MajorCommonElectrical

Ferrari 612: Instrument panel failure — the dash display's power supply and motherboard

Instrument panel failure — the dash display's power supply and motherboard is a common electrical fault on the Ferrari 612 on the 2004–2011 cars, and we rate it major. Putting it right costs $1,500 to $6,000 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. Below is what goes wrong, the symptoms to notice on a test drive, where to look, and what to ask the seller before you hand over any money. It is one of 5 documented faults on the Ferrari 612.

Vehicle: Ferrari 612
Years: 2004–2011
Fuel: petrol
System: Electrical

This page covers the Ferrari 612 as a model. Some faults only affect particular engines or build years — enter a plate below to narrow the list to one car.

All Ferrari 612 faults5 documented faults on this model

What you are looking at

No photograph available

We do not hold a verified photograph for this fault yet. We would rather show none than show a picture of something else.

What goes wrong

The most common fault owners report on the 612 is the electronic instrument panel going dark: the display's power supply, the backlighting supply or the motherboard behind the dash fails, and the cure is a replacement or a specialist repair of the unit. It is not a cheap part, and a car with an intermittent dash is a car with a known bill coming. Weak batteries make it worse, so a 612 that has lived unplugged in a garage shows it here first.

What you would notice

Instrument display going blank or flickering
Backlighting failing on part of the dash
Warning lights appearing together and clearing on restart
Display working only once the car is warm

How to check it

Where to look. Instrument cluster and its power supply behind the dashboard

Switch the ignition on and watch the instrument panel come alive fully — every dial, the display and the backlighting — and keep an eye on it through the whole drive for flicker or a section going dark. Ask whether the instrument panel has ever failed or been repaired and whether the battery is kept on a maintainer.

What it costs to put right

$1,500 to $6,000 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That is for this job on its own, not for the car.

An estimate, in NZD, for the repair as normally carried out. What a specific car costs depends on which part has failed and what it damaged on the way — treat this as the floor for a negotiation, not a quote.

Ask the seller

“Has the instrument panel ever gone blank or been repaired?”
“Is the car kept on a battery maintainer?”

Now check the Ferrari 612 you are actually looking at

Everything above is true of the model, and it is free. What it does not tell you is whether THIS car has been looked after: its odometer history and whether the reading has ever gone backwards, whether there is still money owing on it, whether it has been reported stolen, how many owners it has had and what it is really worth today. That comes from the official records for that plate. Enter the plate for the free details, or get the full history and a market valuation from $13.49.

Not sure what you would be paying for? See what a full KickTyres check includes.

Where this comes from

The failure described above is documented in the sources below. The inspection instructions and the cost estimate are KickTyres’ own interpretation of them.

PistonHeads — 'Ferrari 612: PH Used Buying Guide'
Ferraris Online — 'The Every-Day Exotic' (612 Scaglietti)

Ferrari 612 buyer questions

Is instrument panel failure — the dash display's power supply and motherboard serious on a Ferrari 612?

We rate it major and common on the Ferrari 612. The most common fault owners report on the 612 is the electronic instrument panel going dark: the display's power supply, the backlighting supply or the motherboard behind the dash fails, and the cure is a replacement or a specialist repair of the unit. It is not a cheap part, and a car with an intermittent dash is a car with a known bill coming. Weak batteries make it worse, so a 612 that has lived unplugged in a garage shows it here first.

How much does it cost to fix on a Ferrari 612?

$1,500 to $6,000 at New Zealand independent workshop rates. That figure is for this job on its own. A car showing the symptoms on this page is usually worth either walking away from or negotiating down by at least the repair figure.

Which Ferrari 612 years are affected?

Our research records this fault on the 2004–2011 Ferrari 612. Build dates move around, especially on imported cars, so treat the range as the years to look hardest at rather than a guarantee either way. The official records tell you the exact build and first registration date for the car in front of you.