Buying an F40...new to Ferraris...need some advice..

Not sure where you are based. UK or USA??

Anyway.

Obviously look for full service history.

Does the car come with all of the original items?

If it has been modified, are the mofications bolt on? Can they easily be removed?

Have the tanks been replaced recently? - euro models only.

When you get the car here is a list of things that you'll almost certainly want to change.

Brakes. Upgrade to a dual master cylinder. Maybe some brake ducting too.

Exhaust - tubi muffler.

Wheels - 18". Save weight and get some better rubber.

Dampers and springs - upgrade to modern units.

I've left the engine till last because in my eyes there's no point going mad with power until the car is capable of handling it.

The above modifications will also reduce the unsprung weight and total weight by a small margin so you'll see a small gain in bhp/ton.

Is the car you are looking at well known? History of use etc.

Also what seats are in the car? If you are going to track the car you'll need a 4 point harness.

How tall are you? If you are over 6ft then you will need to modify the seats, rails to fit with a crash hat. How tall was the previous owner?

Importantly though a good history of consistant use, and service by a reputable company are most important. I'm sure most will tell you that if F40s are left unused for long periods of time they encounter problems. i.e Garage Queens.

 

Don't have the answers to yours but F40 would be a great choice to get.
Congrats.

 

No personal experience, but I saw a post from an FChatter a while ago who said the straight-cut gears were so noisy he went back to stock. Altho maybe with Tubi straight pipes you'd never hear them! There's a lot of F40 stuff in the archives if you do a search.

Gary

 

like the man said, do a search thru here and you will find plenty.
however, you puzzle me a bit by wanting to make your first ferrari purchase the f40. dont get me wrong, i sincerely wish you well and applaud your cleverness at putting the money together to do this etc. but i hope you have some experience with hi-output quasi racing machinery. because making this your first step into the ferrari world is like never owning a motorcycle and buying a racing ducati superbike....would not want to see you or the car in pieces trackside....

not trying to preach, just voicing some concern.

 

I've heard that too. Very noisy

 

The lighter Tilton carbon clutch and flywheel have no effect on the spooling of turbos. Completely unrelated. The reduced mass will however promote faster throttle response. The Tiltons that I have experienced on true racing cars are a bit like a light switch, i.e. on or off, but wouldn't bother me in a street car. Just be prepared for the nature of them and get used to it which shouldn't take more than a day or so.
The straight cut transfer gears will make more noise than bevel cuts. Also, keep in mind that they're transfer gears, not transmission ratios, so either way you'll need the clutch to shift. The F 50 GT1 is the only "road going" Ferrari that I'm aware of that has a dog ring/straight cut gearbox for clutchless shifting. Sequetial at that!! Damn I wish I had one of the three.
As for the Tubi exhaust, one word. Awesome. Seek one with this mod, as it's expensive new, and the first time you hear one you'll want it yourself (probably to the tune of 10 large).
I'd be looking for one with 5k to 20K on the clock with solid service history and recent belts. Make sure you put belts on that bad boy every 4 or 5 years on the outside. One snap and you'll get to find out what expensive repairs are all about.
Good luck with your search. The F40 is by far my favorite Ferrari. I will have one someday, but for now my 308QV will have to do!

John
P.S. There are quite a few F40 owners on this site. I'm sure they can offer some solid first hand experiences and insight.

 

If the car you are looking at is in Dallas at the Lambo store, just buy it, I know the car, it has no stories...

The drop gears are really not that noisy, I actually love the sound and they transform the car, much quicker where it needs to be!

I have the larger turbo's and I had the lightweight flywheel and tilton clutch, I took them off, I personally do think they are suitable for the street.

A F40 can be hard enough to launch, but pull 17lbs off the flywheel and stop and go traffic is just embarssing.

Tubi, hell yes, but just go with the straight pipes, and test pipes, great flames!

There are no differences between a '90, '91 or '92 F40.... each is suspect, build quality varies from car to car, not year to year.

 

Chris, can you answer two myths for me?

1. The F40 was the last handbuilt Ferrari.

2. All things equal, the later ones are better choices because Ferrari learned on the fly as they built each one.

Thx

 

The F50 and Enzo are both built in the same fashion as the F40.

All things equal, there was no further development of the F40 once it went into production. I think the quality varies from car to car, not year to year. What a lot of people do not realize is that Ferrari has significant employee turnover at the factory, they are not known for being generous to thier employees.

But they are known for high quality work, so alot of companies are aggressive in hiring ex-Ferrari employees. You will see a lot of very young men on the production line...

These cars are handmade, not machine built. If a machine is found to not be up to spec, they will upgrade the machine. But these cars are influenced solely but who showed up for work that day....

It is nice to say I have 1992 so it is automatically a better car than a 1990, but that simply cannot be said....

In the end, these cars are very crude in the way they are built and that is one of the biggest attractions to these cars...

Chris

 

Chris,

Interesting re build year. I know you and I have gone back and forth over this one, but having compared three years side by side (and multiple exmaples of each), I feel that the search to start and finish with 92.

As with anything hand-built, you get better at doing it over time. You're right, each car is different and there are good '90s, but you must admit the number of "good" 92s outweighs that of earlier.

--Dan

 

I will second Chris on that, I have here at the ranch 3 F40, and all have different details !!!One has a seal on the rear window, the other not and the 3rd it's glued...I'll just say that the F40 are different from day to day depending who was working that day..
Roland
F40LM

 

Dan I respect your opinion very much, I just have to say my experience does not allow me to say any particular production year has an advantage over the next.

I truly believe you have to go simply on a car by car basis. If we covered VIN plates I am sure no one could be 100% accurate as to what year F40 he was looking at, it would simply just be a guess if you were trying to go by build quality.

Roland and I's experience perhaps is different, not better, not worse than yours, that is why I certainly would not discourage anyone from buying a 1992 anymore than I would a 1990, it is not like there is an actual production based difference in the cars, i.e. engine, transmission, suspension.. etc.

Dan, let me put it this way, I think there is a chance we may both be right!

 

That woulden't be street legal Correct?

 

"But these cars are influenced solely but who showed up for work that day...."

Great comment Chris.........heh..........such is the nature of low volume hand built machinery of every make.

 

I can see them shoting for 1000hp after they hav to beat the Veryon

 

Chris: you're absolutely right that it comes down to the differences car to car. At the end of the day, it's what car really makes sense (for any set of appropriate conditions) - but you're spot on.

You know i'm just really jealous, right?

--Dan

 

Looking at age from a constructors point of view with the F40.

The later models might not be as good as you'd expect.

This is ONLY my opinion but is worth thinking about.

Ferrari decided to make a limited run of F40s. I'm sure they did so knowing that they would not make much money, which makes perfect sense.

However, when they decided to make another 1000 or so is it possible that they looked a little more closely at the bottom line? - profit. I'm not saying this is the case but it does make logical business sense to recalculate costings if you are going to make another 1000 examples.

Also with the early examples - The factory, I'm sure, knowing that they were making a limited run of the fastest road car Ferrari ever made, would be ensuring that each of those limited editions received the best possible construction with the best parts available.

So is a '88 or a '92 better? Probably both!