f430 - battery dead?

Nico- If the car is driven twice a week for around 15-20 minutes per outing, you do not need to use a battery conditioner. My Interstate battery works fine if driven that much every 10 days or so. Sounds like your battery has gone south. If it is the original, consider yourself lucky it lasted that long. An Interstate MTP-91 for around $125 should solve your problem for several years, assuming that is all the problem is.

You might want to check battery drain to make sure you do not have a small short that is rapidly discharging the battery. Not difficult to do, but almost as costly as a new battery if done at a FNA dealer.

Here is a document with specs on Interstate, Odyssey, and OEM FIAMM batteries.

Taz
Terry Phillips
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As Taz said, the battery may need replacing. You can try the battery conditioner/tender, but recharging a fully discharged battery with one will likely take a long time. A battery charger would be a better solution, but it should be one that's capable of charging the 430's OE Gel battery. I don't know if a standard battery charger will correctly/safely charge a Gel battery.

If you're going to use a battery charger, it's also a good idea to take the key out of the car and shut off the main battery switch before removing, charging and reinstalling the battery. NEVER turn the main switch back on with the key in the ignition. If it's accidentally left in the ON position, you could fry the electronics...that's why the key should stay out of the car till it's ready to be started. After turning the main battery switch back on, you must follow the vehicle start-up procedure in the manual.

These are a few quick tips. If you don't feel confident working on the car, leave it to a professional.

 

My opinion...do not jump the car. You could damage something.

 

The bracket has two bolts. Plus, there's the vent tube on the right side of the battery. Then the two cables.

It's also a good idea putting towels on the seat and door sill so you don't damage them when pulling the battery out of the car.

 

Same thing happened on my car, although I had a Battery Tender on it. The FIAMM battery gave up the ghost, you will like the Interstate, make sure to use the Vent Hose.

 

Nico- Let us know if that was the problem. Any Ferrari problem that can be fixed with $125 and 15 minutes of sweat is a good problem.

Taz
Terry Phillips

 

Does anyone know how long it takes, and what it takes, after a F430 battery replacement to pass a California smog check? Is it a certain number of driving miles before all codes are reset the way the smog check computer expects?

I replaced a Porsche battery and flunked the smog test because the smog check machine was not happy with the codes it was reading.



Mike

 

Mike- Here is what the WSM says. 10 minutes idling, apparently, with A/C and all accessories off.

Taz
Terry Phillips
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Mike, after a battery change, the OBD2 readiness codes will be reset. All you need to do is to drive the car as most as possible to go through the drive cycle which will set the codes to "ready". This topic has been discussed also in this thread:
http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=251087

Cheers,
Stef

 

Stef- 360s and F430s are different birds. The F430 has a newer generation of Motronic DMEs.

Taz
Terry Phillips

 

Thanks Taz but whatever the DME version is, as Bosch never published a detailed procedure of readiness drive cycles, the best advice would be just to drive the car. Cold start it, let it idle for a couple of minutes, don't drive it hard but just normally. Best would be a city drive to get through the cycles. If anyone has the exact detailled procedure of the ME7.1.1, I'm very interested

 

Stef- You were typing while I was posting. See Post #15 above for the F430 workshop manual procedure for resetting the parameters. The run cycle procedure is for the 360 and 575M, posted here now including explanation. Not applicable for the F430.

As Brian Crall has said, the systems will reset ithemselves after a bit of normal driving, but to reaccomplish in the minimum amount of time, the WSM/tech bulletin procedures accelerate the resetting process.

Taz
Terry Phillips
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Stef- The 575M has the 7.1.1 DME, too, so the 360/575M procedure above was recommended when it was published. As Ferrari learned, though, the procedure became simpler to let it idle for 10 minutes with everything off. You see a lot of that in tech data. For an early version of a Ferrari model, for instance, the tech data may say hand tighten the oil filters. For a later version of the same or similar model, the tech data may say to use a torque wrench on the same filter on the same fitting. Given enough feedback, Ferrari updates their recommendations.

Tech data evolves as Ferrari learns.

Taz
Terry Phillips

 

Nico, another important advice related to the self-learning procedure: after each battery removal, the throttle position self-learning procedure, which is run at “key ON", must be performed within an outside temperature range of +5 °C and +100 °C. As it is winter in many regions, temperatures can be lower than +5 °C (41 °F) which would cause engine malfunctions. Just a little reminder

 

To have to go thru this sort of nonsense for a battery change/disconnect/power-loss is sheer idiocy. I say again: unforgivable design flaw. Stick a $1 flash part in a $200K+ car to save all system parameters and have a specific system reset function rather than use battery disconnect as a reset!

 

It is what it is, but I got to agree with you.

Mike

 

alcc- We do not explain them, we just publish what the factory says. The windmill against which you are tilting is located in Maranello, Italy.

Taz
Terry Phillips