| Author |
Message |
William F. Newland (Wmnewland)
| | Posted on Saturday, September 01, 2001 - 2:50 am: | |
Jay,
I sent an e-mail to your aol address. Let me know through here if you don't get it.
Bill |
Jay P. Ross (Eilig)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 3:12 pm: | |
William,
Without going into too much detail, as the exact structure will be somewhat proprietary info if I indeed move forward with this, your idea is very close to the way I would do it. As such, I completely concur with your thoughts. The fixed costs are the toughest part of the equation, but I think I've got that part figured out.
I just worked some quick math, and based upon the way I'm working this, I calculate I could have rented you the 355 F-1 for 7 days for approximately $5,000. This would include 1,200 free kilometers, and full insurance (comprehensive and collision with $2,000 deductible). It also includes delivery to your doorstep at the beginning of your rental, and pickup at the end of your rental.
Does this sound competitive? If so, maybe it's not too late to cancel your BMW roadster (?) I'd love for you to be my first customer! :-)
-Jay |
William F. Newland (Wmnewland)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 2:46 pm: | |
Jay,
I think it is a great idea. I had even posted a message on our board here asking about renting Ferraris in Europe for my upcoming trip to Italy. With a bit of web browsing I was able to locate a 355 F-1 for about $7,000/week but very low number of free miles per day sent me to the BWM Roadster.
May I suggest that you consider letting people buy Ferraris and put them on some sort of lease back arrangement with you; We do that all the time with private aircraft. Keeps your capital cost down, gives you a large and varied fleet, and produces many tax advantages for the owners.
I had wanted to purchase a Ferrari and leave it in a garage in Europe someplace, but it would only get driven every few months so the expense per mile was outrageous given the fixed cost. And where do you keep your valuable car safely? So if you kept the car in a safe, made sure it was maintained and insured, and owners could block days for their occasional use and have a cut of the profits you might have a terrific business with little capital outlay.
What do you think? |
Martin (Miami348ts)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 1:45 pm: | |
David,
what luggage?
All you need is fresh dipers every 100Km. They fit in the trunk.
There is a good stretch between Munich and Stuttgart. Not a whole lot of traffic and no limit for most part.
I am not sure about the Tschec (still can not write that sh*t word) Rep., they have new Autobahn's and they are virtually empty. The good thing is even if they clock you at 300Km/h they can not catch you in their Ladas. We were flying from Munich to Pragh (well it was a new Skoda, so flying was limited to max speed at 200Km/h.)
You also have to check the countries the rental company lets you go to. That is why we had to settle for a Skoda. They would not rent a good car to former eastern countries and countries like Italy which have a high theft risk. |
Becker Cu�llar (Becker)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 1:25 pm: | |
You could also add to the package an optional set of laps at the Nürburgring to top it off nicely, some times it gets crowded so it'be nice have it reserved. ;-) |
Jay P. Ross (Eilig)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 12:51 pm: | |
I think you make a very valid point. There are a limited number of areas on the Autobahn these days where it's flat out speed, and not a ton of cars fighting for space. And of course near cities there are speed limits on the Autobahn.
For these reasons, the package would include info pertaining to the "best strips of road" for this kind of driving. There are still a few decent areas left, especially if you hit them on the right days, at the right time of day.
As far as the economy goes, I agree. Hopefully it will turn around sooner or later. And I do think there's a segment of the market out there that would be affected by the current economy. But I also think (hope) there's another segment of the market that's fairly immune to the effects of the economy thus far.
Thanks for your feedback.
EILIG |
Christiank (Christiank)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 12:33 pm: | |
The Autobahn is no longer what it was years ago. Too much traffic which results in lower top end speed and more fighting at medium speeds (around 100 mph). No fun anymore. And lots of speedlimits and radar. I don,t think that it is a good time starting something like that as people are spending less money when the economical situation is worsening. |
Jay P. Ross (Eilig)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 12:09 pm: | |
Hi David -- Thanks, however no need at present for a partner.
Your idea regarding the luggage is excellent. I didn't even think of that. I'm fairly certain that could be arranged without too much problem. I could have it transported via shuttle between hotels if it's too much to fit into the luggage compartment of the car.
Martin, I understand regarding the Autobahn driving. I've been on it four times now in Porsches and Ferraris, and it can be a handful for the novice, no doubt about it. The deal would include full insurance with $2,000 deductible, and probably still require a release of liability to be signed. Driver assumes all liability, of course.
Thanks for the feedback. It is extremely valuable.
EILIG |
David Albright (Dalbright)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 12:01 pm: | |
Eilig....do you want/need a partner. Also, how would the people get there luggage to there destinations. You might want to offer some kind of luggage service that will get the luggage to there location.
David |
Martin (Miami348ts)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 11:46 am: | |
There is a company that does offer that already in Germany. I think they work with TUI, the german tour operator. I was thinking about something like that in the US and registered: www.FerrariVacation.com.
The problem you have on the Autobahn is that most US drivers are not fit to drive on the AUtobahn. It is totally different driving. Most can not drive 100 Mph, let alone 180 Mph. I grew up on the Autobahn, our driver license test included 3 hours min. Autobahn driving with the instructor and during the 45m practical test with the state tester in the car he takes you also on the Autobahn to see if you are fit.
Anyhow, I looked for the other website and can not find it. May be in the computer at my house. They do Tours through Austria and into Italy. It is about 1000KM, the same, choice of car.
I think it is a great idea if marketed right and priced right. Just make sure you have good disclaimers and good protection legally. There will be some guests that will be flown back home in the wooden box trying to be smart. |
Jay P. Ross (Eilig)
| | Posted on Friday, August 31, 2001 - 11:29 am: | |
Hello all,
I am considering starting a business that rents Ferraris for driving in Europe, on the German Autobahn where there's no speed limit, through the twisties in the Alp, etc. (i.e. the way these cars are supposed to be driven). So I'm doing some marketing research, and I'd like to get some feedback from any of you who might have an opinion you'd like to share.
Basically, any model Ferrari would be available for rental (except the F50). This includes the 208GT4, 328GTS, 348TS, 348 Spyder, 355GTS, 355 spyder, 355F1, 360, 360 spyder, 288 GTO, TR, 512TR, 456, 550M, and F40. Also available would be the Diablo, Viper, Porsche 996, and 911 Cabrio.
The car would be rented from Munich, Germany. You would be able to drive anywhere you want, but there would be 3 pre-set "tours" available. The three tours would be: (1) The High-Adventure Alps Twisty Tour, (2) The High-Speed Bavarian Castle Tour, and (3) The Luxurious Black-Forest Tour.
If you purchase the tour, you get (1) the Ferrari of your choice, (2) all necesary maps and driving directions (translated into English, of course) with plenty of high-speed Autobahn driving included, (3) hotel reservations made for you in advance at the pre-established towns along the way, (4) full comprehensive, collision, and travel insurance included, (5) additional information pertaining to sightseeing, etc. along the way.
The duration of the 3 tours is anywhere from 5 to 14 days. The pricing would be anywhere from a few thousand dollars for a lesser-exotic car and 5 nights of touring, to about $10k for a brand new 360 Modena and 7 nights of touring, to about $15k for a brand new 360 spyder and 10 nights of touring and 5-star Swiss Chalets, to... well, the sky is the limit. I could hook you up with the F40 for a tour down through the Swiss Alps to the French Riviera, if that's what you want. But the 3 aforementioned "standard" tours would range from $7K to $12k in cost with a 355 or 360 Modena.
Anyway, your feedback would be much appreciated. I THINK there's a market for something like this, but then again, what do I know. You tell me. Does this sound good? Do you think people would pay this kind of money for something like this? Obviously I want to get a feel for the viability of this before I make the investment in this start-up. I thought this web site would be the best place to get some feedback.
Thanks in advance for your comments.
EILIG |
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