Ferrari is investigating several incidences of its new 458 Italia supercar catching fire.

Pictures have appeared on the internet of 458s burnt out as well as some that have been involved in crashes.

In an official statement, Ferrari said: "The company is currently investigating the particular incidents in which cars have apparently been involved in a vehicle fire, and it is currently treating these as separate incidents."

"Until these investigations are complete, Ferrari is unable to provide any further comment."

It is believed 10 458s have been wrecked by fire or crashes within the last few months.

The 458 Italia was launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 2009 and costs from £170k. It has a top speed of 202mph and can get from 0 to 60mph in 3.4 seconds.

Nobody is thought to have been hurt in any of these incidents. ====================================

"Open Mike Night " sounded like a lot of fun until i found out i was going to an Autopsy

I heard one of these went into a ditch within 6 hours of collection and another hit a tree close to the factory on it's first day...

I wonder if the drivers said "Watch this!" just before.

And maybe say to their passenger "Smell that engine burning" ........  ====================================

"Open Mike Night " sounded like a lot of fun until i found out i was going to an Autopsy

Not destroyed by fire, but...

...this one was driven into a bridge barrier by the driver, near our offices in Marlow.


http://www.bucksfreepress.co.uk/news/83386...in_Marlow/


According to rumour of the local yokels - a company director had hired it, then spent most of the day driving up and down the High St (giving it the large!) before finally stuffing it into the bridge (a local accident blackspot) during a torrential downpour a couple of weeks ago.

Just 'cause some people are able to afford this kind of transport - doesn't mean they got the skills to drive one!

Being a Ferrari fan myself, it is a sad sight to see

I love the 458

yeah my business partner bought one of these a few weeks ago, and due to the press they are getting he has pursaded ferrari to swap it for a 599

Just heard on the evening news on Radio 4 that Ferrari has recalled all Italia's built so far and are not releasing any more until they have redesigned the rear inner wings which they have found can get extremely hot. Would be interesting to know how much less insurance cover you would have if you hadn't specified the £500 Ferrari engine bay fire extinguisher............................. that was on the options list, apparently it saved more than one of the flaming cars from total destruction 2018 Mini Countryman Cooper S E All4 PHEV in Melting Silver - it’s whisper quiet in EV and polluter modes

WRONG TYPE OF GLUE BLAMED FOR 458 ITALIA FIRES
Official recall underway as Ferrari reacts to 'thermal incidents'



Pesky inflammable heat shield glue...An official recall has been instigated for all Ferrari 458 Italias, so dealers can replace a rear wheelarch liner and its associated heat shield.

The move is Ferrari's response to the five flambéed 458 Italias (charmingly referred to by the factory as 'thermal incidents') that have been plastered all over the web in recent days, apparently following analysis of the victims' mortal remains.

According to the company, the problem is caused by high ambient temperatures combined with very hot engines, when the wheelarch assembly can be deformed by heat.

This deformation pushes the wheelarch liner heat shield closer to the exhaust, causing the glue used to fix the heat shield to melt, smoke, or in a few cases catch fire.

The fix is a replacement heat shield for the wheelarch liner that's attached mechanically, and not using inflammable glue. (Would this an appropriate moment for a Homer Simpson-style "D'oh!"?)

All 1,248 cars built to the end of July are affected by the recall (that's when the factory shut down for the summer hols), and all future cars will have the fix built in.

Ferrari says it will replace any burnt-out 458 with a shiny new one 'as soon as possible', as long as it can be proved the er, 'thermal incident' was the result of the problem addressed by the recall.

Do you think LR would do the same ..............

LR customer services would say that as as many as 5 cars had self combusted it is "a characteristic" and owners should expect it........................ 2018 Mini Countryman Cooper S E All4 PHEV in Melting Silver - it’s whisper quiet in EV and polluter modes

Last edited by Tim in Scotland on 3rd Sep 2010 8:06am. Edited 2 times in total