2013 California Options

Hi TNFowner, congrats on your two gorgeous cars! Its good to see more owners like you actually driving their cars. many inquiring minds here would like to hear your opinion regarding the differences between the Cali and 458, as this has been a topic bantered about here recently. Also, it's interesting to see that you went with both rossa exteriors.

 

Would love to especially read about if you think the power and acceleration on the 458 is almost the equal of the 458

Your car is a California 30 and it would be interesting to read your comments comparing it to us disadvantaged folk with the 2009-2011 models if you have any experience with that

 

Congratulations. Regardless of what you choose, I have no doubt that you will enjoy. From my own personal experience, I really like having

Parking sensors and rearview camera
Carbon Fiber rear around license plate
Electric seats with heat

I do not miss magnaride, cruise control, upgraded sound system, but again there is no right or wrong...only fun. Enjoy

 

My '30' came with a bag containing a car cover and a trickle charger for the battery and I remember reading somewhere that this is standard with all Californias. My dealer strongly recommended plugging in the trickle charger whenever I'm not driving the car for a week or more (which is, sadly, often). So I've been doing that but I'm not really sure how necessary it is.

 

It will prolong the battery life. I use my trickle charger whenever I am finished driving for the day. I never know exactly when my next Fcar drive will be and time can get away from me.

 

True. Lead-acid batteries last longest when kept *just* at full charge.

 

I used to drive BMWs and like Ferraris, they use a lot of electronics. Some of the circuits continue to run even while ignition has been turned off. So these cars actually drain their batteries when they are not driven. I suspect most cars are like this nowadays. A new car will come with a fully-charged battery and it can take a few months' abuse before it fails. Most cars are DDs so this isn't normally an issue, but not so with most Ferraris.

Depending on the original state of charge, ambient temperature and battery capacity these car batteries can completely drain within a couple of weeks to several weeks if not driven. Even after the car is started with a boost, a car's charging system cannot recharge a completely depleted battery because they are not designed to supply a bulk charge. Sometimes the battery cannot be recharged even at the dealer if internal cell(s) are damaged.

You should plug in the battery tender because Ferrari knows of this issue with modern cars, especially if they are infrequently used. Battery tenders retail at about $30-$40 each. In the "good old days", luxury cars came with 4 keys (2 full keys, 1 for garage, 1 emergency) - Ferrari only gives you 2. So this is not a trivial Ferrari expense.

If your car battery is only at marginal voltage, the spark plugs will not operate optimally because the battery cannot provide enough current when your engine is revving high (spark plugs igniting more frequently). The car won't run well at higher speeds or with full headlights. For instance, compare running the car with a full high capacity battery vs. a battery that is under-capacity for your car.

 

I have left my car for three months and it started first time

 

Maybe someone can offer me a solution to my problem. Have a 2010 Cali that is fine if I keep the battery tender on it. If I let the battery run down at all by sitting or even driving short hops the car alarm will sound every time any car door is opened. Have had it to dealer under warranty and they have tried to fix it by changing the battery and other parts. So far nothing has helped.

 

Not sure if this will help but in my E39 BMW 540i Sport, the battery for the security system is separate and independent from the car's battery, possibly to prevent being deactivated by car thieves. There was one time when my BMW car battery did deplete and die... and when that happened, the car alarm went off. I replaced the main battery, started using the battery tender and luckily, the alarm system returned to normal operation.

Sometimes, a depleted car battery results in damage to one or more cells in the battery and after being recharged, even if it appears to be back to correct voltage it may not have sufficient capacity. This can only be verified with a sustained load test - the dealer should know how to perform that test.

If the Cali's alarm system is also separate, it may also not be charging properly. If that battery is not putting out correct voltage, the electrical system will behave in an unpredictable manner.

 

My condolences on the family situation. Hopefully you'll be able to enjoy the car.

Why wouldn't you want to use the trickle charger while storing the car? As previously mentioned, it will help prolong the life of the battery (I don't remember the exact basis of the chemistry, but it had something to do with metal plates in the battery becoming sulfated as the battery became discharged). Plus it helps to avoid the car's computers think there are errors occurring because various sensors show the voltage is too low.

In any event, take lots of pics when you take delivery and congrats!

 

Ah - I suppose a 40 story long extension cord is out of the question.

Hope you are having a terrific day today with the new car!

 

A very good question and apparently one that is not really answered in the owner's manual.

Here's what I have perceived. If your car has Magneride, sport mode will stiffen the shocks. The car will feel more planted, the ride will feel a bit harsher but the car will be more responsive to steering and ride flatter when cornering. It may also quicken the steering. The throttle will be more responsive to pedal position when you press down on the accelerator. The exhaust valves will open more readily to throttle input, the car will sound more sporty and at times you will hear engine overruns, little popping explosions from the tailpipes that trail off as you lift off your throttle. The traction control may also be more restrained in retarding throttle when cornering, allowing you to explore the limits of traction a bit closer before hauling you back from the brink.

Hope you enjoyed your ride, in fresh air.

 

Curious. So you have a Reference Guide which describes the Manettino in addition to the Owner's Manual. The only Reference Guide that came with my car is the one for the Infotainment System.

I think I am short some documentation. Can you please confirm?

As for the Battery Quick Release (see photo), when I read page 214 of the Owner's Manual, I get the sense that this feature only facilitates detaching the battery cable from the battery. Doing so will require you to first deactivate the alarms, fiddle with the windows to prevent damage to weather stripping. And when you need to use the car again, you'll have to reverse the whole process - it would be a royal pain if you use the car more than once a week/month!

I think this procedure is only useful if you put the car in long term storage and do not have security concerns about breakins. The other problem is that your battery will still not get recharged between use of the car. From my experience, the car's charging system is not really keeping up while my car is in use. I do not put in a lot of steady highway miles. This is also how most Californias are used and the convertible roof does use a lot of power to operate.

I have a much better suggestion for you - bring power to your parking spot. It shouldn't be expensive.

Assuming you can back your car into your parking spot and that there is a wall behind the car (NOTE: make sure to leave extra room away from the wall if you operate the roof), a better solution for your situation is to have condo management install an outlet close to your (reserved) parking spot so you can plug in your battery tender. If you worry that the battery tender may get tampered with you can place both the outlet and charger inside a well-ventilated metal utility box and put a padlock on the box. The battery tender cable should be long enough to reach the car.

The key thing to do is to look at where existing power outlets and the service panel are located for supplying power in the garage. Then figure out how to get power to your parking spot. Since there are other exotics in the same building, the need to plug in a battery tender may have come up already for the other owners. You'll likely have to run the wiring inside metal conduits but if other owners chip in, several cars can run off a single circuit with multiple drops and you can lower the costs for each owner.

Ask your condo board about it.
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Thanks for confirming the existence of the reference guide. I will ask my salesman about it.

As for condo regulations, I wonder what underlying issues are driving concerns regarding hookups to power outlets in your garage. If it's just a matter of assigning energy consumption usage can be estimated by sampling with a simple amp meter or directly monitored with a regular consumption meter. It's probably not that much. Many condos just average out their total hydro bill and owners are just charged on the basis of square footage or some other arbitrary measure.

Good luck and keep us updated!

 

See post #7 of the following link for a listing of the books I received with my purchase.
http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/california/392961-2011-2012-california-manuals.html#post141992029

 

Hey that is neat . Didn't see that thread before but it clearly documented the existence of the Quick Reference Guide.

Thanks guys - I've notified my salesman who's chasing up a copy for my car. He's also looking into documentation for the HELE system.

I've also posted some photos and description of the documentation I received with my '13 Calfornia 30 on the other thread.