So there are several Connectors - two main ones under the fuse box, Un screw the fuse panel and you will see them curled up under them - they are higher up in the dash... and there are 3 ( I think) under the passengers foot well. the foot well plate is held on with 3 bolts, and pops out. the usually the carpeting on the right side hides the bolt locations. I think in the 308, this is where the door buzzer is, and there are some other relays down there that operate the fuel pump ? I think. If you go to the Sticky here -someone has the electrical diagram posted you can see what is there.
DGS - I wasn't cornering. 65mph in 5th gear and straight when it happened. That engine ground strap theory is something that I am waiting for an answer on now. I hope I am as fortunate as you vis-a-vis secondary failures, which could really add up beyond the V1 replacement cost. spirot - Yeah I actually had replaced the 2 fuse blocks and repaired some horrendous wiring splices done by alarm/stereo/radar installation monkeys. The car had run fine for almost 2 weeks after my electrical repairs. This failure is something that happened after (minutes) being at the Ferrari repair shop. I thought I would have heard from them by now but not yet.
They've found that their recently installed timing belt has failed and bent all the valves and now trying to work out what to do and how to tell you ... Hope I'm wrong Pete
I'll throw a guess in here--a bad short somewhere, such as from the ignition switch "run" lead. I had a BMW 533 with a previously butchered electrical system and once got the loud snap from under the dash, accompanied by a bright flash (driving at night). So I'd say the noise you describe is very possible. If the electrics are as bad as described, who knows what concealed stripped wire ends are dangling around somewhere. You presumably cleaned up what you removed well, but the chances of finding every potential short or bad ground in an older car can get pretty low when you are not looking for something specific, even when morons haven't gotten into it. Good luck!
Oh--and the bright flash on my BMW was from a hot lead to the removed A/C system brushing against something after the electrical tape covering the conductor got gooey and fell off.
I have a carb car, and am aware that there was a difference in lighter socket design from the early to injected cars, but my lighter socket heats a removable lighter plug. Is the QV socket designed to power accessories? Just another thought.
Firstly I think it's a very positive thing that you guys are open and sharing your experiences and willing to exchange ideas with another enthusiast (amateur hack) about what we all love to drive. Enough of the warm fuzzy crap! Right, the Ferrari specialist called me late this afternoon and said the alternator was putting out 20+ volts. Relays and fuses have been fried along with my V1 (the least of my problems). So some of us were right and Cuban cigars are available. For me it was deja vu all over again as my 1987 911 had stranded me, and a weird cop, about 5 years ago with the same exact problem. I had the 911 towed home (about 1.5 miles for $70) and ordered a new alternator/VR from Pelican and after cutting my knuckles had the Carrera back on the road for less than $500 in less than a week. I am afraid it won't be so easy this time with the 308 as it's well north of me and in the hands of a high end service facility. SH@T. Patrick Dixon—you're right, had I reached escape velocity I might have coasted home. FamilyCar — I would bet that your theory is exactly correct and once home I will discover more sabotage. wildcat326 — it's a valid theory but that would mean there exists some kind of modification to the circuit which I believe would be un-necessary for a lighter. I will reference the diagrams but pretty sure a 20 volt supply source took out Mr. Valentine. More news as it unfolds and once again hope this helps out some poor slob like me in the future.
JohnK...holding my breath on that one. I do expect more carnage but now all I wish to do is get the 308 home, either driving or on a trailer, and put each and every circuit under a microscope. I want a car that I can go for a weekend tour in, my wife in the passenger seat, and not have to worry. A renown west coast Ferrari mechanic told me not long ago that "maybe I should buy another Porsche." I'm still hoping there's room for a reliable Italian in the family.
When you get it sorted it should be reliable. My 308 has never left me stranded in 30+ years. Been as reliable as a Honda.
The Marelli Digiplex ignition ECUs do not like over-voltage. My guess is that yours is fried. Retail price for a new one is $4000+. You can have your original repaired: Ferrari 308 QV ECU Magneti Marelli Digiplex MED 805 A - Specialized ECU Repair or there is a killer deal on a used one on ebay right now: Ferrari Digiplex, Ignition ECU MED 801A Fits US 308, Mondial 8 | eBay
in case your marelli ecus are indeed the culprit here, you can always send them for rebuilt /refurbishment to David from Ferrari Service of Bedford (user fastradio here on F-Chat) Ferrari Service of Bedford Products - Ferrari Service of Bedford right now, new ones (in euro specs) can be found here for a special price at Maranello Parts in England: https://www.ferrariparts.co.uk/PagesExternal/ManagerSpecials.aspx .
I few weeks after I bought my (then 8 year old) gt4 (many years ago) I was driving home one night when there was a snap/clunk behind me and I coasted to a halt in the next left street and parked up. My first thought was a snapped timing belt, but I felt under the covers for both and they were still there, so I left the car and walked home, which fortunately was only about a mile. Got the car trailered to my soon-to-be best friend mechanic and to cut a long story short it turned out that one of the transfer gears had lost a portion including two teeth and further investigation revealed that the diff was knackered too. In those days everything was 2 grand (and that was when the GBP was worth more than a few measly cents), so 2 grand later I got the car back working. Many years later I still have the car and have spent many units of two grand (before inflation) on it. It's been trailered 3 more times IIRC and limped home a couple more. These cars are 40 years old now, cars in general were less reliable then and Italian cars even less reliable than the average. So a few problems are to be expected. But the longer you own the car the more you will understand it and know what's been done right and what might not have been. And every journey will be an adventure. It's just part of the joy of owning a Ferrari made in the days when the road cars were made to fund racing, rather than the other way around.
MOTOB, ME308, Patrick Dixon thank you for your advice and observations. I'll know more today about the extent of the electrical damage. I just want to get the car back home and chase down the problems. The joke in my mind now is that I may have to sell one of the Porsches to pay for the repairs on the Ferrari.
Mine has never stranded me but once or twice wouldn't leave the garage in the morning. And that's over 16 years of ownership. No shame in taking a Porsche to a Ferrari club drive. (as long as you don't mind the hazing.). Once sorted out these cars are pretty solid. They do occasionally make you think you hear new noises which freaks you out, it's part of the allure. I was at a Ferrari club event and one of the other guys who drove a 458, but daily drives a Maserati and a Fiat 500 said this to me: Italian cars are wonderful...every time you turn the ignition key you never know what you are going to get.
I am adding this image of the two fuse blocks (BEFORE I replaced them and fixed the bad wire splices) to the record here. Of note is #3 electric Fuel Pump and #18 L.H. Fan Motor. Both connectors are discolored from electrical overheating. #3 especially and it's a bit melted. This may be evidence that electrical issues existed already in this car. The car also had fog lights once upon a time (all that remained was a switch and 2 relays) and I understand that the alternators were incapable of keeping up with added electrical demand. Hope this helps someone out in diagnosing their problems at a future date. Image Unavailable, Please Login
The melting is common on with 308s. What happens is the rivets loosen up over time and the contact resistance goes up. This results in resistance heating and the plastic melts. It's what the Birdman fuse blocks are all about. I chose a different path as I wanted to preserve originality. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
The key is "sorted". When I first bought the 328, I had a huge engine-out "make it right" service done by one of the better indie shops. It was then reliable enough to be a summer daily driver for a few years, but I was still plagued by occasional electrical gremlins. So I had a dealer go over the car, bumper to bumper, and remove anything not on the factory wiring diagram. I got back a huge box of odd gizmos -- and got much better battery life. But I learned, over the decades, that cars drive electrical engineers crazy. Nothing works as you'd expect. I had a starting issue on my 328. All the electrical tests said the battery was good. All the non engineers on this board said "replace the battery". I had a spare battery as I use the same model in the house inverter, so I tried that. Yep. Tests be lyin'. It was the battery.
I pulled a bunch of extra wires out of mine when I was doing the interior. Amazing how wires just ran to nowhere. I think I found an old alarm system and a bunch of other wires I have no idea what they were. The battery thing is pretty amazing on new cars too. On another forum for Cayenne's a LOT of people show up reporting a myriad of symptoms that start all of a sudden. The usual first advice is....go get the battery load tested. Throwing a meter on a battery and seeing the voltage doesn't always tell the whole story. And the Cayenne's seem to be especially touchy to just a tad too little voltage. Edit: found a picture I posted many moons ago of the alarm system junk I pulled out. There was more stuff in following years though. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Jdubbya - 2 SIRENS! Just like mine. Just ordered a VDO analog volt meter for the 308. This mess would not have happened had I seen 20v on the meter. I had a 1st generation CayenneS. It had 2 batteries. I had nothing but electrical issues right out of the gate. Have a Macan Turbo now with no issues. You are right though, a volt meter doesn't tell you everything that's going on in the battery (but it's better than nothing). Right now I have a CaymanS with a aging battery and if it gets too low it causes cyl 1 and 6 to misfire, then I need to clear the code with an OBD2 reader. Damn batteries!!!!
That's the problem with these cars. They are old, were cheap for a long time, and a lot of idiot Ferrari want to b's bough them and treaded them like Hondas. Thank Magnum PI for that.
Yeah my Cayenne is a 955 turbo. Mine only has one battery though. There are a lot of folks who have issues with water getting inside causing electrical issues all over the place too. How do you like the Macan? It amazes me how a low battery can cause things like a misifire?!? Good luck getting the 308 sorted, once you do it will be a solid and fun car!
Jdubbya The Macan Turbo may be the best car I have ever owned. On the 308 — I have now spent more "fixing" that car than all of the cars, combined, that I have owned for the past 40 years. I am not kidding. There will be a film made about this. Some people will find it amusing and perhaps helpful. I still don't have the car back. In fact "the shop" has now had the car longer than I have. I wonder if the state of Massachusetts will send me an excise tax bill? The analogy has been made in many places about Ferraris and Supermodels. In this case it's a lot like having a crazy girlfriend. OK, she's hot and a sex fanatic but at some point your instincts kick in and say "this may not be worth it anymore." "It's too risky." I wonder if the mice will prefer this car to my German cars. I bet the 308 tastes better than the 380SL or the 911 Carrera. Winter can be cruel to a car.
Especially when you aren't even able to spend any intimate time with her! Fear not, it's been a horrible introduction to Ferrari, but the 308, once sorted, should be a very reliable car. My Mondial 3.2 (same mechanicals as the 308/328) was one of the best cars I've ever owned. The 3/5 year belt changes are a drag, but otherwise they are quite reliable.
