New 550 Owner | Page 2 | FerrariChat

New 550 Owner

Discussion in '456/550/575' started by rhern213, Feb 19, 2021.

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  1. JOEV

    JOEV F1 Rookie
    Silver Subscribed

    Aug 6, 2003
    2,825
    Ontario, Canada
    Full Name:
    Joe
    Congratulations - she's a beauty. Drive her in good health.
     
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  2. flash32

    flash32 F1 Veteran

    Aug 22, 2008
    5,561
    Central NJ
    Full Name:
    Dominick
    Congratulations ..always will love the 550

    Enjoy it

    Sent from my moto g(7) using Tapatalk
     
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  3. Ferrari55whoa

    Ferrari55whoa F1 Rookie
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    Dec 21, 2005
    2,592
    Los Gatos, CA
    Full Name:
    Eric
    @niftyfivefifty id be super interested in the list. For some reason (I might have this wrong from memory) but did you do a Coil on Plug conversion?

    I’ve said it a bunch on Bring a Trailer, your instagram photos and videos are awesome.
     
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  4. Ferrari55whoa

    Ferrari55whoa F1 Rookie
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    Dec 21, 2005
    2,592
    Los Gatos, CA
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    Eric
    I loved the last photo with your boy.....you are going to be building some amazing memories.

    It is so amazing the exposure my little girls have also had the first 5 and 6 years they have been around. So vastly different from the “non-car” background I grew up in.
     
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  5. Laserguru

    Laserguru Formula 3
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Aug 7, 2016
    1,255
    New Hampshire
    Full Name:
    Eric
    TdF RULES!! Lovely car. Enjoy
     
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  6. niftyfivefifty

    niftyfivefifty Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 5, 2007
    366
    PacNW
    Yes, I will try to scan it tomorrow. I would love a COP setup, and a friend of mine may have something workable for our cars this year.
     
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  7. JimDowd1

    JimDowd1 Rookie

    Jan 23, 2021
    23
    Pacific Palisades, CA
    Full Name:
    James Dowd
    Congratulations! Thanks for sharing the photos.


    Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat.com mobile app
     
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  8. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    Thank you @niftyfivefifty I have actually been following your instagram page, @enesset led me to it.
    It would be great if you can share that service list so I can review it with the shop when I take it over, appreciate it!

    You are more brave than I am, I've been terrified of even moving the car from the garage because of potential timing belt issues, even though the car does run and sound perfect.

    That is actually one question I've been meaning to ask for your opinions, do you all think I'm being unnecessarily cautious in avoiding running the car until I get the major done? I was thinking of having it towed to the shop instead of driving it over. Either shop I take it to would be 6-8 miles away and about a 15-20min drive. To get a better idea of the condition, the car right now is running perfectly without a single hiccup, although I haven't done anything more than drive it around a parking lot and putting it in the garage.
    For a quick sum up, major belts were done in 2012, then it was driven about 3k miles in 5 years until 2017. It had a minor service done in 2017 for gaskets, fluids, and filters, and then the car was mostly sitting only doing 1k miles for the past 3-4years. There were several small parts and fixes in between, but nothing really worth mentioning. And It did have one additional service in 2018 for some gaskets and the timing belt covers were replaced, but looks like it was just that, maybe were heat cracked and needed replacing.

    I was thinking for now of removing the timing belt covers if it's an easy 5 min removal and just eyeballing the condition of the belts?

    Thanks for all your help fellas!
     
  9. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    Thanks Eric!
    I grew up also into cars as my dad was a car guy, but he was into 70's-80's camaros and trans-ams. My son's definitely already an afficionado, he just turned 2 and the only thing he's interested in watching on TV is Cars 1-2-3 on repeat. I actually have a girl on the way due in June that I hope to continue the passion with as well. My son through a massive temper tantrum after we put the car in the garage when I told him we had to go back inside the house to eat.

    Thankfully he already has his own 550 for indoors to distract him :)
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  10. Ferrari55whoa

    Ferrari55whoa F1 Rookie
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    Dec 21, 2005
    2,592
    Los Gatos, CA
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    Eric
    Having a model for him of your new car just killed me. That is amazing. Many of us here are so very fortunate. I'm grateful every single day!
     
  11. MattH1973

    MattH1973 Rookie

    Jun 14, 2020
    41
    Full Name:
    Matthew Hunt
    great thread, i need to start one too as i was a new owner last summer......

    just like you, i have done a fair bit with German and Jap cars and this is my first F experience....
     
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  12. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    Thanks Matt, look forward to seeing some pics!
     
  13. SteveVT

    SteveVT Karting

    Nov 30, 2019
    107
    Vermont
    Full Name:
    Steve
    @rhern213 - Congrats - what a beauty! I am sure you and your son will have many great times together with it.
     
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  14. niftyfivefifty

    niftyfivefifty Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 5, 2007
    366
    PacNW
    Having it towed directly to the shop might not be a bad idea. 8 years of sitting isn't all that great for these belts, though it is my personal belief that Ferrari's very short interval recommendation is also overkill. Given how expensive these motors are, the direct-to-shop strategy may be the best one simply for the peace of mind when you are behind the wheel.
     
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  15. Maranello993

    Maranello993 Rookie

    May 24, 2020
    36
    Florida
    Full Name:
    Angelo McCartney
    I always get a 1:18 version of the interesting cars I get. Pretty cool that yours matches so well!
     
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  16. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    Thanks! I'll definitely have it towed, not a risk worth taking.
     
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  17. niftyfivefifty

    niftyfivefifty Formula Junior
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    Mar 5, 2007
    366
    PacNW
    Yeah normally I'm pretty liberal in that area, and it probably depends on where it was stored, was it humidity controlled, was it in a really dry area, etc. But it is even hard to take that into account with these cars traveling all over, even under the same ownership. Not that there is any rule for how long a belt lasts in certain conditions, but there are definitely conditions that can contribute to faster wear.

    One of the additional issues were the two front seals, and there is a difficult place on the lower front passenger side of the motor where the main front seal intersects the crankcase and oil sump. It's usually a very slow leak, but apparently it can be common with cars that sit. Have you noticed any oil weeping anywhere? The other issues are basically all soft parts, especially anything that would have sat dry for extended periods of time. There were quite a few rubber parts that had dried out and become hard, including all upper coolant soft parts. I am told people prefer to upgrade to Hill Engineering parts whenever possible, especially bearings. My front seal was leaking in other areas, and while we had it apart, my mechanic recommended Hill Engineering bearings for the timing gears. Same with tensioner and aux idler bearings (one of them, I think it was an idler, sounded like a miniature rock crusher). I think when they sit, the grease in the bearings is pulled down by gravity and exposes the upper bearing balls to metal-on-metal contact at the next start, and they are never quite the same after that. The engine noises now sound much better than it did when I bought it. It really is fun to listen to 48 valves and 12 injectors clicking away at 1000rpm (and 7800rpm!). Okay here is the list (I wish my mechanic had included Ferrari part numbers, sorry for that omission).

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  18. Qksilver

    Qksilver F1 Rookie
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    Feb 11, 2005
    4,316
    Philadelphia
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    Joe
    Looks amazing, and I concur with the family comments; my obsession is most certainly from my dad, and I suspect my kids might be next in line... when that time comes.
     
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  19. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    #44 rhern213, Mar 1, 2021
    Last edited: Mar 1, 2021
    @niftyfivefifty
    I have not noticed any leaks but today I'm going to take a closer look at all those areas. I spent yesterday ripping up all the aftermarket audio stuff they put in the car I couldn't stand looking at it another day. I did read about Hill Engineering parts and it looks like they include their upgraded timing bearings as standard when you order any major service kits. I did not notice the tensioner and idler bearings though so I'll definitely make a note of those as well.

    I was going over the cars service records and the last service in 2018 was actually to replace both timing belt covers and gaskets. They replaced both front and rear covers. Additionally they replaced a vibration damper support, not sure yet what that's for but just looks like a fancy rubber spacer. So I suspect it had a similar issue and hopefully was already taken care of.

    Thank you so much for all that great info I really appreciate it!
     
  20. niftyfivefifty

    niftyfivefifty Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 5, 2007
    366
    PacNW
    Right on! It sounds like yours had a little better care than mine did during its time in storage. Happen to have any pictures of the audio gear you pulled out? I am 99% sure my car was a CES show car for Alumapro in the early 2000s, and I pulled out about 200lbs worth of gear after I brought my car home.
     
  21. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    Yup I took pictures during the process. It wasn't really a big installation, my problem was the execution was just awful. It looks like it was put together by a 16yo experimenting with his first amplifier. It did actually have very nice speakers, Focal Utopia components. But they were all connected directly to the amp with no x-overs which is asking for trouble. They spliced together 3 different sets of cables because the main set was too short and needed to be extended, speaker terminals were cut in half because they used oversized ones that couldn't fit into the amp terminals, and main ground was screwed into carpet instead of metal, it was a total hack job.

    Thankfully however, they set everything up completely separate from the original speakers and wiring, so all I needed to do was cut and pull out the aftermarket wires and was done, none of the original components needed to be touched and was all working properly directly connected to the head unit.

    Here you go:

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  22. niftyfivefifty

    niftyfivefifty Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 5, 2007
    366
    PacNW
    Wow, those certainly rank up there with some of the more interesting kickpanels I have seen. And absolutely crazy they were amplified without any crossovers. Those poor tweeters! In my car there was a huge amp rack on the parcel shelf for a big McIntosh amp, and someone had put three 3" drywall screws though the rack into the rear deck, narrowly missing the fuel tank. Maybe it was the same installer...
     
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  23. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    You might not be far off, there were several of those 3" screws in there for me also. At least you had some valuable electronics with the Macs.
     
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  24. rhern213

    rhern213 Formula Junior

    Jan 8, 2021
    576
    Miami, FL
    Full Name:
    Richel
    Just found out some pretty awesome news, I got the full service records from the dealer and it turns out the car already had a major service in 2018!
    The car's only been driven 200 miles since the major was performed. There was also a lot more service done which was even more bonus.
    During my negotiations there was no mention of the service being done and price was agreed to based on that, so I think I caught a big break there.
    I'm still going to take the car for routine fluids and filters for peach of mind, but I'm very happy to be able to run the car as soon as possible with no worries.

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  25. Ferrari55whoa

    Ferrari55whoa F1 Rookie
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    Dec 21, 2005
    2,592
    Los Gatos, CA
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    Eric
    If you talked with the service advisor and he confirmed that was work paid for and done and not an estimate then I would say you are most definitely winning.

    What amazing news.
     
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