Guys, Got my 458 in July and had a dealer do the PPI. No issues. However, I've always noticed a slight miss ONLY when pulling away from a complete stop up to about 10 mph. It's definitely a "driveaway" issue as it's fine in every other condition. My understanding is that under driveaway conditions (1st gear, stopped, foot on brake) when you release the brake and start applying throttle the TCU is master to the ECU. It tells the engine (based on throttle pedal position) how much torque (rpm/actual throttle position) to apply while it transitions the 1st gear clutch from open to closed (slip) to facilitate a smooth experience. Once the clutch is closed (no more slip) the gearbox is said to be synchronized and engine control is changed back to the ECU (the master). What is feels like to me is that during driveaway the TCU is giving improper direction to the ECU causing the rough engine up to the sync point where the ECU takes over again and the engine runs smooth again. Has anyone else experienced this condition?
A couple things you'll want to have checked, The ignition coils on the Early 458's get carbon deposits built up inside where it contacts the spark plug and causes low load misfires. Especially cold at idle. Have your coils cleaned and consider replacing the spark plugs if its never been done. They are likely 5 years old now. The other thing to do is have the clutch relearned. This can be done with the factory tester and a knowledgable technician. It will help with a smoother takeoff. - Hope that helps
My 2011 has been in the shop for over 5 weeks now as they try to diagnose a heavy load misfire. They feel confident they have traced it to a bad injector. Of course, they don't have any in the country (WTF?) and now I'm waiting 10 days to get one from Italy. Apparently, no one feels this was important enough to DHL one here overnight. (Another WTF). This will be a 9 week fix when it's all said and done including the time it took to even get the service appointment. I know you said under light load, but I would say it's a possibility you might have the same problem.
I remember a few years back I had to get the CD auto changer replaced... 3 weeks later and with a new ding on my door the car was ready for pickup... I really wonder about Ferrari's customer service sometimes.
Michael, which dealership are you going to? With my dealership's service dept. I don't even need an appointment to bring the car in: I just cold call them the morning of the day I want to bring the car in and they start work on it immediately or the next day, parts are also shipped asap; you should maybe look into changing dealership.. very best
I'll check the coil on plugs and replace the sparkplugs just in case, but I can lug the engine down to almost a crawl and it'll pull away cleanly. It's ONLY an issue from a dead stop, that's the weird part. I've heard that the recalibration of the TCU can smooth the driveaway and it can be done using the factory tester or a Leonardo/Galileo tester. To me, it just doesn't feel or sound like a clutch issue (slipping, grabbing, etc). I'm getting access to a Leonardo in a few weeks and I'll monitor the odd clutch pack oil pressure, shaft speeds and a few other TCU parameters just to make sure. I might disconnect the battery so that all the learned/adaptive parameters will reset just in case I have a corrupted table in the TCU/ECU.
Took my car to three different shops here in SoCal specializing in Ferraris and after driving the car they all said its one of the smoothest 458s they'd driven. One reset the Kiss point just for the heck of it and measured (indirectly) the clutch wear which was well within spec. I didn't feel any difference. I guess I'm a bit too sensitive and haven't driven many DCTs as they said all early 458s were programmed to be a bit harsh on drive away. Issue solved.
