Future Mondial owner

Beware of project cars. They can run up to the 30 k range in a fast hurry. Buy a good example and give a little more for it. Always always get a PPI it will save you thousands. If you have plenty of income and don't mind tackling the work involved then go for it. Just keep in mind if it has a prancing horse on it then it is very expensive. One day the Mondial may be worth the money spent to bring it back from the grave as I did my Mondial. Well it's almost back from the dead if the paint shop ever gets it done. Look closely at bumpers engine and interior all these things are very pricey and bumpers are out f this world and hard to find expansive as can be. Good luck and let us know when you find your gem.

 

First, congrats on your good taste and sound judgment!

I think some of the best cars are found right here, either for sale, or though a board member who might know someone. I bought mine from a board member and it was a very pleasant transaction.

Stephane (scaledetails) buys and sells Mondials on a regular basis for his own use, so you might contact him and see if he is buying or selling this week!

Regards,
Jerry

 

Welcome and good luck in your hunt!

It took me five years to get serious about buying a Mondial, during that time I joined this forum and read everything I could about the car and it's sister models with the same or similar drive train. There are a lot of great owners and techs here who are very gracious with their knowledge and experience.

When I went to look at cars I had a long checklist and list of questions for the seller.

Once I made the decision to buy a few months ago, I ended up buying one from a member here. He and his mechanic said that I was very well informed about the car and "asked all the right questions." I was satisfied with the answers and bought the car!

Educate yourself so you don't fall prey to a less than honorable seller and end up putting 10-20K in a car that you hadn't planned on spending.

A Ferrari "project" is not going to be cheap either due to sometimes high prices for parts. A part that would cost you $25 for a Mustang can cost $250+ for a Ferrari.

The Mondial is a great Ferrari! Great looking in person, always draws nice comments, easy to work on and a pleasure to drive.

Buy the best one you can afford and if you think the way I do, I would do it soon. I think our cars are going to appreciate significantly in the next few years.

Alden

 

I had the same passion and excitement when I bought my Mondial 3.2 Cab. It did take me two years to find the perfect example, but I made it a point to enjoy the hunt. So just keep at it, decent ones turn up out of the blue from time to time. There were just not that many made, and many are in Europe (my car was Swiss). I would suggest you consider a UK or Europe car, the interiors are often in better shape than southern US cars, and they tend to be maintained well.

The mechanical parts are mostly available, but not all by any stretch and many body parts and small bits are not available. So it can take some time and creativity to deal with repairs, and some serious $$ too. Thankfully some parts are quite reasonable, or at least no different than any luxury car. Just go onto Eurospares or Ricambi web sites and check out parts prices for various things so you know what to expect. That also will allow you to make some quick guesses as to cost of repairs on a specific car you are looking at.

fyi, there is a 1985 silver qv cab for sale in Toronto, in the local autotrader. I walked by it during the summer, it was in a small used car lot showroom so I didn't get a close look, but it looked pretty nice at a glance. Its been for sale for a while, and you would have to deal with export to the US. Not many in Toronto, so it caught my eye at the time. 70,000km, ask is $60K (Cad $) apparently all serviced, new roof, etc. Pic attached.
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Add to your search. Cars.com, Hemmings, ClassicCars.com, and good old Autotrader.

 

There is one ebay right now,

Ferrari Mondial Coupe | eBay

cheers

braq

 

Great comments here already. But unless you're looking to do a full restoration, I'd avoid "project cars". Even some of the best examples still need a thing or two since they are old cars. So, plenty of opportunities to for fixin' and fiddlin'

Oh, and the Coupe is a great choice indeed. Lots of glass so with the windows and sunroof open it's nearly as open air as a 'vert (but without the folding exercise ).

 

I see he has a black one listed also. Both have sunroofs.

 

those two coupes are owned by a fellow Mondial fchatter and are in top shape they are priced accordingly due to the "paper" the titles are clean but the carfax has issues
an honest seller there

 

Does he have them listed here also?

 

Bill and Wade were posting about the cars in the Mondials for sale sticky thread

 

Welcome Dean! They are fun cars to drive and anyone who says it is not a Ferrari must admit that the 3x8 would not be a real Ferrari either The difference is that the Mondial is a true GT and the new price was higher then the 3x8

Most have been said already, but do not pay more then 10K for a project car IMO. A few thing you need to know.
- A drivable Mondial often still needs 5K to get things in order even if you can do it yourself.
- European web shops all say they have an item in stock, but often when you buy it online you get a phone call or email that it is not in stock. So call before you order! US shops are pretty OK mentioning in stock items.
- As mentioned by others, the better Mondials are for sale here and you will know at least what still needs to be done to the car.

Can you share us the VIN numbers? Sometimes people here can tell something about a Mondial that is for sale.

Happy hunting
Tijn

 

Hello Dean,

Good choice on wanting a Mondial. I recently purchased one and the Fchat group was unbelievably helpful. A call out to Hank Sound (Fchat handle). I would agree with the group in avoiding a project car. A car in good order still requires work to get it in tip top shape. Take your time in the search, become educated on these cars and have fun.

Bruno

 

Hi Doc

 

Actually I wasn't considering a Mondie. I was after a Delorean ) and got blown out on 3 deals but it's certainly a car I'd like to own in the future. It wasn't until a while after that I started looking at the Mondie as a possibility. I'd always thought a Ferrari was out of my money range but hey ho I got myself a bueat! I'm delighted to have Betty she's a proper babe with bags of kerbside sex appeal and people love to see these old cars out and about.

 

Hey me too and fate has a DeLorean also in my driveway!

 

Don't buy a Ferrari, no matter how low the selling price, no matter how "easy to maintain", unless you can cover an unexpected $10K bill for repair without batting an eyelid. Otherwise you will be listening for every noise, watching every gauge, worried that something might break, every time you drive the thing. Then you end up letting it sit in the garage and there's no point. And you still have to maintain it, even if you don't drive it. I bet half the Ferraris out there do half of their mileage going in for service and repair. Be especially wary of ABS, 348 transmissions, 355 valves and so on. Don't even THINK about a 12 cylinder unless you have a trust fund.

Perhaps folks might post some part prices to give you a realistic view. Waterpump? Over $1000 for the part and labor on top. Plug wires? $800. Windshield? Don't even ask. Most Ferrari shops are charging $120 per hour for labor. So even if you just need a routine valve adjustment, grab a hold of your wallet.

There are a few, very few, parts you can cross reference to other makes and buy at "normal" prices. Ferrari makes all of its money on parts. I doubt they make a cent on the cars and they may even lose money. You cannot recover the cost of design, tooling, and production line on the sale of 1000 cars.



That right there is the reason that older Ferraris (other than the highly collectible ones) are relatively cheap. Mondial is the poster child for this scenario.

 

Dean

If you aren't afraid of getting your hands dirty you will be fine, some maintenance prices are grossly based on "someone else" doing the work

btw the water pump is only $250 not as stated above

 

I respectfully not entirely agree on the technical aspect. IMHO most prices for parts are fair for a 3x8 and Mondial. Buy an injector of a modern Fiat diesel and it will cost you over 750 USD and you will need 4, that is without labor Any ECU is costing 1000 to 2000 USD for a common car. The Ferrari ECU price is the same or buy an XDI unit. Cars of 10 years of age are decleared Total Loss because of the price of current technology.

Body parts and front light units are indeed horrible find and once found it has a certain price.

 

I owned a 88 3.2 Coupe for just over 6 years and never reached $10K for parts/service/maintenance. And that's with paying a Indie Ferrari shop to do my 30K full service (including belts), a fusebox upgrade (DIY R&R) and various other things. Granted, I did almost all of the work myself which was pretty easy to do.

Awhile before that, I may have reached $5K for parts/service/maintenance during my 7 year ownership of a Mondial 8.

 

That's the spirit! A waterpump costs $130 (Superformance) and a windshield $700 (Superformance), if necessary you can create your own plugwires (no rocket science). All normal wear parts like diskbrakes, etc. are reasonably priced. Except for the T, the cam belts can be changed pretty easy. Bodywork is expensive! Tires for metric TRX rims are expensive, 16 inch rims are a better choice.

 

I think this is good for people thinking about buying a Ferrari to see, so here you go...For reference my car drove fine on test drive and looked great. It's all there but the engine looked a bit tired. Not bad, just tired. I knew there would be unseen issues because the seller was a DIY'r who had a sort of "I fixed it once so it'll last forever" attitude. Nothing against him. I think it was his genuine take on things. Not my viewpoint on car upkeep but the car looked great. Only the tires were stale and a few scratches & DIY paint fixes here and there.
So all that said...The following is what I was looking at (in parts only) on day 1 to repair items that hadn't been addressed or hadn't been addressed properly...That said, I'd buy it again in a heartbeat. I love this car.

Parts only(all from Superformace or Dave Helms SR)...

Part/part#/individual price/total price for amount needed

Flywheel bolt 103875 3.65 32.85

Track rod end 103592 41.55 83.10

Track Rod End Nut FER07010 0.99 1.98

Steering rack clamp rubber Mondial 107335 4.25 34.00

Front Suspension Bush Set

SMONFS 219.95 219.95

Rear Suspension Bush Set

SMONRS 389.95 389.95

Upper and Lower Inner Front Wishbone Bush Nut 12574521 0.26 1.56

Upper Ball Joint FER08005 79.00 158.00

Lower Ball Joint 133944 78.08 156.16

Lower Suspension Spring Rubber 113581 7.39 29.56

Upper Suspension Spring Rubber 113582 39.95 159.80

355 shock absorber top mount 114812 58.80 235.20

Mondial full service kit MON32USFSK 134.94 134.94

Fuel Inj Metering Unit gasket 115011 9.95 9.95

Throttle body gasket 115038 2.95 2.95

Air intake housing gasket 114983 9.69 38.76

Fuel Tank Connector Hose 116270 29.88 59.76

Water pump new complete 308 30810005 349.50 349.50

1.1 Bar Radiator Cap 137644 6.95 6.95

Thermostat 128991 56.93 56.93

Thermostat housing gasket 105189 1.99 1.99

Thermostat rubber seal ring 105192 2.65 2.65

Mondial 3.2 water pump belt 121655 14.19 14.19

Alternator belt 121760 17.95 17.95

Air con belt 124108 26.11 26.11

Clutch Slave Cylinder 107867 99.00 99.00

Crankshaft Rear Spigot Bearing 30816005 16.95 16.95

gearshift shaft rubber boot 106168 14.76 14.76

Camshaft Oil Seal 105389 6.00 6.00

Gear linkage seal 30812052 8.50 8.50

O ring 103775 MON12025 3.25 3.25

Driveshaft nut 101633 1.99 23.88

Oil seal 104300 7.95 15.90

Cam cover gasket set with seals 32815075 93.45 93.45

Timing belt 111334 8.92 17.84

Uprated Timing Belt Tensioner PT308 55.00 110.00

Timing belt pulley inner bearing 121275 6.89 13.78

Timing belt pulley outer bearing 121274 70.01 140.02

Timing belt pulley oil seal 121276 8.04 16.08

Sandwich plate gasket 104202 29.40 29.40

Front cover gasket 103791 6.05 6.05

Sump gasket engine 104197 10.80 10.80

Gearbox sump gasket 104196 11.20 11.20

Front crank seal Viton 108224 8.95 8.95

Rear Engine Main Seal 30816185 14.34 14.34

UFI oil filter 191993 9.95 9.95

Engine mount Mondial 30816270 119.95 479.80

Mondial QV and 3.2 lead set 30817030 230.00 230.00

Rotor arm Mondial 3.2 126139 29.30 58.60

Distributor Cover 118889 18.95 37.90

220/55VR390 Michelin TRX 220/55VR390MICHELIN 273.00 1,092.00

Brass manifold nut 100115 1.89 30.24

Exhaust manifold gasket 111532 3.95 31.60

Exhaust Sealing Ring 51 x 64.5 x 16.5mm 103377 8.10 16.20

Exhaust sealing ring 154985 7.72 7.72

All prices are in UK Pounds Sterling TOTAL 4,878.90

Shipping Freight Shipping superformance 1 125.00 125.00

Parts Napa coolant hoses 1 150.00 150.00

Parts SR mondial 3.2 fuse box kit 1 1,899.95 1,899.95

Parts Subcontract steering rack rebuild 1 385.00 385.00

Total PARTS bill = $10,100.00 (rounded)

 

There is no question owning a Mondial is a riskier bet that eg. A comparable age Porcshe which simply has more spares suppliers and mechanics who can work on the car, and breaker cars for body parts. The Mondial car was low volume and the maintenance and support costs are, potentially but not necessarily, very high. There is not really a good maintenance manual, Haynes hasn't done one yet You cobble together various sparse manuals and repeatedly thank the gods for the internet and fchat.

However, I do my own work most of the time, it is a hobby. More importantly, my car has proven to be incredibly reliable. So everything I do is preventive and reflects my curiosity about how this car functions. The car is to my view well engineered, and is not destined to be a problem due to design flaws. But there is no doubt some luck involved with getting a great example given the age and deferred maintenance on some cars.

I think you just need to know what you are signing on for. The drive itself is great fun, and lifts my spirits. So the value proposition works for me. But truth be told, if I had less means to backstop my hobby, I would be just as happy fettling my dad's original owner Fiat X19, which is what got me interested in European cars in my teens.