550 / 575M Owners... I smell a skunk - and I love it !

Thank you so much for your quick reply and for the technical tips.

Sounds like a win/win and I will get more/smoother power steering assistance.
Very cool!

 

I don't think you or your 550 are unique because Taz mentioned on a couple of occasions that he didn't feel the steering in his 575M was particularly heavy at low speeds with the genuine FHP ECU. Dave & I definitely noticed a big difference in our cars, and I think FBB felt the same way as us. Maybe the tires or alignment affect the feel, as well as the preload or "drag" within the steering rack itself.

 

Mirek- Several 456M owners have upgraded their steering ECUs to FHP and it works fine or we would not have told you it did. The MSW steering ECU is a compromise between FHP and the standard steering, and it will work fine, too, on a 456M.

John- 456M steering ECUs are really cheap. Might be a way to provide your MSW ECUs with a cheaper starting point.

 

When it is released for the 456M by MSW I will get it. I am not calling into question anybody’s opinion on it working fine or not working fine, it is a matter of if there is any complementary hardware or software from the factory, etc.

I work directly for a major OEM, in a performance parts capacity in-fact and true plug and play solutions have been few and far between. There is alot that goes into R&D, duty cycles, complimentary updates, warranty concerns, etc…

 

Mirek- You are way overthinking this. The hydraulic steering ECU is a glorified relay. There is no other hardware or software associated with it.

Sounds like you intend to cross your feet to save bullets and do without.

 

Agreed. Based on reading over the extensive history of the development (and desirability) of this particular product (as well everything you have written). I am IN.

100% Taz, but this damn car has made me a bit “gun shy” - with all of the ghosts and random stuff to sort.

 

... other than the speedo input from the instrument panel.

Does the hardware/software in this unit allow for easy "upgrades"? Is the speed Vs assistance graph controlled by a programmable chip or can the chip be replaced? Or are the changes made with capacitors and resistors? TIA

 

Have the Maranello Skunk works relay since a few years.
Excellent feeling.

Daniel

 

Ian- Yup, speed signal in, hydraulic boost signal out.

 

Installed!

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Cool, what did you install it in ?
Hopefully you can share any initial impressions I should have mine Tuesday !

Need to get some of those cool logo stickers too.

 

Agreed. I’ll take 4 of those stickers in 4”

 

'00 550

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Hoooooo Weeeee !

wowza.

 

“Whoa”!
#wowwaweewa

 

Hawkeye- Very pretty. Kind of partial to Rosso Corsa myself.

 

Excellent upgrade. Feeling the wheel firm up on 45 MPH two lane country roads was very noticeable. Highly recommended.

 

You guys are mind readers!

308 GTB had requested I do up some stickers a few years back & I never forgot - life just got in the way Baz.....

So last week I got quotes for 2" x 3.5" DECALS to go on the inside of the windows as I figured no one would want to put a sticky sticker on the exterior of their Ferrari?

But if you're really interested in the sticker variety instead of, or in addition to the decals, I'll get a quote on those too.

And Hawkeye, I'm really glad you could feel the difference with the new ECU and you like it!

 

Stickers for the win (and the toolbox) !

I simply cannot wait to install the ECU. Should be here Tuesday, at the moment I am looking for a suspension guy/shop here in LA to properly corner balance me and get everything dialed in. We just put in new suspension bombs and hoses too. Since West End closed I do not know where to turn.

Reading the historical development of this product has been quite fascinating I must say.

 

YEAH!

And I just found out that my manual conversion is likely going to be all OEM (save for the shift gate).

What a great week for my 575!

 

I still have my 550 so consider me a product tester if anything comes up. Too bad you and Dave are no longer 550 owners. I get it sOmetimes it is time or we are forced to move on. I keep mine for when I have to give up racing and need a GT this old guy can get in and out of and still take to a track day.

 

Hey Carl great to see your post & thanks for the offer!

 

So is anyone interested in decals, or only stickers? The quote I received for the stickers has them sized at 3.25" x 4.6" and I also have plenty of those that are on the ECU's which is about 1" x 1.75"

 

I do not know MSW status but I'm glad to help be a part. The switchable steering ECU board and COP are must produce items. You will have lots of business in the 348/355 space for the COP as well. I come from the 348/355 world and they always drool over the MSW COP set-up for the V-12's. These two products like all MSW products have better than OEM quality. They would be perfect for sale as MSW products under the Ricambi umbrella. Another MSW product could be Fuel injector wiring harness. It would not be complex. The community could use mil-spec wiring and real connections. If you ever open the FI wiring...well..only the Italians could build it that way. So many Ferrari problems are electrical. For a time Dave Helms produced a good one but I think he dropped it as his local business skyrocketed. I think the only MSW thing my car lacks was the trunk opener remote. That is a good idea too and since "gobble" has cracked the code you no longer have to sacrifice a remote to do the opener. Gobble can clone a board that can be integrated into the trunk remote system.

 

Carl, thanks for the helpful suggestions! MSW at the moment is just me, although I expect to be consulting Dave as/when.

About the switchable steering ECU board - yes that's been on my radar, but it'll require a DIY owner or one who has a trusted electrical tech nearby to install it & same with the COP's for the 550 & 456M's. I'd also like to be able to produce the COP's for the earlier 456's but need a Houston car & owner to volunteer to be the guinea pig. Any takers?

Same for the 348/355 guys. I'm willing to put in the time to research & test, but I need local cars to test with. Again, any volunteers?

I know what you mean about the FI harnesses - the OEM pieces were really done poorly and Dave (Helms) had a nice solution. Too bad he discontinued doing them, but I think he got tired of debating the merits of gold-plated vs tinned pins, LOL. IIRC that debate was raging at about the same time.... If I produced that FI harness, I would definitely want to include new connectors at the car harness side as those OEM connectors are not only NLA, they were lousy connectors to begin with and the ones on my car certainly showed signs of corrosion & overheating.

And you're soooo right about many of the Ferrari problems being electrical - it's as though they didn't have an electrical engineer on staff to supervise that area. The fuse & relay motherboard being a prime example, and who in their right mind would try to use a 30a or even 40a ice cube relay to turn the radiator fans on/off? That's just a disaster waiting to happen!

I actually have the tools & capability to clone the key fobs too but didn't go into that area because we already had resources in the community (Gobble & Eric) to do it. But the key fobs that Dave & I used for our 3 channel remote setups were clones that I'd burned from our fobs.