I've been watching 550 prices over the last year or so. Crazy-insane irrational drops, if you ask me. Glad I sold mine when I did, but DAMN I miss it at these prices! I keep finding myself researching 550s for sale online.... Wonder where mine is now... Doody! Image Unavailable, Please Login
Can't have your money AND drive it, I'm afraid, Doody. When I bought mine in 2007, I was convinced I'd bought it close to the bottom of the slide, but no, if anything it accellerated last year. But hey, what's the point of earning a bit of money if you can't spend it on something as beautiful as a 550. Mine's going to be expensive next year - she's due for the major. I'll very happily fork over the dough. Onno
You'd certainly know it if you saw it. I was looking around old FC for an interior pic. I loved it. Do you have any to post?
too true, onno! snapages for you, el dartho - enjoy! doody. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Doody - I think your feelings are a true indicator of just how 'right' the 550 is as a Ferrari. In my case, my 550 and my GTC are 2 cars that just cannot be replaced. Yes, (many) others may be better in some way(s), but these 2 cars just have such a great combination of the "right stuff". And curiously, neither is particularly well valued by the marketplace in general. Just my luck...(really!). Tritone PS next year for me too, Onno. Belts and hoses and shocks and on and on..... PPS spectacular B&W interior!!
What a unique interior, Doody! Never seen one like it, and I have looked at a lot of 550 interiors... Tritone - 550 and GTC, you and I think alike my friend. I am absolutely in love with the GTC and hopefully will be able to own one one day. But I would not give up my 550 for it. She was my first. Onno P.S. Doody - another shot to make you feel bad! - My 550 in Tuscany - is there a better combination? Hard to think of one! Image Unavailable, Please Login
Yeah, dudeman, I know what you're thinking; but, as much as it hurts to say it, don't do it unless you enjoy throwing a dollar bill out the window for every mile you drive. IRRC, you were one of the first to point out areas where Ferrari cheaped out in building Maranellos. In your case, I believe it was motor mounts. Motor mounts. Geeze Louise, how many years have car manufacturers of all types been building motor mounts that work? There is simply no excuse for this kind of crap in a car that originally sold for $200K plus. Unfortunately, things have gotten worse as these cars have gotten older and have more miles being put on them. I am convinced that Ferrari searched far and wide to find the cheapest and crappiest hoses possible, for example. And then, there is the issue of replacement parts. Just for grins, call your Ferrari dealer and find out how much a new A/C evaporator goes for. Once you do, I suspect you'll close your checkbook. Don't misunderstand. I loved driving the Shark. I liked it even more than driving a 330 GTC. I also miss mine dearly. But I don't miss writing checks with a lot of zeros on a semi-annual basis. Just one person's opinion and YMMV. But even at $75k for a good car, a Maranello will never make sense if you plan on racking up a lot of miles. Dale
Well I am just on Ferrari #4 and the 550 is the best so far in build quality, performance, and minimal gottcha headaches. I looked 9 months to find it looking at anything ferari made from about 95-2006. I was all over the map looking at p-bugs, R8, 355's-575's If you think the 550 is bad you best not think about buying another ferrari for a very long time until something changes at ferrari in a serious way. The verdict is still out on the 430 but I am skeptical. There is not question they go with the low bidder. You have to know that going in when you buy them. Just getting back from a great drive I'm a little defensive and have a huge smile on my face especially having finished doing 550 belts with ease while being absolutely tortured fixing minor things on my mercedes. I have not had to repair a ferrari in 9 months and compared to my GM cars or mercedes fixing the ferrari is a pleasure. What a great GT.
Hey, it sounds like a 550 is perfect for you. My problem is that I'm strictly a driver. I don't enjoy going to my garage to look at cars. I don't enjoy working on them. (I have neither the skills, the tools, or the time.) I just like to drive em. But spending $20k to drive 20k miles, broke my back. Even worse was discovering that $5k of that money I spent at my local Ferrari dealer was just wasted money. I would have gotten more enjoyment by burning it in my fireplace. (One postscript. I sold my car to a local collector who has his own shop. After all the money I had spent, his mechanic had to do another $8k of work to get it up to speed.) You're also right that it will probably be a long time before I buy another Ferrari, or even any Euro car, if ever. I'm a Japanese man all the way. I even considered buying a Challenge car for the track before I came to my senses. Oh, every now and then I get a longing for a 550 or maybe a 360 Spider. But just thinking about the money I spent on my Maranello, or knowing about the problem with exhaust manifolds on 360s, is enough to snap me out of it. Here's the bottom line -- Ferraris are toys for the wealthy. Always have been. Always will be. For the rest of us, we need to beyond all help or can do our own work like you. Damn, I wish this wasn't true. Sadly, I'm afraid it is. Dale
In my experience the 550 is the best overall modern Ferrari (for the road), it has an amazing engine that plays at both ends of the rpm range, in addition to excellent handling. For me it is the last Ferrari that you really feel involved while driving, no e-gas or ridiculously over the top electronics which further remove you from the experience. It may sound crazy but I would not trade my car even money for a 599, imo it's to big and to fast for most roads, I have more fun with the more intimate and soulful 550. Doody now is most likley the best time from now on to buy a 550, go for it.
Dale, What were some of the past and recent repairs on your former car that cost so much money. I've had some issues to contend with but every Ferrari service manager I've talked to about 550's say it is one of the best in this area for Ferrari. That said I agree with you that these are toys for the weathly. Stan
Try spending $20K to drive 10K miles....in a Mondial. A dollar a mile to drive a 550 is a bargain from my perspective.
Most experienced 550 owners know about the problem with the cheap ass original plenum hoses. Well, mine blew on the track in 2003. When it was all said and done, it cost me $4k to fix this. On the hottest day in 2007, my plenum hoses blew again. But, hold the phone, it wasn't the same hose. You see, there are three hoses (one in the front, two in the back). When the Service Manager, who I thought was my friend, replaced the front hose in 2003, he didn't change the two hoses in the back, even though everyone (except me) knew that the back hoses were just as bad as the front one. So because this SOB didn't spend $50 (at the outside) in 2003, I got to enjoy spending another $4k to replace these two POS hoses in 2007. The fact that I used an independent in 2007 instead of the dealer was my only satisfaction. And then, there was the issue with the A/C. I kept losing coolant. When I took it to the dealer in 2007 (this was before the hose blew), they charged me $1,000 to put in more coolant and told me that everything was working fine. Well, it wasn't. So when the car was at an independent to fix the hoses, I told him to check out the A/C. As it turned out, the problem was yet another cheap ass hose. The reason the dealer guy didn't fix it was because the hose was way up under the dash. Apparently, they didn't feel like doing that much work. So that blew another $1k. BTW, the cost for a new A/C evaporator? Over $5k. No lie. There's more, but I don't really feel like getting into it. Here is my personal take-a-way: Before I ever buy another Ferrari, I will first check to see if my independent guy can work on that model. As things stand now, he has no significant experience working on 360s. So, however much I'd like to buy a 360 Spider, it a non-starter for me. Dale
Tru dat. But I don't care for the lazy boy style. In fact, I'm going to have to redo the seats in my chick car. Dale
Dale: Lesson learned. It's something I always tell people who talk to me about buying a 550 after seeing pictures of mine: if you don't KNOW of a good, talented mechanic who can work on your car, no matter how much the car seems to make sense, it doesn't. There's nothing worse than shelling out the dough to buy your dream and then watch it continually frustrate you 'cause the damn mechanic or dealer keeps screwing things up. We're fortunate in the South-west Ohio to have a dynamite independent who honestly assesses what's wrong and even better, fixes it the first time. it's made owning the car for the past 8 years a real pleasure.
