I instructed at a Ferrari track event last year and had lunch with the Ferrari dealer. He explained that the value of a Ferrari is closely tied to mileage because they just cannot be used as drivers, like Porsches. The economics do not allow it. There are very few Ferraris produced, so it can be extremely expensive and take a long time to find a fender for, say, your 348 that got crunched in a parking lot. It's safer to take your Ferrari to the track than to the mall. On the other hand, if you are on the list to get a 360, there is an excellent chance that you can sell it for more than you paid.

Strabo

 

Thought I would put in my $.02.....

Just went through a two-year car buying decision with my father. At this point in his life, money is not really a factor for him, so he just wanted the best out there for what he needs. He was looking for something that was fun to drive, viceral, exciting, yet could be driven daily.

Having owned 5 Porsches, and loved them, he started with Porsche. He drove ALL the 996 line, up to the Turbo, and was not impressed. He said they all felt like a new model of Lexus, not a Porsche. The only car he didn't try was the GT2 (none available).

So, he moved on to Ferrari's. He drove the 360, 550, 456 and 355. He LOVED how the 360 drove. The sound, the suspension, the accelleration- everything about the car was raw, viceral and FUN. But, it draws A LOT of attention, and, he noticed, they lose value very quickly as the miles add up. He saw one 360 coupe with 20,000 miles, and it was $60,000 off the original sticker. And only 1 year old. That is quite a hit.....

So, he couldn't make up his mind, and pretty much gave up, until one day while visiting me in the L.A. area, we stopped at a Porsche dealer in Norwalk to check out some X50s. As we were walking out to the X50s, we noticed a car that was covered with a Porsche car cover. My dad asked what it was- a GT2. I talked him into going for a drive.

When he pulled back in , he had a huge grin on his face. He said it was all the raw energy and spirit of the Ferrari without the reliability problems and pure flashiness. He had to have one.

I guess my point is that the Ferrari's are a different car than most 996s- but, Porsche is perfectly capable of producing that same raw feel, and has done so in the GT2 (and probably in the GT3).

 

Andrew,
I was actually in Hawaii in August, and I was on Maui too. I'm with you -- I'm a Porsche guy more than a Ferrari guy. I intend to own a Ferrari at some point, but it will be in addition to a Porsche.

Gotta love Hawaii.

 

This has turned into quite an interesting discussion! Speedraser- I would love to have a Ferrari some day, but I don't know when I can afford it- I need to start playing the lottery-

Jared- I think you're dad made the right decision passing on the Ferrari for an everyday car. My friend's fiance's uncle is quite well off and drove a 550 marinello as an everyday car for maybe 5 months (yes even in the rain ), but even for someone of his means it was too much to maintain as an everyday driver (THAT was the nicest and fastest car I have ever been in).

I like having my 964 (or would love a ferrari) as a weekend/good weather car- it makes it that much more special when I drive it to me, I can keep the car in mint condition, and I really enjoy the whole driving experience then instead of driving in rush hour traffic. What is nice about the Porsche is that you have the choice that many make to drive it everyday and it is both practical and reliable for that too- you can have your cake and eat it too! I know some people that drive these 911's 200,000 miles + as every day cars!

Anyway, let me stop my blabbing and get to the good stuff- Jared, did your dad buy the GT2? I honestly agree with your dad- I personally don't care for the new boxter/911, but I would make an exception for a turbo or GT2! To me the current cars have lost some of the personality that I liked with the 993/964/Carrera/SC...I'm sure there are people out there that think the 911's we drive are too heavy and wouldn't drive one newer than a 1973, but I guess that is the different generations of the 911 appealing to different groups of people.

 

Fact remains that a Ferrari is, besides being more unreliable, also far less practical to drive around town every day due to height clearance, vandalism etc.

But must say that they are just so beautiful. I meet most Saturday mornings with a close friend for drives...he has a 2000 Modena F1. Side by side against my 993, the Porsche really does look so plain.

Driving around town is a tootle in the 360, far better than in his old 355 (which was no dog). Little niggles like the excessively long time to engage reverse in the F1 gearbox etc have been sorted, aircon is fantastic (even in the tropics), interior looks and feels wonderful...and suspension is no rougher than my 993 M030 spec suspension. But where the problem comes in for him is that it is just too austentacious to run around in and leave on the road or in most public car parks without feeling a bit worried because of how the car looks!

And oh yes...he has already replaced the clutch and the car has under 7,000 miles on the clock....

 

Cool...my 355th posting...and it relates to Ferraris....

 

Porsches are not exotic cars. Ferraris are, with the corresponding exotic characteristics. My friend has a Lambo (85 Countach) with 10,000 miles. He has already replaced the clutch ($22,000 Cdn) and the car has not run for 4 or 5 years as very few mechanics know how to service it (eventhough we live in a city with 2 Million people!).

An hour ago I looked at a 2000 GT2 with 200 miles on it listed at $278,000 Cdn.

 

Harold- God was watching you....maybe your post on Ferraris was post #355, but the post you put up with delight at that fact was #356....hummmm

 

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">Originally posted by andrew911:
<strong>Harold- God was watching you....maybe your post on Ferraris was post #355, but the post you put up with delight at that fact was #356....hummmm </strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Helvetica">crikey, didn't even pick that one up...thanks for that andrew!

 

I owned a 308 Quattrovalvole for a few years and used to drive to work every day ( at that time I lived in San Diego and not in cold Munich!!). I also owned a 911SC at that time.

The Ferrari v8 engine is quite strong indeed and I bet could run 200' miles if properly driven. The 308QV has also pretty simple ignition and injection systems (K Jetronics).

For maintenance I really enjoyed working on the 308. I did a complete engine rebuilt nearly for fun only. The manual is minimal but it gives all what you need.

For cost, that another story. I still think that there's no better value for money than a '80 911 SC. It will cost you one third of a 308 and give you as much fun! I owned two of them and still regret having sold them!

In terms of parts costs, 308 parts where in average slightly cheaper than 911's parts. You must be careful where you buy them though. A replacement cam belt was 18$ at GT Car Parts (Phoenix) and quite more expensive at FNA.

I think that the main reason why most ferraris have low "nominal" mileage is that it takes few microseconds to unplug the tacho sending unit and people expects them to be low mileage.
Another reason is that some ferrari drivers start them and drive them like mad right away at 8000 revs.

 

Great discussion!

I have a question then...

I want to own both a Porsche and a Ferrari... but can only afford to spend a similar amount on each... so I own a 91 C2 Turbo, spent AU$110K on it. I am looking at the best value for money Ferrari for the same amount.

What, in your opinions, is the best Ferrari to buy? A 308, 328... or an older one like a Dino? Any ideas? Use the average value of a 91 Turbo in your country as a guide...

Thanks!

 

for 100k I'd go for a 512BBi
for 60k a 348tb
for 30k a 308QV

avoid carburated ones unless you are a weber freak. Ferrari's have huge overlap angles and proper carburation of 6 double webers is a real mess.

 

Pietro

Thanks, I will check them out! Never considered a 512... will have to go find one and drive it.

''sigh'' - another thing to do