What should you do when a defective part on your Ferrari fails outside of the warranty? Buy the same part, with the same defects, and it will fail again? If not, what alternatives are available to you? Are they complicated to implement? Will you be able to make a financial difference? Without losing the authenticity of your Ferrari?

@cheki's feedback on the Magneride shock absorbers on his Ferrari 599 GTB is very interesting and characteristic enough to provide you with concrete leads.

What's the problem?

When I came back to pick up my Ferrari 599 GTB after it had been inspected, the inspector told me, "It's perfect, super clean, there's just a little grease on the right front shock absorber body, but nothing majorly out of balance!"
The poor guy must have seen my face turn pale, and despite his "No, nothing serious, eh! A slight leak to watch out for," the cause was clear to me: something had to be done.

So, why act quickly?

For two main reasons:

- The first is obvious: there's no way I'm driving a 620-hp car with sub-optimal damping performance.
The Ferrari 599 GTB is a rather wild car and doesn't cope well with somewhat vague suspension. So loose geometry, wooden tires, or leaky shock absorbers are out of the question!

- The second reason is structural. The Ferrari 599 GTB has several flaws: the TFT screen, the radiators, the silent blocks... and the shock absorbers, among others!
So rebuilding them means leaving behind, at least for a while, a problem endemic to the model.

The decision was made to rebuild the two front shock absorbers because we always work in pairs.

The three possible options

Faced with this problem, three fairly simple options presented themselves to us:

1. Replace with new Ferrari shock absorbers

This first option was quickly ruled out, since, at €1,800 each, replacing the same defective parts was absolutely out of the question. The original shock absorbers age very poorly and end up leaking oil. I don't want to go back to parts that have, on the one hand, the same technical properties as the ones I had, and probably the same age (even if they are sometimes recent stock).

2. Replace with non-OEM shock absorbers

This second option was considered, but the loss of modulation with the driving modes was not an option. It's a bit like putting steel discs on cars that are CCM.

A new option seems to have emerged via @simlewiking84 but it was a bit late for me.

This is the German company Aerosus which offers new reinforced magnetic shock absorbers: https://aerosus.fr/fiorano/amortisseur-arriere-ferrari-599-gtb-fiorano.html

@Fioranosoul&power implemented it on his Ferrari 599 GTB, at a cost of €2,500 from his specialist, labor included, for two shock absorbers and a 15-day turnaround time.

It was an attractive solution, but I didn't have much perspective on it, and I had already checked off the third option in my head.

3. Have our existing shock absorbers reconditioned

So, the third option was chosen. Things quickly became simple: not a single French damping specialist was capable of reconditioning magnetic dampers. EUROFAC, Sachs, Performance, etc.: I called everyone, but no one wanted to get involved.

So, following the advice and experience of @ladivademaranello26, but also @Driveandbirdie, @Tavutatete, and @BTX, I decided to contact Nagengast, a company specializing in the reconditioning of magnetic dampers in Poland.

In Nagengast's case, they replace all the damaged seals that were causing the leak, the piston rods are reconditioned, the lower ball joints are replaced, and the dampers are refilled with new magnetic fluid, since the existing one has lost its properties.

This is now a solution that is well-known and proven by many owners on Ferrarista and elsewhere.

The replacement process

I must say that contact with Nagengast was easy and straightforward; I only communicated with them by email. I asked for a quote, which was sent to me and which I accepted.

I then took my car to my specialist (https://www.byff.fr/), who dismantled and shipped it. I took advantage of his vacation so he could keep my Ferrari 599 GTB, without the front wheel, in his workshop, without it bothering him.

Once the package arrived in Poland, I received a very well-designed tracking link, with details of the progress of the work and the expected timeframe. I then received an email confirming the feasibility of the work and the start of the work.

As promised, the work was completed two weeks later. I paid the invoice by bank transfer, and the package was then immediately shipped to my specialist. Upon receipt of the package, my professional confirmed that the work was very thorough, with the added bonus of replacing the ball joints included in the price, which wasn't originally planned.

And yet, the operation was delicate since the shock absorbers were split in two for repair!

Feelings after reassembly

Reassembly was done properly (3 hours of disassembly/reassembly) and recovery was completed last week. The car definitely feels more sound, more directional, and more responsive.
Rust from the road seems to be handled much better, and I find it dives less under braking, especially on uneven ground.
Nothing to report yet, so I'll be able to be more definitive after the Spa-Classic breakaway scheduled for the end of May.

In short, as you've probably gathered, so far so good.
The only annoying thing is that the price has been increasing significantly over the past few months.
I didn't pay the same price as my friends who had the procedure done recently, and the price I paid is probably already different as we speak.
A bit like everything else, you might say...

By the way, how much does it cost?
Well, I paid €1,900 for the entire service, including labor (€1,600 for the shock absorbers alone), which is the price of a single shock absorber without labor at Ferrari.
So, I'd say it's a good deal!

Nagengast assures that his procedure strengthens the shock absorbers once they've been rebuilt. We'll see how they work; if the shock absorbers start having problems again in 40,000 kilometers, that's fine with me, and at that point, I'd definitely go outside the OEM to improve the car's overall handling.

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But what is this light?! Have you ever had a warning light that comes on on the dashboard, which doesn't prevent you from starting, but spoils the pleasure of driving your Ferrari? With the continued development of electronics in our Ferraris, over the years, fears of electronic breakdown or failure have continued to increase in discussions between owners. @Mike051 recently had an alarm malfunction in his Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. He explains in detail how he went about identifying and then solving his problem. With a strategy that might serve you well one day...

@Mike051 : This year has been a good year for “Gina”, our Ferrari 612 Scaglietti. She was able, in addition to frequent valve burn-ins on the beautiful roads of Morbihan, to participate in the drivers' parade for the centenary of the 24 hours of Le Mans, then attend the 3 days of Le Mans Classic, as well as the Ferrarista 3 International Meeting in Auvergne. , each time thanks to Ferrarista. What good times...
But also, quite a few moments spent parked in the sun. And it should be remembered that in addition to being black, my 612 is equipped with a panoramic glass roof which can cause high temperatures inside.
It was when leaving the Le Mans Classic, after a hot day, that when starting up the TFT screen showed me a yellow message “Alarm System Failure”, or I imagine in French “Alarm system fault”. The fear of a locked immobilizer system invaded me then, but it did not happen to my great surprise: the Ferrari 612 started immediately, and I was able to return home without problem.
The next day, I restarted it from my garage, and surprise: no error message. So I let the summer pass, using it normally, to try to better understand what seemed erratic to me at the time. I thought it was due to the temperature being too hot when he left the Le Mans Classic. At the end of the summer, I understood that there was nothing erratic or random about this: this message became systematic after the Le Mans Classic after the alarm worked, and therefore the car was locked. The temperature of the passenger compartment during this event must have caused the malfunction of a component involved in the operation of the alarm.

What strategy should you adopt when you have an electronic problem with your Ferrari?

From there, I remembered that since I owned the Ferrari, I always had strange behavior from its alarm. I never managed to understand how it works:
- Frequently, after deactivating the alarm, opening the passenger door triggered the siren
- The beeps from the indicators when the alarm is activated or when it is deleted seemed random to me (from time to time 1 beep, sometimes 2…)
- Ditto for the alarm indicator LED, located on top of the dashboard, under the windshield: I even happened to drive with this LED indicator lit red!

When we talk about alarm system problems, we immediately think of the internal battery of the siren. This problem is frequently mentioned on cars over 15 years old where the siren's internal battery fluid ends up leaking and causing short circuits in the siren. But in my case, as I frequently triggered the siren, I suspected that it was not coming from there.
Another possible avenue: a weak battery, that of the Ferrari this time, can often be the cause of many small gremlins on our cars. But in my case, I had changed the battery myself 1 year before, and my CTEK MXS-5 charger indicated that the battery was in full health.

How to use OBD to eliminate trivial hypotheses and better understand the problem?

A priori, this was not one of the usual symptoms indicated by members of Ferrarista. So I took out my Autel AP200 OBD reader, and plugged it in. Please note, for owners of Ferrari 599 and 612: the OBD port is located under the steering wheel on the left: there is a hatch with two large screws, with plastic heads. This hatch is removed by pulling it downwards.

Following the scan, in the “10 BODY COMPUTER” module, the error “B1028 – Inclination Sensor” appeared.

So here is a clue, and it is all the more interesting because at the ceiling level, the Ferrari 599 and Ferrari 612 Scaglietti have within their light dome two buttons for deactivating the volumetric sensors and the famous inclination sensor, two buttons linked at the same time to the inclination of the car and to the alarm. From there, a search on the forums shows me that this was a frequent problem on the Ferrari 599 and 612. The problem a priori lies in this dome, where an electronic card houses the tilt sensor of the car , which was therefore positioned at the highest point of the car. At this location, he experiences intense heat in summer during a car exhibition.

So I then dismantled the dome. To do this, I first activated the circuit breaker: this is better to avoid errors subsequently recorded in the car. Then, I removed the light unit (slot on the right with a plastic screwdriver) then removed two screws: the dome is detached. You can then disconnect the 3 cables which are connected to it (no risk of making a mistake when reassembling: they are all different in terms of number of pins but be careful how the connectors are stored, because the space to store them is limited ).

A few screws and unclips later, we obtain the 2 parts:
- The orders part:

 
- And the circuit part itself. We can then see the inclination sensor:

 
A visual examination of the card under a magnifying glass did not reveal any broken solders or burnt components. However, I didn't desolder the metal cage to see what was underneath (it's a multi-layer board): I didn't have any desoldering braid with me, and I didn't want too much. touch this card until I knew if it was an easy card to find or not. Experiences of other members, notably on the TCUs of Ferrari 612 OTOs, taught me to be vigilant regarding the rarity of certain electronic parts.

How can you broaden the scope of your research through common Ferrari/Maserati parts?

By digging into the trail of spare parts, it appeared in the databases (Eurospares, etc.) that the electronic card integrating the inclination sensor was not sold individually. The entire dome is sold, at a price of more than €1,000. Furthermore, the reference of the sensor itself is no longer made, replaced by more recent technologies: therefore no possibility of changing only the card or the component itself. It was therefore not useful to diagnose the component itself since it could no longer be found individually.

So I started looking for Ferrari 599 and Ferrari 612 domes (the color didn't matter since I was only interested in the tilt sensor board). Only problem: whether on eBay or LeBonCoin, there were none available. And at the same time, the Ferrari 599 and 612 were produced in a total of less than 8,000 units: the probability of finding one was not very high. And besides, anything that is not common and has the Ferrari logo is generally not cheap.

So I broadened my search: I know that the Maserati Quattroporte and Maserati Granturismo share a lot of electronic elements with the Ferrari 599 and Ferrari 612. I went to check if they didn't have the same dome. And the answer was no…but yes: no because the shape of the dome is not the same, but yes because the buttons are identical, and if the buttons are identical there was a good chance that the electronics behind them were too. . So I looked for ads on eBay for Maserati domes, which are much more common, and the photos allowed me to select a dome that had the same circuit reference on the back as mine. With taxes (it was in Texas), I got it for less than €80, and 1 month of waiting (the package having been temporarily lost in Roissy).

When unpacking, you can clearly see that the dome of the Maserati is different in shape but that the buttons are identical:

And the disassembly showed that the circuits indeed had the same reference and that they were identical:

A comparison of the two button/circuit pairs, Maserati on the left and Ferrari on the right. The only difference, planned by the manufacturer TRW when designing the circuit, is that the Ferrari has green LED ambient lighting that the Maserati does not have (black and red wires).

The last step was therefore to reassemble the dome, then reinstall it by reconnecting the cables, and replace the battery.

I then took the opportunity to reset the car's boxes (starting with all power sources deactivated such as headlights, air conditioning, radio... and waiting for 10 minutes), then I reconnected my Autel AP200 , I read the error codes then cleared them and went for a walk. Coming back, I parked the car in its parking lot and locked it, activating the alarm. The next day, I opened it again, I started the car: no more error messages on the TFT screen, and a new OBD scan showed me that the error had not reappeared. I also discovered a much more logical behavior during the following attempts at the level of the indicators as well as the LED on the dashboard (which I had never seen turn green before), and the passenger door does not trigger no longer the mermaid. All these changes in behavior make me say that my problem is solved!

@Franck: What can you learn from this concrete case of electronic malfunction on a Ferrari?

1. By being methodical and taking it step by step, @Mike051 was able to resolve an electronic anomaly present on the dashboard

2. A simple OBD reader can greatly help you in the diagnosis to find out what the error actually is (See this article: Easily manage your Ferrari's error codes yourself)

3. By studying the common parts with other brands (many examples on the Ferrarista forum) he was able to find an identical circuit on a much larger spare parts market than that of Ferraris, and for less than €80.
While not all electronic problems can of course be resolved so easily, many of the little “gremlins” we know can certainly be resolved using such a method.

Have you encountered similar cases to share with other members?

What other Ferrari parts do you know are common with other brands?

If you liked reading this article, you might also like:

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You would want to change the door sills of your Ferrari F355 for several reasons. First of all because they are damaged. The rubber used by Ferrari may have aged badly, water may have infiltrated and your door sills may then rust from below: deal with it before it's too late! Then you can do it for aesthetic reasons. The rubber used for the "Ferrari" logo is cheap, carbon door sills will match better with your carbon bucket seats, if your Ferrari F355 has them, and take on the style of the Ferrari F355 Fiorano kit.

Where to find your door sills for Ferrari F355 and above all how to install them correctly? Is it a complicated operation, before you embark on this project? What does this actually consist of? @ferdi_ has just done it on his superb Ferrari F355 and details 4 simple steps to change the door sills of your Ferrari F355.

BEFORE

AFTER

Step 1: Materials neede

- A Ferrari F355, well yes, without it will be complicated!

- A spatula

- A cutter

- A heat gun

- A Phillips screwdriver

- A product to remove rust

- A roll of double-sided tape

- A little glue

- Elbow grease, not a lot but enough, we will see later...

Of course, you also need door sills! Carbon door sills for Ferrari F355 are available in several places, at different prices and quality. The most important in the choice of these is the mesh of the carbon fiber.

I found mine here: https://www.shineautoproject.com/portfolio/ferrari-f355/

Ken, the owner of this company is well known in the Ferrari world. He even owns, among other things, two very beautiful Ferrari F355s. He is American and actively participates on the appropriate forum ending in chat.

A bit pricey it's true, but the quality is felt and there are no rough edges for adjustments. Don't forget to ask him about the availability of the aluminum "Ferrari" script. This is a fairly rare part and not always distributed by known spare parts suppliers.

Step 2: Remove the screws from the old door sill

Identify the threshold! It's not complicated, there are two like dad...one on the right, the other on the left. In order to avoid being repetitive, we will concentrate on a single threshold. It will obviously be necessary to practice in the same way on the left or right one, it all depends on which one you start! lol

Well then you tell me... I start with the one on the left!

It would be better to turn off the battery at the circuit breaker, you will work a good time with the door open, although the light on the edge of the door will not drain your battery

The threshold is held by 4 screws, and glued wildly, or not ... 3 screws are easily spotted, under the rubber seal, the 4th a little less. It is located under the tab in Ferrari script, here (see photo above). You understand, you will first have to unscrew them. Keep them with their washer, they will serve you later.

Step 3: Remove the old door sills from your Ferrari F35

Then, using a heat gun and a spatula, you will slide it slowly but firmly between the chassis of the car and the old sill while heating it with the gun. Go gradually, there's no point in rushing, the point of the exercise is not to destroy the old threshold.

I forgot to tell you, before any attempt to take off ... protect your paint, especially the painted edge. You will see it in the photos. The perforated plates are not necessary, but very practical. I used them to gradually advance the intervals once the threshold lifted off. Simple way to prevent the sill from sticking together.

You should end up with this:

Then take a cutter and remove the mounds of glue, so as to flatten the surface. You may find some rust, especially around the 4th screw, which I did. Take the opportunity to treat rust, with a product such as this

Clean, vacuum, degrease as much as possible! Your surface must be as clean and smooth as possible... Indeed your carbon threshold will not appreciate the differences in thickness and could structurally break on a simple pressure.

Congratulations, you have successfully removed the old door sill from your Ferrari F355!

It is in immaculate condition, because you have been progressive in the task and you have endeavored not to bend it but to play with the spatula!

Step 4: Glue the new door sills of your Ferrari F35

The simplest, the most trivial...

You will notice that on the old sills, you have a rubber lip, peel it off, and stick it on the new one. This lip allows the possible flow of rain, it is necessarily useful. There she is:

Then glue double-sided, not too thick, on the back of your new threshold, and affix sparingly small mounds of glue. Just enough to make contact...

Mark with tape your mounting holes. This will allow you to locate them once your threshold is placed under the rubber seal

There you go, you put everything back where mom was supposed to welcome dad... and find, with the means at hand, something to put pressure on for a few hours, the time it takes for everything to take

You can replace the 3 screws under the seal. You are done, you should get this result

Pretty cool, no?

Now gently close the door of your Ferrari F355, hoping it closes and doesn't come and sabotage your work! Lol!

Bonus:

I for my part asked a company to cover my thresholds with a PPF Xpel in order to avoid any scratches caused by the soles of shoes. Indeed this material regenerates! Lol!

Are you planning to change the door sills of your Ferrari F355? Do you have a recommended Ferrari F355 door sill supplier? What would be your advice for installing Ferrari F355 door sills?

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An official recall, reference C24000078, has just been launched this week by Ferrari regarding a potential problem with the brakes on the Ferrari 458 and 488. The brakes are an important safety element of your Ferrari, so it is essential to find out if your Ferrari is affected, and notify owners you know who could be affected.

Which models are affected? What are the symptoms of the problem and what to do if it occurs? What exactly is this recall? We will attempt to provide you with all the information in this article, the purpose of which is to serve as a reference for the owners concerned (current and future).

What is the history of this problem?

This problem was announced in November 2021. It is a brake fluid leak.

At the time the cause was not known even if the master cylinder was suspected by Ferrari.

A potential recall campaign was then mentioned, but first Ferrari had to find the origin of the problem to offer a solution.

Example of articles that appeared in the media at the time on the subject:

https://www.autoblog.com/2021/11/01/ferrari-brake-failure-recall/

https://fr.motor1.com/news/544892/ferrari-problème-frein-458-488/

Which Ferrari models are affected?

There is talk in the published articles of around 10,000 Ferrari, and even 9,985 to be precise. This is a figure to be confirmed because transmitted before the problem is fully analyzed. The affected models are:

- Ferrari 458 Italia produced between 2010 and 2015,

- Ferrari 458 Speciale produced between 2014 and 2015,

- Ferrari 458 Speciale A produced in 2015,

- Ferrari 458 Spider produced between 2012 and 2015,

- Ferrari 488 GTB produced between 2016 and 2019,

- Ferrari 488 Spider produced between 2016 and 2019.

Knowing that around 25,000 Ferrari 458s were produced, this means that not all copies are affected.

What are the symptoms of the problem?

If the brake fluid leak occurs and less than 48% of the expected volume remains, a "Brake fluid level low, go to dealer slowly" message will appear on your dashboard. The brake pedal will then not have much response.

What should I do if my Ferrari encounters this problem?

If this happens to your Ferrari, then Ferrari advises you pull over and contact Ferrari Roadside Assistance to have you towed to the nearest Ferrari dealership.

Your brake pedal should not have much response, so it is advisable to use your engine brake, or even your electric parking brake to stop your Ferrari (see message from Ferrari USA below).

How do I know if my Ferrari is affected by the recall?

Recall C24000078 was just issued this week. The parts concerned are being sent to the dealerships. For the moment, it is via your "MyFerrari App" that you will see if your vehicle is affected.

You can also enter your Ferrari's VIN here to find out if your Ferrari is affected: https://www.ferrari.com/en-EN/auto/car-part-services

We can imagine that Ferrari will then send a letter to all the owners concerned. Here is the mail already received by some owners in the United States:

We wanted to inform you that Ferrari is investigating whether a problem exists in certain Model Year 2010-2015 458 vehicles. The vehicles involved are equipped with a braking system that could potentially leak brake fluid, which may lead to a total loss of braking capability, and result in an accident. We want to assure you that your safety is our priority, and we are committed to correcting this condition in your vehicle if it exists.

Our records show that you are the owner of this vehicle. Ferrari is conducting further research to determine the root cause and possible scope of this problem. We will contact you as soon as we have further instructions for you. In the meantime, if a message appears on your dashboard, “Brake fluid level low, Go to dealer slowly”, please pull off the road as soon as it is safe to do so. Then contact Ferrari Roadside Assistance at 1.866.788.6760. Your car will be taken to the nearest authorized Ferrari dealer and inspected free of charge. If necessary, Ferrari will perform any necessary repairs to your vehicle for free.

Note: The vehicle’s electric parking brake can be used as an emergency brake when the vehicle is in motion. See your Owner’s Manual for further information.

If you have any questions, please contact your local authorized Ferrari dealer. You can find a listing of them at https://www.ferrari.com/en-US/auto/dealers

Sincerely,

Ferrari North America, Inc.

What items are replaced during this recall?

The cause of the problem would be the brake fluid cap that would leak liquid. It will therefore be replaced. In fact, when the brake fluid heats up, the pressure rises and the current cap does not allow it to be evacuated. The tank container takes up more space and escapes. The design of the new cap should allow pressure to escape.

The reference of the new cap, now black, is 000810768.

The biggest change from the previous cap is that the cap now also consists of a transparent flexible diaphragm instead of just a solid plastic part. The black cap is clipped on.

A sticker will be placed in your owner's manual indicating that the recall has been carried out. This sticker bears the reference 079641778 (at least for the American model pictured below).

SAFE4NOW photos posted on FerrariChat.

The operation would also include erasing any stored errors related to this problem, as well as updating the software to take account of the changes made. The operation would take about two hours in all.

Have you been contacted about this recall by your dealership? Or were you able to check using the information provided in this article if your Ferrari was affected? How soon will your Ferrari be picked up? What items have been indicated to you by Ferrari as needing to be replaced? Do you need more information about this recall? If you are concerned with your Ferrari, please share your feedback with this recall in the comments.

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Were you advised to first look for the mechanic who will maintain your Ferrari before finding the Ferrari of your dreams? It is a good idea because its maintenance and history will be paramount so that your experience does not turn into a nightmare. And good specialists are rare, very rare. Finding the right one can take longer than finding the right Ferrari.

So where do Ferrari owners go to do their routine maintenance? Which types of garages are preferred? By reading the forums, you might think that many are doing their own maintenance, given the number of discussions on the subject, or that official concessions, some complaining, should be avoided. But what is it actually? There is nothing better than a survey of the Ferrari owners to know the truth. And the results of this survey could be surprising.

Survey characteristics

The question asked to the Ferrari owners was simple: "Where do you maintain your Ferrari in 2017?". Not an exceptional intervention for which you prefer an official stamp or for a tire change, but just the annual maintenance of your Ferrari.

Six answers were possible: in an official Ferrari dealership, in a specialized Ferrari garage, in a garage specializing in exceptional sports cars, in a non-specialized garage, in a car center, by yourself or by a friend.

200 Ferrari owners replied (195 to be precise, at the time of the writing of this article), which represents a nice panel given the number of owners of Ferrari in France. It should be kept in mind that on Ferrarista the members are mainly first-time buyers and enthusiasts, that is to say that they reflect rather the majority of the owners of Ferrari, compared to the minority who buys new Ferrari or multi-million Ferrari.

For more details, you can find this poll here: Click HERE to see the poll

In an official Ferrari dealership

One-third of Ferrarista's members carry out their revisions in an official Ferrari dealership. This may seem like a lot to you, if like me you regularly read on the forum feedback sometimes negative about concessions. But it should not be forgotten that on the forums people rarely intervene to say that everything is fine, and especially when they are not happy. And regarding an official Ferrari dealership, it can be expected that their level of requirement is as high as possible.

A part of this relatively high score is explained by the fact that the Ferrari sold new since 2012 have a free maintenance contract in concession for 7 years . This contract is transmitted to the resale of your Ferrari, few buyers keeping their Ferrari for 7 years. This assures Ferrari that during 7 years the maintenance will be done in concession. This allows the owner to retain the manufacturer's warranty, which is often extended for a fee (Power Warranty).

Another part of the score is explained by the fact that many owners think about resale: the official stamp of a Ferrari dealers reassures the future buyer. For him, this stamp means that it is not a stranger who worked on this Ferrari, it is someone trained by the factory. The official standards of the mark were respected, with original parts. Traceability of the interventions on this Ferrari is then ensured by the Ferrari network.

The survey does not go down in this level of detail, but you can expect that the score achieved by official Ferrari dealerships would be much higher if it were only for the recent Ferraris, those less than 10 years old, for example.

Ferrari Specialist

The Ferrari specialists' score is the same as the concessions, which is a good score. Often these workshops are run by people who have worked in official Ferrari dealerships. They know the models well, were trained by the factory and kept links with the concessions (for the purchase of parts in particular).

Their advantage is that their tariffs are lower than those of an official concession and that they can offer a customized service à la carte, which is not permitted by the industrialization of concessions. They may spend more time solving a complex outage or adjusting small details (such as a squeak heard at a particular location) that annoy an owner but take time to resolve.

Ferrari specialists also offer the advantage of being closer geographically than concessions, which for some owners are several hundred kilometers away. This is not practical.

Exceptional sports specialist

Specialists in exceptional sports won 16% of the vote, which is half the size of the official Ferrari dealerships or Ferrari specialists. It is a good score because the Ferrari are very technically sharp. It is necessary to have the specific equipment (suitcase for example for electronics).

This good score is probably explained in part because the owners of Ferrari have mostly owned other sports before. If they know a good specialist, they keep it . Good addresses are rare. If they have seen regular Ferraris in maintenance with this specialist, they remain there with less apprehension.

There is also the case of owners of Ferrari who own several cars, a small collection, for which all maintenance is carried out at the same specialist of confidence.

Unlike the official Ferrari dealerships, you might expect that the specialist score (Ferrari specialists or specialists in exceptional sports) would be even more important if this poll focused on the old Ferraris, those of more than 15 Or 20 years for example.

Non-specialized garage

The score achieved by non-specialized garages is 2.75%. This is a low but logical score: Ferrari are sharp cars that require specific skills and experience. You can imagine that the owners who carry out maintenance of their Ferrari in a non-specialized garage do so because they know the garage very well and / or because their Ferrari is old and does not require the current technology. They will rather be owners who wish to keep their Ferrari, who do not need the stamp of a dealership to reassure a buyer, and just wish for a job well done at the best price.

Center car

The choice of car center had been added in this survey a bit like a provocation: car centers are widely used in the world of car maintenance but you do not think of it to maintain your Ferrari! The score is very low at 0.55%, which seems logical. But the exception exists, as do the competent car centers.

You or a friend

16% of the owners of Ferrari indicated to carry out the routine maintenance of their Ferrari themselves or by a friend. This means 1 owner out of 6, which is a significant score.

Carrying out routine maintenance, in this case an annual review, remains relatively easy. We would not have the same score for more complicated procedures, such as changing belts with engine removal, for example. Even though tutorials made by owners who have done so are relatively numerous on the forum.

A forum naturally attracts more owners who have technical questions , because they do some operations themselves. This population can therefore be over-represented in this survey, compared to all Ferrari owners.

This figure also reflects the share of older Ferrari owners who are easier to maintain, and that you keep longer because you are less attracted by the acquisition of the latest novelty.

Conclusion

In short, one-third of the owners go on concessions, one-third to a Ferrari specialist, and the remaining third go to a specialist in exceptional cars and half to self-made work. Prior to this survey, were you expecting such a distribution? Which score surprised you the most? What other reasons do you see for explaining the results?

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Over the years, it is recurring on Ferrari that the leather in the cabin relaxes in places, especially at the passenger airbag. The first solution is to take the time to find the right specialist to make an appointment, to deposit your Ferrari then pick her up. And good work is not cheap. Can't you do it yourself, quicker and cheaper? PhilM offers, through its tutorial to tighten the leather airbag his Ferrari 575M, to discover the steps to have the pleasure to do it by yourself on your Ferrari.

Your Ferrari leather will tend to relax especially if you leave it in the sun or if you live in the south of France. This is indeed the heat which causes the leather to shrink and the glue is no longer working. You can regularly observe this phenomenon in the interiors of Ferrari F355, Ferrari 456 or Ferrari 550 Maranello, for example. To prevent this problem at most, you have to regularly maintain your leather by cleaning and nourishing it. When the damage is done, this is what it may look like before action:

Step 1: activate the circuit breaker to disable the airbag

I advise you to inquire beforehand about the handling of airbags, there are precautions to take and everything you do will be at your own risk. For starters, think about opening the passenger door.

You can then operate the circuit breaker (circled in red in the picture). Because obviously if you do it before opening the door, the window remains in high position ...

Step 2: Remove the door of the glove

Open the glove box and remove the screw 1 (circled in red on the photo) with Allen key 6 sections of 3 mm. Attention, the mechanism that holds the door of the glove box has a strong spring.

Then remove the screw 2 (green arrow in the photo) with a Phillips screwdriver. I stuck the handle with a 2nd screwdriver to help me (especially practical at reassembly). Then you can release the lever completely.

It is not necessary to completely remove the door of the glove, but it is not difficult and it simplifies things. You have to remove 4 screws (always 3 mm Allen key). In the photo you can see a screwdriver (green arrow) in the screw hole that holds the lever. It was just to help me for holes centering during reassembly. Besides, if you can have an Allen wrench with a handle like a screwdriver it will be much more convenient than a "L" key.

then remove the door of the metal amount sandwiched inside.

To remove the glove box, you have to remove 6 Phillips screws: 4 black on the upper part (circled in green) and 2 from below, metallic (circled in red).

You also have a screw to loose that is just beneath the bottom. In the photo, she is pointed in red, but the plastic tab of the box is not inserted (photo taken during reassembly).

You can then carefully remove the glove box. There are 3 wires to disconnect: the 2 connectors of the bulb, you just have to pull over,

And a third connector that clips:

Step 3: Remove the passenger airbag

I don't have any photos of nuts holding the airbag unit in place, as they are not very visible. There are four, they are 10mm nuts. The easiest way to remove them is a small wrench 1/4 10mm socket with an extension for the upper left that is the most difficult to access (socket wrench surrounded in blue in the picture)

Once the 4 screws are removed, you can remove the airbag block, knowing that it is still plugged in and the connector must be removed from the bracket before being unclipped.

Here is the airbag block removed with the back on the stems which come to put the bolts that hold the block in place:

Step 4: take off the leather

I decided not to remove all the leather of the airbag, but only the part that is taking already off. For this I used a refined plastic spatula which does not damage the leather (well, this is a dog-headed tongue depressor but it does the trick ).

To prevent debris, or anything else, to fit into the airbag, I wrapped in plastic film and masking adhesive.

Step 5: sand and glue the leather

I didn't do photo of the work that followed, but it is largely the longest and the most painful. It is necessary to remove the entire residual glue on the leather and plastic. There is a sub-layer of foam on the front that I have not touched. I then finely sanded surfaces (leather and plastic rim without foam).

Then I tried to replace the leather when cold but it was impossible to get a satisfactory result. With a steam iron, I planned to steam on the leather and have stretched it with small pliers (homemade) put on the plastic rim. I did it a little every day for about a week to get a result that suited me.

To glue it, I used a bomb with contact glue for the large surfaces and a liquid glue tube for the corners. You reassemble everything, following the above steps in reverse, and here's the end result:

Do you have questions regarding additional details about this operation? Do you have the leather of your Ferrari that shrinks? What model of Ferrari and where? Do you fix it yourself? If you have already done, what additional advice would you give?

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