First Ferrari - 360 Modena or F430?

[interstellar]

I bought a Cayman 4.0 GTS in the spring which has been great as a daily but next week I have a leased SUV arriving for daily duties and the Cayman will be a weekend car.

As it’s a weekend car I am considering swapping it for one of the above. It would be my first Ferrari after many Porsches but it’s about the occasion for me not out and out performance. I don’t take my cars on track so that side of it doesn’t bother me, it’s the owner experience and I have always wanted one so why not.

The only stipulation is Rosso with Crema but would one be better suited for weekend use. Plus and minuses for the 360 over the F430 and vice versa?

Budget is ideally around 60k

[blueg33]

Buy the best one you can find of either type.

You may be able to get a manual 360, you will not get a manual 430.

360 is imo better looking, more raw. 430 more power, better F1 box software, mannetino but rear looks a bit unresolved with odd shutlines.

F430 is a facelift of the 360 so many characteristics are the same.

Try and drive both. I toyed with replacing my 360 with a 430. Decided not too as they are similar and I preferred the 360 engine.

Edited by blueg33 on Thursday 9th October 21:52

[supersport]

Agree all the above other than I preferred the 430. Slightly more modern looking and better interior.

The engine had more wallop.

You can’t go wrong with either, find what you prefer.

I think you’ll find them quite draw compared to the GTS but they are great cars. They are looking quite classy now.

Still miss my old 430.

Have a look at Voicey’s buying guide https://aldousvoice.com/

[interstellar]

Thanks both, I agree on the look of the 430 and do prefer the 360 look. Thanks for the link, that looks very useful.

In terms of spec are they all fairly similar, what are the must haves?

Also, I think most will have the F1 gearbox. Although I owuld prefer manual whats the F1 like?

[blueg33]

interstellar said:

Thanks both, I agree on the look of the 430 and do prefer the 360 look. Thanks for the link, that looks very useful.

In terms of spec are they all fairly similar, what are the must haves?

Also, I think most will have the F1 gearbox. Although I owuld prefer manual whats the F1 like?

My 360 is an F!. Firstly its always worth remembering that an F1 is an early paddleshift technology and is nothing like a modern dual clutch. It can be slow to change, but in sport mode on the open road its fine. Around town, in traffic jams and reversing up hill it can be annoying. You can improve it in a 360 by installing the Challenge Stradale TCU but that costs around £3k.

If you do not drive the F1 sympathetically (many articles online), you will wear the clutch out relatively quickly. Try and avoid creeping the car, reversing uphill or driving so the clutch is slipping, eg I often flip into neutral and roll along rather than creep.

You have to think of the F1 as a manual, eg handbrake on hill starts etc.

Must haves - check over by someone like Aldous from AV engineering!

In the car its subjective, the CS rear grill helps get heat out of the engine bay, full leather is nice, daytona seats better than standard IMO and buckets better again (but rare). Make sure you have a complete Ferrari tool kit and 3 key fobs including the red one. In the handbook you should also have an envelope with a 4 digit PIN. This pin is important if you need to programme new fobs. Ferrari mats are generally nicer than aftermarket ones.

In reality most cars are similar specs or hard to tell apart. Options were limited mainly to: to F1 box, paint, seats, full leather, contrast stitching, zenon lights, starfish or 2 piece wheels (I prefer the former), coloured brake calipers, cd changer, shields on the wings. My car has all of the options except the wheels, but in reality its hard to tell when its parked next to another with fewer options.

The main thing to focus on is not spec but condition, that's why a specialist needs to look it over. Its a Ferrari, some parts are not cheap, some are cheaper than you would expect, eg brake discs are cheaper than discs for my 2024 Volvo daily driver.

They are stunning cars, they are special and make you feel special, but do go in eyes open, they are 20 year old supercars.

If you register the car on the My Ferrari App you get free international breakdown cover (I have never used it but its good for peace of mind)

Gratuitous pic of mine. Same spec as Jenson Buttons 360 except I have better seats and a less able driver….

Edited by blueg33 on Friday 10th October 08:31

[interstellar]

Looks lovely mate and a nice colour combination. I need to drive the F1 and see how I get on.

I just saw this manual that looks good on the face of it but appreciate this is a car that I will end up with a different one to what I want probably, as condition dictates everything.

This manual looks cheap and I would get anything I considered inspected for sure

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/227004396517

[blueg33]

Looks pretty good. It only has 2 keys. It MUST have the red key fob that is the master that allows you to programme other fobs

[johnnyreggae]

the fob/pin thing is far less critical than 10 or even 5 years ago as pin extraction and/or fob replacement are now much easily achievable

[blueg33]

johnnyreggae said:

the fob/pin thing is far less critical than 10 or even 5 years ago as pin extraction and/or fob replacement are now much easily achievable

Indeed but not cheap - ask me how I know.....

[interstellar]

It has the red key, I checked with the seller.

Edited by interstellar on Friday 10th October 12:56

[blueg33]

interstellar said:

It has the red key, I checked with the seller.

Edited by interstellar on Friday 10th October 12:56

Good

[HardtopManual]

blueg33 said:

johnnyreggae said:

the fob/pin thing is far less critical than 10 or even 5 years ago as pin extraction and/or fob replacement are now much easily achievable

Indeed but not cheap - ask me how I know.....

I can retrieve PINs for 360s in the UK for a few hundred quid. Same again for a new set of fobs.

[blueg33]

HardtopManual said:

blueg33 said:

johnnyreggae said:

the fob/pin thing is far less critical than 10 or even 5 years ago as pin extraction and/or fob replacement are now much easily achievable

Indeed but not cheap - ask me how I know.....

I can retrieve PINs for 360s in the UK for a few hundred quid. Same again for a new set of fobs.

There is risk though. The alarm ECU has to be sent to you. If it gets lost in the post then its possible that a replacement won't work.

I needed a new red fob, a new black fob and the pin retrieving - total cost just under £1k

Edited by blueg33 on Friday 10th October 15:24

[Mark_Blanchard]

I've owned my 360 for 5 years now and it's been very reliable and a great car, it has a Challenge grill and Tubi loud exhaust. I absolutely love the thing and love the sound of the last incarnation of the Dino V8 engine.

You might be able to get a higher mile F430 F1 for your budget, but it's worth checking the manifolds are Tubi and not the standard Ferrari's ones, as they can fail and cause a great deal of engine damage.

A friend changed his F430 manifolds for Ferrari ones, owned the car a couple of years and then sold it. Within a month of the new owner taking delivery of the car, the manifolds had failed and the car had to have an engine rebuild. I know a number of other owners having the same issue.

[MingtheMerciless]

I had a 360 manual with challenge grille and a Tubi and loved it. I changed it for an F430 Spider and also loved it.

You need to try both. I had the 360 for a number of years and was ready to move on. I think the F430 is a better car overall and has so much more grunt that it is a different experience to the 360. But you won't feel short changed in a well sorted 360 with a Tubi. I have never driven an F1 360 but I imagine it is a different experience so I'd be trying for a manual. Any more specific questions please ask.

[Ted Maul]

I don't think you would be disappointed with either car but 60k is probably at the riskier end of the F430 market. They do get under your skin though, I was going to sell my F430 after 12 months and I've still got it after four years and struggling to let it go. Mind you, I recently totted up my maintenance costs since I've had it. That was painful.

Edited by Ted Maul on Friday 10th October 21:36