catdog2

Agreed...

NevB

Thanks for this, I'm curious to hear more about your anxiety experience with Ferrari. I'm thinking about purchasing my first Ferrari after many Porsches and want to have my eyes open.

Johnny Five

When I haven’t driven mine for weeks and - after bouncing around in a pickup truck the last few hundred miles - the laser sharp response of a slight steering over-input revving through 3rd gear in a fast sweeper nearly puts me on the soft shoulder inside the apex as my ears nearly explode and I laugh maniacally, unheard...

It’s proper.

groundhog

Make sure you tell the dealer you want to take one home for the weekend so you can get a better feel - they will do this in OZ . Also if you play your cards right, and depending on the vehicle and specification, ask for a trip to Maranello - they make monster margins in Oz.

speef

Hi there, this is just my experience, but after hanging around a lot of people with similar equipment, the below seems to concur with many of the guys I know as well... take it with a grain of salt of course

in my experience the pre-430 cars some days felt like the most wonderful, well put together machines, and some other days they felt like a bucket of screws

the 430 for me (one Scud one 6 speed) was reliable and a great machine, and bridged old and the new with much better performance and manufacturing build quality ... Scud got old on public roads, but it was very enjoyable, would not own another one but a great car

the 458 was one level above in performance to weight, Superbly fast and very pointy and light ... also a great machine, way too fast for anything on the road and I personally did not like where design aesthetic was heading after the 430. It also had sensors go out and a gearbox rebuild

In most newer digital Ferraris I owned, including the f12, the dash would light up at random intervals, especially if it was raining... it would throw intermittent codes for fun, didn’t mean anything the car was fine, would re-start and run just fine, but it would surprise you with little jokes, any one of which could be $10k

I found Ferrari of North America to be a fragmented organization, independent of the mother ship (a Dutch based entity), with much centralized authority in Italy, in my experience, and they do not like to pay for stuff beyond what would reasonably be expected to service a customer, so there is a lot to back and forth and this and that and negotiating between the dealer and the mothership ... for example, my FF had a $50 tranny sensor go out, which disabled shifts over 2nd gear, took it in, they were emailing diagnostic outputs to the factory for inputs, email goes out on Monday, Italy gets it Tuesday morning, they look at it for a day, email back Wednesday with more questions, techs here look at it for a couple of days email back Friday, Italy gets it Monday, email back with questions, this went on for 2 weeks, at which point they decide to take it apart, $23k job or something like that to replace the sensor... it was covered under warranty, not their fault, they tried hard to help me and they did, and good for them, but the cars are complicated and often time consuming to diagnose and fix

I live in California, the guys at the dealership try very hard and their techs are well trained but they for instance would change service manager every few months, every time you called in, different guy there... I asked why that was the case the reply was “the company has decided to be really good at one singular thing” meaning performance not Ops...

Social anxiety is the last bit. I’m the kind of guy who likes to drive canyons hard at 6am and get the car back to the garage by 9, I do not like to wash or detail or go to the restaurant and park it outside, I ride them hard and put them away wet, that said when caught in traffic during daylight, like a vampire late to get back to the cave I find that the brand association in most countries is negative outside tight automotive circles, I feel that people think that Ferraris are a symbol of wealth and success that however borders on the dishonest. Porsche doesn’t have the same association, it has an honest face to the public. When people approach you at a gas station to talk about the Porsche they are interested in the car, people who approach you in the Ferrari ask a couple of questions about the car and then they want to know what you do and how you made money. I’m in it for the driving and enjoyment of the equipment, not for the social experiment.

In summary, when driving a Porsche I never get random codes, rain, shine, snow, never, I rarely have any unwanted visits to the shop, and I never get resentful attention.

That all said, if you like to own a Ferrari you should, it’s an experience and can be very enjoyable as well. I would say the driving experience is enjoyable but the ownership experience doesn’t measure up. Porsche is great all day all the time. In my book they make the best equipment period and have a great organization behind it.

My 2c

David Godinho

Never thought this would turn into a 430 Scuderia review! 😂
Comparing a Porsche and a Ferrari is unfair for both. Get both.
Amongst my cars I have a 430 Scuderia, a 458 Speciale and recently took delivery of my WP GT3 RS.
Of course the RS being a more modern car is better in driving dynamics. But engine and overall sensations, it doesn’t match the Ferraris. Even between the Speciale and the Scuderia, there is a huge difference. The Scuderia is raw, vibrant, so alive, it offers a more intense experience. Of course it will be slower around a track.
It all comes down to the use the owner is giving to the car. I drive my cars on normal and country roads, I don’t track them. And in those conditions, each of them delivers a different experience.
In a short analysis I’d say: Speciale engine, GT3 RS dynamics, Scuderia rawness.
I keep saying the Scuderia is the bargain of the supercar world, people aren’t aware on what they’re missing out. It’s a very special car.

cadster

So everyone has a unique Ferrari story to tell. Mine is much different than yours. I have had less Ferrari’s (first was a F12, now I own a 812) and owned them for less years (coming up on 4 total). Nonetheless, my experience has not revealed a disproportionate number of status seekers. Two summers ago, I did Corso Pilota with Ferrari at Road Atlanta. If there were ever an interesting study in who the “high end” Ferrari buyer is (it cost almost $20,000 all in for 2 days), it would be that event. I found everyone to be extremely understated, down to earth, and modest. I was actually quite surprised. It was not at all what I expected. The typical new Ferrari buyer is old. There is no way around that. I’m considered young at just under 50. The cars cost so darn much that only idiots or very well-established dare buy them. I’ve talked before with my salesperson over the years to try and learn about his business and who his buyers are. He indicates that all of them are much like me: love cars, many own businesses, none of them need the cars to make them feel cool, they just love the Ferrari mystique and all that comes with it. It’s also worth pointing out, that Ferrari even makes cars that attract less attention on the road than a Porsche GT car does. My Grigio Silverstone 812 is nearly invisible to all but the most ardent sports car fan.

Regarding, ownership experience. My cars have been bullet proof. The fit and finish is superb. When my new car warranty runs out on the 812, I will not extend it. My dealer, Ferrari of Atlanta, is phenomenal. Sales and service are top notch.

Lest anyone think that I am merely a Ferrari apologist or shill, I also own a Huracan Performante, and recently added a 2005 Ford GT. I have an allocation for a 765LT (still undecided on that, what with the CV19 Depression and all). I got super close to buying a Miami Blue GT3 RS last year. I still intend to add either a GT3 RS or GT2 RS at some point in the future. I did the GT3 Porsche Driving Experience in Atlanta a couple years back, and I love the brand. In any case, I am a car loyalist, not a brand loyalist.

Again, not disputing either your experience or your perspective, just providing mine.

speef

always welcome perspectives... and I am glad your experiences have been more positive than mine overall

take care !

Richard.

Its all very relevant about Ferrari reliability vs Porsche too as my F430 Spider is getting a new clutch currently, after new potentiometer and wishbones last year before and a new F1 pump the year before that

rodsky

isnt the 430 a 12-15 year old car

The 430 was the beginning of their improvement to reliability

I would suggest - not from experience - but from what I've read that modern Ferrari are quite reliable. Similar to Lambo's.

Old Italians e.g. 355's or old Lambo's are super quirky and unreliable and expensive to maintain...

cadster

I think modern Lamborghini’s might actually be best in class at this point. My Performante has been flawless. How’s yours been? i can’t imagine better fit and finish. German build quality, with Italian design.

rodsky

Performante has been rock solid. Since December 2018, nothing except regular service. Not a lot of miles - around 5,500 miles to date. I think VW has greatly benefited them. The V10 engine is really great. Its really a fun car. I love it.

However, i am likely not to keep it. Its too much attention, too low, too loud, etc. for where I live (congested West LA) and my current life with hard work and teenage kids. Probably switch it out for something more "practical" like a manual GT3 or 718 Spyder to complement my TT which is a great DD.

cadster

I get it. Mine is Rosso Mars. Even moms in their minivans shoot videos of the car with their cel phones. The attention is bug, not a feature; that much is for certain. But the wail of the NA V10 tends to make it all worthwhile...

rodsky

One of the best sounding cars on the market - no doubt. Even in Strada mode its still loud. I love the handling, throttle response, gear box, brakes and so forth. Seats are meh. But for the performance its actually pretty comfortable apart from being very low - The TT is like an SUV in comparison.

karimgt3

Don’t mean to crash the thread..

Purchased this scud in Beirut back in December and didn’t get the chance to drive it yet coz i’m stuck in Nigeria! I also own a 19GT3RS, and ur post just made things worse!!