Ferrari F430 - Manual

This immaculate Australian delivered Ferrari was the perfect specification with one exception. The car spec ticked all the boxes, cream leather interior, red paintwork, those stunning carbon ceramic brake discs. Inside, the lightweight carbon sports seats are incredibly comfortable and paired with Carbon fibre trim panels across the dash. The one exception to the perfect spec? - the F1 Paddle Shift system!

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This 2007 model was originally delivered with the F1 paddle shift option which was sold standard to 90% of F430 owners.  The F1 paddle shift system is primitive when compared to the current crop of DSG & DCT dual clutch options available from most manufacturers. The early F1 system, employed on the F430 & 360, added hydraulic controls attached to the outside of a standard manual transmission.  This hydraulic system controls both the gearchange and clutch position as well as the eDiff feature. The F1 is no faster than a manual system and prone to a variety of issues over time. At high speed and on a track for example it works fine, however at low speed in general duties it can be hard to live with.

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The project here was to remove the F1 system and restore the car back to its roots with a standard manual gearchange and clutch, exactly as it would have left the factory. The brief here was to use all new Ferrari parts and utilise the factory mounts and locations for all, this being possible as the F430 body is identical between the F1 & the manual, This brief was to be adhered to with cost not being considered.

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Stage 1: Technical info

This stage required the gathering of the technical parts diagrams of the F1 and the Manual versions and comparing them to create a list of the Manual parts required.  It was identified that the project would be split into 5 sections. 

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1. Front bonnet (Frunk) parts such as Clutch Master cylinder

2. Under dash components such as clutch pedal and switches

3. Centre console gearshift components

4. Engine bay components such as gear and clutch selection components

5. Electrical components such as ECU's and wiring​

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Stage 2: Sourcing the new parts.

Of the 104 parts required, 102 of them were able to be sourced new from the UK, US and Italy. Two of the parts were deemed to be 'No Longer Available' and a solution for these had to be found for the project to proceed. These were the right hand drive clutch pedal and gearchange frame.  Additional research turned up a design engineer in the UK that had produced aluminium replicas of both parts from digitally scanned originals. These items were purchased first to be able to evaluate the quality before continuing the project, They arrived beautifully made and identical in look and fitment as promised. The rest of the parts were then ordered, the entire ordering process, along with the initial research taking around 6 months.

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Stage 3: F1 system removal.

The centre console and F1 switch panels were removed.  

The pedal shaft was removed. The F1 hydraulic lines and gear activator were removed. The rear subframe, exhaust system and gearbox were removed. All underbody panels were removed along with the rear bumper to allow easier access to gearbox

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Notes:  Whilst the hydraulic lines and gear activation box was removed along with the clutch control lines, the high pressure pump and resevoir were retained to continue to control the eDiff feature found on all F430's. This met the brief of creating a factory identical manual car.

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Stage 4: Gearbox Removal

Whist the physical gearbox is identical between the F1 and the factory manual the clutch release bearing in the F1 is controlled with hydraulic fluid whist the manual car uses brake fluid fed in the normal method from a clutch master cylinder up front. This meant the clutch release bearing had to be replaced with a new manual version with seals suitable for brake fluid.  This change meant the gearbox had to be removed to swap out the bearing.

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Stage 5: Fitting the Manual parts

At this stage the manual gear activation system was attached to the gearbox and gear selection cables run into the cabin.

The gearbox was refitted and the clutch line run through the tunnel into the frunk. The clutch master cylinder was fitted and attached to the new pedal system under the dash. 

The gearlever and miriad of bearings and levers were fitted to the gear lever frame and topped by that factory supplied metal gate. The steering column top and bottom covers were replaced by new manual versions as the F1 paddles are now removed.

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Stage 6: Electronics

The twin ECU's were carefully packed and sent to the US for reprogramming to a manual car. The transmission control unit (TCU) was removed as it was no longer required and the dash reprogrammed for manual operation.

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Stage 7: Setup and testing

The setup was relatively straight forward.  All fluids (Transaxle, Engine, Clutch /brake and eDiff pump were replaced completing a major service. The clutch was adjusted and the gear selection cables adjusted as well to create a nice feel for each gearshift and having the gearknob self centre perfectly within that stunning Ferrari metal gate.

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The entire process took around 12 months from conception to completion. The final step was to box up and securely store all of the original F1 parts and create documentation and a certificate of authenticity for future owners.

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So what's it like to drive the perfect spec Ferrari F430? 

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Incredible!  The driving experience is transformed and the satisfaction of getting that gearchange perfect with the gear lever having that signature clicking through the metal gate can not be adequately described. The F430 is the last mid engined Ferrari model to have had the gated 6 speed option and truly, every F430 should have been spec'd this way. 

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This stunning manual F430 has been painstakingly created to be identical in every possible way as it would have left the Ferrari factory.