Ferrari Mailing List: Re: more F40 stuff.

[Steve Jenkins (steve]

Hey, Ed! Great questions, and you know I'm always happy to chime in. :)

"He said the steering at lower speeds was VERY heavy and slow, and the
clutch was also heavy."

True, but no more so than my 512TR on either count. Actually, I think the
low-speed steering on the TR might even be worse!

"I've read that the weak point of the F40 are its brakes?  I think the LM
had uprated brakes?  Did many standard F40 owners upgrade to this, or does
that require a wheel upgrade too.  Were any LMs used on the street, or was
this a track only version?"

True again. I also believe the LM had larger brakes, and there are a few F40
owners who have upgraded theirs, too - including me. I put the Brembo F50
brake kit on mine, which required a permanent move to 10" wheels. Luckily
there was a set of the OZ Racing Magnesios in the spares package I got with
my car, so all I needed was some Michelin Pilot Sports and I was good to go.
Yes... I know I have the 17" Pirelli tire pattern on my wedding ring, but I
wanted stock for the ring and upgraded for the car. The brakes are better,
but I think the weak point now on my setup is the single master-cylinder
setup. I plan on going to a dual master-cylinder to help.

Concerning the LM, those were track-only. I've seen two "true" LMs in my
lifetime, and they are SWEEET. I wouldn't mind picking one up if the
opportunity ever presented itself.

"I know you use your car as it should be used Steve, but is finding parts
for running such a car of that vintage becoming hard?"

I was just having this conversation with a 246 Dino owner yesterday as we
watched F1. He drives his car often, and hard. On the NW Region Cannon Beach
run last year, he and I chased each other around the curves both spitting
fireballs out the exhaust. It was a BLAST, and I love seeing people DRIVE
these cars as they were built to be. So yes, I drive my car often (I have
been known to take the F40 to 7-11 for a hot dog on occasion), but finding
parts hasn't been that hard, actually. I've replaced fuel pumps, ignition
system, and even picked up a couple spare ECUs and luggage on eBay. I'm sure
parts will eventually become hard to find (like they are for the 288), but
for now (knock wood) I haven't had much trouble.

"i love that the F40 is a real drivers car, row your own, no ABS, air bags
etc."

I love it too. No power brakes, no power steering, no traction control, no
ABS, no door handles! When the group of us was at Bondurant last month in C5
Corvettes, I was struck at how much "extra" stuff was on the car, which was
useless on the race track (especially the traction control, until mine
malfunctioned and I "forgot" to tell anyone about it).

Mine is at Carlo's right now getting a new exhaust fitted (the Tubi wasn't
loud enough!). Can't WAIT to get it back before track season up here!

SteveJ

-----Original Message-----
From: E M [mailto:pokiebaron [at] gmail.com] 
Sent: Sunday, March 18, 2007 10:28 AM
To: Steve Jenkins
Cc: The FerrariList
Subject: [Ferrari] more F40 stuff.


Not sure who started this, but someone posted a YouTube thing on the F40.
It kind of hooked me! hee hee.  I spent the afternoon watching various F40
movies. :-)  I'm not a Ferrari owner, but I am a fan.  So my most recent
dreams have been around the F40. hee hee.  Maybe SteveJ can shed more light
on the car.

I drive an old 911 and just love it. Yeah, it's slowish, but the feel is
just amazing.  Steering is fantastic and just about as much fun as you can
have in a car.

I was watching a one hour long clip on Exotics by Brundle, and the first car
they featured was an F40.  He said the steering at lower speeds was VERY
heavy and slow, and the clutch was also heavy.  So Steve, what's the real
deal on this?  People say the same about old 911s, but I have used sticky
tires on mine, full tank of gas and no problem even when parking it.  I
mean, the F40 has no engine over the front wheels and most of the car is
carbon fibre, how heavy can the steering be?

Our dealer in town had both a F40 and LM in his collection.  I've read that
the weak point of the F40 are its brakes?  I think the LM had uprated
brakes?  Did many standard F40 owners upgrade to this, or does that require
a wheel upgrade too.  Were any LMs used on the street, or was this a track
only version?

I have seen a few F40s will silly low miles.  I know you use your car as it
should be used Steve, but is finding parts for running such a car of that
vintage becoming hard?  Also, has anyone (company) pulled templates of the
panels should anyone crash one.  I have a friend with a vintage Lotus
formula car, and he had all the panels duplicated, and stuck the original
ones in the attic.

i love that the F40 is a real drivers car, row your own, no ABS, air bags
etc.

Love to hear from anyone with experience or just a story to share about
these great cars. :-)

Thanks,
Ed
911SC
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