F40 Vacuum Cleaner

I wish I had the same problem.

 

Tim,

All though I do not own a beautiful F40 such as yours. I personally would go with the plexi-glass route. Then when you do want to have some "fun" just take em out. - The trick is how did you want to mount those?

Brandon

 

Little L tabs and some Velcro.

 

Nice.... Sounds like a plan

 

I don't think that plexiglass would be the best route to go with. To avoid this problem on his Enzo, Richard Losee just cut out some screen door material to match the shape of the vent and attached it to prevent rocks and debris from getting through but still allowing air to flow freely.

 

It will probably hold up better than you might think. The Enzo went 30,000 miles and, from personal experience, was driven regularly at hyper-legal speeds. The whole time the screen held up and kept debris out.
Best of luck with what you decide to go with.

 

Take a look in the recesses down by the pop up headlights when the front bonnet is open....all kinds of things gather in there !

 

All supercars with such vents do the same - CGT, MC12, Enzo, etc etc.

Its the noise of those stones clattering around on the sills that I don't like to hear!

 

I have exactly the same problem, but what can also happen is that a small
stone gets stuck under the door when it opens, and scratches the raised
outer part of the running board. I have also thought of covering the vents
for street use, and uncovering them for track days.

 

I sympathise with all the comments so far and understand it is disappointing to see your pride and joy getting chips and other issues as a result of road debris. However I think I have somewhat resolved these issues internally and gotten over this(ok, maybe not entirely but to a large degree...) . I figure I cant go on being anal about these things for ever and have given in to these nuances. We all hear everyone on this board extolling the virtues of driving these cars and not being garage queens... Well the price you pay for having the car driven as it should be are these annoyances. I personally, certainly wouldnt go to the trouble of placing door screen to stop this. I mean where does it all stop then? Do you cocoon the entire car??

 

Agreed, the dirt and junk picked up are a nuisance. I think your idea of closing these openings for street use is definitely a good one. At the beginning I wondered where all that dirt, stones, etc was coming from. I soon realized it is inherent to the design. Thanks for the suggestions.

 

Dear Comrade Coachi,

I'm with you on this and think it's an excellent idea from TimF40 to block off the vents - the accumulation of debris is a damned nuisance. So, many thanks to TimF40 for prompting me to try something that I had not previously considered.

With kind rgeard,

512 Tea Are

 

I have used clear 3" tape on the wheelwell side with success. After the drive, pop the bonnet, remove----and voila---it's as if it were never there. Avoids the add-on look of something more permanent like screen or plexi-the latter of which was my 1st thought to solve this problem. However the item looked to obvious as an add-on IMO as it caught reflections from the car an sunlight itself.

 

Removal should not be an issue, I had the 3M kit removed from a car of mine a few years back. The heat gun they used wasn't much hotter then a hair dryer. In most cases, there is no reason to remove the film anyway.

 

Can't make a blanket statement like that

-paint is thin on the F40
-carbon fiber will have different characteristics than steel or alum using a heat gun
-accidents happen
-the film can "shrink" a bit & edges lift over time, film can fog or yellow and although less noticable than directly on the paint-the film can be marked with road haz
-let us not forget those wishing to have Classische Cert
-if ever sold, new owner may not want it on the car

I'd be interested in anyone's response that has experience with film removal on an F40

Perhaps Mr Sackey can enlighten us with his experience

 

Exactly. Simple & effective.

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

I had my F40 mega 3M'd when I shipped it to Macau to drive on the Macau Grand Prix circuit. I removed the 3M later when I shipped my car to Shanghai for the launch of the 599. Absolutely no problems. My car has original perfect paint and I did not want to get road rash on the track and on a few blasts around Macau. I don't care about the F40 vacuum cleaner. Had same problem with my CGT. No big deal. I will not even consider plexiglass covers. Too hairdresser for words IMO

 

Unfortunately for me, I have not yet discovered the delights of 3M, and nary a body-panel on any of a handful of cars that claim my ownership have been graced by the much-discussed material. Accordingly it would be improper for me to impart advice about 3M. I have nothing against it. It simply isnt something that I have felt was needed, even though my cars are well-driven. I suppose it was always one more thing to hassle with and Ive accordingly done without.

However, as a result of being involved with numerous restorations, I know enough to know that the paint on a USA F40 is VERY THIN in many places (unless the car has been repainted) so proceed with caution...

Oh by the way, I can ALWAYS tell a car that has been 3M'd immediately upon inspection. Not that thats a bad thing, but some have suggested that the 3M is invisible as one of the benefits - it isnt.

Joe
www.joesackey.com

 

on the other hand, I have 3M on my 360 spider and my F40, and i rarely notice it. It does provide peace of mind. If you know of an F40 or F50 with 3M that is not C. certified that someone wants to dump due to its "undesirability" (perhaps the air in the tires is not from maranello ) please let me know. I think it is hilarious as to how sanctified each part of a car has become !!!

 

Yes your car looked gorgeous.

Aahh, The Fab 7....

Joe
www.joesackey.com