Considering purchasing a 575M (non-SuperAmerica)

bought mine ~5 months ago. so my knowledge is limited:

1) How is the reliability compared to others?
can't answer that, but here is my take on maintenance cost: Major service is quite a bit cheaper than mid engine Ferrari. timing belt is easy to get to. everything is right there, like a regular car. What surprised me was how expensive suspension bushings were, I had them swapped out, and parts was $$$$$$$$$$. just the bushings cost more than the major.

2) Do you have any regrets about the purchase, and if so, what are they?
I initially hated the suspension, as I have the early 575M. It handled more like old Camry, suspension was all over the place. Following Taz's document, I bought shock ECU #205619 (this is the only new one you can buy) for ~$1,800 from Eurospares. I did spend 3 months trying to find an used or cheaper new shock ECU. not able to. Also steering ECU #175891, buy them new for $400 from Rutland Ferrari parts, don't bother with rebuilt which cost as much. shock ECU transformed the car, it now handles like a say a late model Mercedes coupe.
on mine, I didn't love the sound. Mine had a muffler delete and x-pipe. don't sound that great.
immobilizer - like all Ferrari of that era, sucks a ton. Mine only came with 1 black fob. had to get 2 additional FOB (1 red and 1 black, and code) from Ferrarifob.com for just under $1k. key itself is super cheap, I paid like $5 each and any keysmith can cut it.
brake rotors aren't cheap..... unlike $100 Bermbo F430 rotors, 575M is more like $300-$750 each.

3) What do you love most about the 575M?
the usual, classic front engine Ferrari look.
ease of maintenance (labor, not parts).
how "hand made" it is. Car seemed "simple" from the old days. it has same brake duct hoses as a regular race car, not some molded plastic parts. even air filter housing and coolant overflow tank are metal !!
F1 is really slow in low speed driving. acceptable when you wind it out. though you definitely can learn how to shift F1 at slow speed, so it becomes seamless.
love the coilover (height adjustable and corner weight), and double wishbone.

4) Any advice any current or former 575M owners have regarding it?
make sure you get all the key fobs (1 red and 2 black, and a code card). make sure it has the latest shock ECU and steering ECU if it is an early model year. remember it isn't a sports car, but a GT. Designed for high speed cruising, not canyon carving.
sticky interior is easy to take care of. may be 3 hours of work with rubbing alcohol will get everything off. none of marking came off.

 

I have mine for sale here at the Barn in Miami, its perfect, I spent almost $10,000 last year getting it just perfect. The only reason Im selling and not keeping it is bc I had to move back to Houston bc my dad is sick and I wanted to spend time with him and . So I moved back and left it with my friend for sale. As far as who maintained it, the best tech in miami worked on it, he manages one of the biggest private ferrari collections in the world personally and he himself did all the work on mine last year.

1. It is incredibly reliable if properly serviced, many of the cars you see are not properly serviced, the owners cut corners, skimp on things and it will come back and bite you. I learned the hard way, I personally am a perfectionist and like I said I spent just under $10,000 last year all the receipts are there to make the car immaculate. Living in south beach, mine was my daily driver for the 15 months I had it, still put around 1500 miles in that time, it was a great car and even in miami where every exotic exists, it still got lots of stares and compliments.

2. My only regret is having to sell it, I think the car will appreciate alot in the coming years as it was the first v12 with a single disc clutch and I believe collectors will come for those soon as they're the perfect blend of old and new. Lot of bang for the buck for the money, how many other ferraris can you buy that are 1 of 500 or so in the US with 12 cylinders for a hair over $100k?

3. For me its the looks, it looks like the classics I love the 250 GTO and the 275 GTB yet its got all the modern functionality.

4. Make sure you dont cut corners, simple fixes now can end up costing alot if you neglect them

 

Mine has a tubi and X pipe and it sounds incredible.

 

The luggage was not standard and actually pretty rare.

 

Hi! Any chances you upload a short video? Been curious about Tubi on a 575M Maranello. Do you have the HGTC exhaust as well?


Eloy

 

Hi Bell William. I considder to replace all bushings too. Not that they seems like worn out or something, I just think the car has some more road noise what what a $200k car can have had when it was new... They are probably hard and noisy after twenty years! My car have now 130.000kms. and still no rattles to talk about. So the question to you is: -what was the difference before and after you replaced all the bushings?? Thanks! Erik

Buy the 575M. It is a very refined car. Very high quality too!!

 

Car isn't in my possession, its at the dealer on consignment, sorry

 

I had some clunking noise from front, and 2 of bushing were visibly torn. upon disassembly, found 2 more bad bushing. it was ~$2k just in parts, and this is front only. labor isn't cheap either, as it isn't hard, but is time consuming. I bet I could go to a bushing company and have them made for less.

it was an obviously improvement on mine, but it was because I had torn bushing. otherwise I wouldn't of bothered.

 

I am on my 3rd 575M and IMO one of the best GT cars ever produced. You will not be disappointed. I prefer the 575 style over other later models that I have had. A timeless classic indeed. I did not realise how much I missed the 575 until after I had sold them. Thankfully I have seen the light and recently purchased another which will remain forever in my small collection.

 

Yes, that’s what many say. So I don’t dare to sell mine... Which the same perception and experience, these cars will slowly be less availible in the market.

 

Well said F456M. Only the enlightened understand what great GT they are. The style is classic and timeless. Low production numbers and a front engine V12. What more could one want?.....Ok a Enzo would be nice lol.

 

I have had my 3-pedal 575 for over 10 years now. I can honestly say its been the most reliable car I've ever owned. While scheduled maintenance is pricey, its not as bad as all the internet fear mongering. If you buy a quality car in good order, you will be rewarded

 

Having owned 12 Ferraris (I think), the 575M was one of the most disappointing F-cars I owned.

Mine was a late model bone stock 2005, equipped with all the upgrades from the factory that Ferrari implemented along the way. It had modular wheels and various options. It did not have Fiorano Handling. I don’t think it needed it.

I had one of the most beautiful examples imaginable - Azurro California over Beige. I sold it after 3 months.

The lack of heat shielding in the footwell was highly irksome. It gets very warm down there. And I mean warm. This I couldn’t understand because my 456M, which is the car off which the Maranello is based and not quite the flagship type car that the Maranello is, exhibited zero problems in this area.

The HVAC system did whatever it wanted. It wasn’t possible to achieve the right temperature. Either freeze to death or warm. Nothing wrong with the cooling potential. Frankly I think something was fishy with the V12 cars and HVAC systems. Not until the 599 was the HVAC system truly modern (functional without issue). The HVAC system also made a very funky noise while operational. View of the road in the Maranello was quite poor.

The ride quality was very good, but the car drove like a big car. The looks were gorgeous.

The 599 has somewhat inferior ride quality (a little harsh over road imperfections) than the 575M; but if you have good roads or aren’t bothered by that, the 599 is a MUCH better car — it handles better than real sports cars, is faster than heck, has a redline of 8200 RPMs, etc — and I would highly recommend stretching to a 599 if a V12 is a must. Also the 599 takes a back seat to very few cars in the looks department. The engine is amazing. Very reliable with virtually no known major issues, and does not require a major service (chain driven engine).

Otherwise, if you would consider a V8 car, an F430 or a California/T would be great first Ferraris. I don’t think the 575M isn’t worth the money, frankly.

I actually thought my 2003 (last model year) 456M GT (manual) was appreciably better made than the 575M in terms of build quality. I had owned my 456M concurrently with the 575M and had about 5.5 years of 456M ownership under my belt at the time. I also thought the 456M handled better and overall offered a much better experience, despite the maintenance. It handled like a small car and had an amazing view of the road.

Don’t laugh - but the California T is eons better than a 575M. Not even the same sport. Regular California honorable mention.

Lastly: anyone who owns an F1 575M better be well versed on how to drive a Ferrari early generation (3rd gen of 9 single clutch Ferrari F1 generations) F1 gearbox. I knew very well how to drive it because F-cars were my thing and I drove the F1 exactly how it needed to be driven: very carefully and like a manual. This aside, the 575M F1 gearbox is kind of cumbersome. The car’s full potential is disturbed by the existence of this transmission. I advise that you receive some instruction on the do’s and don’ts of the F1 gearbox unless this is a moot point and you have experience/ extensive knowledge about how to use. Otherwise, problems and clutch jobs will be waiting for you down the road. And forget about letting anybody drive the thing. A few incorrect uses of reverse can cost you a clutch in no time. You should note the cost of a 575M clutch when I did the clutch job on my car back in 2015 was $3500. Yes. That is just for the clutch assembly itself. That wasn’t a stupid price - that is the price for which it could be bought. That was a Ferrari price. After searching high and low, I was able to find it for $2800. Prices usually go up over time, so definitely check on this.

Sorry to current 575M owners. That was just my experience.

 

Nice writeup. Glad you like your car.

I must disagree with your analysis is of the sticky interior trim pieces.

Ferrari owes me about $40,000 because that’s how much money I spent refinishing sticky interior trim pieces on 12 or so different cars. I was one of the first customers of the major sticky refinishing brand, so I’ve been around that block back and sideways.

The Maranello and the 456M (similar cars in terms of their interior) were the WORST cars for this because there were so many pieces. I did the 575M after purchasing. These cars have way more pieces to refinish than any other F-car. The 575 has just so many pieces that need to be refinished, and removal and replacement was far from easy. My mechanic and I did this together and it took almost a day to take everything off and more than a day to put everything back together.

The vents are a nightmare. Need to line up the grooves when reinstalling. I don’t miss that. The door handles were a nightmare. Note that he knew exactly what he was doing- he was an expert and I was an expert owner who acted as his helper. But these trim pieces need to be handled very carefully, and that takes time. Anyone who says they pop right off and pop right back on isn’t being wholly candid.

Then you’ve got the labor to refinish the things and the associated cost. That takes lots of time, and it should be done by an experienced professional. Figure $4,000-$5,000 to do every single piece, with the labor to remove and replace. I paid $400/day for labor, and that was robbery. Most Ferrari mechanical shops get $160-$200/hour now.

 

Dave- Could not agree less after 10 years with a 2004 FHP F1 575M. Disagree with just about everything you said.

 

If you wish to learn about Sticky Refinishing (and not cleaning which is not even in the same galaxy), take a look through this thread and / or give me a call:

https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/threads/575-sticky-refinishing-laser-etched-graphics.519139/

Remember, we are not the disease, we are the cure

 

Hi Taz, you and I are old V-12 buddies and naturally your contributions here and knowledge are invaluable.

I shared my experience and I wish it was better.

 

A 575 is a reliable and rock solid car . The FHP has great handling and composure on the road. The clutch on these cars will last 80000 kms or more if not abused.
I am sorry that 348SStb had such a poor experience but you can rest assured that he is the exception and not the rule.
Spend some time going through the 575 threads and note the lack of owners with problems.

 

+1
over 60k miles on my F1 clutch; drove gated and F1 before buying. preferred F1 for this car w FHP

 

I have a 02 575m with 10k on it. love the car, yes it has had a few issues nothing bad.
NO regrets