550 LHD v RHD prices

That £90k LHD car does look rather good (just need to delete the aftermarket shields) but not sure that 'one recorded UK owner' is a particular selling point given that it is obvious that it has had a Continental life.

In terms of RHD, we have debated this in the past and my personal view is that I would not feel comfortable shelling out more than 10% extra to have my steering wheel on the 'right' hand side as these cars can be enjoyed in the UK in either RHD or LHD configurations but they were born to be enjoyed on long distance Continental escapades..

P.s. Did you spot this £140k RHD via a private seller? Higher miles than the Meridian car but conspicuously better value I would have thought.

https://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/ferrari/550/very-high-specification-ferrari-550-maranello-prepared-for-concours/7022117

The bigger issue is who is actually buying these cars above £100k and to what end?

 

This discussion has been had numerous times about a number of the Modern V12 Ferrari's

The difference between prices between left and right hand drive Ferrari's in general is the same world wide.
Majority of it rarity by comparison RHD cars are made in much fewer numbers, compounded by taxes in some countries push the initial values up and they stay comparatively the same.
Even between the US and Europe the taxes involved in Europe impact on new cars significantly.
Adding to this in Australia until the car is 30 years old there are currently special requirement to even allow you to bring one in and even then you pay a significant Luxury Car Tax. then it must be compliance even if its RHD and converted by a gov approved facility. Then they suffer the resale stigma of an import.

 

Yes that is strange, but buyers soon wake up to the disparity.

 

At some point mileage should become irrelevant, or certainly less relevant.

When one is presented with a 'concours' car with a decent mileage on the clock, so long as the mechanical condition (as evidenced by comprehensive service records) matches the cosmetic appearance, it should be a very compelling proposition, irrespective of the recorded mileage, and one which in my book, would compare favourably with any low mileage example that could easily require significant recommissioning expenditure and then the necessary courage to actually use it for more than a couple of hundred miles per annum.

Meridian have priced their 19k miles car at £180k which is what that ultra low miles Argento car made at Silverstone last year.

The private seller's superior, but 30k miles, car is up for £140k but if you think £90k is fair value for a good(average) LHD, then that price doesn't seem to be to far ahead of the LHD +30 per cent. rule of thumb that you appear to be comfortable with.

The trouble is that for every 10 buyers of Maranellos at let's say £50k, there are probably less than 5 at £100k and probably less than 2 at £150k.

 

The milage component now never entirely goes away, but post 30 years seems a reasonable measure and then condition and originality play a much bigger part of value.

On the flip side of buyers v value it never ceases to amaze me is how many new high end value cars have there production already sold out.

And in support of the reduced numbers of buyers an interesting thought is the changing trend in buyers of modern classics to the younger demographic. My take on this when modern classic cars get with in value of new entry level exotica, the lure of the latest and greatest for gen Y say, over rides the stability of value (up to this point in time) of modern classics.
I recon you could write a marketing masters thesis on this subject.

 

The 360 CS market was similar a while ago....may still be so.


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On the other hand. I own a BMW M3 CSL in LHD and the price of LHD ones are double than that of RHD. Could it just be a Ferrari thing.

Porsche do not have as large a price gap either.

 

I suspect a large percent of LHD for sale in UK came over here last year as a pure arbitrage play - just as the market was softening. Vendors of these cars are getting desperate to get out and are lowering offered prices. RHD are owned more by long term owners, less by speculators. Hence the RHD/LHD spread has widened.

LHD prices are quite a bit higher (more so than usual) on the continent than LHD in the UK. This is in line with the long term RHD/LHD spread.

 

Not sure what you mean by long term owners? Those that have owned their cars for 5+ years already, or those that intend to?

If I owned a RHD Maranello in the UK and comparable LHD cars could be had for half the money, I would be sorely tempted to cash in on that spread but I suspect that in practice, it cannot be done and if the delta was just 25%, it probably wouldn't be worth the hassle. However, as a buyer, I would be happier sinking £75k into a LHD than £100k into a RHD on a number of levels without taking a view over which one was a better 'investment'.

Saying that, the future for LHD cars in the UK is a tiny bit less clear than has been for many years. First off, we/you have Brexit and the VAT status of used cars moving to and fro across the Channel will need to clarified.

Then we see what's happening in South Africa, a RHD country that used to allow the import of LHD cars but no longer does (so I am led to believe).

 

Australia pretty much bans LHD cars, too.

 

Yes. There is absolutely no possibility of that happening in the UK, fortunately. In fact, it doesn't even impact on the insurance in the UK.

When I bought my 550 I looked at a LHD car (in the UK) before I bought my RHD car and the difference in price was almost nothing. The LHD car I looked at was pretty nice and I came quite close to buying it although the service history was pretty minimal. Some of the LHD cars currently and recently offered have not been the best examples, in uninspiring colour combinations, and history can be scant, especially for some that are ex-Japan and just bought because they were cheap by dealers hoping to turn a quick profit. I think that explains a bit of the price differential but certainly not all.

Jonathan

 

Condition more important than chilometraggio on this one...

https://www.autoscout24.com/offers/ferrari-550-maranello-gasoline-red-e4246140-434b-d178-e053-e350040a07b0?cldtidx=8
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Dear Darius,

That is a very interesting point indeed. I wish I had something meaningful to add, but unfortunately I lack the knowledge and experience you have in all things Ferrari.

Nevertheless, it is my humble opinion:

- Generation gaps do play a role. The world and the rate at which events happen (and change!) is faster than ever. Being born in 1985, I find my personal tastes to have much more to do with the previous generation than with the so-called millennials. People nowadays tend to prefer and admire things under a new set of values. I feel there's a certain degree of disdain for the past and it makes you "chique" to both despise the old and jump on the newest bandwagon available, no matter how acephalous (the more, the better).

I'm somewhat pessimistic (to put it mildly - if we had this conversation in person, believe me I'd be much more "colourful") regarding the future and regarding what this current generation will like and relate to. It may play a role on how much and how fast a Ferrari may appreciate and depreciate in monetary value. The world is far from being what it was when Enzo and its myth were at its zenith. Ferrari is no longer the force it once was in F1. Ferrari has all but disappeared from Hollywood movies and celebrities. The competition in the supercar world has never been more fierce than it is nowdays. All variables combined may lead to seamingly odd market behaviours.

- For what it's worth, here goes a mere empirical and practical ascertainment without further analysing the merits or demerits of it: many prospective Ferrari buyers in Europe looking for a good deal, start by looking at LHD cars in the UK. Prices are usually far more attractive there than in continental Europe, as it is common knowledge that LHD cars in the UK take a hit in terms of value. Basically few people actually want them in a predominantly RHD market, whereas in the rest of Europe cars in general don't depreciate due to the side in which you find the steering wheel and pedals, once the vast majority of us live in LHD countries.

That said, the 550 is probably one of the most sought-after Ferraris in my neck of the woods. I can't actually remember the last time I saw one for sale on a mainstream website or dealer, and the ones that very rarely pop up, are sold in a matter of hours. Yes, hours, not days. I know of a 550 sold in Portugal in the last trimester of last year that was sold in less than 72 hours. Not one of a kind, not in a very rare or particularly stunning colour, not particularly well equipped in terms of extra equipment, with your average 30.000km. Main source of interest? Few owners, always maintained by the official Ferrari dealer in Lisbon, accident-free and completely original as it left the factory, down to the last brochure and leaflet. However, there are so few 550s in my country (and the Iberian Peninsula as a whole) that one really can't provide any meaninful feedback regarding asking prices.

Kindest regards,

Nuno.

 

I'm one of the UK LHD 550 owners having bought the car two years ago after selling my 612. I've contemplated selling the car (perhaps in favour of a 575...) but as has been suggested here, it feels like quite the Ferrari V12 bargain for the relatively small inconvenience of overtaking requiring a little more effort.
I also think over time they will re-take the ground currently being lost to 456's and 612's (as similarly priced V12's) as it is a manual two-seat V12 Ferrari, regardless of which side is the steering wheel. Plus it's a far more engaging drive than either of them, both of which I've driven and have a soft spot for.