Edmunds Long Term 550 Review...

rob lay · Mar 31, 2005

Although mentioned here and there on FerrariChat.com, I don't think this long term review has received the attention it should. Any active user on FerrariChat.com has heard it all before, but still a good long read.

Edmunds bought a new 2001 550 in early 2002. As of December 2004 they have only put 4,481 miles on it, but there have been over 20 rather detailed and lengthy write-ups on the experience.

Overall I think their experience has been good, but it does highlight the typical Ferrari QA issues and Dealership/FNA inefficiencies.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/DrivesIndex/LongTerm/make=Ferrari/model=550

My favorite quotes from the articles...

the dealer had added a Tubi-Style exhaust system for a mere $12,000. As the actual cost of this system runs slightly less than $2,800 for a 550, we quickly negotiated the price down to a more reasonable $4,000.
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Driving through some sharp "S" turns, we quickly learned to appreciate the 550's laser-sharp steering and feedback. Coming up behind an Acura Integra, we experienced something of a first. Even though we had made a point of hanging back, the Integra pulled over to allow us to pass. Happy to oblige, we accelerated through a turn, and the Integra's driver gave us the "thumbs up" as we drove by.
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A Los Angeles Police Department cruiser abruptly pulled behind us, and the officer shined his spotlight through the Ferrari's rear window. As the stoplight turned green, we gingerly pulled ahead. The spotlight went out, and the police car disappeared.
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As we continued on our way, the instruments suddenly went dead. As everything else appeared in order, we assumed it was just a fuse and continued down the road. Soon, we noticed the instrument lights perceptibly dimming; the skid control and ABS failure lights also came on, accompanied by a faint whiff of (what smelt like) overheated wiring. This was obviously more than a fuse.
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But as we are starting to learn, exotic cars are called exotics for a reason. In this case, it is because oil temperature gauges are not a stock part with Ferrari North America. The part would have to come from Italy, and we were told the car would be ready the next week.

Speaking of gauges, our replacement gauge finally has arrived. That it has taken five weeks confirms that our insistence on driving the car (as opposed to leaving it at the dealership) while waiting for the part's arrival was the correct decision
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Five days after our 550 was returned to the dealership for repairs, we checked with our salesperson and were told we could pick the car up at noon that day. When we arrived, one look at the car made it obvious that it was not ready the instrument binnacle was still sitting on a counter next to the car. Apparently, the salesperson failed to mention to the technician that we were picking up the car.
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If our 550 is typical, Ferraris could benefit from tighter final QA. Items that we have noted in need of attention on our 550 are a loose seal on the inside of the front-passenger wheelwell, a loose panel on the left side of the driver's wheelwell and a rattle in the trunk lid (possibly a bolt that has worked itself loose?).
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After spending some time in the cockpit, we can reconfirm it is very comfortable especially for a high-performance vehicle. The driving position is near-perfect, being much more upright than in mid-engined supercars.
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During our daily driving, we have also noticed that the engine cooling systems in the 550 appear to be very efficient. Even in the worst of Los Angeles traffic, the coolant temperature has never exceeded 190 degrees. Under normal conditions, the coolant has averaged 10 to 20 degrees cooler.
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In talking with other Ferrari owners, we find that the manufacturer's reluctance to approve expensive warranty repairs is not unusual. Driver abuse is frequently assumed.)
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Would 100-octane fuel cause a noticeable increase in performance?

We filled our 550's nearly empty tank with the expensive elixir, but after putting 88 miles on the odometer we have yet to notice any difference. This probably has more to do with the fact the 550 has horsepower in abundance to the point where we can't practically probe its limits on the street.
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We had not yet received a notification from Ferrari regarding our 550, so we called our local dealer to see if it was one of the vehicles covered by the recall. We learned it was indeed part of the recall and scheduled an appointment for service.
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Freshly fueled, we arrived at the test track and promptly ran the 550 through our usual battery of instrumented testing. Here are the best times recorded:
Zero-to-60-mph acceleration: 4.6 seconds

Quarter-mile acceleration: 12.9 seconds at 109.6 mph (our best trap speed was 111.5 mph on a slower run)

60-mph-to-0 braking: 114.5 feet

600-foot slalom speed: 65.0 mph
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One thing we noted while testing the 550 was the level of brutality it exhibits when pushed to the limits. Civilized and luxurious under normal driving conditions, the 550 sounded and felt almost as raw as a Viper during its acceleration runs.
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The bad news is that oil changes for Ferraris don't come cheap. Our 550 required 12 quarts of oil, six and a half hours of labor and a few miscellaneous parts, resulting in a bill of over $1,200!
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TexasF355F1 · Mar 31, 2005

Great read. Didn't realize the gas mileage was that low....6.6! That's nuts.

mswiek · Mar 31, 2005

What are they doing with their gas mileage ? !!! I have had my 1999 550 for just over a year, and have put almost 5K on it. Overall gas mileage is just uder 15 mpg. Some of their other gripes etc. ring true, but overall mine has been better than theirs.

loungedog · Mar 31, 2005

Rob Lay said:

Although mentioned here and there on FerrariChat.com, I don't think this long term review has received the attention it should. Any active user on FerrariChat.com has heard it all before, but still a good long read.

Edmunds bought a new 2001 550 in early 2002. As of December 2004 they have only put 4,481 miles on it, but there have been over 20 rather detailed and lengthy write-ups on the experience.

Overall I think their experience has been good, but it does highlight the typical Ferrari QA issues and Dealership/FNA inefficiencies.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/DrivesIndex/LongTerm/make=Ferrari/model=550

My favorite quotes from the articles...
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Excellent post Rob...thanks for sharing

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Edmunds Long Term 550 Review...

rob lay Administrator
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TexasF355F1 Six Time F1 World Champ
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Edmunds Long Term 550 Review...

rob lay Administrator Staff Member Admin Miami 2018 Owner

TexasF355F1 Six Time F1 World Champ Silver Subscribed

mswiek Formula Junior

loungedog Formula Junior

Share This Page

rob lay Administrator
Staff Member Admin Miami 2018 Owner

TexasF355F1 Six Time F1 World Champ
Silver Subscribed