My Ferrari F430 Spider F1 Ownership Diary

Discussion in 'Others' started by The CO, Mar 2, 2021.

  1. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    Never straightforward, is it? Car threw an EML today after a spirited blat so cleared it by disconnecting the battery, car was running fine so wasn't wildly bothered (I had to mix E5 and E10 the other day so thought it might be something to do with that). Out for a check run and the light stayed off but then I noticed an odd rattle from the back.

    Had a look and one of the cats had come loose and was flapping around, one of the ones that Dick Lovett Ferrari had sourced from the US when they changed the headers. When it had cooled down there was no way I could get in back in as you have to rotate the whole unit to screw it in and there needed stuff to be removed, etc. I then noticed that the first two threads had been stripped so it was only a matter of time before it came loose. Tossers. Sent an arsey email tonight, they can come and collect it and bloody fix it. I was supposed to be out tomorrow with the Ferrari Owners' Club National Drive It Day as well.

    Grumpy!

    B99CB332-78EF-457D-9BBA-4BB626949B54_1_201_a.jpeg C23B2535-1689-4D52-8429-61D7BF2D65FE.jpeg 47540F08-EC98-41B3-8CFF-905168690666.jpeg
     
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  2. Wynne71
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    Wynne71 WARLORD Site Supporter

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    Oh. That’s a buggar.

    Poor quality components or shoddy workmanship fitting?
     
  3. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    Definitely the latter. Morons.
     
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  4. Wynne71
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    Wynne71 WARLORD Site Supporter

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    Good job their hourly rate isn’t expensive then…..oh….hang on….

    You have every right to be furious. Supposedly highly trained technicians. I hope they make this up to you.
     
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  5. a.s.uk
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    a.s.uk WARLORD

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    Same as many other garage technicians….
    Sh1te…….
    But in this case ( Ferraris), your supposed to have so much money that you don’t really care about missing the odd drive or 3 or 4…. Etc etc…. I presume
    And to add to that …. They definitely don’t expect you to get under the car yourself and identify the exact cause of their failure …… my god… what are you thinking man…

    Good luck…
    Expensive hobby eh…?


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  6. snrbrtsn
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    snrbrtsn WARLORD Site Supporter

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    Oh me!
    That is poor workmanship!
    Think I’d be passing the keyboard to the misses as I’d likely break a finger typing the snottogram
     
  7. edthefed
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    edthefed WARLORD

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    I hope they do the right thing by you and do not try to dodge their responsibilities as some dealers do.

    Just goes to show there can be "spanner monkeys" anywhere irrespective of car brand.

    Good luck getting it sorted
     
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  8. Adie
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    Adie WARLORD Site Supporter

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    Jeez that's appalling... and i dread to think what their labour rates are
     
  9. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    Yep, just goes to show doesn’t it?
     
  10. slim_boy_fat
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    slim_boy_fat WARLORD Site Supporter RIP

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    Must take the edge off the ownership experience a bit, not at all what you'd expect.:mad:

    Have they offered a courtesy vehicle, and if so, what? Any other kind of recompense in sight? Free servicing etc??
     
  11. zarnd
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    zarnd

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    Hopefully they act accordingly and fix as a matter of urgency so you can carry on enjoying the car now the weather is better


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  12. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    Only happened late yesterday so need to speak to them tomorrow. As long as they collect it free of charge and fix it, then that's all I need. Just annoyed that I missed the drive out this morning. :-(:-(
     
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  13. rigeng
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    rigeng

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    I clicked on to this thread expecting to read a 'good news' story. Now I can't believe what I've just read about the shoddy workmanship. Hope Dick Lovett's do the right thing and get it fixed.....sharpish!
     
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  14. Highsided
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    Highsided

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    I was somewhat curious as what the item does, and also how on earth it could have detached itself. A little research took me to:

    https://www.fabspeed.com/fabspeed-universal-90-degree-o2-spacers-with-catalytic-converters-pair/

    The first thing of note, it's for off-road only, obviously so given it defeats emissions regulations. Not that I'd expect it to be spotted during a MOT, but that's what it does.

    From the photographs you've provided, and from your comments, its looks impossible for the sensor's spacer to have unscrewed itself if it was assembled correctly, ie if all of the available threads were screwed in. I'm guessing that for whatever reason, the mechanic has only used a couple of threads, which was incapable of withstanding the load of the locking nut, exhaust pressure, and the various vibrations from engine and chassis.

    I'm not convinced as to needing to remove parts in order to fit a new spacer. Clearly the spacer could be mounted first, then the catalytic converter screwed into the spacer. The only difficulty may be in screwing the sensor into the cat. Whatever, it still needs a new spacer, and a mechanic that knows what they are doing.

    I wouldn't let that firm near my vehicle.

    Beautiful car by the way - but you already knew that.
     
  15. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    Small update. Very apologetic dealership on the phone this morning who immediately offered to collect it and fix it although he initially said it would take a couple of weeks to pick it up. After a bit more discussion they picked it up this afternoon:

    DE70F80A-9D4F-462E-9A61-55AD79BCDBF1.jpeg
     
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  16. zarnd
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    zarnd

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    At the moment there is not a lot else they can do. If it were me, I would wait and see when they call you next and see what they say.

    Happens to me at work where something goes wrong. Apologising is one thing, sorting it out correctly is another!


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  17. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    There shouldn't be any reason why it won't be a straightforward fix, even if they have to get a replacement sensor from the US. The threads on the main cat look fine, it just needs a non-hamfisted mechanic to fit it.

    There's a very good explanation here about how the system works in terms of pre-cats, sensors and so on, definitely worth a five minute read (the sensor in blue is the one I had changed). The reason why I had the manifolds changed to ones without pre-cats was preventative, there had been cases where the pre-cats started to disintegrate and were ingested causing terminal engine damage. Although relatively rare, it does happen hence why many owners do what I did.
     
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  18. Wynne71
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    Wynne71 WARLORD Site Supporter

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    Mk3 MR2 owners do the same thing, the 1.8 VVT engines are renowned for ingesting the ceramic components of the pre-cats. From experience, SIL bought a few back in the mid 2010s, these are relatively cheap and easy to do, if you don’t mind taking the manifold off.
    Fingers crossed the car is back to you asap and all sorted.
     
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  19. The CO
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    The CO Staff Member Admin

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    Quick update, all fixed. There was also an alignment issue so they’ve done that as well for free. Car being delivered back to storage tomorrow. Actually pretty slick really with no fuss whatsoever.
     
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  20. zarnd
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    zarnd

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    Can’t ask for more than that really. Problem fixed in a decent time frame and at no cost to you and delivered back? Happy days. You can start enjoying it now.

    Cheers


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