Originally Posted by nova996

When I passed on my GT4 order (because Porsche took my LWB's away), I bought an F430 also. It's a very different car and a completely different feeling in the pit of my stomach every time I even look at it. Bringing it back home after a track day or spirited drive, my son always exclaims "yay, the garage smells like Ferrari!"

Yes, even the smells are special.

Congrats and enjoy!

Originally Posted by CarAholic

I share your sentiment with the maintenance part of the equation as it is one of my concerns. However the more research I did from actual Ferrari owners (not just ones with problems) I found out that it's not nearly as bad as you think. Plus I will be doing all maintenance and repairs other then the clutch as I do not have the equipment to set the parameters.however I will not track it as I am a little to paranoid about it. S will see all track time now also giving me more relief that if I total it I only lost 10k instead of 100k GT4.

Originally Posted by CarAholic

I was saying the cars are in the same vain they provide the exact same sensations on the road. Yes the GT has a nicer interior, faster, and more capable then the S. For daily road use though the S was more fun to "me" also took more concentration to drive at 6-7ths on mountain roads. Interior wise to be honest I could care less as long as the seats are nice. There is nothing wrong with the GT at all but for lower speed driving it is not very exciting. Unlike the S where it feels like your going 90 when your only doing 45. For me the GT was perfection when pushing it but doing that is few and far between on the streets. Where in the S is so low on power you can beat on her all day long without destroying the speed limits. They both corner extremely flat so you still get the superb handling at normal speeds. If you push it the S also gives a little more adrenaline in the fact that you know the rear end can snap back at you at anytime. For a track car there is no comparison the GT is leagues and leagues beyond the S. If I had time to track the car more often I most likely would of kept the GT but when I only go maybe once a year it just wasn't making sense to me anymore. Once again the GT is the far superior car but for street driving "I " prefer the S. Not trying to sway anyone from there cars because I still think it's the best one on the market just trying to better explain my decision. The Ferrari was purchased because I always wanted one as a child and it provides an entirely different driving experience then the GT4 and S.

Originally Posted by bhk1004

this makes no sense. Might as well say anything cheaper with lower limits to be a "better drive" vs a gt4 on the streets because it feels like it's going to lose it at much lower speeds. The whole argument is pointless.

this is what I hear. Lower limit cars that are slower and can't handle as well, are more fun cause it feels like it's going to lose control and lower speeds. Argument just basically pointless to me and makes no sense.

Originally Posted by bhk1004

this makes no sense. Might as well say anything cheaper with lower limits to be a "better drive" vs a gt4 on the streets because it feels like it's going to lose it at much lower speeds. The whole argument is pointless.

this is what I hear. Lower limit cars that are slower and can't handle as well, are more fun cause it feels like it's going to lose control and lower speeds. Argument just basically pointless to me and makes no sense.

Originally Posted by pinmaniac

I traded a 360 spider for my GT4 and while the Ferrari was fun I do not miss it one bit. I upgraded the f1 in my 360 to the f430 computer and while I loved it at first eventually it became annoying with the delay and jerkiness in shifting. The Ferrari definitely got morelooks at lights and gas stations but getting stranded on the side of the highway on the way back from Daytona and the subsequent $6k repair (alternator and alternator harness) on a car with 13k miles and a clean ppi turned me off of F cars for the foreseeable future.

That being said your F430 is beautiful and I hope you have many trouble free miles in your future. Just giving another view for people who may see this thread later.