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MY F355 Died!! WTF

Discussion in 'Technical Q&A' started by ENZOFORZA, Jul 12, 2004.

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  1. ENZOFORZA

    ENZOFORZA Karting

    Nov 3, 2003
    123
    DUXBURY, MA
    Full Name:
    JAKE
    #1 ENZOFORZA, Jul 12, 2004
    Driving to Limerock this Thursday afternoon, car is purring along I-90. All temps look good, no problems. I get off the ramp and while paying the toll I notice that the cars Idle is at 500-600 and a bit rough. I take off and floor it and both check engine lights come on. car wont rev above 4000, starts bucking etc. I back off throttle and get off the first exit into a truck stop. Check engine lights are getting dimmer and windows wont go up or down. Car dies completely in middle of parking lot. Try to turn it over + nothing. I get out and give the car a once over and find nothing. I go in and eat and come out 45 mins later. Car starts right up as if nothing happend!! No jumpstart!! I figure its a bad connection or ground. I drive it for 2 days and it runs fine (including 2 trips of about 2 hrs from limerock to foxwoods). Sunday morning 2am Im driving to hotel from a friends house and the same thing happend, check engine lights come on cur starts to lose power and all lights are slowly dimming. $612 towing bill later I get home and look through the records of the car. Alternator was replaced in sept. '03 by Miller. Any Ideas? Car dies then starts up 30 mins later like nothing happened. If it needs a new alternator will FoNE repalce under warranty? Does it sound like an alternator problem? battery was tested and is fine. Teck said that voltage is "irregular" + "fluctuating" from alternator. I brought it home and plugged it into trickle charger for an hour. Started up no problem, I let it run with high beams on, ac on full blast, radio and interior lights on. Ran for 1/2 hour no problem. turned it off and started right back up. ????????
     
  2. tifosi

    tifosi F1 Veteran
    Lifetime Rossa

    Sep 5, 2001
    5,382
    texas
    Full Name:
    Tom D
    #2 tifosi, Jul 12, 2004
    600 bucks for towing - I am in the wrong business, :) could be a number of problems from a loose wire to bad ecu
     
  3. alanhenson

    alanhenson Formula 3

    Dec 2, 2003
    1,357
    #3 alanhenson, Jul 12, 2004
    Definately electrical. I used to have the same thing happen to me when I was younger. I had a mustang with a very powerful stereo system that the car electrical system could not handle. It would die in the middle of driving if I had it cranked up for too long. Sounds like your battery is not charging and the cars electricals are runnng it dead. Let it sit and it recharges itself. But I am no mechanic. Good luck.
     
  4. BigHead

    BigHead Formula Junior

    Oct 31, 2003
    995
    Outside of Boston
    Full Name:
    Dennis
    #4 BigHead, Jul 12, 2004
    Miller should have installed it, but worth checking anyway. There is now a ground wire available that should run from the alternator to the chassis. Check to see if it's there. ~$20 from FoNE, easy to install.

    Then again, if the battery isn't dead, then it may not be the bad ground. Check your battery terminals - clean them up and tighten them down. You'll need to remove your right front wheel, but it's a simple procedure.

    Good luck, and let us know!

    vty,

    --Dennis
     
  5. ENZOFORZA

    ENZOFORZA Karting

    Nov 3, 2003
    123
    DUXBURY, MA
    Full Name:
    JAKE
    #5 ENZOFORZA, Jul 12, 2004
    I have heard that the 355's had an alternator update (something about a ground wire added) I hope that is all it is. The alt by itself is $700 + labor. Oh well Cant take it with you right!!!!
     
  6. delaney

    delaney Formula Junior

    Nov 8, 2003
    721
    Montgomery TX
    Full Name:
    PETER DELANEY
    #6 delaney, Jul 12, 2004
    If it was a charging problem with the alternator .. how come it 'died' ... was left for an hour or so, and then fired right up. Battery could not have been flat. Something is sapping the power from the battery to the car electricals.

    Doesn't sound like an alternator problem .... i.e. it's ability to generate a charge. Sounds like contacts or an ecu problem. I'd check the basics ... connections to / from the battery.

    Just gone through an alternator saga with my car ... '96 Spider. Tried two rebuilds .... problems re-surfaced after days .. then bit the bullet and bought one with a horse on it ... $800+.
     
  7. kevfla

    kevfla Formula 3

    Nov 20, 2003
    2,086
    Full Name:
    gone 4 good
    #7 kevfla, Jul 12, 2004
    Had similar symptoms on a newer Chrysler. Diagnosed as a bad coil pack. When it cooled down, would function OK until hot again.

    KevFla
     
  8. markcF355

    markcF355 F1 Rookie

    Jun 6, 2004
    3,493
    Schmeckelstan
    Full Name:
    Mark
    #8 markcF355, Jul 12, 2004
    Does this happen after about 15 min. of driving? Believe it or not I’ve seen this happen in a 355 when the starter does not disengage after the engine starts.
     
  9. ENZOFORZA

    ENZOFORZA Karting

    Nov 3, 2003
    123
    DUXBURY, MA
    Full Name:
    JAKE
    #9 ENZOFORZA, Jul 12, 2004
    it only happens after long drives of 1hr or more. I cant imagine its the ecu's since the car dies, everything still "functions". I still can get the "Tick tick" dead battery noise from the starter, and the windows roll up and down, but very slowly.
     
  10. f355 Nashville

    f355 Nashville Karting

    Feb 5, 2004
    156
    Nashville, Tn.
    Full Name:
    Ting
    #10 f355 Nashville, Sep 25, 2004
     
  11. f355 Nashville

    f355 Nashville Karting

    Feb 5, 2004
    156
    Nashville, Tn.
    Full Name:
    Ting
    #11 f355 Nashville, Sep 25, 2004
    mine did the exact SAME THING
    i was driving home today, was going 80 mph for about 60 miles the car ran great got off the exit ramp and all the lights start to come on one by one. first the airbag light then the check engine lights then the abs light. finally the car start to buck and it dies right as i pull up in front of my house. the window rolled up very very very slowly... so since i was starving i decide to go inside an find something to eat. about 10 minutes later i went back outside and see if it would start.. it started right up and acted like nothing happened. its now in my garage and i am scared of it.. i looked on ferrari chat and found this post. its scary how similar our experiences are.
    did you ever find the problem? any suggestions?
    thanks a bunch
     
  12. 348SStb

    348SStb F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Apr 9, 2004
    2,991
    Palm Beach County, FL or Nassau County, NY
    Full Name:
    Dave
    #12 348SStb, Sep 25, 2004
    To ENZOFORZA and F355Nashville--

    May I ask: what model year are your F355s?
     
  13. f355 Nashville

    f355 Nashville Karting

    Feb 5, 2004
    156
    Nashville, Tn.
    Full Name:
    Ting
    #13 f355 Nashville, Sep 25, 2004
    mine is a 95 model 355 b 24000 miles
     
  14. ernie

    ernie Two Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Nov 19, 2001
    22,620
    The Brickyard
    Full Name:
    The Bad Guy
    #14 ernie, Sep 25, 2004
    Okay the first thing you need to do is have the codes pulled from the ECU. This will get you going in the right direction. Without the codes you will just be guessing at what it is, until the cows come home. So pull the engine codes and then go from there. Since you have an SD2 system you can get a code puller from your local auto parts store for around $100.
     
  15. Ferraro

    Ferraro Rookie

    Aug 25, 2004
    27
    KL, Malaysia.
    Full Name:
    Rohan Shan
    #15 Ferraro, Sep 25, 2004
    Incidentally, did the car come into contact with water at anytime before the incident? I was reliably (Ferrari mechanic) informed that the later 355s (5.2) have a problem with the 'contact on the cat' when exposed to water. Sorry I'm not technically gifted, so that's about the best I can do, hope it's of some help in your 'post mortem' (pun not intended).
     
  16. f355 Nashville

    f355 Nashville Karting

    Feb 5, 2004
    156
    Nashville, Tn.
    Full Name:
    Ting
    #16 f355 Nashville, Sep 25, 2004
    no i didnt come in contact with any water. i did however get new wheels installed yesturday morning.. i dont see how that possibly could cause the car to do what it did.

    where does the sd2 reader connect to? is it under the drivers side dash or behind the seat?

    thanks for any info
     
  17. pino

    pino Karting

    Nov 1, 2003
    208
    South Central PA
    #17 pino, Sep 25, 2004
    On a '95 you would hook up the SD1/SD2 to the ECU's located under each "wing" in the engine compartment. Only '96 or newer have the OBD port under the dash. '96 or newer also have only one ECU located behind passenger seat which the SD tool of choice can hook up to as well.

    Good luck in diagnosing your problem. We are all curious!

    Best,
    Pino


    I forgot to mention: It sounds an awfully like an alternator/battery problem.
     

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