Every day tips for living with a 599

[cake eater]

F12 wheels are on with new MPS cup 2 rubber on the rear.

Passenger wing mirror gasket is changed. No more putting my little finger in the hole.



Engine Oil is filled, car run up to temp, it takes all 12 litres and the level checked, it's perfect, 10mm above minimum.

There's some more stuff to do but will have to wait till I'm back from work.

Edited by cake eater on Monday 15th April 22:46

[samoht]

Wow, that's a lot of fixes and improvements. Thanks for sharing the pics etc. I bet you can't wait to go for a good drive once it's all sorted.

[DeejRC]

I think you finally have Triggers 599 Cake…

[Purso]

Respect to you op for your commitment to the car!! she is lucky to have you, your investment must be pretty substantial now.

[White-Noise]

Really interesting to read cake eater. Given your comment about the engine oil do you know when it was last changed and would you consider (or did they say) to change it more frequently? Did they comment on the wear of the box/diff given the little fragments?

It's lovely having fresh work done on the car. I get nervous with folks touching the cars if I am present. I'd rather not see what they do in some ways, I'd be wanting to say please be careful, why are you doing that and generally being a pain as id want it done perfectly

Gets my inner mechanic itch going seeing this. Mine have fsh so I get all the work done at a garage but I feel like I need to buy something I can tinker with more!

[cake eater]

samoht said:

Wow, that's a lot of fixes and improvements. Thanks for sharing the pics etc. I bet you can't wait to go for a good drive once it's all sorted.

Hi Samoth,

Thank you

I really can't wait to drive the 599 properly

[cake eater]

DeejRC said:

I think you finally have Triggers 599 Cake…

Is it the same broom if only like for like? Definitely a new broom but same skin.

Can we say that of ourselves?

We need to go and sail with Theseus

[cake eater]

Purso said:

Respect to you op for your commitment to the car!! she is lucky to have you, your investment must be pretty substantial now.

Yeah, there's no denying the cost of the maintenance.

Major items like the clutch, brakes, diff and F1 system are a large % of the total 'investment'. Oils are probably the next biggest bill for maintaining not counting labour.

MDL are significant saving over Ferrari labour costs and I think Mark has more in-depth knowledge of the car and Ferraris in general

Upgrades are a minor % of the investment in comparison.

And then the milage and type of miles. Today I passed 29k miles in the car since purchase. At this age of car, plus the miles if I could discount the majority replacement items then probably the major cost would be fuel and normal service.

Anyway, this is more man maths justification

[akadk]

Not many people have done nearly 30k in a V12 Fezza

Respect

[cake eater]

White-Noise said:

Really interesting to read cake eater. Given your comment about the engine oil do you know when it was last changed and would you consider (or did they say) to change it more frequently? Did they comment on the wear of the box/diff given the little fragments?

It's lovely having fresh work done on the car. I get nervous with folks touching the cars if I am present. I'd rather not see what they do in some ways, I'd be wanting to say please be careful, why are you doing that and generally being a pain as id want it done perfectly

Gets my inner mechanic itch going seeing this. Mine have fsh so I get all the work done at a garage but I feel like I need to buy something I can tinker with more!

Hi White-Noise,

Engine Oil was last done at the Nurburgring in October. So since last change it's done: one day at Nurburgring, trip to Scotland, FOC at Donington and trip to Croatia.
Gearbox oil was quite a bit longer ago (poor English, sorry)

I change the engine oil based on use as well as time / milage. My normal rule is two / three trackdays plus annual but probably the long high speed running means I need to do it more often. Drift is probably quite hard on the car too.

Gearbox oil has probably suffered from more heat as MDL set the diff to lock up a little more than standard (recommendation for track / hard use)

Lee at MDL said the copper is the syncos but there's just a tiny trace so something to monitor. The swarf on the plugs was minimal so not something to worry about yet.
Hopefully with the HGTE gearbox ECU better rev matching it will help address any early wear.

Actually I like to get my hands dirty. MDL have said I need to bring my own pair of coveralls but rubber gloves are free. I learn a lot more about the car, I like to be there when stuff is checked so I can see for myself, probably this comes from my work also.

And I really enjoy spending time with Mark, Lee and Ryan while working on my 599. They don't mind my questions, general chit chat. I trust them and I get to see.

What did Ronald Regan say? "Trust but verify"

Lee and Mark are always available. They give follow up calls after services and helped out with video calls late in the evening when I'm struggling to get something fixed when I've been in Europe at another garage.

[cake eater]

akadk said:

Not many people have done nearly 30k in a V12 Fezza

Respect

Hi akadk,

Certainly not so many in just 2 years and 3 months.
Though I think people do more miles than they let on. Ferraris are so milage sensitive for price that I have heard they get clocked a lot.

[cake eater]

I like the look of the 599 with the F12 rims on. The weight difference is quite significant compared to the challenge rims. There's also a lot more clearance for the doughnuts.



But I'm nervous of the pot holes driving with these rims on Cup 2 tyres. I feel like I'm weaving all over the road and I still can't avoid all the pot holes


Last night driving back in the rain and dark the lack of softness in the car is much more noticeable. Probably because of the tyres she's tramlining a lot more and it's a little difficult to relax.

This morning the roads are dry and I'm over the cat and fiddle to suspension secrets. The HGTE upgrade much enjoyed and the cornering compared to previous a revelation.
https://suspensionsecrets.co.uk/



After all the bushing and track rod ends being replaced the geometry will need doing again.

I have given suspension secrets the GTO geometry that MDL put into the car as a starting guide.

Matt and Jack are going to corner weight the car. I have asked not to run any lower and for a geo that will allow me to drive to the Nurburgring, blast around the circuit and drive home.

Something neutral but with a nice pointy front end.

[cake eater]

I'm trying to find a technical bulletin for the Cup 2 tyres. I can find the 2R.



I'm basically following this for Cup 2 pressures. 36 psi square setup on track.

For the road I follow this from the F12 handbook


This is because the 599 manual doesn't give Michelin as an optional tyre


GTO manual gives the same as F12 so I think 32/35 R/F is pretty good for the road for the MPS4s and Cup 2.

[cgt2]

akadk said:

Not many people have done nearly 30k in a V12 Fezza

Respect

I did in a 550 and it ran better than any low miler out there.

[cake eater]

cgt2 said:

akadk said:

Not many people have done nearly 30k in a V12 Fezza

Respect

I did in a 550 and it ran better than any low miler out there.

For sure

My friends McLaren hardly leaves his garage. Every time he goes out it springs a leak. Garage queens are all the same

[GusB]

Great writing as usual.... My 599 is the same colour and I agree re using them, I've done c34,000 miles in 10 years... not a patch on you. Gus

[supersport]

cake eater said:

DeejRC said:

I think you finally have Triggers 599 Cake…

Is it the same broom if only like for like? Definitely a new broom but same skin.

Can we say that of ourselves?

We need to go and sail with Theseus

That’s the second time Theseus has come up in 24 hours in relation to the broom.

I’d never come across him until yesterday and now twice.

[cake eater]

supersport said:

cake eater said:

DeejRC said:

I think you finally have Triggers 599 Cake…

Is it the same broom if only like for like? Definitely a new broom but same skin.

Can we say that of ourselves?

We need to go and sail with Theseus

That’s the second time Theseus has come up in 24 hours in relation to the broom.

I’d never come across him until yesterday and now twice.

PH, source of intellectual mastication

[cake eater]

GusB said:

Great writing as usual.... My 599 is the same colour and I agree re using them, I've done c34,000 miles in 10 years... not a patch on you. Gus

10 years of pleasure I hope

[GusB]

Yep, I have thought about changing for a 911 Turbo, Bentley and Lambo over the years and ended up staying faithful as it's the combination of the V12, looks, comfort, space and pace that makes every trip epic.... road trips in Italy are a particular highlight and are highly recommended... I look forward to your updates!!