Samigo78

I am a Porsche fan - owned/own a 997.2 GT3RS, 987 Boxster Spyder and 993. Am however considering adding a Ferrari to my stable - thinking about 360 manual or 599 - just to experience the marque if nothing else. Would appreciate people's perspectives on these 2 Ferrari's and how they compare to the Porsche's I owned. Should I be bothered? Thanks

gmgracing

It is an itch that should be scratched at least once in your life. The difficulty in directly answering your question is that you have picked two very different F-cars, with very different qualities.

I am a big fan of front-engined v12 Ferrari's, and in particular the 599. The 599 was penned by one of my favorite designers of this generation, Jason Castriota (Maserati Birdcage 75th, Ferrari P4/5, Saab Pheonix, etc). However, the car itself is undeniably a big fellow. It feels larger than your Porsche's, but it does have significantly more dramatics. Think of it like a seductive opera singer who happens to be good at tennis.

The 360 is probably the best way into a Ferrari right now. I also like the fluid design, it is not as needlessly aggressive as the 430, but a lot less expensive than the 458. It drive's like a mid-engined italian, what can I say? Think of it like your boxter, turned to 11. Maintenance will obviously be less than the v12, and it is arguably more fun to zip around in. The gated shifter is worth the money by itself.

Hope that helps, nothing like getting behind the wheel and coming to your own conclusions.


Best of luck!
Andrew Adams

Perimeter

F430 has chain driven cams, the 360 has belt driven (maintenance $).
I know it wasn't on the menu, but check the F430s out

Spyerx

Put some calamine lotion or tiger balm on that itch. Much cheaper.

But if you must scratch that scab, a 360 gated manual is interesting to me. So would a 430 challenge. Or throw way back and a 348 :-)

audipwr1

Scud or not worth time effort and dealership service department trips

tomc_mets

As someone said, you have to scratch the Ferrari itch. If you don't like it, sell it; sounds like you have a lot of great cars to fall back on.

I think three pedal 599s and many of the other more recent three pedal Ferrari are starting to command (IMO) crazy premiums. Gated 360 remains a relatively (by Ferrari standards) good bargain. So, is your Ferrari itch stronger than your three pedal itch? If so, 599, since it's a V12 & newer, if you can live with the F1 transmission. Otherwise, I'd go three pedal 360 or 430 if you can find a reasonably well sorted model. Good luck in the hunt. You got a great dilemma!
T

Modena 1

360 is not that thrilling. It's is low and flat, but not fast. The gated shifters leave something to be desired and the paddles forget it. Skip to the scud in this genre.

599 is heavy and you will never forget it. This and the 612 just never worked for me.

Before they got too expensive a 550 Maranello would have been up your alley. They were 75k for the longest time and now 125 I think. Regardless, you get some Italian flavor, but v12 panache and long hood looks. Still not a ton of money. Add a TUBI and its magic.

Samigo78

Thanks for all the inputs so far.

I'm open minded on which Ferrari model but not something too expensive or still on a steep depreciation curve.

If 360 has to be a gated shift so sounds like not a bad choice based on comments so far.

Not that keen on a heavy / large car so I guess 599 is out of the question, maybe later in life.

Was thinking about a 355 (like the classic shape) but got scared by the maintenance costs

Will take a look at the 550

neurotic

a manual, gate shifted F430.....you'll thank me later.

Sleepy996

Definitely snag a clean 599 or FF if you like the looks.. My 360 reminded me of driving a matchstick around especially in this Florida heat.

Samigo78

Just wondering why a 348 rather than 355? More reliable car?

PeteAZ

I had the same itch a couple months ago and I caved and scratched it. I don't drive the GT3 much and my company car is an SUV, so I wanted a GT-type car to be my weekend DD. The 991 Turbo S Cab was the obvious choice, but the F-car itch won out and I picked up a Cali.

Do I regret it? Not necessarily. It is a blast to cruise in, is extremely comfortable and sounds sublime.
Do I acknowledge that a 991 TS would be better in every measurable respect expect being Italian? Abso-fvcking-lutely.

Bottom line, if the itch won't go away, do it. You only live once, why the hell not. But being a life long Porsche guy spoils you. P-cars are incredible machines and are built to take a beating and keep on ticking. Ferrari's are good eye candy.

Lastly, the enthusiast support for P-cars is light years better than it is for the Italian. I can tear down half the GT3 just by reading old threads by you folks and looking at DIY's. They are also very intuitive to work on. Ferrari is the opposite. Only DIY's on F-chat are about how much you paid your mechanic to check your tire pressures (exaggeration, I know, but there is some truth to it).

My $0.02.

Spyerx

Why? The 80s were rad. :-)
I think a 348 parked next to my 89 carrera, both in red would look sweet.
I make no claims to maintenance costs, i just close my eyes and write the checks.

993Brendan

Only Ferrari I have ever driven was a paddle 360. I hated it.

Would love to have gotten into a gated 430 when they were lower but price rise matches what we've seen with 997 GT3 RSs. A bit nuts but driven by the same factor- no more manual. A friend of mine just traded in a 6 speed 430 Spyder on a green .1 RS and did pretty well.

osu s2k

im a life long porsche guy but also scratched the itch. ferrari ownership is special and i would say at another level. i actually dislike the attention but put up with it for the aural experience. i ended up with a nice california although am looking to upgrade to 458 to take it up a notch. compared to the gt2, california is downright slow albeit fun, i think the 458 will fulfill my needs better. I would encourage warranty at least a year or two if purchasing a relatively modern ferrari.