purchasing a 430

this is sort of like asking if God exists. there are those who say ignore everything but a 2009. there are plenty of owners who have had great experiences with 2005s and 2006s. I own an 06 and and 07 with carbon brakes. ive driven an 09 and in all honesty the 06 feels the strongest. If carbion brakes are a must then you have to get atleast an 08 (some 07s have them). if you want to avoid carbon brakes then go earlier.

 

Please try the search function first, as you can imagine, this subject has come up many times over the years.
Here is one thread I found with a quick check and lists all the product changes by chassis number when they were instituted:
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/f430-any-improvements-updates-upgrades-during-its-5-year-production.443780/

One of the significant changes I learned about from some Ferrari techs and 430 owners is that in 2008 (again, check chassis number) there was a change to the transmission itself, as well as software to shorten shift times. The techs and owners (who had owned early and late 430s) said it was a nice change. Some have said it is not a big deal. You cannot update an earlier car to the later spec without replacing the transmission and F1 ecu. As you can see in the list, there were running changes throughout production, right into 2009. This is typical for Ferrari (and probably any manufacturer).

 

I had an '05 for 2 years with zero issues! Now have an '07 Spider! Both great cars....you'll love the F430 experience!

 

Yes my 05 had headers done - u can find my maintenance history in a post i made. Might be an 06 i don’t remember. My 07 has 3k miles so still has original headers.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

When I was looking I was thinking 2007 or newer. I found the perfect car locally and it was an early 2005 with the carryover 360 F1 pump. Car has been great with no issues, I would not eliminate any of the years. Find the colors and options you want, and if it has maintenance records your good to go!

 

Great post - fantastic to see a reminder about using search but you followed up with a link and great info. Thanks for doing this and I actually learnt a lot from your post.

Beats the “Use search” answer with a frowny face!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk