599 Back on the road - Finally!!!!

After being down for over 7 months due to 1) leaking shocks; 2) poorly re-assembled wheels (caution if your centers were repainted and reinstalled... - I will do a separate post on that); 3) mass air flow sensors fouled up; 4) scratch in roof during transport when I acquired it, the car is finally back on the road.

I acquired a used 2010 HGTE with 19k miles (I wanted a driver): after 2k of generally light but spirited (no track) driving, the magnetic shocks went, the tires were old (and had very poor grip) and the nasty engine light that instructs you to go to the shop was on. Not to let the car collect dust like many of my others, I embarked on getting it back to health. Needless to say, it was one disappointment after another before doing so.

The disappointments: After searching around the world and seeking opinions from experienced shock manufacturers and rebuilders, I didn't find anyone that currently rebuilds magnetic shocks. (New magnetic shocks were quoted to me at over $18k, plus installation.) What I thought was a pretty simple tire change, the mechanics saw problems with all four wheels. The previous owner had powder coated the centers of the wheels and then refinished them back to stock before he sold the car - the company that re-assembled the wheels failed to remove all the Loctite that remained in the inner wheel rim that accommodates the bolts. Not removing the Loctite ended up dimpling the inner wheels to a point of near failure. Ferrari/OZ does not sell replacement inners, so I was now faced with replacing all four rims. Feeling comfortable that the extended factory Ferrari warranty I had purchased when I got the car would cover any of the check engine issues, it turned out the mass air flow sensor was fouled because of the overfilling of oil (prior dealer service??), and Ferrari denied coverage. Lastly, the scratches in the roof from shipping initially made me want to at least repaint the roof, if not more.

Fast forward to today: the car is finally back on the road; KWs (I believe the same as Novitec) replaced the magnetic shocks - they are wonderful and are smooth or firm as driving conditions dictate; the Michelin Super Sports are quiet, grip wonderfully, and provide great turn in and feedback (and should wear very well); the HRE wheels are gorgeous (in my opinion..... I went with HRE so that if a rim inner or outer got damaged because of the fine roads in LA or LV, I could replace just that part from them); I had the roof wrapped with a vinyl carbon fiber that completely masks the scratches; and just to treat myself for all the pain and suffering, I added a Capristo exhaust with cat bypasses that sounds wonderful - whether muted and valve on, or without.

All in all - and after all this time (and unnecessary $$$$$ spent due to avoidable problems caused by incompetence or at least as far as the shocks, poor durability), I can finally enjoy the car...... I am ecstatic!

My goal is to put 15k miles on the car per year - at least I can get back to putting a dent in my goals.....
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Thanks all for the compliments....

As to the shocks and just for a frame of reference, I tend to drive stiffer suspensioned cars - Mercedes CLK 63 Black, 997 Porsche GT3 RS, Porsche 996 GT2, Carrera GT, more for spirited driving and an occasional track day. I also do more racing (Porsche Cup Cars) than spirited driving, and most of my highway driving is longer distances. I have also owned 360 Stradales, 430s, a 550 and 575. I have also modified suspensions on a number of the Porsches - Motons, KWs, AST - street and track.

When I first experienced the 599 suspension (with magnetic shocks), I was expecting to feel more of a difference with the various settings. Granted, I didn't use the car on the track, and I would imagine that the ability to adjust the suspension softer in wet or damp conditions would be helpful with a flip of the switch. But to me, the car is too heavy to really push hard on the track through corners, so the track setting didn't have much use for me nor one to judge the effectiveness of the magnetic shocks. That said, the 599 stock suspension was ok - not great or bad - under normal driving and spirited, higher speed/smooth corner conditions. (I should add that the Pirellis I had on the car were OEM and were getting hard, so it could have also neutralized any adjustability that the shock settings provided.)

After the first 200 miles of driving the 599 with the KWs, as well as with the Michelin Super Sports, I was a bit worried that the suspension might be on the soft side: slightly softer than my recollection of the stock, magnetic suspension on the sport setting, and way less soft than my former 2004 575 with GTC package (which was way, way, way too soft for my liking - highway, street or spirited driving). The 599 with KWs was more like the 550, which I did prefer over the 575, as it was compliant, and provided decent feeling during spirited, higher speed, smooth corner driving. When I did push the 599 with KWs a bit harder through faster corners (some with smooth pavement, as well as some ok pavement), the KWs did really seem to shine. It wasn't rock hard (ala 997 Porsche GT3 RSs), and provided good feel without the car feeling like it was getting away from you. I liken it to my CLK which actually is fairly heavy, but provides great feedback and suspension feel without having to use your hands more than you'd like. I also do think that the Michelin Super Sports help provide a comfortable ride on the highway, and also start to shine when you start pushing more gs through corners....

All in all, I am happy and pretty impressed with the KW setup. We went with euro spec ride heights, a pretty neutral set-up, and middle of the road shock settings. I wouldn't hesitate continuing to use it for longer distance travel, or for spirited driving on roads that don't penalize the car because of its weight (i.e. average to good roadways with moderate to fast corners).

I will drive the car again this weekend, and will put it thru more conditions and provide different feedback as appropriate. Otherwise, very happy with the KWs (and I have no affiliation with them; wish I did, as it could have saved me from having to buy shocks at all !) and no regrets to date.

 

Thanks Evan - using your cat bypasses!

 

Good eye despite the camera work!

I think the car made a journey across America before landing on my doorsteps. Besides VA, it went to WA., then OC where I picked it up. I had thought the dealership (non-Ferrari exclusive) indicated it was most recently in WA when I had acquired it....

Thanks all for the comments. I really do like the wheels - HRE did a beautiful job. I was going to get 599 GTO wheels, but was very concerned that if a rim (inner or outer) got damaged, I would have to buy another wheel from Ferrari, as opposed to replacing just an inner or outer. We occasionally have to replace inners or outers on 3-piece track only BBS race wheels - a far less expensive (and just as practical) solution.

WARNING: I will separately post the issues and photos I ran across that resulted when the inners were powder coated. A potentially very dangerous situation I was not aware until tires were in the process of being changed.. While the bolts were presumably torqued to spec with the powder coated/refinished centers, the failure by the technician (I guess if you want to call that person that) to remove the prior loctite caused the residue to push its way into the inner rim half which then dimpled/fatigued the inner rim in multiple places (the Ferrari HGTE inner rim halves do not nuts like some other manufacturers wheels - the threading is built into the inner rim). Likely only a matter of when, not if, the wheel would have failed..... And this happened on all four wheels in multiple spots on the rim.... I was heartbroken, upset and concerned for others when seeing this. Thank goodness the tires were becoming worthless and I decided not to push the car with the existing rims on the track. In the end, very happy with the new wheels....

 

Iornically, I sent my 599 shocks off to Delta Vee to help their rebuilding efforts...... I wonder why the HGTEs are affected more - aren't they the same shock? Perhaps different spring rates that aren't compatible or ?

 

I put some miles on the car, specifically seeking out rougher pavement on mid-speed (40-60 mph) straights and through corners. Unfortunately, wasn't close to a track that had gators where I would have gotten a better, more consistent sense of the shocks working, but definitely drove some varied quality roads...

I do like the KWs; the control through the corners and over bumps was good - no excessive stiffness that would cause the car to lose grip or become too bouncy (my apologies as to the lack of technical terms...), and not so soft that it bottomed out or masked the feel of the road surface. I didn't play with rebound settings, but tires felt planted over the varied surfaces, and didn't have to correct the steering because of more significant bumps in the road. To me, a great balance between a sporty feel (but not excessive by any means) and smoothness/comfort during regular roads. Shocks were set up middle of the road with euro specs. All in all, a good set-up for my varied types of driving....

Curious as to others' experiences with KWs.....

 

Not to compromise a dealer's pricing, I purchased them from Scuderia Systems (handled through Chris). Their pricing was the most favorable I could find.....

 

Not known as of yet. Delta Vee is exploring the possibilities of rebuilding magnetic shocks. Hope they can make it happen, as it seems to be problem with the 599s (at least according to one of the factory dealers who have installed a number of new sets of magnetic shocks on 599s).

 

Thanks! Really love them and came out great....