360bs

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Hello, I've been researching 360 F1's in preparation to purchase a good, used late model version. I am wondering if anyone has some insight/information regarding the following: I see that with the 360 you can get either a black, mesh-type "Competition Grille" on the back (section between the tail-lights) or a solid, matching-colored body panel. I have two questions. 1) Is the Competition Grille just an option or is there purposeful reason for it? 2)Is one rear panel better than the other, i.e., with the solid panel, does the engine overheat or heat-up more? Any info on this would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.

the Challenge Grille with the holes is FAR BETTER..it was an option and few street cars came with it...it is definately an upgrade for cars not equipped. It vents quite a bit of hot air out of the engine Comp. the cooler an engine (& compt) runs, the longer it will last and the more HP it will produce. A must do imo.

I would recommend geting both the front and rear Challenge grills. They are an extra, but as noted above they allow for far more heat dissipation than the stock panels. They are absolutely necessary if you track the car at all, but won't matter that much if you are doing normal road driving, unless you love to keep the RPMs above 5000 (I don't). They also look much cooler.
You can do the install yourself in about an hour. Straight bolt-in.

Can you provide information on what benefit the front Challenge grills provide? The improved venting of the rear Challenge grill over the solid stock panel is obvious, but doesn't the 360 already have a pair of grills in front? How are the front Challenge grills better than the stock? Also, what function do the front grills perform? Are they for brake cooling, oil cooling or other?

I will not be using the car for any track or racing purpose, strictly steet use. Mostly long-distance highway use and curvy scenic roads. I live in Boston so I do have to contend with slow and standing traffic situations in the City. Does the 360 (or late model ferrari's in general) experience overheating problems in this type of traffic scenario? From what I've read, I'm assuming reliability for long-distance drives isn't a problem. I tend to use my "fun" cars every weekend and tend to put about 4,000 miles a year on them. I would expect to do the same with the ferrari.

The right front grill cools the right radiator and is also on when you have the air coditioner on. The left front grill cools both the left radiator and oil cooler. It comes on as needed. They both vent through the grills in the front wheel wells and through exhausts in the fenders in front of the front tires. The challange grills are a fine mesh, they prevents rocks and gravel from damaging the radiators or oil cooler. The non challange grills have larger openings (egg crates) and more than likly let in more air therefore cool better.

If you are not tracking the car where you might ingest gravel and all sorts of track debris into the front ducts at 150mph and damage the radiator and/or oil cooler then you probably do not need the front Challenge grills. I live in an area where there are many gravel and/or unpaved roads for the horse people, so I opted to be safe since they are fairly cheap (about $350 each).

Does anyone have any information on overheating in slow traffic conditions? Has this been a problem? How has the F1 transmission been in regard to performance versus a standard stick arrangement, as well as reliability and maintenance? Are the 2004 model 360's overall a good vehicle? Have there been any major maintenance problems that have popped up, other than routine maintenance?

Mine is a 2002, 6 speed manual, drive it all the time in traffic with the air on and it has never overheated. Check the front intake and see if the radiators are blocked.

I have a 99 6 speed and have had trouble with the sending unit ground. The car is not overheating but due to a bad ground the gauge shows a bad overheating problem. I was told that this is a common problem.