New F430 Coupe Finally Spec'd

Sounds like a beautiful, well equipped car! Anxious to see pics of the BOSE system.

Did you do the CF Intake?

Are heated seats available again? The last word I received indicated no heated seats (coupe or Spider) and my order form had it deleted.

 

WOW!!! Sounds wonderful!! How long is the wait?????

Congrats!!


Robert

 

Yes! Another manual F430!!! Good Job!

Just curious...why are you going with a Yellow Tach but getting red calipers?

 

can you not get the rear challenge grille? I love the contrast it offers on a red or yellow car

sounds like a nice ride

 

ahh I read that, I was checking to see if it was true, sad to hear it is

 

Sounds nice, congrats.

My buddy just ordered his spider with black interior, daytonas, red stitching and piping. I tried to find some pics of an F430 with black daytonas with red piping but was unsuccessful. I prefer the tan interior colors available than black on Ferraris personally, and I look forward to seeing pics of yours...

 

Do the run-flats degrade ride quality much?

 

Congrats!

Just curious as to why youre going back to stick shift? Im a stick shift guy and I have a friend who just got a F1 car and he loves it and I have told him to get back to me in ~18 months to see if the novelty has worn off. I am hoping that my Ferrari adventure will always involve a stick shift.

My experience on runflats (though with my Z8) is that they indeed do take a toll on ride quality. Unless you have a real fear of a flat tire and no AAA coverage my opinion is to not get run flats. I am sure they have gotten better but I do not believe you get something for nothing and to make run flats work, you need very stiff sidewalls.

Nice color choices as I also prefer the red calipers and yellow tach- also the yellow in the calipers does not match the yellow on the shield and one's eyes will naturally try to line these items up. You can't tell the tach from the outside.

One comment on the air intakes- is this the new CF option for the air plenum? I have seen pictures of this and it looks mean- in a good way- but, I think I prefer the standard red crackle look because it really says "Ferrari". Cant wait to see pictures.

best regards,
Jerry

 

One other point on the calipers. The red calipers are a fairly close match in color to the red tail lights which you do see from the side profile. I always thought I would like the yellow calipers- and while theres nothing wrong with them, they have become my least favorite caliper color for a F430 (not like this is a major item or anything)

best regards,
Jerry

 

I think you need to talk to someone else about the heated seat option! I am due my car next month about the 15th. I went round and round regarding the heated seats because of where I live. All the places I looked stated that due to the air bag sensors that need to be in there also, Ferrari could not make it all work without redesigning the seats so they elected to delete the heated seat option! Perhaps they have done the nessesary changes due to client demand but I doubt it! Let us know if it truely has been addressed, and good luck! the rest of your car sounds great! M-

 

+1. Although I appreciate the technology, I just sold my 06 430 f1 and ordered a manual; I am looking forward to it. I also agree with your opinion on the intake - it's mean looking, but I personally also like the red.

 

hmmm...I've got over 22K miles between my 360 and my F430 and not a single mile in a manually shifted Ferarri! When I read these comments, I makes me wonder what I'm missing!

Sounds like doing the work has it's own magic!

 

Mark,
it just depends on you, what you like, where you are driving, etc.

Most of my friends who are not into cars would say to me "I heard you got a Ferrari" and I say- "yup". And they ask "what color?" and I say "blue" and they are stumped. (its tdf/tan spider- very purdy) . To them all Ferraris must be red. Nothing wrong with a red Ferrari mind you, just that I find "Ferrari=only red" thinking to be very limited. (whats funny about this is I said above that I like the red crackle engine cover because it's so "Ferrari"! what a hypocrite I am! ) But they are not into cars- so I understand. I show them the car and they are floored- "wow- its so pretty" And then they see the stick shift and do not comment on it. Whereas anyone who is into cars would know its more rare to see a F430 stick shift. Again its the closed mindset: sports cars have to be stick shift. One said he heard Ferraris can be bought in "automatic" now. I told him about how an F1 is really a manual, etc and that over 80% of the new Ferraris are built as F1. He couldn't believe it- why would anyone want that? While I prefer the stick shift, I actually know the answer to the question.

I've driven both- though I have more experience with stick. And Ive driven at VIR in SMG M3s and stick shift M3s (not nearly as fun as Ferraris F1 system but the comparison for me is similar). I honestly have to tell you that I had much more fun driving the stick shift M3s around the VIR. Now, I worked harder also, and I was probably not quite as fast around the track- but Im doing this for FUN- not for the course record.

So, in the end my feelings in terms of what experience I find most gratifying is this: if I were a pro driver on a track, then its got to be F1. I do not want the act of shifting to take any concentration away from driving- as I am driving at 10/10ths and probably a tad beyond. But, for Jerry, who wouldnt probably exceed 8/10ths on a track and probably doesnt exceed 5/10ths (in cornering) when driving a car on public streets, I have spare brain power left over and the simple pleasure of guiding the metal shifter through the metal gates- getting the upshifts nice and smooth- or fast and a little more violent- and heel/toeing for a rev matched downshift or simply rev matching to get more RPMS for more power or more aural pleasure- thats part of the fun for me. I have total control over the car. With the F1/ SMG, I have given up some of that control and I feel less involved with actually driving. Now I am not saying the SMG is the equal to the F1 system in terms of driving enjoyment. I think the F1 is superior in all areas except perhaps clutch life. I am very impressed with how visceral the Ferrari F1 is, its very good. In the end, for me, I want a stick shift.

I was a little concerned about this when I got the car- would I have buyers remorse on the stick shift vs F1. Not only do I not have any buyers remorse, but it has cemented to me the fact that I just like driving stick. Going into it, I thought I would trade the 430 in for a 599 or other when it comes- but you know what- no- this beautiful tdf/tan spider stick shift has joined my stable of "keepers".

best regards,
Jerry