Is your Ferrari still on the seven-year plan?
GoAuto reported in October 2011 that new Ferraris sold and delivered in Australia from that month came with scheduled servicing for the first seven years, at no extra cost. It covered original spare parts, engine oil and brake fluid, with no kilometre restriction. The FF, California, 458 Italia and 458 Spider were named. The outgoing 599 GTB wasn't.
The same report says the plan is fully transferable to later owners. So a secondhand Ferrari can still carry servicing the last owner never used. Give a Ferrari dealer the VIN (the car's identity number, on your rego papers) and ask what's left, and whether the terms have changed since that report.
What a Ferrari usually needs from a mechanic
The yearly service. carsales lists Ferrari's suggested schedule for the Roma as every 12 months or 20,000 km. Weekend cars hit the calendar long before the kilometres, so a Ferrari that barely left the shed this year is still due.
Problems from sitting. A car that stands for months can flatten its 12-volt battery, and tyres age even when they aren't wearing. Say how often the car runs, because it changes what the mechanic should look at first.
The rest is model by model. Your service book lists what's due at your car's age and kilometres. Start from that book, not a forum thread.
Older cars and F1 gearboxes
The F355 was built from May 1994 to 1999. From 1997 it could be had with the paddle-shift F1 gearbox, an automated manual worked by electrohydraulics (hydraulic pressure moves the gears, a computer decides when). That's a different skill from a normal manual or automatic.
The national scheme that lets independents buy service and repair information only reaches back to cars made from 2002. On a 355, the mechanic's own experience counts for more, so ask how many they've worked on.
The 296 and plug-in Ferraris
The 296 is a plug-in hybrid. Wikipedia lists a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6, an electric motor between the engine and gearbox, and a 7.45 kWh lithium-ion battery under the floor.
Its V6 still needs oil, and its tyres and brakes still wear. The high-voltage side is different: leave the orange cables and the battery to a mechanic trained and equipped for them. Hybrid and EV servicing has the general picture.
Your Ferrari warranty and an independent mechanic
carsales lists the Roma with a three-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty from first registration, and warns that variants can apply, so check your own paperwork.
Servicing your Ferrari with a qualified independent mechanic, to Ferrari's schedule and specifications, doesn't by itself void the new car warranty. The regulators' guide adds a catch: if an independent repairer causes a defect, the maker's warranty is unlikely to cover it, and your remedy is with that repairer. On a car like this, that's a reason to choose carefully. Logbook servicing and your warranty has the detail.
What makes a Ferrari service bigger or smaller
We don't publish prices, because the job depends on the car. What moves it: which items the schedule lists at your car's age, how long it has sat, what the tyres and brakes need, and whether parts have to come from overseas.
Ask for a written estimate before work starts, as Consumer Affairs Victoria advises. A good one names each part and fluid, and says what happens if the mechanic finds something extra.
Questions to ask a Ferrari mechanic before you say yes
- Which Ferrari models have you worked on lately, and is mine one of them?
- What will you use to read this car's fault codes?
- Do you have Ferrari's service and repair information for this car?
- If it comes to the gearbox or the high-voltage system, who does that work?
- Which oils and parts will go in, and will they be named on the invoice?
What you can check on your Ferrari
You can
- Find the service book and note the date of the last service, as well as the kilometres.
- Check tyre pressures on cold tyres. For the oil level, follow the owner's manual for your model.
- Take a photo of any warning message on the dash before you switch off.
Leave to the mechanic
- The scheduled service, and stamping the book.
- F1 gearbox work of any kind.
- Anything on the hybrid system.
If it were our Ferrari
We'd ask what's left on the seven-year plan first, because there's no sense paying for work the car already has coming. If nothing's left, we'd pick a mechanic who works on that model, not just the badge, and get a written estimate with the parts and fluids named. Then we'd keep every invoice with the service book. The next buyer will ask for them. Tell us the model and the job when you're ready. A local mechanic who specialises in your car.