Ferrari's are great, BUT the horn buttons suck!

I remember when I drove the 458, I accidentally hit the horn several times because of the placement of the buttons. I agree...the horn should be in the center of the wheel just like 99% of the other cars.

-Gil

 

i can think of other things that suck than the horn on my 458s. i actually prefer the button there more than the hub.
while ur at it, why dont u complain about the signal buttons, wiper speeds, high ride height, tires that wear out in couple thousand miles in fast driving, emptys a tank of gas in 100 miles, high heels that scuff up ur side sills, warning lights galore when u dont drive it for a while, cant start sometimes when it sits, etc.............

i still love mine, its a ferrari, not a car.
the 458 is already million times more lexus like than a testarossa. i feel lucky i have one in this era.

 

You need to drive more and get more used to it. This is like the people that complain about the blinkers... which are incredible.

 

I guess we all experience our cars differently. At first I found the steering wheel blinker switches difficult until , like the horn (which I never press by accident) is designed as though driving a racing car where hands do not leave the wheel. I do not "press" thumbs on a wheel when in the 3-9 position (standard racing hold). As I have driven my car more, I actually find I have more trouble with the right hand screen options than anything else. For example, I "once" saw a different speedometer than I usually see and cannot find it again. I have yet to figure out how to access stored satellite channels (it seems every time I go there I have different channels) and figuring out how to turn off media and simply turn on navagation, when I no longer want to listen to music and want quiet time , is truly challenging for me. Driving the car seems the easiest thing to do and enjoy. Best

 

The horn positioning is really annoying (talking 'bout the 430, though same thing of course). The number of times I've accidentally hit the horn when parking or unparking - and, of course, in a Ferrari it always looks like some dick is announcing his arrival or departure!

 

Agree, almost had a few accident,i kept hitting the middle part of the steering wheel! it's a no brainer Ferrari, and it's a standard with all cars!

 

After too many years of driving the automatic reaction built into my brain is for my hand to go to the centre of the wheel. As I said, this is totally dialled into my brain. Maybe if I drove an F car and nothing else for the next thirty years the initial auto response would have been overridden. In short, hate it and wish it would go back to the middle which has no downside.

 

So, I'm at the Ferrari Experience driving the 458 and we have a braking exercise which involves going 100-120mph and standing on the brakes to invoke full ABS and bring it to a stop. As I take my fastest run I hit the brakes and experience the most rapid deceleration of my life...this naturally causes me to brace myself...and my thumbs are in precisely the right position to, you guessed it, put pressure on the horn buttons and honk my way through the entire braking zone. This to the delight of everyone watching, and after 2 years experience driving a California with exactly the same horn buttons. Move the horn already!

 

I, too, dislike the horn-button positions on the F430 and 458. I have an F430 Spider and, in additon to not being accustomed to the button placement, I find it difficult to modulate the horn sound due to the location of the buttons. I would think that, with all the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, and the standardized automatic transmission gear selection placement, there would be a requirement for a standardized horn-button location. It's something that you can learn to live with, but you really shouldn't have to in a Ferrari. Fred

 

Agreed, the horn location not practical.

 

the 3 and 9 horn positions are also on the 360. Sometimes awkward to say the least.
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you can actually see the little horn icon in this pic.
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Heh heh heh.... Word Brother.... All true!!

 

I have no issues with the current location.

 

This is why I prefere a custom steering wheel, like Nardi. But I can't find one for this car of course.

Just unhook the horn buttons - who needs em?