Clanking and clunking sounds

Common issue with all f430

Check the ball joints and bushing up front

Get a Indy to change use hill replacement ones

If you search on this forum .. many posts on ball joints on f430



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The ball joints are easy to do yourself and will save you a lot of money, be sure to get the new ones from Hill Engineering or Superperformance in the uk. They also sell the extractors you need to remove them from the arm.
If you get OEM ball jpoints from Ferrari, you will have the same problem again as they are plated mild steel and the plating comes off and tears the nylon bush to pieces.
The Hill engineering replacements are stainless so will last for years.
You will need to jack the car up and remove the arm- you can then push out the old ball joint and fit the new one on the bench. Take the oportunity to free up the arm rubbers while it is off

 

My top ball joints only did 6000 miles, i now have 2 lower ones to change at 11500 miles.
Another thing to check is the wear in the steering ball joints and the rear tie bar ball joints.
Jack a wheel up and hold the wheel at 3 and 9 o clock, see if it has any movement in it side to side. Should be none

 

Another vote for balls. They really are an easy job to DIY.

 

If they are like the ball joints on a 360 they also require the use of a special adhesive which is also available.

 

Loctite 9360...ain't that special..

 

Another vote for likely ball joints :

https://www.ricambiamerica.com/collections/hill-engineering.html?cat=24

.

 

Not that special, but boy is it over priced

 

Use Hysol 9466.....still Ferrari specified for ball joint replacement and a quarter the price.

 

Just a pic to show how poor the OEM parts are, only 6000 miles on this, so be sure to use the hill engineering parts in stainless.
You are seeing the plating coming off the mild steel
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I would suggest the OP search the data base of this forum for other possible causes as well. I noticed there are several other threads over the years, specific to the 430 Scuderia dealing with knocking noises in the front suspension. While the ball joints is a common and known problem, it has not solved the problem for all. There are suggestions (but not definitive) of flam blocs, lower shock bolt and bushing, sway bar end links and other items as possible sources. It will take some diagnostic time to find the true source.

 

Once you get it on a trolley jack and the weight off the arms you can feel the excess clearence in the parts with a pinch bar

 

Yup, ball joints. My big project for next year, God willing. And yes I want to do the arm bushes too if possible. They are trash on my Spider. I'm afraid the car sat a lot before I got it. 2 owners and only 8900 miles in 14 years. What a disgrace! I'm kidding (now at 20k) because the interior and paint are in very good shape minus the usual stickies. I even lubed the joints with a needle tip the past 2 years. Made a huge difference last year. The sweet silence! But this year did not last. A couple months ago it was back. I used sticky grease when the heavy duty option might have been better. Didn't want to swap the tubes in the gun. But the play is probably too much anyway. Get those Hill beauties and do it right!

 

Motor bike synetic chain grease is very good, if you put the plastic tube down through the ball joint seal and spray a bit in. It sprays like wd 40, then sets like grease. Being bike chain grease it resists water

 

I have a set of st/steel ball joints if anyone is in need. PM me. $550 usd shipped w/wide.
Cheers
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Those are the upper set in case anyone is wondering, the lowers have a step on the outer race

 

Here is a video about flam blocs being a possible source of noise:

 

I read a lot about these and other bits failing at very low miles...engine and tranny mounts... ball joints. Is this simply bad design/ materials. , or have these cars been tracked a lot? Or is time a function...or even storing a car during the lousy driving months?

 

A combination of old/substandard designs and Ferraris sitting unused much more than a "regular" car.

 

The ball joint problem is down to being made of mild steel and then a very poor chrome plate job. It lifts off the steel and gets into the seal and chews it up, hence the wear and loose fit

 

This!

Is that bad design? I would say it is a low quality OEM part, not a design flaw.

 

I was referring more to the motor mounts, were they not redesigned?

 

I know they changed materials but I am not sure if they changed shape. Plus, the motor & transaxel are basically a rigid body. The headers are bolted to the motor and to the back of the transaxel so they are part of that rigid body and move with it as one. The motor mounts do not cause any header load unless the rear exhaust mount breaks or the header hits something like the frame. The loading on exhaust headers is all thermal and caused by expansion combined with lack of give in the rear mount. Motor mounts could contribute to failure of those rear mounts and/or failure from there back to the exhaust can but not to the headers.

 

Motor and tranny mounts were done at service before I bought it. Yes the bushings fail from lack of use. I have to do the fronts as well since I can see the perished rubber fraying under the metal casings.

Rizzo, do you still have those? Are the boots included? Need the tool too. I am in a bind now because I just pulled the trigger on a winter wheel and tire set for my Quad. OZs and SottoZs. Wheels coming from Italy, now 4 to 6 weeks.