Ferrari 360: common faults & what to check

Which Ferrari 360 are you looking at?

1 generation variant documented. Pick the shape you recognise: the faults, the servicing and the timeline below all narrow to it. Free, no account needed.

Petrol

1 variant documented

1999–2005F1311999–2005F1313.6 V8 petrolPetrolDocumented issues6 knownSee faults & what to checkPhoto: Calreyn88 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Now narrow it to the engine

A 1.8 and a 2.4 of the same car do not fail the same way, so the faults below narrow to the engine as well as the year. Free, no account needed.

Start your free check on this Ferrari 360

No plate needed. You get the risk score, the buyer's checklist and the guided inspection for the exact car you picked above — not the whole nameplate.

The checks worth doing on a Ferrari 360 before you hand over any money. Every documented fault is listed below, each with its own page.

• Serious issue

  Start with the paperwork, because that is where this fault lives.

  See why

  Exhaust cam variator failure on pre-2001 engines — the recall that decides whether the engine survives

  The 360's exhaust camshafts carry a phase variator that adjusts valve timing, and on engines built before 2001 the part that bolts it to the camshaft could break — some from over-torquing at the factory. When it lets go the camshaft stops turning with the engine and the pistons meet the valves, which is a rebuilt or replaced engine on a car whose engine is most of its value. Ferrari ran a recall to fit revised variators and tensioners on cars with engine numbers below 60796 (roughly the 1999 to early-2001 cars), and every 360 from 2001 on had the updated parts from new. On an early car the only question that matters is whether the campaign was done, and the answer has to be in the paperwork — there is no way to tell from outside the engine.

  What you would notice

  • No record of the variator recall on a 1999–2001 car
  • Rattle or ticking from the cam covers, worst on a cold start
  • Sudden misfire, loss of power or the engine stopping dead
  • Check-engine light for camshaft position or timing correlation

  Typically $4,000–$60,000 to put right.

• Costly issue

  Arrange to hear it started from stone cold — if the engine is warm when you arrive, that test has already been taken away from you.

  See why

  Cracked exhaust manifolds — a cold-start tick that ends with cooked catalysts

  The 360's thin-wall stainless exhaust manifolds crack at the welds and at the collector, and the 2002–2003 cars are the worst for it, though no year is immune. The first sign is a ticking or chuffing from the back of the car for the first minute after a cold start, which fades as the metal expands and seals the crack. Left alone the leak upsets the fuelling, dumps heat onto everything around the manifold and eventually wrecks the catalytic converter behind it, at which point the 'slow down' warning appears and the bill doubles. Most cars will have had at least one manifold replaced by now, and many owners fit aftermarket headers rather than pay for another set of the original design.

  What you would notice

  • Ticking or chuffing from the engine bay for the first minute after a cold start, fading as it warms
  • Exhaust smell in the engine bay or cabin
  • Check-engine light for oxygen sensor or catalyst efficiency
  • 'Slow down' warning on the dash
  • Soot marks around the manifold-to-cat joints

  Typically $5,000–$12,000 to put right.

• Common issue

  Run a fingertip over the climate buttons, the window switches, the vent surrounds and the door pulls and see whether anything drags or leaves residue.

  See why

  Sticky soft-touch switchgear and shrinking dashboard leather

  Ferrari coated the 360's buttons, vent surrounds, door handles and console trim in a soft-touch rubberised finish that breaks down with heat and age into a tacky film that comes off on your fingers, and the leather on the dash top shrinks and lifts in the sun — both worse in a hot climate. Neither stops the car, but a full set of refinished switches and a re-covered dash top add up, and a car that has had it all done properly is worth paying more for than one where the seller waves it away.

  What you would notice

  • Buttons and trim that feel tacky or leave black residue on your fingers
  • Fingerprints and dust stuck to the console and vent surrounds
  • Dashboard leather pulling away from the edges, lifting at the windscreen or around the binnacle
  • Door pulls and window switches with a gummy coating

  Typically $1,500–$6,000 to put right.

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