferrari thing... is this common on 458’s. appreciate any views on this.

Cheers.

Edited by nbot on Saturday 29th September 15:54

Would agree that the brakes benefit from getting a bit of heat into them, and first time you use them can be a bit of a shock in terms of how much pressure you need to use to get them to do something.

Just on the inspection, make sure there is no question around the condition of the dampers - they all seem to go eventually and it seems to start with a “light misting” of fluid which might be missed/ignored until it gets serious and necessities replacement-which has to be as a pair and they cannot be rebuilt (yet)....I think I also read somewhere, Durzel, perhaps that they don’t cover them under the F warranty; oh, and they’re £5k a pair (or something like that)

[Durzel]

Yup.

My 458 had a Power warranty and I found out to my considerable cost that shocks aren't covered (oil leaks are explicitly excluded). Wrote a letter to Ferrari UK explaining that I'd had the car two months and it had done a total of 7500 miles - made no difference.

You should in theory be safe buying from a main dealer but definitely get them checked prior to purchase. Any misting at all and Ferrari will recommend replacement (I assume misting means they have failed)

Regards brakes - I didn't notice any stiffness with mine, but they will squeal a bit if you make a habit of braking gently. Easy enough to fix - brake harder

[PrancingHorses]

...and thats why I think the Power Warranty is useless as it don't cover wear and tear either! I recently had my shocks replaced under warranty at a cost of £5k but I was lucky I had a warranty direct warranty and they paid it in full apart from the £50 excess - and yes they do cover wear and tear on that warranty too

[nbot]

Hi guys,
thanks all for the comments - very interesting. So the car I am considering is under a Ferrari Power Warranty but seems like that does not cover much. But back to my original question regarding the stiff break pedal - I am assuming this is just a character trait of the car - I drove the car and bloody hell its like nothing else I have ever driven - super responsive - I loved it, but will take some getting used to compared to the other cars I have owned - the issue with the shocks that has been mentioned, I assume is a separate point to note regarding these cars and completely unrelated to the stiff break pedal....

Cheers.

Edited by nbot on Monday 1st October 10:34

[willy wombat]

+1 on the shocks. Mine were changed at 6000 miles but luckily car (458 spider) only two years old so fully covered under warranty. I have never considered the brake pedal to be "stiff" (but I agree that until you get some heat into the brakes they don't do a lot). I would suggest either you drive two or three 458s to see whether they all feel the same to you or get someone familiar with 458s to drive the car you are thinking of buying. Only other point I'd make is that if you drive a 458 after driving a 488, the 458's brakes will feel poor as the 488's brakes are epic.

[PrancingHorses]

So coming back to the brakes - when I bought mine it felt the same - spongy but hard brake feel with not a lot of stopping power! After complaining and then escalating my complaint the dealer finally agreed to change the pads all round - this made a world of difference to the braking feel on my car. The Ceramics do need to warm up before they actually have any decent stopping power but changing the pads all round made the pedal feel much better. On a cold winter morning you actually have to be bloody careful as for the first 10 mins or so you have no brakes

[MingtheMerciless]

I have the Power Warranty and it covered a trip to Maranello for my gearbox for a rebuild. I shudder to think what it would have cost.


Meanwhile another glorious 900+ miles of depreciation in Scotland.

Edited by MingtheMerciless on Wednesday 3rd October 21:09

[MingtheMerciless]

[nbot]

hi all - so I am delighted to say that I put down a deposit on my first Ferrari the other day - collecting in a few weeks. Wanted to say a big thanks to everyone who contributed in this thread to my questions. Hopefully I will see some of you guys out and about at some upcoming supercar events in the new season. I will of course send photos of the car once I have collected!

Cheers.

[sparta6]

nbot said:

Wow!!! i am extremely impressed by this intelligence! how on earth do you know all this!? A very very useful update on the cars history and movements.

thanks for sharing this with me, much appreciated. I am happy its has largely stayed within the Ferrari dealer network!

Edited by nbot on Tuesday 11th September 17:10

JT has special talents

[GTSJOE]

I’ve recently bought a 458 Italia from Maranello, great service, 2012 car, 15,000 miles, all the right options & Pozzi blue. Asking £149,900, Ferrari offered £3,000 off asking & Gtech thrown in & 2 year warranty. Salesman very confident about mkt as 458’s still seem to be selling well, not big discounts.

[v12uuu]

What a great thread. I too am in the market for a 458 and in the process of viewing. Very helpful to hear some actual experience at a main dealer in terms of discount.

Enjoy you new car!

[_Superleggera_]

v12uuu said:

What a great thread. I too am in the market for a 458 and in the process of viewing. Very helpful to hear some actual experience at a main dealer in terms of discount.

Enjoy you new car!

What are you looking for exactly spec wise?

[v12uuu]

It must be Rosso Red. Otherwise, I am very interested in the view of the forum.

(Btw. I am not trying to solicit private offers. Strictly main dealer for this size of purchase.)

[GTSJOE]

Agreed... I would go through a main dealer. Maranello gave a 2 year warranty, also car had another year left of the service pack so nothing to do until 2020!