Ferrari 550 Maranello suspension questions

Either this car was clocked and has at least twice or three times the advertised mileage and/or it has not been garaged correctly throughout its life, and/or was left outside for long periods, IMO. At least there is far more corrosion, even if apparently superficial, than what I would expect from a car with such a low mileage. My 0.02€ worth anyway, and perhaps it's just the flash that makes things look worse than they actually are, as is often the case.
I do no think it is possible to tell any play or looseness in suspension components only by looking at photos.

Is the service history coherent with the mileage?

 

Nick, they might not be challenging to replace if that's required, but I can tell you they will be expensive. Shock absorbers with actuators on top and labor about 4K per corner. It's pretty amazing how a car with only "25K miles" might need this type of service. Agree with the above poster, it's tough to tell by looking at the photos. Probably need a qualified mechanic to inspect the car prior to entertaining a purchase so you don't get burned.

 

Another possibility is road salt… looks a bit rough under there. I bet you’d be able to find better out ther with a bit more searching. Good luck - these are wonderful cars!

Ruben

 

She lived in the UK in a really humid environment compared to most of the US. Looks normal to me. The shocks can be rebuilt if necessary. If she does not have any suspension warning lamps, she should be ok. She is 24 years old and looks like she was not a garage queen, which is good.

 

I'm in the UK. We have an annual inspection (MOT) which will show the mileage at each annual inspection date, together with any items that would make the car unsafe to drive.
If you can find the UK numberplate I can let you have the MOT history for the car.

 

Looks like a 20+ year old suspension that's been driven, 25k doesn't seem odd (or bad) to me for the way they look. Especially if it has been subjected to snow, there will be miscellaneous corrosion on components.

As far as suspension, you can either rebuild, or upgrade to adjustable coilovers with either Moton or MSC for significantly less than stock.

 

It could have been declared off road (what's called a Statutory Off Road Notice, or SORN) in the UK during those gap periods. During those times it might have been stored somewhere damp, or not. If you have any details on the service records of past owners, you could contact them to find out.

The problem with road salt is that it gets everywhere, suspension, exhaust, mountings, although I guess the 550 is relatively protected compared to previous 12 cyl models. I would also do a HPI check on its UK reg to see if it has any history of being written off. This is much less thorough than a US Carfax.

I hope it's a bargain, but I always agree with whoever it was who said there's no such thing as a cheap Ferrari.

 

I'm with Taz! That does not look bad at all. It's all just parts. If bones are good that's what you want. You are going to find stuff in any used car. 25 years old just sitting in a museum the bushings will go bad, you need belts changed every 5 years, interior will go sticky. Ferraris are not good cars. They are rolling passion and emotion. I never liked the 550 suspension and I track my car about once a year for some exercise. I'm one of those who went moton double adjustable coilover and custom spring rates. It's about $5k to do that total. I still have all the OEM stuff but have no idea what it would cost to rebuild those oe shocks or get new oe bushings. I cut my own bushings out or delrin. We do delrin and bearings on racecars all the time. Delrin was an easy way to get functional bushings cheap and increase performance. Some could not drive my car too much NHV but I don't even notice it.