'Must haves' on a 430

[TheDeadPrussian]

I am thinking of changing my current 997 GT3 for a 430 coupe, I have read all of the old threads on here about making the change, and am content with the pros and cons, however being new to the potential Ferrari ownership world I am keen to get some feed back on the 'must have' accessories.

I have already been advised to go with the F1 (96% of sales apparently), but beyond this I am looking for advice.

Exterior colours and interior colours are personal choices, so I am happy to have the car I want. At the moment I am thinking either Rosso Corsa and black or the dark silver (not sure of the Ferrari name for it) and Rosso with black carpets. Both choices would have contrasting stitching in the exterior colour and red brake calipers, with Scuderia shields on the wings.

I don't want to over fill the car with unnecessary options, and conversely, I don't want to miss any 'must haves' off the list.

I have to have one eye on resale obviously, and so the car needs to be sufficiently attractive to the next owner. Happy to take suggestions, from those who know about these things!

[kryten22uk]

I found that when I was looking for an F430 recently, got unnecessarily bogged down and obsessed with options. Now that I have the car, I realise what a waste of time it was. Choose the colour scheme you want (incl contrast stitching), make sure it has Scud shields then buy the car!

The car itself is what matters. Its incredible.

If you want SatNav and/or Bluetooth, dont wait for a car that already has it. I got them to fit Bluetooth and SatNav to mine whilst it was at dealers. They do so with the normal 2008 ferrari kit for 900quid incl fitting.

[TheDeadPrussian]

Sorry, should have made it clear in the original post, the car will be purchased new. So I am talking about 'must haves' on original specification, what shouldn't I miss on the list.

As I have just thought about it, does anyone know of any MY09 upgrades that are in the pipeline for the car? Rumours of Direct Injection engines etc (more power, lower emissions), but I am presuming this will be on the replacement for the 430.

[RogerB]

The only thing I would say is that the carbon sports seats and carbon driving zone (with the zero cost carbon dash trim option) are really fantastic and make the car feel a lot more special. Regarding the sports seats, I would never have a Ferrari again without them.

[Murcielago_Boy]

If you're buying used make sure the car has ceramic brakes. my ownership experience was tarnished by the fact that the steel brakes are hopeless and run out of juice after just a few high speed stops.

[andrew!]

I spent endless hours on this last year.
I wanted a new TDF or Nero car with racing seats, Daytona trim and CS wheels.
Three dealers insisted that a Rosso F1 with a satnav, donkey shields etc was necessary for resale.
I compromised and bought a Lambo.
A

[gizard]

Murcielago_Boy said:

If you're buying used make sure the car has ceramic brakes. my ownership experience was tarnished by the fact that the steel brakes are hopeless and run out of juice after just a few high speed stops.

It's interesting to hear comments on the brakes - I too am after a 430F1 with Race seats (although s/h) after having a 997GT3 for a while.

I have heard that the Fccb's can wear out by 15k which scares me as their cica 10k to replace!!! invearsly I have heard that the steels are not fantastic but are a hell of lot cheaper to replace.

What was you specific issues with the steels - did they boil the fluid too pickly or something else?

cheers

G

to the OP - on the s/h market there are very few cars with Race seats - personally i can't get comfortable in the standard or Daytonna items so Race seats are a must for me.

[Loz8]

I got the closest I could (at the time of buying) to the spec I had in mind, but ended up without the seats I wanted and regret it a little now, so agree that that is an important choice. Apart from that, shields obv and personally I like the matching seat 'hoops'as an extra...Ceramics I think are big expense and probably only pay you back if you are going to track it but I stand corrected on this one as I dont track my 430.

[kryten22uk]

Racing seats arent a "must have" for resale. They're purely a personal choice, and wont necessarily help you sell it on later. (They'll obviously appeal to those who specifically want them though)

I thought brand new cars now got CCB as standard (albeit with a higher base model price)?

[gizard]

kryten22uk said:

Racing seats arent a "must have" for resale. They're purely a personal choice, and wont necessarily help you sell it on later. (They'll obviously appeal to those who specifically want them though)

I thought brand new cars now got CCB as standard (albeit with a higher base model price)?

You are correct Racing seats are not a must have - infact cars available on the s/h market would certainly reflect this!

CCB's are now a std. item on 08 cars as told to me by two different dealers and yes a higher base price reflects this.

[Loz8]

You do have to look at what adds to your own enjoyment tho not just the resale issue and I think the seats make a difference and whilst you may not get your return on them financially it may make the car easier to sell if you have to get out of it quicky for whatever reason (especially given the numbers of 430s we are seeing on the market now). Noted re brakes presume that adds a fair amount to the new list price?

[Murcielago_Boy]

gizard said:

Murcielago_Boy said:

If you're buying used make sure the car has ceramic brakes. my ownership experience was tarnished by the fact that the steel brakes are hopeless and run out of juice after just a few high speed stops.

It's interesting to hear comments on the brakes - I too am after a 430F1 with Race seats (although s/h) after having a 997GT3 for a while.

I have heard that the Fccb's can wear out by 15k which scares me as their cica 10k to replace!!! invearsly I have heard that the steels are not fantastic but are a hell of lot cheaper to replace.

What was you specific issues with the steels - did they boil the fluid too pickly or something else?

cheers

G

to the OP - on the s/h market there are very few cars with Race seats - personally i can't get comfortable in the standard or Daytonna items so Race seats are a must for me.

I found that they never gave any confidence - I think the discs are just too small to dissipate heat properly - five minutes on your favourite country A-road and the pedal travel gets longer, soggier, you hear them whirring away and you find yourself really stamping on the pedal to slow the car down - like they're struggling. Just felt like they belonged to a different (smaller) car. I wore out a complete set of pads and discs in 3000 miles of which only 1000 were spent hooning it outside central London. On a track they'd be bloody awful and those guys I know who seriously track them have all upgraded to the Brembo GT kit.
I suppose it didn't help that my old Porsches all had floating alcons. You'll hate the brakes if you've come from a GT3.

A friend who manages a dealer from whom I did NOT buy the car, told me the truth: they're basically the same brakes as the 360 and given that the car is quite bit quicker they're just not up to the job. Ferrari knew it and did it to make money - forcing people to option the CCBs - at launch, all the press cars had CCB's so no journos reported any issues...
Ferrari have saved people the hassle on 08 car by putting 'em on standard and charging £9k for it. Money well spent IMHO.

Edited by Murcielago_Boy on Thursday 1st May 13:53

[jleroux]

to be fair, I can probably count on one hand the number of cars (ever) to have left the factory with anything more than adequate brakes.

[gizard]

Murcielago_Boy said:

I found that they never gave any confidence - I think the discs are just too small to dissipate heat properly - five minutes on your favourite country A-road and the pedal travel gets longer, soggier, you hear them whirring away and you find yourself really stamping on the pedal to slow the car down - like they're struggling. Just felt like they belonged to a different (smaller) car. I wore out a complete set of pads and discs in 3000 miles of which only 1000 were spent hooning it outside central London. On a track they'd be bloody awful and those guys I know who seriously track them have all upgraded to the Brembo GT kit.
I suppose it didn't help that my old Porsches all had floating alcons. You'll hate the brakes if you've come from a GT3.

A friend who manages a dealer from whom I did NOT buy the car, told me the truth: they're basically the same brakes as the 360 and given that the car is quite bit quicker they're just not up to the job. Ferrari knew it and did it to make money - forcing people to option the CCBs - at launch, all the press cars had CCB's so no journos reported any issues...
Ferrari have saved people the hassle on 08 car by putting 'em on standard and charging £9k for it. Money well spent IMHO.

Edited by Murcielago_Boy on Thursday 1st May 13:53

What does the brembo GT kit cost and does it invalidate the ferrari warranty?

[Murcielago_Boy]

gizard said:

Murcielago_Boy said:

I found that they never gave any confidence - I think the discs are just too small to dissipate heat properly - five minutes on your favourite country A-road and the pedal travel gets longer, soggier, you hear them whirring away and you find yourself really stamping on the pedal to slow the car down - like they're struggling. Just felt like they belonged to a different (smaller) car. I wore out a complete set of pads and discs in 3000 miles of which only 1000 were spent hooning it outside central London. On a track they'd be bloody awful and those guys I know who seriously track them have all upgraded to the Brembo GT kit.
I suppose it didn't help that my old Porsches all had floating alcons. You'll hate the brakes if you've come from a GT3.

A friend who manages a dealer from whom I did NOT buy the car, told me the truth: they're basically the same brakes as the 360 and given that the car is quite bit quicker they're just not up to the job. Ferrari knew it and did it to make money - forcing people to option the CCBs - at launch, all the press cars had CCB's so no journos reported any issues...
Ferrari have saved people the hassle on 08 car by putting 'em on standard and charging £9k for it. Money well spent IMHO.

Edited by Murcielago_Boy on Thursday 1st May 13:53

What does the brembo GT kit cost and does it invalidate the ferrari warranty?

I didn't have it myself but I think it's about £4k for new calipers, discs, and bell thingys.
Fk what Ferrari say, nothing can legally invalidate warranty unless it's SHOWN to damage the car; My Spider had tubi exhaust, modded suspension, totally non standard ride height and geo and when it went in for warranty work the only thing they said was how good it looked and sounded

[TheDeadPrussian]

Ceramics are now standard on all cars, the base price of the 430 F1 Coupe is now around £143,600.

So far, having looked at the seats in the car, the standard items, the Daytona style (not a great deal of difference other than slightly different centre sections, no extra blostering as far as I can tell and which cost an extra £1,500 or so) and the race seats, I am thinking I'll probably stick to the standard items.
However, coming out of a Club Sport GT3 and and getting straight into the 430 the other day for a test drive, I did feel as though I was sitting very high up and on top of the seat and not 'in it', so I am open to persuasion on this point. I think I'll have to try the race seats, are there any everyday use issues (excessive wear and tear when getting in and out)?

With regard to SatNav, the system seems quite rudimentary but I am led to believe it is one of those things required for resale. The leather rear bench wall and headliner are probably going to go in to the car as well, but do seem overpriced (£1,500 or so for both). Bluetooth, again I think is required for resale, unless someone tells me any different.

I would value your opinions on the following options however:

Electrically operated seats (obviously not if I opt for race seats)
Tyre Pressure Monitoring
Batter Charger/Conditioner preparation
iPod connection - does the car come with one?
Uprated HiFi system (not the top price £5K plus but the upgrade)
Run Flat Tyres

Thanks to all for your thoughts so far.

[andrew!]

daytona is purely a trim option on the standard seat
sports seats allowed me to sit in rather than on the car ( i'm 6'2 )
tpm would appear sensible
sat nav looked pretty crap to me too
leather in the back seams a waste of £ unless you spend a lot of time back there
stonking car
hth, a

[Webber3]

TheDeadPrussian said:

With regard to SatNav, the system seems quite rudimentary but I am led to believe it is one of those things required for resale. The leather rear bench wall and headliner are probably going to go in to the car as well, but do seem overpriced (£1,500 or so for both). Bluetooth, again I think is required for resale, unless someone tells me any different.

Take a look at the used vehicles on Autotrader, hardly any are advertised as having Satnav or Bluetooth. If you're worried about resale, Rosso Corsa with Crema seems to be the most popular choice.

TheDeadPrussian said:

I would value your opinions on the following options however:

Electrically operated seats (obviously not if I opt for race seats)
Tyre Pressure Monitoring
Batter Charger/Conditioner preparation
iPod connection - does the car come with one?
Uprated HiFi system (not the top price £5K plus but the upgrade)
Run Flat Tyres

Thanks to all for your thoughts so far.

I wouldn't bother with run flat tyres. I've got them on my BMW and they don't do much for the ride quality. BMW don't have these on their M cars either, which must tell you something.

Edited by Webber3 on Thursday 1st May 19:48

[gumshoe]

Webber3 said:

Take a look at the used vehicles on Autotrader, hardly any are advertised as having Satnav or Bluetooth. If you're worried about resale, Rosso Corsa with Crema seems to be the most popular choice.

If you want to get killed on resale. Anything but red and silver are the way to go if you want to be able to get rid of it for a decent price. Yellow might be a bit dangerous but at least it's different.

[TheDeadPrussian]

Colour combinations are of course personal preference, but for me I have never really been a fan of the 'red and cream thing'.

Black or dark silver with a red interior, or red with a black interior is my current thinking (with contrasting stitching), not the most inventive or adventurous of choices I know, but hey, it's my car!

I have to say yellow is very nice though.