Carbon Fiber F355 console

Wow, 15 months seems like a bit of a wait for a piece of carbon fibre, but then again, Ferrari's deserve nothing but the best. Can't wait to see the pics.

 

Thanks for the compliment Bob. Let me clarify to the public that this is the replacement part for the leather-wrapped center console tunnel. Bob has also received our "Integrated Center Console," which is the piece which houses the shift gate, climate controls, and ashtray. That item also took a long time to create the first example, but it's now in production at a much faster rate.

I've got some pictures here. Diffuse natural outdoor light tends to be best for photographing carbon fibre, but rainstorms yesterday forced us to improvise indoors. Bob, we'd love to see pics installed as well!
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Console looks good. But is there a reason for using plain weave, as opposed to a more attractive twill or satin fabric?

 

Good Question. The primary reason for using plain weave on this part was for consistency. When Ferrari has supplied carbon fiber interior parts on their road cars, from the F355 Fiorano, to the Challenge Stradale and Enzo, it has been this very style of "plain weave". Many customers specifically ask us to match the pattern that Ferrari uses.

In our opinion, small to medium sized interior parts look best with this style of plain weave, because other patterns would be overly distracting with a small surface area. This console tunnel is a larger part, but most customers would prefer to keep things consistent. We can fairly easily use a twill or perhaps some other weave if a customer so desires.

We've noticed that Ferrari uses a chunkier looking twill weave for the rear diffuser of the Enzo (and presumably for much if not all of the car's structure), while plain weave is employed in the more visible areas. Check out the attached photos, courtesy Lucas Scarfone. At the front you can see a small horizontal wing of plain weave CF with twill behind & under it. The Enzo interior is all this same style of plain weave.

Some of our forthcoming exterior enhancements may have a different 'default' weave pattern, but the customer can specify if they have a certain request. Stay tuned...
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Probably alittle easier to manipulate.

 

Actually twill and satin fabrics are more drapeable than plain weave. They also have better mechanical properties than plain weave due to the straighter fiber path through the fabric.
However, plain weave can be found in lightweight fabric style, so it's easier to use for small and intricate parts.
Nonetheless, the pictured parts look great. Very smooth and shiny!

 

i LOVE carbon fiber, looks so cool

 

You're certainly corect, and thanks for the compliment. We use quite a bit of these other weaves as well, depending on the application and whether cosmetics are an issue. We frequently use combinations of different weights and weaves of fabric within the same part.

-Chris