How To: Scuderia Carbonio Challenge (Extended) Paddles

This is sort of a review/how to install. This is on my 430 Scuderia. Other models may vary. All disclaimers apply. You get what you paid for

Background discussion: Why extended "challenge" paddles?

Well some cars have steering wheel-mounted paddles. Some have column-mounted paddles. They both have advantages/disadvantages. IMHO, the advantage of steering wheel-mounted paddles is you can easily shift mid-turn in most scenarios. The disadvantage is when you are all hand-over-hand swapped around, you have no idea which paddle is which. In contrast, column mounted paddles are always in the same place. You never "lose" them. Unfortunately, anything more than a slight turn of the wheel, and you can't reach them. YMMV. I, personally, wanted longer/extended paddles because I found myself often having to lift off/slide up/down the steering wheel to shift.

The common mod is to use "Challenge" car versions of the paddles. Not surprising, some aftermarket companies copy this idea and sell them. I had read good things about the quality of Carbonio, so I went with theirs. Link: http://www.carbonio.com/performance/brand/ferrari/430challenge.html They were very pleasant and friendly to deal with. I also got their CF license plate frame, which is also very appropriate for my Scud

First pic is of the stock carbon fiber shift paddle on my Scud. I am not sure, but I think the size is similar to a regular 430, but the regular 430 is aluminum. This will be useful for perspective in upcoming pictures.
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The paddles are held on by 2 allen head screws each. To access them, you need to get the plastic shroud around the steering wheel out of the way. You only need to remove the bottom half. Then, the top half will be flopping around and you can hold it out of the way or prop it up with a towel or something to access the screws which will become apparent in a moment.

To remove the bottom half, there are (I believe) 3 very visible Phillips screws, but also 2 less obvious down inside deep holes. Once the screws are all removed, the two halves unsnap with some gentle prying with your hands.

Following is the bottom view of the steering column shroud showing screw locations. Bottom of the pic is towards the firewall.
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Here is the money shot This is how the paddles are held on. It's really just two tiny, seemingly weak, screws. This is the left paddle bottom screw. The top one is under the plastic shroud (which is not held/propped up).

NOTE that the steering wheel is turned so the top is towards the left, probably about 8 o'clock. The lower screw has a fair amount of clearance, but the upper screw is just barely accessible when turning the steering wheel. I used a ball-head allen/hex key for most of the work so I would not put any wear marks on the steering wheel hub. If not, you might want to use a towel or blue tape or something.
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For those of us who are technical/anal, here is the weight of both stock CF paddles. 3.6 oz.
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And here is the weight of the Carbonio paddles: 6.3 oz. So, for you Scud owners, this mod costs you 2.7 oz.

Also, pay particular attention to the hole displayed in the upper right of this photo, which is actually the left/down shift paddle.

I guess this is a good time to digress and talk about the quality. Overall, I would give these an A-. The factory ones are A. Not A+, but A. So, what's the difference/faults?

There are a few. The first is the holes were not really finished worth a darn. On a couple, there was some uneven globs in the taper. One hole was very tight. The other three were just too small period. I had to drill out the holes and clean up the tapers with a countersink. I should not have to do this on something that costs nearly a grand. I didn't deduct too much because it only took me a few minutes, but it would have taken Carbonio less time.

Next, the finish had the tiniest of imperfections which were not present in the factory parts. In all honesty, now that they are installed, I don't see them and don't notice. Also, the finish of the edges is not as nice as OEM where the resin is comparatively thick. Finally, the color is not a 100% match to stock. Note that unless you looked carefully and held them up side-by-side, you would not notice. But, it is worth noting they are close, but not as perfect as the factory parts. I would still fully recommend them.
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For comparison, here is the right/up shift paddle next to the Carbonio. You can see how MUCH LONGER the Challenge paddles are.

The holes on the OEM are no prize either, but they fit much better. If you've cleaned up the holes, the screws will seat fairly decently and tighten down. I put the screws "good and tight" which is a really scientific term which comes from working on cars for 30 years and learning when things strip/break
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Finally, here is the left shift paddle installed. Just repeat for the other side, and button everything back up.

In operation, here is what I found:

I LOVE them!!! The action at the very bottom of the paddles is perfect. In comparison, the tops of the paddles are a bit too long IMO. The reason is that if you grab the top inch, you are really working the mechanical switch at an angle where you are pulling it down top to bottom rather than in left to right. It can be operated this last inch, but I feel you really have to concentrate as the action is not natural. Generally, I just avoid using the top inch.

Also, compared to the stock paddles, your control stalks will be blocked. It, however, only took me a few miles to get used to this. In fact, I prefer it now. Before, instead of groveling for the turn signal which is set back fairly far away from the steering wheel, you just let your fingertips ride along the backside of the paddles, and you find them easier. Just different, but I like it better.

IMO, and in summary, this is a must-have mod if you do any serious (non-touring type) of driving. My comments are more of a heads-up. I actually put these in a couple months ago (and still LOVE them), but I am behind in a lot of things including my mod posts, so cut me some slack! Hope you found my install/post useful.
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