just got a 355.. some issues

hi
today i just got a 99 F1 355 GTS

however i'll tell you guys all about it when my head is straight because my mood is kinda fvcked up right now

anyway so first things first .. and making a long story short

1- when i want to open the headlights, only one of them pops up and the second [right one] does not
i know about the rotary things when you pop up the hood that open the headlights so ..
i tried it.. the light comes on and everything .. but it won't close/open with the "switch" .. i'm guessing it's something to do with either some wire that takes care of the rotation..
or there's a plastic that has been broken

any ideas about that? can anyone tell me what to look for in order to make it function again?

also.. on the issue of lighting..

2- can anyone please tell me how to operate the fog lights ? (circular lights at the bottom of the bumper)

oh and ..

3- how about the water for the wipers? i noticed that the wipers are controlled by a lever on the right-hand side of the wheel, is the water controlled from there ?

4- the side-brake [hand brake] .. is it normal that it would still be "On" with the lever being down ?
i'm guessing Yes.. for reasons of comfort getting in/out of the car..
however.. is there a "best method" to engage/disengage the side brake?
ie what is the starting point for the hand brake and so one

i know it may sound all dull to some and that i shouldn't have gotten the car before inspecting all that .. thing is its a loooong story
so please .. bare with me [as am sure there will be more questions/issues i'd really appreciate if you guys could help me with]

thanks in advance, please do reply ASAP

 

First off....take a huge pitcher and pour yourself a tall glass of shut-your-mouth juice. I'll even serve up some nice cheese to go with your whine

In the grand scheme of things, you've got very little to worry about. I came darn close to buying a car that (after doing a last-minute PPI) had a cracked manifold, needed a valve job even though it ran good and probalby needs a 30k service that was never done. In other words...I almost bought into a $12,000+ black hole disaster.

Feel good...your issues are tiny. In time your smile will return.

I can tell you about the hand-brake. You have to push in on the button and firmly lift the lever even higher in order to disengage the brake. It's like a rachet (sp?). The inexperienced can easily/accidently be driving with the e-brake on. Imagine how much faster you'll go now!!!

Congrats on your new purchase, deal with the small stuff & enjoy!

 

Here is the best solution to these problems.
1. Pour yourself a long beer.
2. take out the drivers manual/instuction book
3. read from cover to cover, takes about 40mins as you probably know most of it.
In this book you will learn things like how to use the handbrake, how to top up the water and oil, how to start the car correctly, where the spare tyre is if it has one, what tyre pressures. All sorts of stuff that you need to know. I have just bought a 355 gts and did just this as soon as I had the car home. It helps you to realise that it is not a space shuttle. regards Tony

 

hey thanks guys
whats with the "drinking" comments? hehe

anyway, yeah thanks both.. i feel a lot better now [has it even been an hour?]
i just checked the fog lights thing, i guess they both need replacing [what are the chances]

Frari matter of fact i'm reading the manual RIGHT NOW.. helps a lot yes..
i'm on the instrument section now, i'll get to the engine/gear stuff once i get my head straightened out ..

-so the fog lights seem to be out .. need replacement [i HOPE thats it]
-the washer/wiper thing just needed me to try and READ.. man, i feel stupid

i'll work on the handbrake thing .. and hopefully i can get to the shop today for the headlights!

but please, do keep replying if you have anything to say/tip

 

1.) Probably have a bad motor in the right light - does happen - not a tremendous task to fix. For you or the dealer...

2.) Fog lights - with the lights on (or the parking lights which is one half turn of the light stick on the left side of the steering wheel.) Once you have that on - if you look just in front of the Gear shift - you will see some toggle switchs. The second switch from the left - toggle down for fog lights.

3.) Wipers - Pull wiper stick towards you (or away - I can't remember the last time I used that

4.) As mentioned - Push in Break Release Lift all the way up then back down - then release the button... the light on the dash that says Break (which is red will then be off)

Hope that helps - It is somewhat worth while to look through the owners manual - there is some good nuggets of info in there. I read mine about 1 month after I got my 355 spider... Found some good stuff in there.

Don't hesitate to ask any more questions - I know we all have some about our little F-cars

Rich

 

As far as the headlight issue goes: Try checking the fuse for the right headlight motor. It is located in the boot, left side, under the access cover.

What country are you in? USA and most of the EU cars have a foglight switch next to the suspension switch along the top of the center console. If you do not have a switch, then your foglights have been regulated to "flash to pass" lights. As mentioned above, all of this should be in your manual, but to recap, you can flash the lights using the high beam switch when the headlights are off. With the headlights on, these lights are not used.

Pull the wiper stalk toward you to activate the washer fluid.

The handbrake takes a bit to get used to. Pull up to engage brake. You can then push it back down for easy egress/ingress. To disengage brake: pull up on handle, push in release button and hold as you push the handle back down fully.

Congrats on the car and enjoy it in good health!

Best,
pino

 

thanks for the support you guys, much appreciated

pino
i'm in Kuwait
sadly, i drove the car only ONCE! it was approximately a 15minute drive.. most of which was getting my feet in rythm with my hands for the shifts.. it's my first ferrari and i'm used to porsche's tiptronic.. and i thought tiptronic was good .. goes to show how much i know! [or knew hehe]

richard_wallace
that makes sense, to have the lights actually ON before trying the fog lights thing (i was trying to have them on with the "parking lights" only, because of my incident with the headlight) .. bare with me, am new to the ferrari scene! thanks i'll try that

i really can't stress the need for the manual enough, you guys are right .. it's a MUST

as to the handbrake .. in the manual it says "keep the brake pedal depressed until you move"
so does that mean i should have the gear in Neutral, press on the brake pedal, and try the "pushing the button on the handbrake, lifting it all the way up, and then down, only then let go of the button" .. ?

i KNOW i should just try this out on the car practically rather than making an essay out of it.. but i'm just trying to get experienced ways too, in addition to relying on the manual

 

hello again..
i went to the garage today (here we don't really have 'dealers') and took a look on things..
first up, the headlights
we tried to "hit it" back into working .. but that proved to only work with the C5 hehe.. (we weren't bashing it or anything btw)
then we took a more civilised way of handling the problem, checked the fuse box and all that .. the fuse was a 7.5, replaced it with a 10 .. and it worked!

however, thing is it appears that it was faulty for some time.. so i'm expecting a mishap again .. but at least i got the fuse to, er, difuse the problem

second, fog lights .. oh deary this one was a tricky one
here i was, philosophizing on the electrical misfortune of ferraris and what not.. making a looong story short, it appears to be ONLY for flashing WITHOUT the headlights popped up .. sucks though, i really liked them

this makes me guess that the fog lights come only on the US spec cars .. that would make sense

moving on, the washer .. filled it with water and all that, looked under the car and it leaked.. i honestly CANNOT remember a time when this did not happen to me with every single car!
so i was thinking probably it's a drilled hose or some break in the container..
oh well, what do i care, i'm in Kuwait i'll only need them a few times a year..

the handbrake.. it wasn't a problem, rather just ignorance on my part
i tried what you guys/the manual suggested (pressing the button and not letting go .. etc) and it worked fine ..

all in all, i'm a happy young man today ..
i just hope i can get a magazine that fits (i tried Porsche's .. it fits)
and get the car's registration and my dad's ID and all that ..

AGAIN, i thank you guys .. pics will follow soon..

 

congrats on the car!

cheers

freshyip

 

Mowater -

What Richard said (and others) is correct. Let me add also:

The lights do have a knob that you can turn to manually raise or lower if you ever get in a pinch...I never had to do it, but it's in the owners manual.

The fog lights in US cars will operate when you hit the switch in either parking lamps only (fogs will come one) or regular beam..(off with high beam).

Just FYI - Yes the hand brake so new to some people...Actually it serves two purposes... When it is in the "down" position, it allows you to enter and exit the car without bumping into it (if the handle was in "up" position) and by keeping your finger on the button it can be used as a Fly Away break when entering a corner too fast...never had to use that either - lol.

Most of this is in the Owners Manual...

 

Man...I went throught the same thing with a 355 I bought. Popped a fuse whenever I accelerated, dealer said the whole wiring loom may need replacing, and from an F-chat member found it only needed a piece of electrical tape! But I was freaking.

I would never use wipers/washer fluid to clean your windshield anyway. If there is sand on the blades it can put fine scratches in the glass. If the plastic fluid reservoir is cracked it can be fixed with epoxy.

At some point you have to share your story on the purchase.

 

FL 355
thanks for the clearing up on the fog lights issue, that makes perfect sense
i kinda wished i had them, and am sure there's some way i can hook them up with the parking lights..
but then it'd be so much lighting with the headlamps .. oh well

TUBE GUY
yeah, yesterday proved to me that no matter what the problem is, check it yourself, then take it to someone you know
if all that is to no avail, only THEN refer to the "official ferrari shop" ..

oh and here are a couple of pics, theyre the same on the 6speed.com forum
i'll get better ones as soon as i can
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

WOW....they come in yellow too!!!!

 

SteveR they sure do buddy, they sure do

another question :
if i wanted to back up the car, i should have the car in Neutral..
press on the brake..
lift the R lever, and pull it back .. okay now,
should i KEEP it "pulled back" ? i.e. like with a normal automatic, you pull the R and keep it there, ofcourse..
is it the same here? shall i keep it pulled back, and then when am done, put it back in N, return the lever back to its normal position, and shift up?

or is it like a "touch up" thing ? just lift the lever, pull back and return it in normal position BEFORE i even back up the car?

the reason i ask is because both worked .. and to me, i think pulling the lever and making it stay there seems to be more of a "natural" way to do it ..

 

okay
just came back from a "test drive"

the lever has to be lifted, pulled back until u hear a "click" sound, which will engage the Reverse, it will normally go back to the original position

when it stuck, i was obviously pulling it in a wrong way.

Another thing,
how do you "park" the car?
just casually put it Neutral, pull the side break and check for a second that it's "gripped" ?
what's with the manual saying "don't leave the car in neutral, rather put it in 1st or R" ?

 

Mowater,
It's just like any six speed when you park. If you're comfortable just having the brake hold the car, you can do that. If you want the added security of the transmission holding the car too, pull the brake, let the car drift a bit until it grabs, and place it in gear. The only downside is that you have to wait until the hydraulic F1 pump builds enough pressure to change back into Neutral in order to start the car. (The light for the F1 trans will go out when the pressure is reached.)

One thing to note though, is if you have an F1 malfunction, or even a dead battery, and the car is gear when you last parked it, it will require a special tool (from a dealer) to get the car to engage the clutch so that it may be moved.

One other tip: you can shift directly from 1st to Reverse, or vice-versa, without engaging Neutral.


Now go out there and enjoy the car, dammit!

 

pino
cool thanks i appreciate it !
i guess i'll just park it in Neutral unless i'm on a sharp uneven surface

i'll try the gear thing too just in case.. just so i would know what the car can do and what not

don't worry i'll have an oil change by tomorrow with some routine stuff and then i'll surely enjoy the car like it should be: familiarly and CLEAN