purchase question 82 mondial 8

Paul,

I have a 1981 Euro Mondial 8.

What is the Serial #..?
In what state do you want to registure the car..?
in CA, , smog equipment is the responsibility of the Seller...! (no matter what)

And, Mondial 8's are easy to work on.

Ciao,
Edwardo

 

Mondial 8s are comfortable, fun cars. They aren't fast, by any means, BUT they feel fast and sound wonderful.

There are standard issues to look for specific to Mondials, such as bubbling in the door bottoms from water, broken inside door handles, and fuse blocks that are melting. Otherwise, the engines are nearly bulletproof if maintained properly.

Also, the Mondials are easy to work on, because the engine drops out, and when they're in, you can access the rear bank via a panel in the interior.

 

Buy a 308 or 328 they are more fun and are rising in value! The mondial is not going anywhere and usually is used high mileage,and gets used till its worthless.
The mondial T is the go in the mondial series!

 

Mondial 8s are not particularly valuable -- and in fact, it is probably the least valuable Ferrari, period. A really, really nice one can go in the low 20s, but you should be shooting mid-to-high teens. Good service history is a plus in value, no history is a minus. The lowest I've heard for a Mondial 8 is 10K, and 25K is about as high as I can recall. Not a big spread between a non-runner and a really nice car.

Just because they aren't valuable, though, doesn't mean they are bad cars. Think comfy GT car, rather than true sports car.

The key is to ensure all the work has already been done, because if you have to do the major service, it can easily put you upside down in parts alone -- that's if you pay on the high side for the car.

Since you're evidently a Corvette guy, I'd put the value around a good C4 LT1 convertible...or early (1997 or 1998) C5 Coupe.

I do agree that the 308/328 series is certainly a better investment and more fun, but that shouldn't rule out getting a Mondial 8 if you can get a great deal.

Sam

 

I cant offer you any buyer/trade advice but I'm leaning toward's a Mondial C myself rather than a 308/328 serie's. I like the full convertible experience over the GTS option and I think Mondial's are rarer in the sense that everyone recognize's a 308/328 series even if they think it's a Fiero. I dont have the US sale's number's but I would be willing to bet that there are twice as many 308/328's in the US than Mondial's also.

I have also read on this forum that the T model has a few more issue's than a non-T model and the T's are more expensive to work on. One more thing and I may get ALOT of flack for saying this but dont look at the purchase or trade with the 'investment attitude', look at it as investing in your own personal automotive passion.

Best of luck and if you do get the Mondial post pic's ASAP!!!!!

 

It’s a USA car... smile.


No problem in Indiana.
BUT, Ferrari's are not investments.
Ferrari has the best sounding motor,,, and Mondial 8's are fun, ,
because you can fit 3.5 people in them,
and, Turbo them,,,
without Losing value.. like a 308 gtb.. (ha ha)
And, the longer wheelbase makes them track better.


Listen,,,, I have made money on every car I have had,,,,
except my Ferrari'. (plural sense)

You want an investment,,, buy a MOPAR.


Good luck,
Edwardo
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My advice would be to buy a nice Mondial if you are going to buy one. Buying one that needs attention can get expensive real fast to the point that you could have twice the amount of $$$$ in it than what the car is worth and twice what it would have cost to just buy a nicer one in the first place. Mondials are more luxurious but at the same time more complicated etc. so there is more that can break and more that you have to spend money on than a 308 for instance which is really quite primitive when you get down to it.... People that are new to Ferraris quickly realize that they can rack up big repair bills and parts bills fast from what seemed to be minor issues. What seems like a car that needs a little TLC quickly turns into a bottomless money pit. A lot of Mondials have been abused and poorly maintained so beware.... You can pick nice ones up cheap so do yourself a favor, go that route instead of buying a "cheap" one which really isn't very cheap By the way, this is really true of most Ferraris but especially with a Mondial. There are nice ones out there that you can pick up pretty inexpensively but it may just require a little bit of time and patience to find that car.. They are fun to drive and sound cool so if you want one, go for it just buy the right one. Just my $.02

 

Where in KY is it? Is it the one that was on craigslist in Lawrenceburg? That was a good price if all was well with it.

 

I think 18 or 19k. Cant remember. Nice guy but the 360 wheels that were pictured were not with the car. It comes with the orig TRX metric rims.

 

Paul,
To give you an idea, I'm 6'4" 210, and I can fit in a Mondial. Since there is a back seat, you can actually tilt the seat back a little more. If you are really tall in the torso, it can be a tight fit. I have a 328 GTS, and the Mondial has more room. Will it be BMW 7-series comfortable? No...but you should be able to put in an hour drive in it.

The best thing, though, with any car is to drive it first. Also, adjust extensively before thinking you're too big. I remember sitting in a 308 15 years ago and stating emphatically that I wouldn't be able to drive one. Turns out that all I had to do was turn the targa top around behind the seat in the storage position and move the seat back one notch and recline the back another couple degrees, and I fit fine.

The question, though, is which Mopar are you trading? Mondial is somewhere around the 68 or 69 Barracuda level...or maybe 72 Charger.

 

Yes, that would be a good trade. (And yes, I understand having a good Mopar of the wrong year -- I have a '68 Polara Convertible...if it were only a few years older -- or if it were a Charger, rather than Polara!)

 

Having owned a Mondi for 8 years (she was 25 yesterday) I agree with all thats been said above. Buy the best car possible, there is no such thing as a cheap Ferrari and if you're looking short term I would caution against anyway. Mondi 8 in US form is more a cruiser than sports, its a heavy car and I think only 214 hp. The QV (mine is this) is much better (240 hp) but the best (IMO) is the 3.2. The 'T' was a test bed for the 348 it starts to get expensive and 'non user' freindly from there. I would not part with my car for anything (my daughter would divorce me anyway!) its plenty fast enough to get you into trouble and makes a great track car. Not so fast on the straight but you dont have to ease off on the bends! Good luck with your hunt!

 

When I called the seller, he said he was selling because he was moving back to Cal. and didn't want to take it with him. Now he is interested in a trade? Get the car checked out. There will definitely be a few issues at that price which is no big deal. You just want to make sure there are no major issues.

 

Don't be so hard on that car, , , IN California,,, Any convertable is cool.
(Even nerdy ones....)

 

you know it's funny, all this talk of the mondial being the lowest of the bunch. I've had mine for 3yrs and drive it daily, yep every single day to and from the shop. I've put on over 30k miles in the last yr and it hasn't let me down once, and that's with additional stress of 20psi of boost. I paid top dollar when i bought it and immediately tore it down and serviced it added the SC and it's been running great since. starts cold and egads I've even been driving it in the rain, I know it'll melt away on me and it's now only worth about 25c

the best part for me is that it's a Ferrari I can drive every day and ENJOY going somewhere in with the whole family!. it's also in near pristine condition, you don't see that very often sadly. so in my opinion I don't think of it or care for the low value placed on such a great GT car. the 456 gets the same criticism and that's a wonderfull car!

 

I think you got good advice here and made the right decision.

If this is a 'toy' and you can go with a two-seater, I'll add my vote to the 308/328 camp. IMO, among cars in the sub $50K range, the 308s are underpriced now, and the supply of good ones is dwindling somewhat. If you're mechanically adept, there's probably not much on these cars you couldn't handle, and you'll have a widely admired sports car icon in the garage. It's the smart buy right now, even in slow '80-'82 early injected trim.

I like all the '80s Ferraris, but the Mondial was never regarded as Pininfarina's best effort, and in Mondial 8 form it has the same fussy electricals and high parts costs of its stablemates. If you must have four seats, a Mondial 3.2 in black is probably the best option - the bumpers were nicely reworked, the black paint blends the dated plastic trim nicely and you get a durable 3.2L drivetrain with satisfying power. There was a Forza issue a couple years back comparing the Mondial (black/black coupe) and the 328 (red/tan), and the Mondial looked surprisingly (to me) good.