Buying Right

I have just finished 800 miles in my Mondial since buying her a little over a month ago. I just brought her in for a state inspection to a a very reputable Ferrari technician. While there, I told him to fix anything he could find. He returned the car to me with an inspection sticker and told me that mechanically it was the nicest Mondial he had ever seen and he couldn't find anything to do! Yahoo! His comments made my very long and frustrating search worthwhile. To those still looking, I want to tell you that the right car is out there, but you have to be ready to pull the trigger when it comes along. I almost didn't buy this car because I was so nervous that there was a better one still out there. In the end, I relied on the wisdom gained from spending hours on this forum and pulled the trigger. So far, it has been a truly unbelievable experience. So here is my advice FWIW,

1. Buy the absolute best car you can afford. Better to have the best 2V 308 on the market than the worst glass bodied 308.

2. Service records. To me, its not the volume of records but the quality of the maintenance/repairs. For example, my car only had records from the last owner (2nd owner) who had the car since 2002. However, while there weren't many records, What sold me on my car was that the last owner went to a very high end restoration facility. Moreover, the last repair order simply read " fix everything you can find. They did--and it was no small chunk of change. I mean, they went as far as to replace all the straps on the back of the seats! This told me the previous owner was not into shortcuts and spent the time to sort the car.

3. Look for anything that doesn't seem right. Learn everything you can about the model--BEFORE YOU SEE YOUR FIRST CAR. Then use your knowledge and compare the car your looking at to what you have read. If something is wrong, you can then make the assessment as to whether you should investigate the car further and do a PPI or walk away. For example, if the Mondial looks beautifully cosmetically but you look at the fusebox and the fuses are corroded, there is a nice burn mark on the block and some wires that run randomly off the battery---this may not be the right car to drop the money on a PPI. Similarly, if the doors rub against the front quarter panels when you open the door--there is probably a better car out there.

4. Know your seller. If it is an individual, buying off an F-chatter is always the best way to go, even if it means spending more than on the open market. If it is a dealer, make sure they are willing to stand behind the car. If they are not, you need to probe as to how well they really know the car.

5. Don't assume you'll be able to buy more car in the winter. Take this one from experience! While it is true that the winter brings cheaper prices---as does the poor economy, in many cases, those individual sellers with really special 308/mondials, will pull them off the market and wait to the next spring, or until the economy improves. In my experience, the owners with the really good Ferrari's and the money to support them, aren't that interested in selling them at firesale prices and can afford to wait to sell the car on their terms.

6. Once you buy the car, do not look back, do not second guess. She is yours now, take care of her or sell her...but don't ride the fence, it will just ruin your experience.

Finally, Drive her whenever and wherever you can. Honestly, there is simply nothing that compares.

Just my .02 (I hope this post doesn't jinx me!)

 

I agree with everything you said 100%, and I am glad you took the time to qualify my post.

In addition, I should have clarified my post to say, "a long time F-chat member". For example, I was looking at an F-chatter's car awhile ago (lost it to another F-chatter!). Anyway, I learned a lot about him and the car from reading his old posts, as well as talking to other F-chatters who knew him either through the board or the Ferrari community. But I think you are right, in general it is probably better to buy your first Ferrari from a reputable dealer (I did). You just really need to make sure they are really reputable--and that requires some real diligence. Believe me, as a litigator, I cannot tell you how many dishonest car dealers and brokers, I am forced to sue. It is really sad.

I should have clarified that when I was looking for a Ferrari, my goal was to find the most reliable car I could--that was really my only consideration. So if you are looking for more of a collectable car or a car with greater investment potential, obviously a glass car that needs some TLC is better than a pristine 2V.

Thanks again.