F355 F1 -99 with leaking gearbox, need advise

I have come across a very nice F355 F1, but it has one catch: the gearbox is leaking. During the first test ride, every time I changed gears, the red warning light came on, and some times, during accelerating, it did not change up to higher gears than 3:rd or 4:th.
Coming back to the garage, we discovered a weat area on the floor (red oil = hydraulic). We checked the oil level and found it was so dry that you could not even see the oil on the stick. We tried to locate from where it was leaking, but could not tell.
I do not expect anyone to tell me (without having inspected the car) from where it is leaking, but does anyone know from experience, from where IT PROBABLY is leaking ?
And, if it is very expensive to fix ?
The guy selling the car says he has tapped up with new oil, and the gearbox now is shifting perfectly, but of course, still leaking...

 

There are too many variables to say for sure where it's leaking but one thing is certain, An F355F1 with gearbox trouble is not "very nice".

You are asking for some expensive repairs if you buy the car.

 

The system has no problems running up a $15K USD repair bill.....

That said, you might find a specialist that can give you an estimate, but you are going to need to fix it right away .....

 

Tim,

IIRC, there's been a lot of upgrades to the parts???

I thought I had seen an "improved" pump........

 

Awesome, you got a 355?

 

When did that happen? There are no multitudes of pictures.....

 

Oooops, so eventhough the car is in close to perfect condition, it sound like believing it is just a matter of changing a gasket or so...might be a bit too optimistic...?
Maybe better to walk away this time. Too bad, I really wanted that car.
Anyone with experience in these gearboxes out there to comment ?

 

Give this thread a little more time......

If everything else aout the car is excellent, it is unfair to blame the F1 system, it was brand new as of this model and eventually became very reliable...

 

Can you not get the car to a local specialist for a quick look on their ramp?

You could say to the seller "Hey, I like your car but before I buy it just need to find out where that leak is coming from" You'd probably have to offer to pay the specialist to put it on their ramp and have a look, but if you had to pay $100 it would be worth it to find out if it's an easy or difficult fix.

That's what I would do, if I liked the car. You could negotiate on price once you found out the repair cost. Say it's $2,000 you could offer to buy the car for $2,000 less, unless the car is cheap in the first place.

If the seller won't oblige, it's time to walk away.

 

A seller who presents a car for sale with the gearbox oil level low enough to affect the operation of the system calls into question every other maintenance item on the car.

Personally I'm not a big fan of paddle shifters and the 99 F1 was the first year of their gimmicky system. The cost of an F1 pump (quite possibly the problem) has come down some but is still a "big ticket" item and requires a shop with an SD2 to complete any clutch work.

I recommend you take the car to a competent shop with an SD2 for an inspection. You will need to take it there for clutch repairs if you buy it.

 

Depending on the extent of the leaks, and location, the engine/transaxle may have to come out and the two separated....

 

It is most probably the tripple seal, common on both manual and F1. If so it is an real easy and cheap fix, did it my self on my 355 F1. If you need expert advice call Autocura.se and talk to Jim or Ronnie and say Johan sent you...

 

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Buy a used 430 for 100k and incur a $40k repair.

The dilemna of a used supercar...it is comprised of 50-100 parts each worth $10-$15,000 in potential repair value. Consider that the car only costs 5-10 times the individual part repair value. And put 1x-2x that repair value aside as 'repair insurance'.
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fortunately as mentioned above 360 pumps have come way down in price ($800!!!) and can be made to custom fit into a 355, although that's not easy as I understand.

One possible leak that is cheap and easy to fix are the triple seals, when those leak the fluid will be coming from right under the 'pumpkin'.

A more expensive leaks is the F1 actuator, which is on the bottom driver side of the engine.

I loved every minute of my 355 F1 and highly recommend it!!! but as mentioned you really want to identify the source of the leak and get a price to fix it before making an offer on the car.

 

I would be more concerned about the fact the owner was driving the car with such low fluid. How well is this car maintained? RED light to me.......or at least a caution

 

Why not do what I suggested in post 9 above....get the car inspected by a specialist.
In the UK there are specialists that will go and inspect a car for £100-400 (depending on level of inspection/type of car) and produce a report for you.

I would imagine this is available in the USA?

 

OP is in Scandinavia......

 

OP is in Sweden.

 

But we do have good Ferrari worlkshops arround here (Sweden) too...

If you need help you can always call:

AutoCura.se in Kinna
Sportvagnsservice in Stockholm
AutoRopa in Malmö
Remo Special in Skene

 

What is a triple seal?

What is a "pumpkin"?

 

The two places it is probably not leaking.

 

Its leaking red oil.

The F1 system is malfunctioning.

The F1 reservior is empty.


Tell me, which if any of those symptoms fits a triple seal leak?

 

You are asking a question that is impossible to intelligently answer without inspecting the car. This is the internet so naturally there are a couple of people who are perfectly willing to diagnose the car based on thin air and their inability to avoid giving advice when, for a multitude of reasons they should not.

You need to have the car inspected by a qualified person. To not do so is folly. It is possible it is a simple problem that is easily fixed but it is equally possible it is serious and expensive.

I will offer a general opinion of the car however. Good cars have owners who look after them well. They are not typically owned by individuals that would show them to a prospective buyer with a puddle of hydraulic oil on the floor and a fluid reservior so low on fluid that the transmission malfunctions.

 

In the cars I have seen in passed years with F1 system leaks, it is one of two things. First there are rubber lines on the bottom of the tank that sometimes leak, a new hose and some clamps, not bad at all.
Second are the feed lines to the actuator, they are high pressure braided stainless with banjo style ends. There are six different lines. This can get to be expensive quickly. I have seen aftermarket lines made to fit, but you need to send the line off to be matched.
Rarely it is the shift actuator itself, but that is possible. BIG $$s.
Get it to a shop and have them clean away the dirt and leaking oil and find out. Could be easy and worth the fix. Maintainance does not really keep this from happening. It could be well maintained and still develop this leak.

 

Amen. Add to this the fact that IF the owner was genunely unaware of the leak, he could have been driving it around for a while low on oil, with the pump cutting in and out like a loony trying to pressurise oil that simply isn't there....