My (for now) hurting 575M Maranello F1

Good afternoon gentlemen,

As suggested by Fabio over the 575 Technical thread, here's a small presentation of my 575M Maranello F1 I've acquired last January. My apologies for not presenting the car to the community earlier (I've done so over the Portuguese section of our forum but forgot to do the same here). This is my very first V12 italian car. I own both a Mondial 3.2 Cabriolet from 1988 and a 355 F1 GTS from 1998 and I've been in love with both of them ever since I visited them for a PPI, but everyone kept telling me a V12 is a whole different ball game and I couldn't resist the charm. Unlike my two other Ferraris, this one has history. I prefer to share it with you and learn from you, than keeping this from everyone. It's pointless to pretend an accident didn't happen. As most things in life, it's not what happens to you: it's how you react.

- ZFFBT55B000128462
- Received German plates in May 2002.
- Received Portuguese plates in 2004.
- 35.400km.
- Matching numbers.
- 3 sets of keys, owners manual, service book and history and every accessory except car cover and tool kit.
- Suffered an accident in Portugal last year (frame unaffected, took most of the car's right hand side, no airbags deployed).
- One of 11 575s in Portugal at the moment.

Not easy finding a 575 in such a small country as Portugal. I really wanted a 575 and I know I could probably have waited for a fully sorted car to come around, import one or go with a 456 or a 550, but I really wanted to get involved in a project of this nature. My only concern was if the frame had been affected by the accident. Once my Ferrari specialist assured and showed me it wasn't, I decided to pull the trigger. I know that if I bought it cheap, once day I'll also have to sell it considerably cheaper. I'm not all that concerned once I'm with my Ferraris for the long run. I don't plan to sell, ever.

First and foremost, my biggest concern is safety and originality. Therefore, I'm only buying original parts from Eurospares and Ferrari Lisbon. Once originality is also an issue for me, I'll be reverting the car back to Rosso Corsa (someone along the way painted it Nero) and I'll order a complete tool kit and car cover.

Here goes the first order placed with Eurospares:

- 168388 R.H. LOWER LEVER
- 175800 R.H. UPPER LEVER
- 184626 COMPLETE R.H. STEERING KNUCKLE
- 183257 AXLE SHAFT
- 182989 FRONT SHOCK ABSORBER
- 154396 LOWER BALL JOINT
- 132776 UPPER BALL JOINT
- 182991 REAR SHOCK ABSORBER
- 183315 COMPLETE R.H. REAR HUB HOLDER
- 191982 REAR BRAKE DISC
- 188736 UPPER LEVER
- 183956 R.H. LOWER LEVER
- 144747 SCREW
- 190282 COMPLETE SPACER
- 168445 SCREW

And with Superformance:

- V1207005 TIE ROD ASSEMBLY

Also some photos of its current state:













Kindest regards and thank you all for your support, namely Fabio and Terry. I will keep you posted and updating the status of my beloved 575M as time goes by.

Nuno.

 

Photos of my car before the accident:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/portugal/470438-pesquisas-fraudes-e-aquisi%E7%E3o-final-conclu%EDda.html

(Portuguese only, my apologies).

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Hi Juan,

Both wheels on the right hand side were cracked and thrown away. Same thing with brake discs.

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Thank you all very much for your kind words of encouragement! It really means a lot to me.

I'm also anxious to have her running again. I know this isn't an easy project, but the first time I visited what would be my 575, it was like seeing an abandoned puppy. One could easily walk away and pretend you didn't see him or stop, take care of him and give him a second chance in life. I was told the car hit a kerb and a small wall on the right hand side only, with wheels, shock absorbers, panels and bumpers taking the vast majority of the energy generated by the impact. It was very lucky not to affect the structure nor anything more than wear and tear parts.

After these parts I've mentioned before are installed, I'll then turn to body parts. I'm keeping an eye for single wheels+tyres on ebay. I was told 19'' wheels would also require a brake upgrade, but haven't so far confirmed this information. I'll also order new bumpers (front and rear), new side panels (left and right - the ones prepared to receive the scudetti) and 250 GT grille directly from Ferrari Lisbon. After the first mechanical and bodywork parts are installed, I'll turn my attention to the engine, servicing it thoroughly and see if it needs any parts (not accident related - but last service occured 12 months ago and the car has switched owners, so I think a major service would be pertinent).

Kindest regards and thank you once again,

Nuno.

 

Small update:

Parts arriving from Eurospares and repairs underway! Still a long way to go but it's nice to finally see it take shape.





Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Thank you kindly Jürgen, Lee and Darius!

I can't wait to drive it and share my first impressions, although I'm aware I'm still months away from being able to do so.

To my amazement, the car upon being advertised here in Portugal, drew a lot of attention due to its low asking price (low not in the sense of "it's too good to be true", but adequate to a car that had been involved in an accident of this nature, as opposed to a pristine car). Most people didn't perform a thorough PPI and assumed repairs + the car's price would end up being equal to buying an accident free car, which isn't true because the frame was unaffected. Nevertheless I can relate to that, as a hurt Ferrari is a daunting image, namely when you see it live, in front of you. Past that first impression and putting the car on a lift, I realised I was looking at wheels, shock absorbers, fenders, that sort of thing. Once that was established, I pulled the trigger on the spot. Even though I haven't driven it yet, it completely wins me over by just looking at it. Afterall, it's my first V12!

I have to report I already backtracked on one point: Being an originality freak, I wanted to revert the car back to its original color (left the factory in 2002 rosso corsa). However, I was informed that to do so, a lot of the car has to be dissassembled (doors, rubbers, windows, etc) and that the risk of breaking a window glass increases exponentially, not to mention sand the car to the bone, risking losing a lot of protection the bodywork received against corrosion. Therefore, I'll repaint it the color it is now (nero).

I will keep you posted and I'd like to thank you all again for your kind words regarding my 575!

Kindest regards,

Nuno.