Moving to the Prancing Horse
 

It struck me after returning from a New Year's Eve weekend when I drove the GT2 on the backroads over to the coast and back (New Smyrna Beach area)...I was driving very close to the edge of the envelope multiple times and loving it, but when I got home it gave me the same feeling when I decided to give up the Superbikes; that being if you drive at the edge it isn't a matter of if but when, and on a Superbike or a GT2 that when is going to be ugly, For me at least the answer isn't tracking, I held a Pro/Expert racing license as a kid and thereafter never had much interest in just "tracking" vehicles and the time that someone was going to give me a free seat to race is long since passed. I reached the conclusion taht at age 65 and with GT car prices high, it was a good time to scratch my lifelong itch to own a Ferrari. My view of Ferrari is it all about just owning a Ferrari, the fact my GT2 would run away and hide from a 488 isn't a factor. I am buying this purely just to own one and be seen driving it, and I have also really missed owning a Spider/Spyder/Cab/Vert. I really do enjoy the open-air cruises. Finally though the 488 at 650 HP is certainly plenty fast I just know I won't really want to push it so close to the edge. Anyway having been fairly new to Porsches as I only owned one prior to my GT2 I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and though I have been known to post too many pictures, for which I apologize for the annoyance, I am going to say goodbye with a few pics of the 488 I have reached a financial agreement with the Ferrari Dealership in question. It is a factory CPO car so comes with a two year Ferrari warranty. The deal isn't finalized yet as I am flying out Monday to look at the car myself and drive it. The dealership in question met my GT2 trade value requirement so they will get my pride and joy. If anyone is interested in my car I would be glad to pass along the dealership after the deal is completed. Nice being a part of Rennlist and the GT car forum:
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Congrats on the purchase. Great looking car in classic Red/Tan. Also, I think you'll come to appreciate the 488 more than you imagine and it'll be more than just to be seen driving it and saying you owned one. While I have no experience in a 488, a friend of mine has a 430 which is an amazing car to me. They have an incredible amount of emotion to them and many of the Ferrari clubs have some great drives and experiences for you to enjoy your car on.

Congrats! Open top Ferraris are a joy

If you were staying in the Porsche family I bet a speedster would scratch that itch but Ferraris are special - just not as engaging as a Porsche

Congrats on the car. I hope the buying process works out. I have been contemplating a similar move. I love my car but I can’t stop staring at Ferraris. It is where my eyes gravitate to. The wife is against it right now, specifically just the timing of it, and so I will wait and in the future, if the itch is still there, I may very well trade my car for a 458/488. Ideally I would like to have both a P and F car to serve different purposes but that wouldn’t happen until a long time from now. Until then, I will enjoy my P car as it’s very fun to drive and being able to drive it almost anywhere, which practicably speaking, you can’t do with a F car. Enjoy your new car. I would love to hear your thoughts on your decision.

Hardly a step down.

Enjoy the new ride, and every car guy should know a Ferrari once for the experience. Hands the down 458 and newer reliability is very good. Agree with Raclaims a Speedster for engagement solves the open top itch(:

Ferrari will be much more comfortable and enjoyable at lower speeds which is 90% of the time for most of us.

Good for you. Whatever makes you happy. You can’t go wrong, enjoy the new acquisition!

Congrats, time makes us fickle about our cars and life is short.

A 458/488 is on my bucket list I just need to get the track bug out of my system first.

Stunning !! Not a bad switch.. actually an awesome switch at best. We don't chase lap times everyday. This is the Ultimate beach cruiser. Congrats

Makes sense. Every car guy should own a Ferrari at least once. There are things Ferrari does (e.g. the smell of the interior) that are unique and very enjoyable.

Congratulations! I've never understood why people say Porsche is the better "driver's" car as both the 458 / Speciale / 488 / Pista / F8 and GT3 / GT3RS / GT2RS lines are the ultimate expressions of Italian and German engineering. They are all phenomenal driving tools- not better or worse, just different :D

That’s awesome and what a great car. Congrats. I’ve always thought Ferrari evokes PASSION and Porsche evokes PERFECTION. So…I have one of each. The F-car pulls at my heart strings more. The red..the tan…the smell…the sound…not a bad package at all.

Enjoy! (but I suspect you might be back).

Good luck with the Ferrari purchase. Believe me, Ferrari ownership is more expensive (although, I haven't owned anything in the realm of 488 or newer which should be more reliable) but I think it is well worth the cost. In your situation, the one thing that I would be concerned about is reliability. You can drive a GT2 RS often and do so very spiritedly while not giving a second thought as to the reliability of the car, this is not the case with a Ferrari -- at least not in my experience.

As far as, "I am buying this purely...to...be seen driving it." is concerned: I can't understand this point as that is one of my least favorite perks of owning a Ferrari/Lambo...Porsche has a big advantage in this department, IMHO.

I have an FF and driving it is much more of an “experience” than even driving the GT3 I had before that. Currently selling because the market is nuts and it’s hard to turn down the profit but I really really love the car. The V12 screaming at 8000 RPM through a tunnel or underpass sounds absolutely insane. I’ve been having seconds thoughts on selling. You won’t regret it, and there’s always another car around the corner if you do for some reason.

Do yourself a favor and buy an Antigravity battery. Best $1k you can spend on a Ferrari. No battery tender and never have to worry about stupid battery-related electrical issues/CEL again.