Almost bought F430, but service records not good | FerrariChat
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Almost bought F430, but service records not good

Discussion in '360/430' started by Porsche911s, Apr 23, 2011.

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  1. Porsche911s

    Porsche911s Karting

    Apr 17, 2011
    200
    South Carolina
    Full Name:
    Lou
    #1 Porsche911s, Apr 23, 2011
    Hi guys, let me introduce myself. I have had a Porsche 997 S for 6 years. I now have decided I want a F430 spider. I have driven several over the last month. The one I almost bought has had several service visits they all seem to be related to the RH Bank Cylinder 1 thru 4. The dealer always has taken some actions and cleared the fault. But I am concerned that root cause of the problem may not be resolved. It appears that the faults were related to mis firing of cylinder 1 thru 4. Do you guys have any thoughts ? Should I still consider or just keep looking and walk away. Thanks in advance
     
  2. TheMayor

    TheMayor Ten Time F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Feb 11, 2008
    106,280
    Vegas baby
    #2 TheMayor, Apr 23, 2011
    It wouldn't scare me. I had my boxes reflashed a couple of times. It doesn't seem out of the norm from what my dealer did.

    But, you're not giving us much information. Just telling us there's been a problem with one bank isn't much to go on. Fuel injection? Electronic? Mechanical? What did they do and what was the problem?

    It's a huge difference between changing a spark plug and doing a valve job to correct the problem.

    If you think the F430 is going to be like a Porsche, you've just been exposed to a little reality.

    I can't tell you to buy the car. I can only tell you it wouldn't bother me if the problem seemed reasonable and an authorized dealer said it was fixed. If it was an independant dealer, I'd want it checked out by someone specifically for that before I believe it.

    There's always going to be some issue with every car. The factory has never made a perfect car. Find one you like, buy it and stop worrying about it.
     
  3. ELP_JC

    ELP_JC Formula 3

    Dec 13, 2008
    1,264
    #3 ELP_JC, Apr 23, 2011
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2011
    That issue would definitely worry me as well, but you need to find out what's causing it. These cars will throw those codes if you don't wait until the dash shows 'OK' before firing the engine up. AND THAT APPLIES IF YOU STALL THE ENGINE. And you'd get that for sure if you don't wait 10 seconds after the 'OK' light and 10 minutes before driving the car when disconnectiong/removing/changing the battery. If the issue is not related to any of those occurrences, I'd get something else. There's a ton of these cars on sale, so no need to take unnecessary risks IMO. And don't do the mistake I just did: DO NOT rely on a PPI from a Ferrari dealer, and even less the one seller does business with. Fortunately no big problems, but many little issues I expected to get flagged by a PPI didn't, as well as many areas I expected to be inspected weren't.

    Find an independent dealer willing to do a thorough PPI, including compression/leak tests, and check every panel to make sure it wasn't repainted. And if it was, check if it was just repainted, repaired and repainted, or replaced and repainted. Also check that the roof light goes out with the top open and closed. Mine stays on when open. It's something stupid, just adjusting the last microswitch in the sequence, but need to find out where it is, and how to get to it. A nuisance for sure, plus PPI should have caught it. It was a complete waste of money, as they didn't even check fluid levels, and all were low (coolant reservoir was bone dry)... and they serviced the damn car, with only 5 miles after the service. Geez. Good luck man.
     
  4. Porsche911s

    Porsche911s Karting

    Apr 17, 2011
    200
    South Carolina
    Full Name:
    Lou
    #4 Porsche911s, Apr 23, 2011
    Guys, thanks. I understand none of these cars are perfect. What concerns me is that the car has been back to the dealer 4 times for a check engine light over the period of a year. Seems like they always did something and cleared the issue. The codes always have something to do with with mis firing of 1 thru 4. What I am trying to understand if this type of behavior is normal, do many peole experience this. The car is in great condition it is a 2007 with 1650 miles. They have performed compression tests, smoke checks, have replaced some parts... But engine light still came on again.
     
  5. hardtop

    hardtop F1 World Champ

    Jan 31, 2002
    11,295
    Colorado
    Full Name:
    Dave
    #5 hardtop, Apr 23, 2011
    I have a 2005 since new. I would move on. I have had a couple of CELs for unimportant stuff but never a recurrence. If I had to take it to the dealer 4 times in a year with so few miles, I'd probably sell it myself. No shortage of cars, keep looking.

    BTW, I hit the start button right away. Waiting for the OK light doesn't matter.

    Dave
     

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