I think I need this cap ASAP! on a drive today (along with a separate issue I felt), I noticed my brakes felt not so strong anymore. During regular low speed was fine, but when going at a higher rate of speed on the highway and then trying to hit the brakes, it felt like I was driving a truck with a trailer attached to it when braking. I flushed and bleed my brakes about 6 months ago... When I got home I looked at the brake fluid cap. I unscrewed it, made sure I have brake fluid! (which I did) and since the cap is clear plastic, I noticed when you make it tight, the rubber seal folds over on the side, not making a good seal. I took the cap off again, and just looking at the rubber seal, it has enlarged so much it is too big and not the correct size of the cap anymore and won't make a proper seal any longer. I wonder if this is the cause of what I feel. I sure hope so. I am still bummed I cannot buy the cap and have to bring it to the dealer. It seems Ferrari does not even sell ANY cap alone? it only comes part of the reservoir? I wonder if I bought a new reservoir if they updated it with the new caps, Which I am sure they would unless its old stock. But I guess I should stop crying and just take it to the dealer
Sorry to disappoint you @Mercedes_Benz but the cap is not your problem. The cap problem was that the cap was air tight - it needs ventilation. If you have a bad seal it meas the cap was not air tight, which is good. If your rubber seal has enlarged, it is very simple. It has not been made from a correct rubber. Probably it was made from NBR rubber and it should have been made at least from EPDM rubber or better. A wrong rubber will suck the brake fluid into itself and it will balloon. Where did you get your rubber seal from, was it factory or aftermarket? If it was from Ferrari factory it would be very shocking that Ferrari made two mistakes in the cap design: 1) Wrong rubber seal 2) Lack of vent hole Can you post a photo of the seal? And the close up photo of the cap from the top? Does it have a vent hole? You can deal with Ferrari for that, or just: 1) Drill a smallest vent hole in the middle of the cap (don't leave any particles/dirt inside) 2) Take your cap to any auto parts store and buy the same diameter brake fluid cap, from which you remove the rubber seal which should have an accordion style center membrane which can be moving up and down. Put that rubber seal into the Ferrari cap instead of the Ferrari seal. Of course you also need to fix your brakes, maybe the bleeding was not done properly or there are other issues. Disclaimer: Use at your own risk, do not believe what your read on the Internet and verify everything by yourself.
So the brake fluid reservoir capsize is not proprietary to Ferrari. It's probably a generic size. I think I might just pick one up from another vehicle until these are available
I don't know if it is "generic" all I'm saying is that you may be able to find similar size rubber seal in the caps sold in car parts stores. Maybe you can also find the same size cap, I don't know.
Well, you may be right, but I am not sold on your response. Others have reported noticeably different brake feel from just a new cap. So I won't know its my issue or not until I tried a new cap. Also, my cap and seal is the OEM original Ferrari cap all F430s came with.... I will try an take pics later.
Your choice what you are sold on . One of the two problems in Ferrari cap is air tight, the other is ballooning seal. Tight air cap holds the fluid from going down to your brakes and replacing it with one which is not air tight can give noticeable different brake feel. You already have a seal that is not sealing properly, is not air tight and not holding vacuum, so from that perspective it is a good as the new factory cap. So a new factory cap should not make a difference. Just make sure that your rubber seal is not making a good seal (just a bit of air going in, too much opening will cause the fluid to leak), while you wait for the factory replacement.
I wanted a new cap since my seal was bad, and a seal this bad if not good and will allow too much moisture to reach the brake fluid and compromise it. I was not yet ready to go to the dealer for a recall cap... So I was ok buying a new original cap. Seems they don't sell it alone. I wound up having to buy a new reservoir from Ricambi, which was only like $40 something bucks though...But I only needed it for the cap. I put the cap on, and will bleed/flush the brakes this week. Look how bad my original seal was. It was enlarged and when your installed, it would bend over the on the side and not seal.The first pic is of the new reservoir and cap the other pics are my original bad one on the car. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
