575M without Fiorano Pack

[ack0]

Does/has anyone run one of these?

Looking at a car currently without it. Lots of people say it really is a must/should have, some (mainly those with a car to sell) say you dont need it as Ferrari stiffened up the standard settings pretty quickly.

What are these beautiful bruisers like to live with/any weak spots etc?

Any real life advice gratefully received

[F355GTS]

Which Year is the Car you are looking at?

[johnnyreggae]

I've been doing a bit of research into these too since the EVO/Maser/Lukins saga as they seem very good value

As I understand it (helped by the excellent US site ferrarichat) very earliest UK 575 had a soft suspension ECU. Almost all of these were subsequently replaced and/or an upgraded item fitted before delivery. Since these are not sports cars but tourers the uprated item is more than satisfactory (especially given the state of our roads for which very hard suspension is undesirable).

So I get the feeling the FHP requirement is a myth developed from heresay based on the original road test.

[Murcielago_Boy]

johnnyreggae said:

I've been doing a bit of research into these too since the EVO/Maser/Lukins saga as they seem very good value

As I understand it (helped by the excellent US site ferrarichat) very earliest UK 575 had a soft suspension ECU. Almost all of these were subsequently replaced and/or an upgraded item fitted before delivery. Since these are not sports cars but tourers the uprated item is more than satisfactory (especially given the state of our roads for which very hard suspension is undesirable).

So I get the feeling the FHP requirement is a myth developed from heresay based on the original road test.

I beg to differ.
I found the non-fiorano early 575 one of the worst handling Ferraris I've ever driven. The car rolled like a steamship, dived under breaking like you would not believe and the bonnet pointed skywards under power. After driving the 550, it felt like a shambles. It generally felt uncontrollable and something you'd never want to hoon.
The suspension ECU is NOT enough. It needs stiffer springs and anti-roll bars and whatever else the 575 FHP was supposed to have. Even then, it wasn't as good as the 550 IMO. It took the horrifically overpriced HGTC to get it the way it always should have been.
My two pennies.

[ack0]

It is a 2005 54 plate car-will this have been uprated from the initial cars that were roadtested?

[F355GTS]

ack0 said:

It is a 2005 54 plate car-will this have been uprated from the initial cars that were roadtested?

It will have the uprated suspension and steering ECU's from the Fiorano pack and also the slightly louder exhaust as the mid box was deleted, the change was around Sept '04 I believe.

I had a 550 and an 2004 575 with FHP, difficult to tell them apart in real world use regards handling. I did drive a later non FHP car with upgraded ECU's and thought it very similar to my FHP car.


IMHO you should avoid a pre Sep'04 non FHP car, they were very very soft

[Giorginetto]

I have driven two 550s and now running a late 04 575M, i havent driven one with the Fiorano Handling pack I have to say . I find the 575 far superior in handling in every sense when compared to the 550 and the 575 is indeed a sports car ( someone said here it isnt which is hilarious imo , no disresepct for other's opinions though itended but if a V12 Ferrari isnt i dont know what is... ). I dont think the 575 's suspension is soft and i would reccomend the 575 to anyone with respect to perfomance, suspension, brakes etc. its a hugely underated car and far better and superior than early ferraris, the 355/360 berlinettas, 456M , i have done about 2000Km no problems or whatsover, it does look like a cruiser but its not an M6 for gods shake, its a proper Ferrari all round .

One critisism i have to make is the Sound which is a bit on the quite but i am looking to get a capristo and that should short this problemo out. The 575 is one of the best looking ferraris in my opinion , a great improvement over the 550 and one of the best ferrari interiors i have ever been into. I also found the F1 a bit aggresive and it takes a bit to get used to but not a problem !!! Far far better that the old V12 dinos and the V8s up to and including the 360......

[johnnyreggae]

F355GTS said:

ack0 said:

I did drive a later non FHP car with upgraded ECU's and thought it very similar to my FHP car.

IMHO you should avoid a pre Sep'04 non FHP car, they were very very soft

The other site's current thread suggests that there were about four generations of ECU fitted prior to the revised Sep 04 suspension ecu which included steering input BUT that this latter was basically the same as the last pre-sep-04 and that all were in fact fitted to both fhp & non-fhp so its only the springs which differ

[rubystone]

Giorginetto said:

Far far better that the old V12 dinos

F355GTS - didn't you have 2 550s before you bought a 575? I'd have thought that a guy who had owned and run examples of both might be better placed to judge than someone who had simply "driven" a 550....

[pistolp]

The general consensus is that the 550 is a much better car than the 575. I would say that the 575 would probably be easier to live with as it is just that little bit more modern and comfortable but its not a huge leap on from the 550. I think the 550 looks alot better, is better value and has also attained classic status. with that in mind it is a no brainer....
I owned a 550 and thought it was really sensational as a road car, hard to fault actually. My one criticism (apart from the uninspiring soundtrack) was that I found it hard to heel and toe. The only 575 I have driven was an F1, for me it was not a patch on the 550. Of course its all personal and you should try both, then decide.

[F355GTS]

rubystone said:

Giorginetto said:

Far far better that the old V12 dinos

F355GTS - didn't you have 2 550s before you bought a 575? I'd have thought that a guy who had owned and run examples of both might be better placed to judge than someone who had simply "driven" a 550....

Just the one 550 then changed to the 575 to get the F1. I recently considered buying another 575, fantastic value

[Obiwonkeyblokey]

I had a non FHP 575 and when pressing on you could feel it dip especially on undulating roads. However I paid the right money for the car at the time and the cost to upgrade ( circa 10K I was quoted) was not a figure that I felt would have justified the difference in handling. That said I had no intention of tracking the 575 and was very happy with its day to day comfort. I feel that on a track it may have felt like an Old Barge, bit on the road was very nice.

I havent driven the FHP car so cant comment on the differences, all I can say is that when it came to selling 80% of people wre pretty hung up on the FHP. Therefore if you buy a car without, make sure that you feel youre paying the right sort of money for it as it may only be more difficult to shift when sale time comes, which was my experience.

My objective wasnt to get the best handling, I was more interested in a tourer that went like a rocket and sounded like nothing else, simply wonderful..

[paul0843]

Have had both...would prefer 575 any time..better looking,feels more sorted..even with fhp the 575 will bounce
a bit..it's after all not far off 2 tons and a gt..
Reliability excellent on both...
If the price is right,then I don't think fhp is much of an issue....after all your buying a car for touring not track days