Another paddle shift thread… | FerrariChat
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Another paddle shift thread…

Discussion in 'California(Portofino)/Roma(Amalfi)' started by montegoblue, Aug 8, 2025 at 1:22 PM.

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  1. montegoblue

    montegoblue Formula Junior
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    #1 montegoblue, Aug 8, 2025 at 1:22 PM
    Well, the right paddle shifter in my Cali T started acting up all of sudden last week, car wouldn’t let me go on manual. Otherwise shifting fine on Auto. Car under Power 15 warranty … called dealer, they said should be covered. Ferrari picks up car and 2 days later they called me to tell me that transmission is fine but paddle shifter is broken — now “not covered by warranty”, which I predicted and reason why I called in the first place. The best part … of course, their pricing. To “fix” the broken part $ 3500 , for a new assembly $7k … part is $300 dollars online. Ridiculous …. Also my 1 year old battery, Ferrari thinks it needs to be replaced for 1500 dollars (have not had ANY issues w/ battery). . Not! Having my car picked up and taken to my Indy shop which is fantastic. Thank goodness all my Ferraris are older and not under warranty … will never set foot at a Ferrari stealership again, wow
     
  2. vjd3

    vjd3 F1 Rookie
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    #2 vjd3, Aug 8, 2025 at 2:10 PM
    What has happened is a tiny piece of plastic that hits the microswitch that activates the shift has cracked. You can take off the steering wheel cover from below, and find the two pieces, glue them back together and reassemble. If you cannot find the pieces, you can take the one from the other side (they are identical) and have someone cast or 3D print it. I fixed mine for about $50. The dealer's solution will be to replace the entire paddle assembly which is crazy for one small piece of plastic that is not available as a part. You can see on this photo where the little tube that hold the pin it rotates on broke off. I was not able to find that piece but had another one cast instead.

    [​IMG]
     
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  3. vjd3

    vjd3 F1 Rookie
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    #3 vjd3, Aug 8, 2025 at 2:14 PM
    Older post ... by me at the time ;)

    Behind each paddle itself there is a small piece of plastic that depresses two microswitches to indicate to the car whether or not it is being shifted (or taken out of park or neutral and into first gear). The plastic piece is prone to breaking, which will no longer depress the microswitches, thus the car will not go into gear or upshift/downshift depending on the paddle in question.

    Pressing the brake pedal and then hitting the PS button will first put the car into neutral, and then into first gear -- this is a fail safe should the paddle assembly break and render the car undriveable.

    If one of your paddles is no longer working, it's highly probable that the small plastic piece has fractured. It is easy enough to remove -- move the steering wheel to its highest and furthest position, shut the car off, remove the lower steering wheel shroud (one 8 mm nut and two Philips screws), disconnect the connector for the switch that adjusts the wheel and let the shroud dangle down out of the way. On the bottom side of the wheel there is a small metal plate stamped Valeo -- this is removed by taking off three Philips screws. Underneath that, you will see the two plastic pieces that contact the orange-tipped microswitches. They are held in (loosely) by two small metal pins and tensioned by a short spring. You can pull the pin and remove the plastic piece ... it is likely to be broken. If you have the broken piece you can try to super glue it back together and at least get the car working again.

    Here is a photo taken by another Fchatter (Mike8Wang) looking at the wheel from the bottom. The piece on the left is intact with its pin and spring, the broken one was removed on the other side.

    [​IMG]
     
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  4. Stormy Monday

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    George Allred
    #4 Stormy Monday, Aug 8, 2025 at 3:19 PM
    I had this happen a couple of weeks ago. About three weeks after bringing the car home. Plastic parts were replaced and covered by the warranty I purchased.
     
  5. montegoblue

    montegoblue Formula Junior
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    #5 montegoblue, Aug 8, 2025 at 3:21 PM
    Thanks! Crazy that the one crucial part of a car, the shifter, relies on a cheap plastic part on cars that cost $$. Kinda like the sticky interior parts I guess. Forza Ferrari :)
     
  6. Stormy Monday

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    #6 Stormy Monday, Aug 8, 2025 at 3:24 PM
    old car. Old car problems. :cool:
     
  7. miamiron

    miamiron Karting

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    #7 miamiron, Aug 9, 2025 at 12:02 AM
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  8. montegoblue

    montegoblue Formula Junior
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    #8 montegoblue, Aug 9, 2025 at 4:19 AM
    Exactly where I am going to get the parts ; beats the 3.5k or 7k option from Ferrari :). Thanks for posting, great forum. Interesting my F12 is a couple of years older and similar mileage as my Cali T but I haven’t heard problems with their paddle shifter….
     
  9. Zarakoff

    Zarakoff Karting

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    Ian Curley
    #9 Zarakoff, Aug 9, 2025 at 4:29 AM
    It’s quite shocking the power 15 warranty isn’t worth the paper it’s written on
    It’s mainly engine gearbox or electrical failure which I suppose probably won’t fail
    A good Indy must be the way to go . Get them service and look after the car and save yourself over £3k in warranty costs.
    As for the paddle seems the more you use it . It’s like a ticking time bomb it’s going to fail I drive mostly in auto lol
     
  10. vjd3

    vjd3 F1 Rookie
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    #10 vjd3, Aug 9, 2025 at 5:00 AM
    Once you understand how the paddles are actuated you realize that a light touch (gentle pull) is all you need. Pulling the paddle hard is only going to stress that little piece.
     
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  11. montegoblue

    montegoblue Formula Junior
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    #11 montegoblue, Aug 9, 2025 at 2:36 PM
    Shift very gently in a sports car :) … I get your point however a lot of us buy our Ferraris used to not pay the Ferrari tax and you will never know how it was driven. Will be more “gentle” I guess w/ new repair. BTW I never drive these cars on auto , no point IMO … Cali T always in Sport / bumpy / manual :) … F12 race mode / bumpy / manual. Only car I drive in auto sometimes is my 992 911 PDK in Sport when I am lazy
     
  12. vjd3

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    #12 vjd3, Aug 9, 2025 at 3:08 PM
    Totally agree ... Ferrari's auto mode, at least in my former Cali 30 and Cali T, was terrible, it was upshifting to get itself in 7th gear as quickly as possible. Have not tried it in my 458 Spider but assume it's just as bad.

    Porsche's PDK, in contrast, is actually excellent in auto (sport or sport plus modes), and often in my former 991.1s and Turbo S I would be driving in auto but still using the paddles ... often I would pull the paddle when I wanted to downshift at the exact moment the PDK decided to do it, which would result in dropping two gears. I let it handle the downshifting after that happened a few times. ;)
     

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