Hi guys, Been lurking on here for a while, but am an active member of the Maserati Life forum (Gransport owner). I'm assisting my childhood friend in obtaining his dream car, a 575M, here in Dubai and was hoping to share some details on an example I found and obtain helpful feedback/advice from the community. I've attached pictures of the vehicle and will share all information I have obtained so far: 1) VIN# ZFFBT55B000132167 (how can I get original build sheet data?) 2) 2-owner car, painted orange by first owner then back to original Nero Daytona by previous owner 3) 27,000km (8k by first owner and 19k by second in last 2 years) 4) Have receipts for $40k spent on the following mods: Stebro Exhaust + X-pipe, OZ Boticelli III wheels, Bilstein Race Suspension, Brembo Big Brake Kit, New interior riden in for only 1k km (see pics), Stereo 5) Only one key fob (how difficult/expensive is it to get spares? Is it possible to delete alarm and make copies of the keys?) 6) Suspension error light and probably TPMS on (is car rejecting the aftermarket setup? can this be cleared?) 7) A/C fan speed adjustment knob doesn't work (blows on high speed all the time) 8) Original wheels (non-modular type) come with car and have been shed with brand new Michelin Pilot Super Sports - these are back on the car (OZ's are in storage) 9) Seller claims new clutch and timing belt installed in Oct'10 , with less than 5k km driven since installation (is the timing belt ok for 5 years?) 10) Seller claims car has never been involved in an accident I have sent the car today for a thorough PPI by a reputable independent Ferrari mechanic with the necessary diagnostic equipment. I'll share more details as I get them. I have negotiated the price down to less than $65k (used sports car market here is very robust in terms of supply so prices don't hold on "older" models). Thoughts? Anything in particular I should have my mechanic focus on? Thanks! JP Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
That's a very reasonable price in the U.S. If it holds up to inspection, the issues noted are minor. The suspension light is probably on because the original suspension has been removed. The fact that they didn't handle the warning light would be of concern to me, suggesting that the installer may not have done everything correctly. The mods can be looked at as a great positive or a great negative, depending on what he wants to do with the car. If he wants to show it, this is not the car for him. If he want to drive it or even track it, this would be an excellent car, given the performance upgrades.
Do you get the original shocks, springs, etc, with the car? No idea why someone would take Mannesmann-Sachs shocks and exchange them for any kind of Bilsteins. Lots of issues with this car that could be expensive to fix, like the A/C. Does the car come with tools, handbooks, tire inflator, covers, and alarm PIN? Can then answer your question on fobs and no, you cannot eliminate the alarm and immobilizer. Aftermarket stereo so you probably do not need the radio code. Car has been repainted twice. Who did it and how good are they? Can you check and see if there was accident damage when the car was painted. Does the car come with any service records so you can confirm the clutch and cambelts and Oct 10 service? Cambelts are 5 year items. The aftermarket suspension is causing the suspension lamp and it would take a pretty good technician to figure out how to fake the suspension circuit. Corvette owners have ways to do that. The 2 Mb chip in the instrument panel would have to be reprogrammed or a fake signal introduced into the harness. TPMS sensor batteries are probably dead, giving the TPMS light. Michelin does not make the Pilot Super Sport in the OEM 295/35 18 size for the rear 575M wheels. What size is back there? For $65K, may be worth playing with her. Any Ferrari dealer with access to MODIS can print a build sheet for the car. Have your mechanics check for accident damage hidden by the two paint jobs. Make sure they do a compression and leak-down test. Clutch life remaining can be checked with a borescope. New paint and new interior. Guess the desert ate the original interior. Understandable if she was left outside. A/C has an auto mode for temperature and fan speed. Does that work? Probably needs a new filter/dryer and recharge. Good luck and I would do a little searching in this forum for more data on your questions.
I was able to get in touch with the previous owner who traded the car in to the dealer. He claimed that the original suspension setup rode like a "Range Rover" so he went for a performance setup with brakes and suspension. A/C does run fine, just the fan speed knob doesn't adjust the speed. As you probably know the A/C instrument module is 1,400 euros and they don't sell replacement knobs, you need to replace the whole thing. I found a 575 that is being broken by Eurospares and they will sell me the unit for about 40% of the new price. All tools, handbooks, etc. come with car plus factory wheels. I can try to see if original owner still wants original brakes and suspension. The car went through an inspection and no major issues. They just want to investigate whether the cam belt was actually done (despite service records that come with car), investigate what appears to be a battery drain casued by the aftermarket stereo (is this common?), some interior trim pieces that need adjustment, windshield washer fluid sensor that appears to be causing a fault on th dashboard, and again determine whether they can fix A/C knob or replace the entire module. Tech at garage recalls the car from a year ago and said it's new paint job is good, but previous attempt to switch back to black was poor and you could see the orange through the paint. Paint looks solid now and no evidence of orange paint anywhere. Also, absolutely no evidence of accident damage. I probably mispoke about Michelin Super Sports, but definitely brand new Michelin rubber on the factory wheels. The OZ's that come with the car were over $4k new (excluding tires). They are now investigating some of the issues highlighted further and I am going to get the selling dealer to fix them in exchange for a deposit. If no major surprises, the deal will hopefully be done by next week. I will share more pics when car is in our possession. Regards, JP
Hey guys, this car was finally purchased after all outstanding issues were sorted. Car was supposed to be collected this week but the battery has gone dead despite being replaced twice and a new alternator being installed. Have you guys experienced such a dramatic battery drain on a 550/575? Any ideas what might be causing this? In terms of aftermarket electric components, the car has a high end alpine headunit and amplifier. Could either of these be causing such issues?
Oh goodie, the battery-draining short issue. Yeah, I had EXACTLY this problem with my 456M when I bought it, and my car was bone stock. The solution? A Ferrari mechanic who is very familiar with the car's electrical system. It's a short, and it could be almost anywhere. Start testing circuits and good luck. It could be the first thing you think of, or the last. Took my guy a full day to track mine down, and he's worked with these cars since they came out. Cheers, George
