Ferrari Mailing List: Re: More Italian weirdness - was: 575 shakedown

[Peter Rychel (dino308gt4]

No thanks.

 

I think I’d rather have a Biturbo!

 

 

😊

 

Peter

 

Sent from Mail for Windows 10

 

 

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From: Ferrari <ferrari-bounces+dino308gt4=hotmail.com [at] ferrarilist.com> on behalf of Hans E. Hansen <FList [at] hanshansen.org>
Sent: Tuesday, May 28, 2019 3:48:56 PM
To: PeterGT4
Cc: The FerrariList
Subject: [Ferrari] More Italian weirdness - was: 575 shakedown

 

Most, if not all, of those reading this have experienced the often
bizarre Italian engineering.  My most recent is a Maserati
Quattroporte purchased last year.

1.  As I mentioned, the battery is in the trunk.  Also the main fuse
panel.  But most of the various circuits are up front.  So instead of
running a large wire forward to a fuse panel, they run some 3 dozen
smaller wires forward in a wiring harness about the size of your
wrist.

2.  Owner's manual weirdness:  There is a button on the dash that is
not well labeled.  I've deduced that it has some sort of stability
control function, but there is no explanation in the owner's manual.
Instead, there are 2 pages of large red print saying "DO NOT PRESS
THIS BUTTON!"  Loss of vehicle control will result, culminating in
serious injury or death.  Now, I understand CYA type of legalese, fair
warning etc. But nowhere does it actually say what the button does.

3. Scary owner's manual weirdness:  In the several pages explaining
the door locks, there is a warning that under certain very rare
circumstances, it may not be possible to unlock the doors.  They are
quite apologetic about this, saying sorry if you get locked in.
Better luck next time.

4.  Just replaced spark plugs.  According to the NGK website, the
plugs only fit a 4.2L or 4.7L V8 Maserati.  Hey, thanks guys for not
being able to use some generic plug.  I suppose if I look hard enough,
I might be able to find something that will screw into the plug hole.
But it better be a long one, as the threads are about 1 1/2" long.
Almost as long as the insulator.

5.  Same for the oil filter.  Available only from the dealer.  No
generic will fit.

6.  Center back seat headrest has a button on the dash that folds the
headrest down.  I suppose it is to provide a better view from the
rearview mirror, but it is low enough that there is no way that it
interferes with the view.  The trunk lid is higher.  The only real use
I've found is that I can wop my grandson on the head when he is
sitting there.

7.  The car is ginormous.  But the trunk will barely fit 2 small
suitcases.  Barely.  Open the hood and you find about 4 feet of sheet
metal in front of the engine, about 3 feet in front of the front
tires.  So the car could easily be 3 feet shorter if Pininfarina had
not put that long snout on there.

8.  It has power rear seats.  But if you want to recline them, you
have to move them forward to the point that you have little legroom.

9.  The only way to figure out what the seat heaters are set to (or
even if they are on) is to cycle through a bunch of menus accessed by
a button that is very awkward to reach.  Scroll past the trip odos,
tire pressures, etc. and you will find a diagram of each seat showing
the current temp setting.

10.  The car apparently has to notify the Vatican whenever it needs to
change the interior temperature.  In the summer, it blows hot air for
several (maybe 10) minutes, then will freeze you out with sub zero
temps.  Opposite in the winter.  Most of the many (about 12) HVAC
buttons are either not labeled, or poorly labeled.  Overall, it does
work, but nothing is intuitive. Oddly, the rear seat temp controls are
easy to use.

11.  Infotainment system is a complete mystery.  Trying to figure it
out is an active topic on the forums.  Jeremy Clarkson and James May
spent several minutes on a Top Gear episode just trying to figure out
how to set the clock.  Unsuccessfully.

12.  Initially, I thought it was getting terrific gas mileage, as it
went a considerable distance before needing to be filled.  Then I
found out it has a 27 gallon fuel tank.  MPG is 8-12 normally, maybe
18 if you carefully nurse it on the highway.

Hans.
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