Ruined my 296 with aftermarket wheels and returned back to stock

Just returned from 3000km euro trip through Swiss Alps and Dolomites and can’t imagine doing it with Novitec springs. So happy to have made that call before the trip, would’ve had ruined it otherwise (and carbon diffuser likely too)

The angles on the road and unpredictability of it all reinforced my decision that it’s not worth to mess around with factory settings (says the guy who used to be all over stance)

 

A few years ago I made some small stance changes to an R8, a few mill to the ride height and some modest spacers. It felt so much better and I thought it was felt good. But it wasn't. The car was fine on a nice flat road but became really unstable over bumps at speed. I nearly ended up in a ditch. I'm quite sure, setup correctly, you can get a 296 to have a better stance AND drive well.. I just wouldn't risk it myself.

 

Lowered 2 cars

I convinced myself it was better

Little did i know as my driving skills improved it was actually worse at higher speeds

Never again

Sometimes change is as good as a holiday i think the term is

 

Clearly my ability to type in English has left me!

Here's the corrected version:

A few years ago I made some small stance changes to an R8, a few mill to the ride height and some modest spacers. It LOOKED so much better and I thought it felt OK to drive. The car was fine on a nice flat road but became really unstable over bumps at speed. I nearly ended up in a ditch. I'm quite sure, setup correctly, you can get a 296 to have a better stance AND drive well.. I just wouldn't risk it myself.

 

Exactly. As much as I love the lowered look, it’s much better to stick with the stock springs.

 

It baffles me when people think that they know better than car makers how a car's suspension should be. I am not talking only about Ferraris, but in general. Does anyone think that the engineers in these multi billion companies are stupid?

 

No. Not stupid. Just that aesthetically speaking some of us may have wished that the cars looked more like Porsche in terms of spaces around the tires and the body of our F cars.
And it is a fact, at least for me, that the suspensions on my non AF 296 are too soft and that there is substantial rubbing from the wheels to the point that I already had to replace the inner protective part after a couple of days on the track.
I now have harder suspensions and no more issues with rubbing. And yes the dynamics of the car has changed. For me, for the better overall but with some downsides while driving everyday on the road. It is a compromise that I am happy to live with as far as I know exactly what I lost for what I gained.

 

I have driven these cars both ways.

The first thing you need to consider is the tire, wheel, and suspension together is a system. Along with the traction software. The Ferrari suspension is actually quite good and advanced, especially these days.

The best thing to do when addressing a system is to go with one change at a time. Otherwise you can’t be sure on the source of any issues.

WRT Ferraris- the 488 introduced software that softens the dampers when you accelerate hard- this helps to increase the traction. Contrary to what many might think, on an uneven surface, having more ability to absorb bumps will often increase traction.

When you change only the springs, you are not addressing the dampers. There is a range of spring rate that the factory dampers and their settings can work with, but, the factory has optimized this. When you change the springs, it will be to suit your own taste, but you are a little outside the factory optimum settings. Again, it was easier with 458 and earlier cars, but 488 and on, it is really something you should leave alone, IMHO.

Then you have the cars with AF suspension- some people seem to get the AF car and then change it for Novitec- why? You just went backwards in technology. The Multimatic AF suspension is much better for spirited driving. It just does not have the lift, so then get the factory suspension with the lifter.

The older cars definitely needed to be lowered a bit to look good, but the new ones look much better. I would leave it alone.

Then you have the question of the wheels and tires. The factory traction system uses many measurements, the most prominent ones are a difference in rotation between the front and rear. If you change that outside of some tight parameters, you will cause the traction system to freak out.

So this is another instance of the fact that they have advanced these cars so much, I would not deviate from the factory setup when it comes to the weight of the combined wheel and tire/ tire sizes. They do allow for some variance, but it’s a tighter window now. On an F430 you really could make changes and be completely fine. On a 296, stick with the factory. JMHO.


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I have to agree in principle. Every mfg optimizes their car's ride and handling to their rigid standards.
Once the vehicle gets into the hands of the public, some think they know better and proceed accordingly. Of course its always about the intended usage. Im in the camp that the cars need to have bigger wheels and sit lower. But on a Ferrari, I'm hesitant to mess with their settings just for appearance sakes.

I used to work with suspension engineers that we used to tease that they could drive over a coin and could tell whether it was heads or tails.

 

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This is my final setup with taller rims. It is very near identical in terms of front to rear ratios vs original front to rear "important" dimensions.
And even then, I can tell the car does not behave the same when accelerating hard. To me at least it seems to have an increased tendency to spin. And during spirited driving the front tires squeal easily during hairpin turns. All of this, not very problematic for me as it makes the car even more lively but I am losing in pure "performance" (which does not matter on the regular roads).
All this to say that experience done it is truly a mistake to believe that Novitec springs for example will make the care more sporty. Unless sporty means only "appearance" wise.
I did put fimer springs (not Novitec ones) as well but not for the sole purpose to lower it. It was mainly for track days to make it more "stable" under heavy breaking, cornering, and accelerating. All of the above it absolutely did.

 

Yes, the difference here may work with the traction system but it doesnt reflect the change in spring rate nor the weight in the different wheel tire setup.

It really depends on what you are doing with your car. The OEM engineers have to design to a wider range.

Having driven these cars, I think one would be best off with the Multimatic AF suspension if track days are something you will do. However, I would think a dedicated track car would be your best option. The AF suspension has incredible body control.

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Thanks for your answer.
I could not agree more.
I am just on the fence for a few years now with getting a dedicated track car (any brand for that matter). I have been on the track with F challenge cars (458, 488 and even 296). Did not drive one of those but was on the track in the same sessions with my "normal" but slightly prepped 296 (trofeos and custom stiffer springs). I could go around the track just a few seconds slower than the 458 and 488 challenge (and sometimes faster). Granted some drivers may not all be really good.
My point is that the 296 on the track is incredible. And then I just swap my tires back to PS4 and I go home with it.
For sure, I should have considered the AF version. But I did not anticipate how heavy the 296 was going to be and how (too) soft the springs were (at least for intense track days). Even my F mechanics who are accompanying many race (challenge) F drivers and experienced the regular 296s on track days were "surprised" and had to deal with inner fenders being ripped apart front and rear...