Dead Battery and Locked Out of F12

Usually the keyhole on the driver's door allows you to manually open the door when the battery dies. Unfortunately, both keys aren't unlocking the door on my F12 no matter how many times I try. I had no luck with the locksmith as there was a high chance that the window would shatter while trying to get enough of a gap to insert the latch tool, and the tow truck driver from the Ferrari dealer had no success in removing my car from the garage since he wasn't able to get into the car.

The advice I was given was to jack up the car, remove the undertray, and place a jumper cable on the starter. This will provide enough power to unlock the car with the keyfob and open the trunk to access the battery.

The dealer can't send their mechanic so I'm on my own and out of options. If anyone has any advice on jacking up an F12, where the starter is located, or anything else regarding this issue please let me know !

 

Is the car still under warranty? If so, would be Ferrari and the dealers responsibility to retrieve and repair. If you end up having to jack up the car yourself, please be careful when crawling under and doing the process yourself. Might be best to commission a professional with better jacking equipment to do this. Of course, you need to weigh that against the cost of replacing a window. Good luck to you and sorry this has to be your first post on FChat.

 

I don't know squat about your F12, but on our 550's and other models of that era, we have emergency hood release cables that are accessible from the front grille. Once you access these cables, you can pop the hood, and once you've done that, you can give the jumper suggestion a try.

Your dealer "should" be able to tell you whether this emergency hood release is on your car or not.

 

John- Nothing about an emergency release for the hood in the OM, but there is one for the trunk (joy). There is an emergency release for the DCT to put it in neutral, but then it will roll freely, so not a great deal.

 

A cost saving measure by some rising star bean counter no doubt. Let's hope for Aped's sake it's still there and they just forgot to mention it in the manual......

@ Aped, when you get this resolved, PLEASE update this thread. This has all the makings of a truly remarkable Ferrari blunder.......

 

I want to know why the keys aren’t working. Wrong keys? Is there a code in owners package to get the correct keys cut? Somethings wrong here.

 

There is no emergency release for the hood on an F12, only one for the rear hatch and the fuel filler (both of which are located inside the car). The car should manually unlock with the keys. Do the keys not turn the lock cylinder at all, as would be the case with an incorrect key. Or do they partially turn the lock cylinder, but not unlock the door?

Brian Brown
San Francisco Motorsports

 

And we buy these cars on our own free will.

 

We're all masochists aren't we Carl? And all the pain & suffering we go through with these cars is a "bonding" experience. Tough to bond with a car that does everything right and all you have to do is jump in & drive it, like a Porsche

 

This is perfect Italian thinking. "Why would you want to get into a car that has a dead battery?" Typical American.

 

This will work.


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Update: I called a third Ferrari dealer and was recommended another tow truck driver that could do the job. Long story short, it took 3 hours to load the F12 onto the flatbed with dollies (much harder than we expected) and transport it 2 miles to the Ferrari dealer. Now I understand why all the other towing companies straight up said no. After paying for the 3 hours of loading/transportation JUST to get the car to the dealer, I think it would've been cheaper to break the glass.

Anyways, the F12 now sits at the dealer's tow lot unmovable, and it seems like they have no idea how they'll get in with no timetable given...

For those asking, both keys enter, turn left and right, but don't unlock the door. I've opened the doors on my 599 and 458 with no problem when the batteries have died, but my heart stopped when it didn't work on the F12. Several technicians have told me that they believe a critical part of the latch system must have failed. I just can't believe the car is pretty much a paperweight right now and we're all locked out of it with no solution from Ferrari.

Thank you for those who have responded, I will keep you guys updated. Happy Holidays !

 

Wow......just wow........

You certainly seem to have a lot of patience & understanding about the situation, but I'm sure under the surface your blood must be boiling that you presently own a $400K paperweight......

We all wish you a very Merry Christmas and hopefully a much better 2020 than the way 2019 is finishing......

 

Looking at the parts manual, I'd say that the key mechanically unlocks the door latch lock, but the handle, which is required to release the latch, is only connected to the latch via electrics.

https://www.ricambiamerica.com/car-diagrams/ferrari/v12/gt-group-2-seat/f12/doors-opening-mechanism-and-hinges.html?mode=split

Madness. I think even the dealer is going to have problems with this one.

 

If you look at the parts diagram, you can see that there is only one mechanical cable (Bowden Cable) that goes from the door handle, this is what opens the door. There is an electrical switch on the handle that causes the window to drop before the door opens. The door lock cylinder is connected to the latch by a mechanical link, which should open the door.
If you had the doors locked and then the battery went dead, the door lock motors might have gone into deadbolt mode, which cannot be unlocked manually from outside the car.
Your two choices are to raise the car, remove the front under-tray and power the electrical system at the starter motor B+ terminal and a good ground, or you could have a good locksmith who is familiar with the Ferrari door latch/lock system use wedges/airbag to open up the outer gap between the door glass and outer door panel and try and release the latch by acting on the inside door release cable (while watching what he is doing with a TV/borescope. There is still a possibility that the door latch will not open due to the lock motor being stuck in dead-bolt mode.

If it were my car, I would jack it up where it is on jack stands, remove the front under-tray and power up the battery through the starter motor terminal. This will cause the least possible damage to the car (no scratched/broken window glass or damage to the window trim/seals.

Brian Brown
San Francisco Motorsports

 

Not sure I understand, Brian. I see a Bowden cable going from the latch. I only see an electrical cable on the door handle.

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Ian, You need to look above which shows the connection. Item 10 is the bowden cable connecting the door handle to the door latch.

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Ah.. thanks. That makes more sense. I just can't figure out why I didn't see that in the first place (tunnel vision... or perhaps too much brandy in the Christmas pudding).

Cheers.

 

Any update?

 

Given the above, I would do the under tray removal and power up. No damage at all. However, replacing a broken window would be many times the cost of the three hours labor it cost to load up the trailer and no doubt they would mess something up with the door panel.

 

Is there a "T" handle under the flap covering the fuel tank filler that opens the engine compartment? where is the battery on a F12? Once you sort all of this out,
perhaps consider one of the "Anti-gravity" brand batteries that have a remote control reserve for starting. A poster "Normal Guy Supercar" has a YouTube video.

Jeff Pintler
89 348tb, 86tr, 99 360 3-pedal, 05 S-160 Bobcat

 

While I don't have an F12, I do have a cable on my 550 that connects to the battery and comes out under the car near the wheel well for the battery tender. If I had an F12, I would have the same battery tender which would be a solution to the problem.

 

We haven't heard from the OP since Christmas Eve. Wonder how he & his $400,000 paperweight are faring?

I'm still amazed his keys don't work.

 

This made me LOL! So typically Italian.

 

Not quite. The mistake was mine. Read the subsequent messages