612 for daily use?

Other than avoiding a lot of stop and go, it's perfect.

 

its a dream daily driver. not sure what piper means about stop and go. the car is more than fine in traffic. love love my OTO

 

The OTOs definitely have an advantage in stop and go traffic because of their twin disc 599 clutch.

 

car is fantastic in all situations other than tight parking spaces/car parks etc

 

Yeah, neither the OP or I qualified our remarks. We should have. If I'm talking about an OTO, I'll definitely say OTO. Totally different animal with much better clutch response and clutch life. I actually enjoyed switching back and forth between the early 612 and my 599 for the time I had both. The '05 612 was a different drive and still very fun. But I wouldn't want to take a pre-OTO 612 into downtown or rush hour, ever really, any more than I would a 360.

 

You don't have to worry about reliability with the 612. You won't get stuck. Over the long haul, somewhere in your estimate, maybe $4k a year would probably bear out to be correct. Some of it is within your control, some isn't. For instance, take a good look around especially from the back eat and you'll realize there's about $50k worth the leather in that car. All of it and especially the area around and beneath the windshield needs to be taken care of, ie Leatherique a few times a year. Just a minor labor of love, but replacing that dash leather costs $thousands. You also can choose to be gentle with the switches. The window switches, reverse lever and mirror control are all delicate. Treat them well and you'll avoid those expenses. You'll spend maybe $1500 a year for annuals, another $3-6k every five or six years on major work from belts to cam seals, and expect another couple $k every 15-20k miles in suspension. Clutch is a wildcard, all depends on you and your driving habits. Could be 10k miles, or 50k. Cost also varies greatly, as it could be just the clutch itself, or you could end up needing other items from flywheel to throwout bearing.

 

If i didn't live in Chicago, land of the potholes and BRUTAL winters, I would drive my 612 seven days a week.

 

Bob, others...So, would you say that if one anticipated that their 612 would spend most of its time engaging in spirited driving on country back roads & highway road trips that there is less of a performance difference between pre- and post-OTO Scaglietti?...T

 

You can upgrade a pre OTO suspension with the HGTC package. That's 90% of what you'll miss pre OTO in spirited driving. In my experience the early 612 shifts plenty fast for that kind of driving. Others may disagree.

 

If I were going to buy a pre-OTO car, I'd probably look for a manual for that task. The OTO F1 is simply better in every respect, but does that mean the older car is bad? No, it's still a wonderful car.

 

Tom- No real difference in performance between the pre-OTOs and OTOs. Updated Motronic injection/ignition introduced in late summer 2007, but no claimed increase in performance. The big difference in the OTOs is increased reliability from the 599 gearbox case and twin plate clutch and much better shifting with Superfast 1 incorporated. HGT2 OTOs actually offer ~85 ms min shift times, same as the HGTE 599 not introduced until 2010.

Here is a factory blurb on the late 07/early 08 pre-OTOs with the Motronic update and optionally available HGT2 and CCMs. CCMs became standard on the OTOs.
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No clue on Bentleys, but the auto mode in the OTO is superior to that in the pre-OTOs, even though the pre-OTO's FIA system in auto works pretty well.

 

Absolutely

 

I was thinking about this thread while I was out driving my 612 this afternoon. For what you want, I think the 612 is probably the BEST car in the world.

 

I live nearby 74 (on the ocean side) and often drive my 612 there - it does well. BTW, I cannot make that picture fit any section of 74...?

 

Not knowing what I'm missing in an HGTC, to me, my '05 cornered on rails. A base 612 without HGTC still corners beautifully.

 

Ah, the other end. Been a few years since I went 74 from Hemet to Idyllwild, and even longer since driving the stretch down towards the Salton Sea.

 

Couldn't agree more. Drove mine for more than 20.000kms in two years, no serious Problems. Great car, great shape!
Shame these classic-looking Ferraris are not made any more.

 

I drove Hwy 74 more than once in my 612 OTO, and it was a seat-of-the-pants thrill. The climb is effortless because of the V12 power, and the cornering is superb because, well, it's a Ferrari.

I don't know if you're still looking at the 612, but my Palm Springs driving observations are that the 612 is a thrilling way to make the drive, but bear in mind that the OTO has a glass roof (that is electrochromatic, meaning you can darken or lighten the tint with a control knob) and you will get more sunlight intrusion on those hot desert days. No problem, though, just drive faster with the window open.

 

I heard that Ferrari is making custom books on each car made for VIP clients. this occured on the 612.

Question is:did they make this for each car and then print only the one paid for by VIPs?

how to know if such book was made for a particular car and you cant reach the 1st billionaire owner?