430 - F430 F1 Fluid. Change or No Change? | FerrariChat

430 F430 F1 Fluid. Change or No Change?

Discussion in '360/430' started by Eric C, Dec 20, 2019.

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

  1. Eric C

    Eric C F1 Veteran
    Rossa Subscribed

    Mar 20, 2009
    8,960
    St. Louis, MO
    Full Name:
    Eric
    What's the story here. I've heard both sides regarding a F1 Fluid Change. I brought mine in to have this done last year and they recommended against it.

    I'd like to hear from legit hands on Ferrari experts here. No arm chair quarterbacking here please.
     
  2. 24000rpm

    24000rpm F1 Rookie

    I wouldn't consider myself an expert, but I've been draining f1 fluids and fill it and bleed it for various purposes for literally dozens of times ( more than 40 i'd say).

    Changing out most of the fluid isn't a difficult job, I'd say with right tools, it took 1 hour.

    Those against it either

    1. see you recently changed it ( like 2-3 years maybe) or
    2. they don't have the tools, or
    3. they don't want to mess things up



     
  3. KC360 FL

    KC360 FL Formula 3

    Jun 20, 2017
    1,677
    Melbourne Florida
    Full Name:
    KGC
    Had all the fluids done when I got my car two years ago including the F1 fluid by my trusted inde shop. 2 years and 4000 miles later no issues.
    All fluids included the coolant too.

    Hand it off to professionals. All fluids reach an exhaustion of viable life and usefulness IMO.

    Curious as to who you brought your 430 to that said they recommended against it? And why?
     
  4. RedTaxi

    RedTaxi F1 Rookie
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 1, 2012
    3,253
    New Zealand
    Full Name:
    Glen
    Owners manual doesn't mention changing it. Later models with the F1 say every 3 years. So 3 years it is. if you never change it, there WILL be trouble.
     
  5. tazandjan

    tazandjan Three Time F1 World Champ
    Lifetime Rossa Owner

    Jul 19, 2008
    37,984
    Clarksville, Tennessee
    Full Name:
    Terry H Phillips
    See if this helps convince you. I would not take my F1 Ferrari to a tech who recommends not changing the F1 oil. That is really horrible advice.



    Image Unavailable, Please Login
     
  6. ttforcefed

    ttforcefed F1 World Champ
    Rossa Subscribed

    Aug 22, 2002
    18,757
    what is the argument AGAINST changing it? that seems completely idiotic to me. all materials deteriorate over time.
     
    KC360 FL and Eric C like this.
  7. APA#1

    APA#1 Formula 3

    Nov 5, 2003
    1,311
    Central Florida
    Money and costs aside, the chart also says you should replace your air filters every year. Now on a normal car that drives 15K per year that seems reasonable, however on a car that might be driven less than 1000 miles per year that seems silly.

    Do you still do it? Even if they are perfect when inspecting them?

    Would you do it on your ford or chevy given the same scenario?

    Would it be conceivable the factory wants you to visit a dealer to milk more money from your pockets?
     
    Extreme1 and Atlantic like this.
  8. 24000rpm

    24000rpm F1 Rookie

    im cheap. here's what did.

    I don't change my air filter if they are not oily or extremely dirty. even if they are dirty , i'd just clean it. Only when its no longer cleanable or difficult to clean, i'll change it.

    I do not change my engine oil yearly. I go by 5000km or sometimes 7000km. Same on gearbox oil , but i'd go 8000km or even 12000km on gearbox oil. But I do routinely inspect the gearbox oil by looking at the dipstick.

    i change my coolant every two years regardless of mileage. I change my f1 oil every 3-4 years maybe, regardless of mileage. I never changed my power steering oil, untill something else demands the removal or easy access of the power steering lines, so that was kinda forced or convenient.
    i change my brake fluid every 2-3 years( no tracking time, of couse).

    I never changed my pollen filter!!!! I just clean it.

    I never had any issue, yet. maybe some issues I already had are related to my cheapness but I never know.





     
    Extreme1, Gumart1 and flash32 like this.
  9. Doctor Mark

    Doctor Mark Formula Junior

    Dec 15, 2005
    870
    Georgia
    Full Name:
    Mark Gronsbell
    To those forgoing maintenance several phrases comes to mind: "penny wish and pound foolish" and "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
    I have owned Ferraris since 1974. My experience is that you want to do anything within reason to prevent failure as the costs of repair are absurd. If I "waste" money on extra fluid changes, I can handle that better than a repair due to lack of proper maintenance.
     
    RANDY6005 and KC360 FL like this.
  10. 24000rpm

    24000rpm F1 Rookie

    I think different owners have different views of ownership.

    Most people are about driving the car/having fun and hope the car never had an issue. I am not on that camp.
    To me ( curiosity kills the cat), problems excite me and failures entertain me. So I am not afraid of failures, even if it is caused by my unprofessionalism. I learn a lot from them.

    To put that kinda view it into perspective. I have a poster on the wall , it depicts an amateur mechanic(weekend warrior) working on a car, and the caption: " WE DO IT RIGHT THE THIRD TIME!"
     
    Skidkid likes this.
  11. Skidkid

    Skidkid F1 Veteran
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    Aug 25, 2005
    8,682
    Campbell, CA
    Full Name:
    John Zornes
    24000, your change schedule isn't crazy. You drive a lot and fix stuff, I read your posts often. In my opinion, your service schedule should keep the car in good shape. I wouldn't go any longer than that but I think it looks fine for most drivers. Of course doing it annually is a good rule of thumb for most since it gets put off for 6 months and ends up being 1.5-2 years some of the time anyway.
     
    24000rpm likes this.
  12. Eric C

    Eric C F1 Veteran
    Rossa Subscribed

    Mar 20, 2009
    8,960
    St. Louis, MO
    Full Name:
    Eric
    I didn't agree or believe it, so that's why I'm asking. Thanks guys.
     
  13. gsholz

    gsholz Formula Junior
    Silver Subscribed

    Jan 21, 2006
    319
    Oregon
    Full Name:
    Jerry
    The only concern I'd have with changing the F1 oil is contamination. Since there is no filter in the F1 system, any smidgen of dirt would likely cause lots of trouble down the road. Some techs will be sensitive to this, others not so much.
     
  14. Motob

    Motob Formula 3
    Professional Ferrari Technician

    Nov 11, 2003
    2,238
    Frederick, Maryland
    Full Name:
    Brian Brown
    The F1 oil is cheap, the F1 components are expensive. I recommend changing the oil by mileage (every 15K), it doesn't really go bad with time..The filter for the F1 system is incorporated into the reservoir, and should be replaced with the F1 oil change. You must replace the reservoir in order to change it.

    If you clean the outside of the reservoir and cap before changing it, fluid contamination should not be a problem.

    The reservoirs are common to many other european cars (BMW, etc) and are inexpensive ($20): https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-power-steering-reservoir-32411097164?ads_cmpid=1586640911&ads_adid=59893888775&ads_matchtype=&ads_network=g&ads_creative=298302526031&utm_term=&ads_targetid=pla-315096495545&utm_campaign=&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=ppc&ttv=2&gclid=Cj0KCQiA6IHwBRCJARIsALNjViV88Q_wg8uTd-91slBhRcgR2BnPj4OwTdje2XtnIsPq39Ifi5_I8xUaAoDnEALw_wcB

    Brian Brown
    San Francisco Motorsports
     
  15. 24000rpm

    24000rpm F1 Rookie

    there is a small screen filter there. :)

     
  16. Doctor Mark

    Doctor Mark Formula Junior

    Dec 15, 2005
    870
    Georgia
    Full Name:
    Mark Gronsbell
    Frankly I would not use any tech who's work habits or shop environment are dirty enough that I would worry about dirt contamination on a fluid change.
     
  17. RANDY6005

    RANDY6005 Formula 3
    Silver Subscribed

    Jan 9, 2017
    2,267
    Jacksonville
    Full Name:
    RANDY
    are you talking about the gear box oil ? and if a teck told me it is not recommend too change I would run the other way !!
     
  18. Motob

    Motob Formula 3
    Professional Ferrari Technician

    Nov 11, 2003
    2,238
    Frederick, Maryland
    Full Name:
    Brian Brown
    No, we are not talking about the GL5 lubricant in the gearbox that lubricates the gears/bearings/syncros. We are talking about the hydraulic fluid (basically ATF) that operates the hydraulic portion of the paddle shifter F1 gearbox, which shifts the gearbox and operates the clutch.

    Brian Brown
    San Francisco Motorsports
     
    f355spider likes this.
  19. crazy canuck

    crazy canuck Formula Junior

    Jun 20, 2005
    426
    West Coast
    Would you recommend replacing on the F1 fluids on an ultra low mile car ? Oil, and brake fluid I get, but would F1 fluid go bad if it sits for say 5 years?
     
  20. flash32

    flash32 F1 Veteran

    Aug 22, 2008
    5,561
    Central NJ
    Full Name:
    Dominick
    I would think not since not exposed to heat cycles and shearing

    Sent from my moto g power using Tapatalk
     
  21. futureferraribuyer

    futureferraribuyer Formula Junior

    Jun 23, 2010
    296
    Not a mechanic but had my 2005 for 8 years. Full fluid change every year including F1. I used 11% clutch to go from 16000 to 40000 miles. Don't know for sure whether fluid change had anything to do with it but never had a problem with the clutch with routine maintenance.
     

Share This Page