ferrari F430 broken part HELP!

Have a look at the capote exploded view diagram. Find the exact part you need. See if it can be replaced. Second contact Specialized recyling or another dismantler to see if they have it second hand. In my experience most dealers want to replace a larger part when taking a mechanism abouat and replacing a piece or two might do. Please understand that this is sometimes a wash as the labor cost may exceed the larger mechanism replacement.

For the cost I ultimately recommend parking in a covered location and doing your homework.

 

Someone just a few months ago had this exact same problem. I think that piece is magnesium.

No matter what you do, it's going to be expensive to fix. The best solution seems to start with a used part or complete mechanism from a salvaged car.

I believe it's the same in the 360 and F430 so the pool of cars to choose from is larger than just one model.

This is really unfortunate.

 

This is not good, sorry to hear of your misfortune.

First; Can you tell the group what exactly you were doing when it broke?
Was it stuck one one side and otherwise folding crooked?
Did it stop and you had to push it a little?
Was there any "beeps" before the failure?
Was the engine running or off?
Approximately how many times did you actuate your top on a weekly basis, and for how many years?

You have some options;
1. I agree that finding a used complete unit from a salvage yard is not a bad idea. It will still be expensive, but much less.
2. If it is the magnesium piece then a repair is difficult. Normally you could weld, sand, paint, and move on with life. Magnesium burns quite well and is used in fireworks. It even burns under water, so welding it is tricky. It needs to be welded in an inert gas by someone familiar with the material. Also it would probably need to be disassembled before welding, which could be tricky to get back together and aligned.
3. Look through the Ricambiamerica parts to see if you see the failed item. Here is a link to the exploded parts diagram. The Italians call the Top a Capote : http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&V=model&I=82
4. Get top down and leave it down. Mine has only been up 3 times since purchase, just to wash the car. Then if it gets totaled by a drunk or something, you wont have to worry about the top anymore!
5. You could buy a salvage F430 Spider, get the top, and part out the rest until you recoup your $, or resell the car after you get what you need.
6. Drill a few holes in the broken piece and frankenstein it back together.

Good luck and keep us posted with the progress.

 

If you can't find the part remove and take to a machine shop , have it fabricated from steel or alum. Mg is strong ,light ,but brittle. Just a suggestion as to a possible solution.

 

I don't like this thread at all. Sorry to hear this is an understatement. This really sucks.

Can you answer a few of the questions Trent posed so the rest of us can possibly avoid suffering a similar fate?

 

Looking at those pictures makes my stomach just knot up. Sorry to hear this. Hope this gets resolved soon. I bumped the "$65K top repair" thread but no response from the OP. Would like to know what that owner did.

 

Wow this is unfortunate...I dont have any advice other than look for salvage parts or replace the whole thing.

 

Or perhaps keep the top down "permanently" and forget about it? It seems to still work so you can just put it up when you get caught in rain.... Sorry it happened. Good luck! Please let us know what you ended up doing.

 

Oh man!

We all feel for you.
How did it happen?

 

(angels singing)

 

Great to hear! They've helped me out with a few parts (dashboard, power seat motor and cable) that would otherwise have cost me a fortune!

 

For $20000, it would be cheaper to find a high school student, then pay for 2 years training for them at a machine shop. Then, they can make you the part...

Otherwise, take the part to a metal worker and they can make it in steel for very little...

 

Sounds like whichever parts affect the one that keeps breaking is also a possible culprit. This shouldn't happen twice.

 

It it were my car I would fabricate /weld a replacement part out of steel and be done with it.
The additional weight will be irrelevant and if you put the effort into the final finish you will not be able to tell the difference from the OE part.

 

Apparently they missed something. It sounds like things are "out of synch" with each other.

 

If the part comes off, get a welder to refurbish it. That should not be a big deal. You can send it to me and I will get it welded, even if its magnesium. I got a guy down here who does all my aluminium/mag welding jobs. You can probably find one near your location. Get it welded, smooth it out and get a matching paint and you are done.

You don't have to buy everything new.

 

It is my understanding your original magnesium cross member failed. Could have been bad luck, microscopic cracks, repetitive stress failure, etc. But now you have sourced a new (used) replacement, had it installed and aligned and the replacement broke in the same manor.

Is this correct?

If so do not replace it again without getting to the root of the issue. If the replacement part failed as did the original part this repeated failure is merely a symptom of the actual issue. It may be time to have the top professionally inspected at a dealer. It could be a hydraulic issue where a ram is failing on one side. Failing could be seizing, piston flow by, etc. This could be exerting tremendous torque on the cross member. Your hydraulic system is very powerful! I believe its a 200 bar system (or close to that). Thats 200 times standard atmospheric pressure at sea level.

I would say treat this failing piece like it was a blown fuse. Sure replace it one if it blows, but after the second fuse blows, seek the root of the issue.

Good luck and keep us in the loop.