New CS

Cross-post I wrote in Pistonheads:

I’ve have a half dozen drives in the new CS. It seemed amazing when being pushed hard and painfully dreadful otherwise. I was close to just dumping it for a scud. The tranny seemed crazy violent, sound on/off violent; and I was having thoughts that anything other than being on a track or risking being throw in jail, the car was awful.

Today it clicked. I’m really used to gt3/rs’s: 997 and 991 gen. The CS is neither. It’s tranny wants to live in different rpms/gears at different speeds and it wants to up/down shift in different spots. When I drove it like a Gt3, it SUCKED at anything other than the limit. Today I got it! I was able to drive in any type of traffic, road, speed: 1/10 or 9/10 and it’s pretty brilliant everywhere.

This tranny isn’t a DCT and it isn’t a 3-pedal. But once you get it, this car is one of the most engaging and rewarding cars I’ve ever driven.

Finding out the last owner installed an exhaust flap control system was a big help also. The quiet-one-second and insanely-loud binary nature of the exhaust I didn’t care for. The flaps stuck open or closed, I like.

I’m out of town this coming weekend but I’d love to get out for a drive sometime end of July or after. Do the local Ferrari club or F-dealers do many drives/track events? My cars live in Shepherd’s Bush area of London.


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Congrats on the CS...

I've been saying it for years about the 360 era Ferrari's vs anything with 500+hp. You absolutely need to calibrate the way you drive it. Once you get into the flow with it, its totally engaging to pilot.

Enjoy in rude health... Although quite how you could enjoy a fast car around London I'll never get my head around

 

actually, if you revert to an early tcu , it'll solve the violent transmision problem.

another actuality, it sounds crazy but modifying a true CS into a Modena is a serious gentleman's game. No, I am not kidding. my local rich guys are converting scuds into regular 430s as a passion(we don't have a lot of 360s here). It may be laughable as your 1st impression, mine too, but it it what it is and the more I think of it, the more I admire their endeavor.

if yo

 

Race mode and exhaust flap always open works well for me. Yes, you have to keep the 8500rpm redline motor up in the rev band. Drive it on a track and you will see how it all comes together brilliantly.

 

Yep. Race and open flaps.


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I ONLY drive mine in RACE!

It's a special car. The more you drive it, the more you'l "get it"!

 

Wait...there’s a different mode other than race?? Hehe

 

If you haven't practiced car control extensively and learned how the CS responds to cool tires, sudden directional changes, balance shift during turns, etc then tread very carefully with race mode. If you aren't a practiced driver, race mode can be extremely unforgiving, which may help explain why seemingly so many exotics end up crashed.
Though if you are honest with yourself and your capabilities, then race mode is preferred. Just understand that you are removing a huge amount of the safety net.

 

I hate anything other than race mode. Its all too intrusive...

Modern tires like Michelin Pilot 4S (all weather but still amazing in dry) and Michelin Pilot Cup 2's (hot dry climate only) have pushed the boundaries so high on mechanical grip that its rarely a problem once you understand how the car feels and how you have to react.

I'd suggest if your going to drive it anything other than 5/10's you need to get a full geometry check done and add a little more negative camber (up to Scuderia specs at the minimum for camber) then go and have a play in a safe area and provoke the car into a slide to learn how it reacts. Police skid pans are great for this kind of thing. I've done a spreadsheet which details what the impact of geometry adjustments have on the fine balance of the car.

The chassis is amazingly tuneable and 360's all comes with fully adjustible coilover platforms as stock s you can do a lot to improve handling. I vastly prefer zero toe at the front for maximum agility for example. I hate understeer so I also prefer larger up front tires and I don't like sudden breakaway so prefer 4S over Cup 2's which gives you a lot of feedback of an impending breakaway situation. On my car I run 245's (8.5"x19) at the front and 305's (10.5"x19) at rear with rolled inner arches on 430 Challenge race centerlock's which gives unbelievable amounts of mechanical grip. I also run full 430 Challenge race brakes too which are 398mm with a much bigger pad spread than the 380mm which are stock fitment so the stopping and cornering is just other worldly...

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Ah CS, one of my all-time favorite Ferraris. If I had more garage space, I'd buy one. Congratulations and enjoy!