Every day tips for living with a 599

So today has been a mad rush to get ready and fly back to work.

I asked a local mobile valet service to wash and clean the car while I did other jobs. Lee did a fantastic job, used bilthamber products which are my preference and used the leather care products I'd purchased 6 months ago but never had the chance to use.
Lee paid extra attention to the wheels, arches and underbody to get as much slat and grit off the car as possible.

www.hancoxvehiclecare.co.uk.



The donkey is ready for a stint in the stables



The leather had a nice feel after, not greasy at all but definitely easier to slide on the seat so I'll need to look at options to stop me moving around on trackdays



I also renewed the insurance. Took some time as I had some concerns basically because the underwriter has reduced the mileage to 7000 with no option to increase during the year. As I have a Norway trip planned for the summer and Nurburgring again in going to have to watch the milage very carefully.

I also spoke with Mark at MDL Specialist Cars and we have a major service including gearbox deferential and clutch inspection planned for when I'm back in mid March

Also MDL are going to get the brakes serviced and the disks weighed.



There's clearly pitting on the surface of the disk but it is otherwise smooth. I've been doing a little research and the general advice is that until the pads a wearing excessively quickly the disks are okay and the only way to confirm if the disks are still good is to weight them.

I have some replacement options for when the time comes.

I would really hope that this thread doesn't put anyone off buying a 599. I'd still recommend / want an F12 over the 599. I think that the F12 is a generation ahead of the 599.

But the 599 is still an awesome car! Available for half the price of an F12. And most of all I love to drive it, feels special every time I get in, plus when I see an F12 I don't regret buying the 599.

I look at the current design trend of Ferrari and I see a return to curvaceous cars, less obviously aero dominated. I see hints of the 599 in these cars, particularly in the Roma.

No doubt it's cost some to run it and keep it in tip top shape and going to cost a good bit more.

But when I consider the milage, the trackdays etc I think it's been pretty good. Not Toyota reliability of course but better than some of my friends who have newer super / sports cars and done only a 10th of the milage.

I'll be in Genève again this summer so would be happy to catch up and have a photo of the cars together.

As for your manettino failure I'd get the fault codes read. When I had this happen the MAF sensors had been damaged and failed.

A quick check of the air filters and intake pipes for any traces of oil will help to let you know if you have the same problem.

Or it's a sensor failure of some kind.

Or it's the battery

Or something else

Happy New Year and have great time in your 599

All I saw there was Cake confessing he wants an F12

Definitely looking forward to meeting up in the summer, there's some Swiss mountain passes I'd like to drive.

The 599 is 6.0 ltr, 600 bhp, RWD awesomeness

That would be brilliant

Beautiful car and love the interior colour. I think they draw the right kind of attention

They are very quick cars and do handle very well for such big cars. Full exhaust system is a long term plan for mine, I'm thinking of 6-1 system but it's expensive https://www.fiammenghiitalia.com/en/product-catego...

It's in the long term plan, suspension and clutch or maybe brakes first depends on what happens at the next service

Try disconnecting the battery for 10 mins.
Worth a try.

The 599 is out of the garage and straight to MDL specialist cars for some pre trackday spannering. On top of a low loader is never a great look but there is a story


Bit of a merry-go-round with cars as I am still at work and unable to sort a couple of things. The Caterham is in bits while tracing an ongoing vibration issue. I was supposed to go to Spa in this car but...... Never mind. The daily is SORN. So that left the 599, the local police recovery vehicle and my next door neighbour. Many thanks to Chris and Kev for looking after me, the car and delivering it to MDL.

I knew that the 599 needed lots of attention. I have an A4 sized list (in a small font) of things I want looked at / changed / painted etc but with a short time window to Spa I am just getting the major items done. Hence the trip to MDL on the low loader.

First, fluids. I am getting almost all changed. Not just the engine oil and filter,
1. Brake fluid (replaced with Castrol SRF) supposed to be change every 2 years (not on any of the service records)
2. F1 system flushed, this is a 3 yearly service item but I have not seen it done on any of the service records. Interestingly there is a note that this should be done more frequently if under more demanding conditions and this includes city driving
3. Gearbox and diff oil this is a 3 yearly service item. Note that this was done last year but gearbox and diff are going to get inspected and tolerances measured
Hydraulic steering fluid is also a 3 yearly service item but was also done several times last year

Brakes
I am fitting new pads all around. I really liked the endless MX72 pads but didn't like the amount of brake dust. So after a few minutes of google search I had decided on Pagid RSC2 pads. I called the importer and they said RSC1 and put me onto Johnathan at Performance Braking 01600 713117 who convinced me to go with RSC1. Their concern was that the additional friction coefficient of the RSC2 pad could cause a brake imbalance when trail braking under corner entry and may cause the car to try to swap ends.


The Endless pads are certainly not endless as they are looking very worn. The condition of the disks is possibly a factor as they are no longer shiny smooth (a longer term replacement plan that may have just gone up the schedule)

The front callipers also had sticky pistons, particularly on the right front so they are off to get serviced, new stainless steel pistons and seals as the chrome on the OEM ones are no longer shiny smooth.

Suspension


Some new shiny bits for the suspension. All drop links are getting replaced along with the front lower ball joints. I am replacing the springs with GTO spec springs. These are I believe variable rate unlike the standard GTB.

Wheels
The challenge wheels are going to get refurbished and F12 wheels going on along with new cup 2 connect rubber.

Clutch
So I had previously noted that the clutch was not always smooth. Another MDL customer had his 599 in at the same time as mine and MDL took some data off his car and compared it to mine. My clutch is definitely showing more wear in spite of what the SD3 diagnostic says. So that is getting replaced too. This is going to go hand in hand with the gearbox and diff inspection in case the jerky operation is not just clutch related.

Hi DeejRC,

I hope that you are well and family also. Financial news is very poor at the moment. SVB going to the regulators and potentially Credit Swiss also. Hence my continued investment in the donkey. At least I'm not flogging a dead horse

I am sure that your expenditure can be seen as an investment with added value and potential long term return. The return on my investment cannot be justified financially no matter how much I manipulate the man maths.

But what the spreadsheet cannot show is the emotion and I am never selling it.