430 BRAKE light intermittent flashing at WOT

Typically, Ferrari brake lights will illuminate for low pad material (front, with rear optional) and low brake fluid. (!) or BRAKE.

The Park Brake has a different symbol. (P) or PARK

 

your car is a stick right? If so, it is because your brake fluid leaked so much that your brake fluid level sensor is giving a warning.

 

Already eliminated as a cause....

 

would you elaborate on how that was eliminated? What was tested or done?

 

You seemed to be suggesting that low brake fluid level was causing the brake warning light. Since the brake fluid level was visually checked ok, it can't be the level of the brake fluid causing the problem.

It could, however, be a faulty brake fluid level sensor or sensor wiring (short to earth). I assume Ferrari designed their (float?) sensors to make reliable measurements under high accelerative forces i.e. the fluid doesn't shift to one part of the reservoir activating the switch. I wonder if the system has a timer to prevent momentary low levels trigging the light?

Since the indications are intermittent, it's going to be difficult to faultfind. Perhaps for a short test period, you could remove the plug on the fluid level sensor to see if you still get the fault light under hard acceleration?

 

Another line of thought. On 360's is the brake pad wear indication normally only triggered when the brakes are applied?

 

Yes, just like you described, it could. When the car is under acceleration, the surface of the brake fluid will change from flat to a slope. The edge of the slope, while well above the sensor when the car is under no acceleration, could fall lower than the sensor when under acceleration, ergo the light. Not saying that your car is this case, but it is a possibility that I've encountered twice in my stick 360.

No, it doesn't have a timer, so each momentary low fluid level will result in a flicker of the brake warning.

I think the test you can do is to fill up the brake fluid to such a point that is over what the wsm recommended. If you still get a brake light, that means what I described isn't your case.

 

On my 360 , I've a test about a year ago that I cut all the brake pad wires to the ecu. The brake warning will not show in my test.

also on my 360, also a few years ago, I was doing some track time, in which I totally destroyed my pads, worn to about 1mm or less left and all of the brake pads are cracked , too. There's also no brake warning light in the dash. Just my personal observation. I was surprised, too, at the moment, that there's no warning.

 

Good to know. This is the same on the 355. Disconnecting the brake pad wiring removes any chance of the warning light circuit receiving an earth via the pad sensors. If no luck disconnecting the plug on the fluid level sensor, disconnect the brake pad wires one at a time.

 

Perhaps broken pads also break the sense wires. Were the pads OEM? (Did they have wear sensors?)

 

yes, OEM. hmmm.... didn't remember if I broke the sensor

 

pad sensors are close enough to worn that vibration is causing a wire to hit ground. Mine used to do that and now they don't. I cut them off. Ha! With after market pads they also can get loose causing the same issue. drove me nuts having that light flash so I took them off.