DIY F430 Capristo Remote Unit Installation

Hi all,
Just wanted to share how to install the Capristo Remote Unit Installation on a F430 Manual Gear. With this base model of the Remote Unit, you will be able to control the opening of the exhaust valves. The usage is very simple. Press the "1" button of the remote and the exhaust valves will be managed by the Motronic ME7 depending on the rpm, gear (F1) and throttle load. Press the "2" button of the remote and the exhaust valves will remain open all time.

The unit is quite small. Size is 6cm (L) x 6cm (W) x 3cm (H) and is very light. It has a front and a rear hole so that you can bold it easily. The quality of used materials is very good and solid. Everything is provided : short wires in a heat protected tube for the closed solenoid valve and long wires in a heat protected tube for the solenoid valve which is at the opposite side of the unit. One ground wire and one antenna. There is no need to connect the unit to +12V power as the unit is power directly using the +12V delivered permanentely to the solenoid valve. Very clever and makes the job really easy!

I did install the unit on the right hand side because my F430 is a manual gear and there is plenty of space available to fix the unit in best conditions. For a F1, there are other options possible (RH side using one of the spare holes under the rear lights http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=302868&highlight=F430+Headers&page=7 or LH side attaching the unit on the vacuum tank hoses as done by Anders - http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=302868&highlight=F430+Headers&page=8).

This guide will explain how to install the unit on the right hand side. First, remove the rear part of the right cosmetic shield of the engine compartment (Picture 1 shows the LHS but it's identical except the fuel cap handle). Undo the four screws securing it to the chassis.

The next pictures show an example how you can install the unit using the available space behind the right cosmetic panel.
I will go more in details tomorrow...
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Many holes are available on the chassis so there are several options possible to fix the unit in a good way. Just remove the plastic thing which is protecting the thread and screw the unit in it as shown on the picture below.
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Connecting the remote unit to the RH side solenoid valve is straight forward. Remove the little metallic strip from the existing plug and plug it out from the solenoid valve. Connect to the solenoid valve the one which is provided with the remote unit and connect the remaining plug to the original one (the plug you just removed from the solenoid valve). Keep in mind that the Capristo plug design is slightly different than the stock one because once the Capristo plug is plugged into the solenoid valve, it's quite hard to remove it (the metal strip securing the plug is more difficult to remove as the stock plug). As shown above, I connected the ground wire to the solenoid valve as the ground is very good (I checked the impedance which was perfect).

The antenna can be fixed as shown in the picture below. Another picture shows the remote unit from behind so that you can see the connectors.
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Now comes the trickier part as the LH side solenoid valve is more difficult to reach on the F430. Remove the rear LH side wheel and at least one part of the wheelhouse . See below 2 pictures how to remove the lower element D (5 screws).
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Remove now the horizontal heat shield (right above the exhaust pipes). 3 screws to remove.
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I removed also the rear extractor to make access to the solenoid valve easier from under it. Another option would be to remove the vacuum tank because the LH side solenoid valve is right under it. Anyway your efforts aren't worthless as it's also a good opportunity to clean up the entire area as a lot of dirt is getting there

If you're at your own, before removing the rear extractor it can be usefull to create a couple of pads to maintain it while you're remove the screws. Remove the rear bolds fixing the rear extractor and the rear underfloor panel together (2 bolds on the left, 2 on the right and 1 center).
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Remove now the 8 screws that fix the extractor to the bumper.
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Now we can gain access to the LH side solenoid valve oufff. The connections are identical to the RH side solenoid as explained above. Here's a picture how to.

Before putting everything back together, I would recommend to test out your installation When you press the 1 or 2 button on the remote, the led on the remote unit should blink rapidly. Start the engine and check the operation of the remote unit. Press button 1, the valves should close when the engine is idling. Press button 2 and they should open instantly. While everything is removed, I would be also a good idea the grease the exhaust valve mecanism with copper grease. One of my exhaust valves was very slow to react and it took a lot of vacuum to close them. When operating the mecanism manually, I could feel some resistance. Once greased, everything went fine.

Enjoy now your new installation. Only the little remote will be the visible part Thanks Capristo for such a good engineering work!
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Last info about this DIY:

Tightening torques:
Extractor screws: 6 Nm
Wheelhouse screws: 7,4 Nm
Heat shield: 6 Nm
Cosmetic shield of the engine compartment: 3.2 to 4 Nm

Before putting the screws back, remove any rust from the screws and nuts and use water repellent grease.

Stef

 

I saw many threads where members were wondering how exactly the exhaust valves operate on the F430 and Scuderia. I put together these figures which are based on the factory data I have. As you can see, in some conditions, it takes several engine revolutions before the valves really do open. This delay is called hysteresis and is unavoidable.

Just wanted to share this info. The operation of the exhaust valves is not just On/Off but there is definitely a "intermediate state".

Stef
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Here's the pdf.
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Fully agree LHS needs a lot more time as you have to remove a couple of panels to gain access to it. But it's a good chance to clean up things there a bit

It's funny Richard you wrote on this thread today because this evening, I just installed the bright new Capristo control unit. I couldn't resist to have it . Will write more about this in a minute.

 

You can access there also by removing the rear diffuser. But honestly, it's not such a big deal to remove the LHS wheel and mudguards. It looks complicated but it isn't at all. Just takes a bit more time but this will get you discover a bit more your car And the second time you'll have to do this, you'll remove everything in 15 min. chrono

 

Now the new remote control unit is much thinner than the previous one but the main advantage is that it is now water splatch protected. In the past it happens sometimes that some moisture came into the control unit depending on the place of installation and electronic parts are very sensitive to moisture.

There are no visible buttons eventually allowing moisture to enter the control unit. They are now internally mounted allowing to be activated or de-activated by means of a small magnet.

The previous remote control was designed on the basis of old buttons and relays and the new one is completely digitally designed with a microprocessor allowing to program all the functions.

Here are 2 pictures of both control units. My new remote unit is on the left side, while my "old" one is on the right side.
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Installation was very easy as I just had to replace the control unit. Cables are 100% compatible, so it's just plug and play.

The only thing I needed to do is to relearn my remote fob to the new control unit which is very straight forward (a small magnet is provided to activate the learn switch).

This unit has now 6 leds signaling the unit operation :

LHS :
Led 1 : Normal valve operation
Led 2 : Reversed valve operation (F355)
Led 3: Status (Flashes when powered on)
RHS:
Led 1 : Learning mode of the remote
Led 2 : Exhaust Valve 1 opened
Led 3 : Exhaust Valve 2 opened

The other cool thing I discovered with this new unit is that you can operate it without having to start the engine. Valves will open or close when resp you press the button 2 and 1 of the remote. You only need to put key On.
This is an excellent way to test if the vacuum tank is holding the vacuum well. Even after several days staying in the garage, the vacuum tank should still have enough vacuum to operate the exhaust valves without starting the engine. If it doesn't, it means you have a leak somewhere.

After you removed your key, the unit will go into sleep mode after 40 seconds.

Here is a picture of the new unit installation. I located it exactly in the same area as I did in my previous posts.

And last but not least, here is also the installation documentation

I found this product upgrade really cool and its worth the money.
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One important tip regarding the programming of the new control unit.

If for any reasons, the control unit is in "Reverse" mode, to switch it to "Normal" mode (for 360/430), you must do it while the engine is idling (using the provided magnet).

I made the mistake to program it without the engine running and then, the control unit will NOT work with the remote and the exhaust valves will remain closed ALL time when the engine is running.

 

Good news Richard. Do you mean that on the Scud, the LHS solenoid valve is positionned elsewhere or that the access to it can be done from the small grilles nearby the rear diffuser?