550 VS 575 MT values

We have discussed this topic a TON at this link.
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/market-prices-575-manual-vs-575-f1-conversion-costs-vs-550.629834/page-93

550's were all 6MT's and are delightfully analog but have MANY weaknesses that evolutionary upgrades fixed on the 575.

The 575 is superior in many many ways compared to the 550 but the number of original and OEM 6MT 575's makes those extremely valuable because they are so rare.

The play in the game is to do an OEM parts conversion of a 575 F1 car. You get all the evolutionary upgrades absent in the 550.

Many guys have used different shops to get it done....many have used aftermarket converters as well......"your mileage may vary".

I'm a 550 owner and I considered a 575 but at the end of the day I really like the analogness of the 550 especially the guages.

I'd also add that many of the 550's are not "well optioned" whereas the 575's are more frequently "well optioned".

Enjoy your research and hope you find a car you love. -- Eric

 

Yes,
Terry @tazandjan is our most Senior Professor for this group and he has shared historically the Assembly number late in 2003 when the last round of evolutionary upgrades were implemented.

Terry can correct me if I’m wrong but I understand 575 assembly# 52556 or higher are best.

 

Rich, are you in the US?

reason I ask is you are on the right direction with a 2004 and 2005 but those were delivered to the US in VERY low numbers.

 

Jon Cribb @Cribbj and Dave Burch @ferraridriver the founding Maranello Skunk Works professors devised a lot of improvements including the MSW/FHP module that should be available from Ricambi. As well as the sway bar..... https://www.ricambiamerica.com/210888m-rear-anti-roll-bar-msw.html @Ricambi America

https://www.ricambiamerica.com/175891-steering-ecu-fiorano.html

There are several aftermarket outfits that sell kits. Different people here have different opinions. @dhalperin13 as an example has had the team in Austin @MMWX fine tune his aftermarket set up and he has taken his "pedestrian" 575 to the ultimate level. You could read some or a bunch of his posts.

There are some shops like Exoticcars in NJ (Wil deGroot and his team) @wildegroot that will do an OEM parts or near-OEM conversion and they have done many and a lot of guys here have been very happy with them.

I don't know what part of California you are in. I'm in NorCal (San Jose area) and I know one specific shop here that has done an EAG aftermarket kit install.

@Joel Delman has done a conversion in SoCal with his mechanic and he also seems very happy.

Hope this is helpful.....

 

I really enjoyed the journey of collecting all the parts to bring the 2003 I purchased up to the best spec: MSW steering module and sway bar from Ricambi, then the 205619 shock ecu and fhp/hgtc shocks from maranello classic. And of course converting to stick which I did with Exoticars. Toss in the bluetooth adapter for the original head unit and the upgraded speakers and amp from Scuderia Audio, oh and the turn signal announcer from Scuding Swiss. Lots of fun little things to collect and deploy.

 

There were no changes to 575M steering during production and all vanilla 575s used the same hardware and hydraulic steering ECU. Only the FHP 575Ms had a hydraulic steering ECU that stiffened up the steering by scheduling less hydraulic boost for part of the speed range. Retrofitting an FHP or Maranello Skunkworks hydraulic steering ECU is possible for all 575Ms.

At AN 52556 (~ SN 13517x-8x), as mentioned by Eric above, a steering position sensor was introduced for all 575s. This fed lead-into-turn info to the shock absorber ECU that stiffened up the outside shock absorbers for better cornering. It made no actual changes to the steering itself.

 

From my perspective as a buyer almost one year ago I started looking for a 550 but had the factory gated 575 also on the radar. I loved both cars but decided to go for the 575 manual as I think it has a better value proposition on the current market and it solved most of the problems on the 550 and wanted to be able to enjoy the car. You get more power also that is always really nice.

 

The 575 is an improved 550, but one may argue that a factory manual 575 commands an additional premium due to its rarity. So that it may be overpriced for a buyer who does not care for rarity; on the other hand, rarity is also a good factor for future value retention.

 

It comanda a premium that from my perspectiva will keep growing so that a martes it to me as much better potential resale value in the future, both are amazing but one of just 246 with improvements and more power is a very good proposition in Ferrari world. That is less than Half 550 barchettas. They are great but if you want use its there I will go for the 575 factory manual. I have seen lately that conversions don’t bring the money. I’m 100% on originality

 

No it is not possible.

I have a mt 2002 575, original steering was very light, even lighter than 430. With the fhp ecu, which takes 30 sec to install, it is still light while parking, but firms up more than 430 at road speeds, but still retains very good road feel

 

I have 2003 456M chassis number 50033 so it came with the steering position sensor. I will say, the MSW ECU was a night and day difference. Best mod ever.

So I wonder if the *new* steering position sensor in late 456m cars also feeds into the shock absorber ECU for better cornering (?). Why else would it be there but I am unaware of different shock ECU’s for 456 models. They do have the sport setting which I think adjusts the shocks via the ECU. So maybe the introduction of the SPS was a suspension upgrade for later 456m models ?

 

Mirek- All the 456s and 550s came with the steering position sensor and I am not aware of any upgrades during production. Ferrari introduced new accelerometers in the 575M and mistakenly thought they were quick enough to replace the steering position sensor information. Accelerometers lag, so they were wrong. Hence the addition of the sensor in November 2003 at AN 52556, along with a host of other upgrades, likely after 456M production had ceased.

Rich- As stated by Ffre92 and Ferrari, earlier 575s cannot be upgraded with the position sensor package, but all can be fitted with an FHP or MSW hydraulic steering ECU. There are also later shock absorber ECUs (205618/205619 may still be available) that stiffen up handling.

See if this answers some of your questions:

 

I also have an oem mt 430 which I love, I would classify the f430 steering as light, fits the character of the car. I like the feeling of the 575 with fhp steering ecu better though. It is firmer, but with more steering feel than the 430