2004 Nero/Cuoio 575 w FHP & Fabio headers 138474

Spacers:
25mm HE type 2 on the rear
15MM on the front

Glorious day yesterday. Had the power steering hoses replaced last week. First substantial drive in over a week and I simply can’t say enough good things about the 575.
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Joe- They are fun to drive, except getting her up my driveway.

 

What a gorgeous photo !

Daniel

 

Great pic Joe!

Curious, did the oem wheel bolts fit with the spacers? Or did you have to get longer bolts?

 

He needed longer bolts on the front, but the Type 2 spacers in the rear have separate bolts for the spacer with hardened inserts for the original bolts.

 

Thanks! I was interested in getting spacers for the rear, wanted to see what the limit was with oem bolts.

 

With Type 2s, no sweat. I have OEM Ferrari titanium wheel bolts, so wanted spacers that could use those bolts.

 

^ what Terry said!

 

Maranello madness!
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That's quite a nice sight, pull up a chair and enjoy the view!

 

Yes, a pretty sight!

 

138474 has a crate of OEM gated conversion parts en route. She won't get getting the swap anytime soon as I'm enjoying F1 for now, but it's great to know she has the option in the future, especially as these parts become more and more difficult to find.

 

Joe- Where did you source those parts?

 

Terry, it sounds weird, but I don't know where they came from specifically - a trusted supplier of a facilitator. Simply got lucky!

 

Terry, it sounds weird, but I don't know where they came from specifically - a trusted supplier of a facilitator. Simply got lucky!

 

Joe- In the Ferrari world, nothing sounds weird.

 

Made a new friend when my wife and I went for an impromptu drive and happy hour before dinner last night.
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Gents, been busy driving and enjoying 138474. A bit of a condensed driver's log:

• She made landfall in Philadelphia 1/9/21 with 13,700 miles
• As of this AM we are at 15,220
• 1,500 miles thus far, 11% of the total miles in just 2.7% of it's life
• We had several substantial snow storms in Feb/Mar
• We spend a substantial amount of time at the beach in warm weather
• So, overall, been able to pile a ton of miles in my free time

The car continues to impress. The F1 is a joy, the FHP steering weight and road manners are exceptional, the engine is an all-time great, and of course Fabio's masterpiece is truly beyond any attempt to articulate. Car is tight as a drum and has been a happy camper.

A note on F1; there is a learning curve. There is nuance to the interaction and timing between paddle, throttle, speed, and rate of acceleration (that has been made clear by several owners) and as they have said, it becomes second nature - as smooth as anything else out there and maintains the mechanical connection to the car most people wrongly assume is gone. Here's the big discovery though...

(OBVIOUSLY) the gearbox needs to warm up! Once it's hot, it's a game-changer. It takes a while though, typically around 20 minutes of driving. I suspect that one of the big reasons people railed against F1 is because they were taken on cold-start test-drives and didn't let the cars adequately gel. Combine that with salesman and prospective buyers who didn't really have the full muscle-memory to truly grasp the F1 nuances. No wonder people walked away from a 15 minute spin around the block with less-than-enthusiastic experiences. The 550 takes a while to warm up to, but for some reason the concept didn't resonate on the 575. Likely a subliminal assumption that the high PSI of the hydraulic pump would smooth out some cold joints.

To be continued!

 

I think the warming up process, which is crucial regardless of manual or F1 (it’s the same basic gearbox after all), is much more tactile in a manual, so it’s a lot easier to appreciate that it’s happening before you. In an f1, when the ‘box is cold, the car doesn’t care, so just bangs the gears in regardless.


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One of my techniques is to never use Sport mode until I have ~160 F oil temperature (mark on gauge at 157 F). No sense banging shifts home any harder than necessary until she is warm. Oil temperature is not directly related to transaxle temperature, but it is the best I have. Mine does not show much difference between cold and hot shifts, but I am not pushing her while she is cold.

 

Terry - my mechanic recommended pretty much the same thing.

 

Have been relatively quiet here, but wanted to provide an update for the #Maranellobrotherhood.

138474 sits cheerfully with 16,320 miles as of this AM, despite the prospects of imminent cold weather that will slow the progress on that front. With regard to notable maintenance items since my last update, Anthony at Scuderia Performante replaced an ancillary coolant hose. Nothing else to report, just drama-free enjoyment.

Driving these cars is a timeless and prodigious experience. Everything you need, nothing you don't, layered with the esoteric magic that make things iconic.

 

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Light at the end of the tunnel. 138474 is slated for a belt service in early March and we will be back in action. In the meantime, I picked up a Defender in January which has been an excellent daily for those of us who can't drive our sports cars year-round!