Just wanted to say hello and to introduce myself. Have been reading as much as I can in preparation for a Testarossa purchase later this year. I intend to keep mine until I die (I'm 43, so hopefully still have a few decades left!) and drive it several thousand miles a year. Looking forward to becoming a contributing member of this incredible community. Thanks
Welcome here Sergio ! Do read all threads ... and it will help you a lot of understanding these icons ! And don't hesitate to ask Q's or PM members here ...
welcome sergio before you buy one check exactly or let the car check and as mel just has written, read here - you may learn a lot of these cars without bad own experiences
Thank you very much! Yes, I'm getting a little worried about unexpected mechanical issues - such as with a blown diff or transmission. I can't afford an unexpected $20K+ expense. Are there more issues with the earlier cars? Seems like Ferrari made many rolling changes.
Is there any evidence that the fuse box issues were fixed on 1990 and later cards? According to red-headed.com: * Updated electric cables (1990, from s/n 84952)
Don't worry Sergio. I bought mine 2 months ago and I'm 33. It's scary but the reality is if you buy a good one, with good maintenance and use your car wisely not doing donuts etc you will be fine Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Also if u do the work urself or through an independent u will save a lot. A diff part is like 4k at ricambi same with the clutch. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Not sure if you really understand what it will take to own a ferrari. Saying you can't afford a 20K repair, and you want to keep it until you pass on are a bit worrisome. If you can't work on the car yourself, you possibly could get into a situation where you could be in over-your-head financially to own this car for a lifetime. Parts will become more expensive and eventually NLA. Service will become more and more costly, as the folks who can work on it or want to service it will become smaller and smaller. I have owned a 308QV for 16 years and a Boxer for 4 years. If I did not do most of the work myself and also sometimes with the help from some very good friends, I would never be able to own these cars, without making sacrifices I would not be willing to make. They are not cheap to own and drive, if you want to drive a proper car. Example: I just did a ton of service on my 308. Including brake pads and fluid replaced, timing belts and tensoner bearings replaced, auxiliary belts replaced, ignition wires, caps, rotors replaced, distributor seals replaced and new gaskets, water pump rebuilt and coolent replaced, oil changed with new filter, engine cleaned of all crud, transaxel fluid changed. Air filter changed, spark plugs checked. AC charged. If I had it done at a dealer it would be 10K minimum. Indy probably 6K minimum. My cost; parts and 3 weeks off the road. FYI, the car was running perfect when all this was done, I did it because it should be done after so many miles or time. I did a boat load of work to my Boxer last year at a friends shop, that job would have made me take a second mortgage if done at a dealer and included doing the Newman diff change, because I drive my cars and did not want any issues. I also redid the suspension when I bought the car as I wanted it to be like new, did the same thing with my 308. Just remember these cars are 25 years old and things need attention. So, go for it as they are great drives, but don't go in with eyes closed and think you will be able to drive the cars without expense. JMO.
Re-read Dwhite's post a couple times over the next few days. He really sums it up nicely. It's not just the $20K "oh crap" moment you need to consider, it's also the incidentals and regular maintenance that has to be done. Or the unexpected problem that seems relatively minor, but starts to nickel & dime you to death with "one more trip to the parts supplier." Just a minor example: I take my daily driver to a QuikLube place, and they do it all in 15 mins or so for $45. That includes checking various fluids, top offs, etc. I really don't drive that much (i work from home), so let's say I change my oil twice a year. $90 annually. Here's how it goes with the Ferrari. - First, I'm not taking it to QuikLube. Because trust issues, honestly. Secondly, I can do it myself and know it was done right. - Let's buy some oil. The 308 takes 10 qts. Total for oil: $72. - The filter is $11. Don't forget the crush washer. (.22 cents.) - Need a drainage/storage tray too, so that I can catch the oil and recycle. $8. - I already have a socket wrench, yay! But I didn't have a torque wrench. That was about $50. - Oh look, it needs a 12mm hex bit. I don't have one. $8 later... - Time to get under the car. Wait. What the heck? I can't FIT UNDER THE CAR. Ok, I'll jack it up. - But... nope, can't crawl under. That's deadly. So that means a couple of jackstands for $40. - The oil filter was installed by a gorilla. Can't get it off without a filter wrench. Got one? No? Back to the parts store for $15. Finally, the oil is changed. For our first oil change, we've spent $204.22. Now granted, the next oil change will be $83.22... but that's still twice the cost of the daily driver, and I'll still be doing the Ferrari twice a year. Now think about spark plugs. Tires. Belts, Bearings, Hoses, and Gaskets. Tools you don't have yet. I've never had to replace the rubber door seal on any Asian car I've owned. I replaced one on the Ferrari on Monday, for a cost of $117. See how that math starts to take little bites at the wallet, until you're wondering where your "spare cash" went? It's a fun car to own, drive, and for me - even work on. But it's not like owning a "regular" car. It's more like having a new kid that you have to feed, clothe, and send to college.
It's a fun car to own, drive, and for me - even work on. But it's not like owning a "regular" car. It's more like having a new kid that you have to feed, clothe, and send to college. Or like having a hot mistress on the side, Fun but expensive!! Testarossa oil change.= 16 quarts at $10.00 quart plus oil filter that keeps rising.
I echo the sentiment of others as well. Thank God for FChat and the people here! Just look up my previous posts to see the kinds of gremlins I've encountered with my TR over the past 4 years. And when it comes to parts, check out my latest post on a bolt for my precat. The bolt is just a bolt, nothing special, but it's $14 at the Ferrari parts suppliers! $14 for a BOLT! Luckily the guys here turned me on to an ebay seller who is selling them for $4 each. Also wait until your vacuum brake booster pump inner spinny thing breaks - those break often. https://gtcp.com/?portfolio=testarossa-brake-vacuumservo-pump-shaft That hunk of metal that's about the size of a children's top is $1000 from Ferrari. Luckily you can pick the one above up for "only" $500. And that's just for the part. If you don't do your own labor, you'll pay through the nose. It sounds like you're one of us middle-class guys on here Sergio. Welcome! But just know what you're getting in to before you take the plunge. My .02
Ok here are my 2 cents on this. I chose to get my dream testarossa at 32 for a few reasons: 1-I felt I could make the figures work 2-I felt it would push me in my job to earn more 3-I have no kids and I want to live as much as possible my selfish dreams before they get here because once they are here i will do my very best to spoil them, not the Ferrari 4-I have been used to amg maintenance and although ferraris, specially the major are much higher it's not like I was going from a Kia Rio 5-I am lucky enough to have a family member that owns a few shop to help 6-I have so far, picked a car which has been very well maintained by Ferrari only 7-Because of this forum I am learning a lot of diy 8-some dreaded parts are honestly not that bad: a 575m diff is 4k, clutch as well 9-it's not my daily driver of course so if ever a big repair come on and I can not tackle it same day/week well I know that it's okay to do my research and wait a little bit to fix it 10-I know there is a lot of information on the forum and a lot of horror stories but I also know a few owners with little issues. Just check Harry's garage and you will see he did 2k with his testarossa going to the Sahara with minor issues or 2k back the same year going to south of France. Of course he maintains it but honestly my advice would be to plan well, be positive, drive the car like a gentleman not like a teenager , buy one well looked after and u will be okay and if ur not there is always this forum Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Well said all of you. Here are my two bits. I am a software engineer by profession so really I'm not the kind of guy who would put on coveralls and spend the weekend under the hood. Having said that I have so far done the following repairs with a set of normal tools I purchased at Canadian Tire. Of course I got a lot of assistance from the experienced dudes on this forum: 1. Replaced the alternator by myself - twice. The first replacement alternator was faulty. 2. Replaced the flywheel TDC sensor. 3. Replaced the C11 connector and soldered the wires myself. 4. Replaced the Starter. 5. Replaced the occasional relay and fuse. 6. I am now tackling a coolant hose thats leaking. I have enjoyed working on the car. Its actually quite therapeutic doing manual repairs and getting your hands dirty. The ultimate reward is when things work and you get to take her out again.
There you are: lots of things can be done by yourself. But leave the "big things" to the real meachanics imo. I eplaced all bushings in the wihbomes myself. Big job but not too difficult with an amazing (driving) result Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
A normal shade tree mechanic/owner can do most of the things to keep this car happy. I budget for an engine out by a professional as I dont have the tools and want to have it done at my local Ferrari dealer for documentation reasons. If you comb through the sticky parts cross reference thread, the cost of ownership drops dramatically.
why a local F dealer? go to a good mechanic specialized on "real mechanic work" and not only changing parts and you will pay not even the half I´m sure good luck and always happy driving
Just my 2 cents on this. I don't give any extra credit to a car serviced at a dealer, as on both of my cars I've had to resolve sloppy work and poor repairs done at authorized dealers. Their mechanics are probably no better than average, with some exceptions. Find a competent person to do the work and they will be worth their weight in "stacks of hundred dollar bills" to you during your life of ownership, especially on older cars like the TR series. You want someone who has seen an older 12 cyl car, prior to the mindset of plug and play mechanics, a person with diagnostic experience. Like great Drs., the best mechanics can correctly diagnose a situation and resolve it 1st time. I don't want my cardiologist to say heart transplant, when a valve replacement gets me the same result.
Looks awesome!! I hope I achieve ur level of skills through the years! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Thanks for the comments. To reiterate what I mentioned in my first post, I am well aware of the normal maintenance items. Between DIY'ing the basics (fluid changes, brakes, lubrication), it seems like budgeting $2K per year will be sufficient, including for an engine out every 5 years. The worry is that the unexpected mech issues can be really expensive. I have no time between my job and kids to learn to do any more work on it myself (although I would love to). So that means finding and working with a good indie mech. In this case, one would need to budget for engine, diff, and trans rebuilds over time. That's close to $100K! There's nothing like these cars, I fully believe that. But they are very costly to keep in top shape... much more so than a 993 911 Turbo, for example. I only bring it up because the purchase price is the same currently. So as I forecast the ownership, I'd be in for over $200K with a Testarossa ($100K to acquire a mint one + $100K in major repairs); not including the $2K/year 'routine' service and maintenance.
