488 Brand new Ferrari owner coming from gt3rs...please advises!!

Both are great cars. Just drive and enjoy. Congrats on the 488.

 

Advice for? I am not clear about what you are asking.

 

Congratulations! Welcome to the addiction

 

I just came out of a 2018 GT3 which I loved on the street and the track. The 488 has much more power and throttle application is different between both for sure. The 488 seems sharp in turns but I have only been on the street in the 488. I knew my GT3 in how it corners better and the Michelin Sport Cup 2 had nice grip compared to the Pirelli PZero on the 488...but in time I will get a better Corning feel for the 488

 

Had a 991 GT3 and 458 Spider. Used both as daily drivers for 2 years. GT3 rough ride, even with FAL still scrapes, hitting a pothole bone jarring affair, rear wing obstructs visibility, PSC2 tires need to warm up and are slippery in the rain, looks like any other 911 with a wing. Engine sounds great high pitched wail above 7K RPM and interesting mechanical tones and sounds. RS does look more aggressive and unique.

488 going to be more of an event to drive, more comfortable and usable daily driver, better rear visibility. Doesn't sound anywhere as good as GT3 IMO. Turbo vs NA. The throttle response of my 458 feels hardwired to my brain. Same with the GT3. Drive a Huracan now so have a proclivity towards NA engines. Hopefully will get some seat time in F8 to make comparison.

As you don't track, you will prolly be better served with the 488. Big congrats and post pics when you take delivery.

 

Outside oem pads...I believe the only other pad for ccm rotors is Pagid rsc1. There seems to be zero information about what works and track set up for 488GTB or 488 Pista.

 

Congratulations and welcome to the family!

 

Congrats
If you do not have them I strongly advise to put extended paddles, they are much more convenient than the short standard ones - I installed the ones from Carbonio (very nice finish and very easy to install), but now Ferrari has also released some as accessories.
Below a short track video - not that fast (because that's me driving) but good fun...

 

I've owned the 991 gt3 and 991 gt3rs. Incredible cars with an addictive soundtrack, especially north of 7k rpm. I always found the carbon buckets uncomfortable in the gt's.

I think the 488 is a whole different animal. It's faster and much more comfortable, but without the soundtrack.

If it's for daily use, the 488 is much better suited for you. If you do track days often, I think you will find more enjoyment from the gt3's. It's much more at home on the track.

Congrats on the 488. Enjoy and drive the heck out of it.

 

I made the move from 911 tirbo to 488 in 2016.... For sure it was the right move....enjoy in good health

Sent from my VOG-L29 using Tapatalk

 

Mine has been globally reliable in terms of "hardware" - issues were electronic glitches (like the engine refusing to stop, no matter what ) and cosmetic build quality; for peace of mind, a Ferrari warranty is useful although not necessarily cost effective.
A concerning problem that has been reported (on both 458 and 488) is with the brakes, statistically unfrequent but with bad consequences - from the reports it seems the brake booster could fail, resulting in a brake power unexpectedly low.

 

Firstly a big congrats on the 488! And welcome! It's always good to sample different offerings!

Being an owner of both 488 (now ex) and Gt3rs.2 (current) no doubt each owner of these cars will find certain things more to their liking than others. I found my 488 to be a great car overall but though whilst it is more comfortable and suited as a daily (due to the seats and softer less rigid suspension etc) I didn't find it as practical or usable as a daily as the 3.

Reasons being I found 488 to be a bit wide with compromised rear visibility which made it less traffic friendly than the 3 and 488 felt not nearly as nimble underfoot with the 3 having the more precise and predictable controls. The 3rs is extremely obedient in every situation and is a far superior communicator with the driver overall. Hard to argue that point. 488's controls were not nearly as precise or user friendly least of all practical in general feel as the 3's. Pity really. Same goes with the MI. The 3 is just far better resolved in these areas. Such a pity as the 488 could have been sooo much better had Ferrari only resolved these areas to the standard of the competition. Sometimes it's the little things that can make all the difference....yet most always look for the big things - power being one of them!

I found 488 to be more of an event type car than a car you would reach for the keys to daily whereas the 3 had a personality which lent itself to be more easier to use for either if it came down to it. Neither make great dailies though. Better cars for that. So it all comes down to what type of fun driving you do most. Track or mountain. If it's track I found both are equally compelling in their own ways although the 488 does feel less robust in the brakes and the controls again work against it - such as the grabby brakes and the jerky throttle etc. The 3 otoh is just pure precision with brakes that enable one to place the car exactly where one chooses to place it.

I would agree with LVP that a set of extended paddles is an absolute must for 488. God only knows why 488 fitted such ridiculously short paddles. I guess there was the opportunity for Ferrari to offer the extended paddles as a cost option, so true to form they couldn't resist! I put the factory extended paddles in mine and never looked back.

Out in the wild I found both having their own strengths and weakness (if you could call it weakness as such - maybe differences is a better word - although there is weakness involved). Again the lack of precision in 488's controls let it down her and there making it less connected and hardwired than the 3 (and where it usually counted) but the 488's acceleration and overtaking power could not be matched by the 3 even though the 3 is very fast once it gets into its stride. I found the acceleration and overtaking power as 488's strongest suit and really only advantage over the gt3rs. That all said in the corners the 3rs would shine brighter than 488 again mainly because of the controls rather than just the chassis, and of course while 488 sounded fabulous under throttle it was no match for the sound of the Gt3rs. Both are utterly sensational cars but if it came down to choosing just the one it would be the Gt3rs.2 for me. Glad I owned the 488 though. It was a great experience! And the looks, admiration and attention the 488 received from the general public was incredible for a grey car....dare I say overwhelming at times. Im yet to own a car that draws so much attention. Even Pista doesn't get the same amount surprisingly. Maybe it's the bright red and stripes that is a bit intimidating for most.

Be interested to hear your account 6 months on.

 

Pagid pads are great. Several use them on the 458 and 488's. You can use the RSC1, RSC2, and RSL29. Important! The latter is a track only pad. When cold, they are dangerous on a normal road - ZERO bite.
The RSC1 is a great road pad with a bit better track performance than stock, and less noisy in my experience. RSC2 wears harder and bites harder than RSC1 when hot, but is a wee bit more "dead" on the road when cold. They are by no means unsafe, there's just a bit of a compromise as there will always be. For someone whom track on a somewhat regular basis and also likes some proper spirited road driving, the RSC2 is a great pad. Some hardcore track rats and some Challenge drivers use the RSL 29, but I say again, track only!

Regarding tyres. If you have not yet placed the order for the Trofeo R tyres, get Pista spec MPSC2 tyres instead. The spring rate and camber is simply not there for a 488GTB or Spider. If you put on Novi springs and add cber you can pull it off, but the Trofeo R and MPSC2R tyres are just a bit much for the stock 488 setup. Pista spec MPSC2 tyres will give you a more balanced setup.

A GT3RS can handle Trofeo R rubber, but as you have also noticed by now, that car is boneshatteringly hard by comparison.

What I find so amazing about the 488 compared to the GT3RS, is how on one side the 488 is so comfortable, and at the same time exhibits a sharpness and lightness rivaled by very few cars..it never fails to impress - it's just on a different level.

Once you get used to the pull and speed of the 488, the GT3RS will never be the same. Yes it sounds great and it is a lot of fun, but I can't help but feel that a lot of noise is going on, but not enough pull is there. Dare I say the pull of a GT3RS with its loud pedal pinned, kinda fails to give me that lovely rollercoaster ticklely surge in the stomach it once did.

You are going to love the 488 for sure. Have fun and congrats.

 

You do have a point there. This is where the Gt2 comes in - now that thing is savage Is not as rigid as the 3 either even though both are surprisingly compliant with the 2 being more or less in line with Pista's ride. Both the 2 and 3 are more race cars for the road and more "savage" and connected where the 488 is softer yet ballistically fast and a great all-rounder and, certainly less intimidating for the passenger..... or so I keep getting told. Also think as a tourer the 488 is superior.

 

He is saying the opposite, that the Trofeo R is too extreme. Try them out anyway.

 

Precisely.

You can adjust camber on the 488

 

It has nothing to do with weight or fitment. It's about having more grip than the suspension can cope with. There's no inherent danger, you just don't get optimum performance and grip. Sidewall stiffness for example is high, thus a higher camber setting is needed, as a "soft" suspension will allow the inside of the tyre to lift in corners for example. Yes you can dial in a ton of camber and overcome this, but that will of course compromise performance in other areas.
You might also have a tyre that skips laterally. When you have a lot of grip in a cornor, you need a strong spring to push that tyre into the ground.

But as was said, give them a try. Depending on your skills and track conditions, this may not be an issue for you.

 

The SCup2R (and probably the Trofeo R) are more radical than the SCup2, which is in turn (a lot) more radical than the standard MPSS.
For the 488, the SCup2 were not officially available (they are now by Michelin) but Ferrari always provided them on press cars intended for track tests - it would be interesting to know how the suspension on these test cars was tuned by Ferrari compared to the standard setting.
Interestingly the F8 comes with the option for SCup2 tyres - so I don't know if it means the standard set-up is calibrated as a compromise to accommodate both options (road or track tyres).

 

Both the Speciale and Pista spec MPSC2 will work well on a normal 488, both on road and track. Many run them and the Pilota cars use stock suspension setup. They do like a bit of extra camber, but that goes for the 488 in general. It is set up mainly for road use, so addinv a bit of camber can be a good thing, no matter if it runs MPSS or MPSC2.