What do you tell your friends?

I have one flamboyant friend who is now more motivated to get a flamboyant Ferrari for himself. My circle of friends is very small.

Jealousy is influenced by a persons own belief in themselves. If they believe they'll never have one, they may see it as unfair instead of an opportunity for personal growth to desire and obtain one. I also know that it doesn't take much more than an extra nickel in your pocket to spark jealousy. I think those small minded people don't have the drive to get a Ferrari, or the guts it takes to accept the risks.

The opinions of other people will never limit my life, but they can certainly expand my life and knowledge.

When I was broke and struggling I never vandalised any car. I knew I had to work through my issues and get straightened out enough to get my dream. The desire was always heard expressed by my inner voice.

Jealousy could be used as an indicator that you need a new circle of friends and to associate yourself with other like-minded Ferrari owners.

 

Yeah that's exactly what I was trying to say with my comment as well. I really can't imagine people asking these types of questions.

Even though I'm relatively young (in my late 20's), this concept still seems strange to me.

 

I'm so secretive that I haven't even told myself that I own a Ferrari

 

Now, that is funny +

 

FWIW - Just tell your friends you have been saving and positioning for a long time to realize something that is important to YOU. I am sure if you compare finances they, too have something (probably many things) that consume their income more that your Ferrari. I have people whining around me all the time with "man I wish I could afford a Ferrari" and then I go to their flippin $500K house with their $70K baby-hauler parked in front and see the $10K swing set in the back for little Johnnie etc. etc. and just look at them - it's all about what matters and what choices you make in life. I also have friends who could have bought three Ferrari's on what they (and their families) spent on rehab and lawyer fees because they made stupid, selfish decisions. Buy it and enjoy it and your true friends will be happy for you - there is a big difference between envy and jealousy.

As far as work I have to emapthize with you there. Work environments can be very caddy and appearances can be damaging. I am fortunate enough (now) to work in an environment where management and executives are more concerned with my performance that what I spend my money on. That said, when I first got my Ferrari I actually parked it two parking lots down and walked to work when I drove it or usually just drove my 150K+ mile 2003 Jetta for fear of the same thing you are fearing. It that is the case at your workplace I am assuming the Ferrari is not your only car so drive the daily driver to work and avoid the stress. You don't want the Ferrari sitting out in the sun all day anyway because as everyone knows they stop running when the interior parts get sticky

Cheers

 

My latest Ferrari was a complete surprise birthday gift from my wife. So as my mother told me always tell the truth. It was a gift and I'm not the least bit concerned what my friends think. Along side my b/gift 348 spider,sits my wifes 308gtsi that I gave her for her b/day a few years back, then I added a 400i Cabriolet for yet another b/day, they all share garage space with her Lotus Esprit Turbo and my collection of vintage race cars. When asked what they are worth, my stock answer is " Only What ever some fool is willing to pay" on any given day.

Heres the real deal, yes these are Ferrari's but no the overly expensive new cars. I explain that these older cars can be purchased for far less than a street rod or muscle car. Its all a matter of your particular automotive interests. As we all know you can pay over 100grand for a hi end Plymouth or Dodge muscle car, or a Shelby Mustang. Some of my friends spend far more on 4x4's and Skidoo's tha we have on our mini Ferrari collection. I'm not envious of their purchases. So its all a matter of personal tastes. I am appriciative of anyones cool stuff no matter expensive or not.

 

Man this thread hit a home run for me.
It took me 7 months after buying my 355 before I drove it to work, up until then I had only told one co-worker about it. Anyway it wasn't long into my shift that the phone was ringing and everyone wanted to know whos Ferrari was in the parking lot. I have found that most people have no idea what a 355 cost and they just assume it must have been over 100k.

 

I run my own online business. I make and sell pedals for people who do online sim racing. I am usually running around 3 months deep in orders. I still build each set myself so it can take some time to build all of them. Anyway, I have had my 348 for over 3 years now and I have never mentioned it to anyone on any of the racing sim forums. I just didn't think it would go over well. I recently found out how true that was. As many of you in the 348/355 section know, a woman hit me in her big Suburban while I was sitting at a traffic light in my 348. I did suffer some injuries to my neck and back. This put me down for a few days. One of my distributors thought he would help me out by letting people know on the forum boards that I may be late in answering their emails because I had been injured in a car accident while I was in MY FERRARI! Well, the negative comments came hard and fast. Several people who were on the waiting list for their pedals jumped on and started making comments about how now they know why they are having to wait on their pedals. It is because I am spending all my time out joy riding in my Ferrari that they paid for. Also, my pedals are not cheap. I use the best materials available and they are designed to replicate the look and feel of the real thing. So now they are talking about how they now know why I charge so much for my products. It is to pay for my Ferrari's. I told my distributor friend as soon as he told me that he mentioned the Ferrari that he did not do me any favors. He just did not understand the problem. It did not take long before he realized the damage he did to me. Of course, many people who have never even done business with me piled on saying that I was just taking everyone's money so I could up and split after buying a new Lambo. People can be very weird about this type of thing. It can somehow come across to some people as you are telling them that you are better than them and deserve more or something. Just weird. So while I never intended to make my Ferrari public, it is now done and I have to deal with it.

 

Over the weekend took the 348 to work. One of the guards saw me drive in and said, "nice car". I thanked him and was on my way. Today I see the same guard and he asks, "where's the Ferrari?" I told him that I didn't bring it in today, and he then proceeds to compliment me on the car. We have a short conversation on the usual, what year, how much, he would like to get one one day. All positive.

I'm pretty open about my Ferrari, and I think that also helps. People don't see my as "a stuck up rich guy", and more as a guy who just happens to own a Ferrari.

As a kid I didn't dream about owning a Ferrari, to only hide it after I got it. I bought it to DRIVE and enjoy.

 

"Hard work and sacrafice." If people don't understand those two concepts then they'll never understand no matter you say!

 

Tell them "you just have to get your priorities straight"

 

Who cares? Real friends won't push the issue.

 

+1

Every friendship comes with certain aspects that should be respected from both parties beit new and hopefully longtime friends or older friends. It is always nice when someone can just be themself regardless of what has transpired over the years. Heck my truelly close friends still give me crap about becoming a police officer and I would not want it or have it any other way, they ground me and I think that is of the utmost importance.

 

Since 95% of Americans don't see or understand those concepts, you're better off keeping things anonymous. To most, you "get lucky" and it appears in your garage. Sad.. but the result of being entitled.

 

No Doubt !!!

Mention that phrase "hard work and sacrifice" to most Americans (under the age of 40), and you might as well be reading Sanskrit to a pony (credit = Lou Reed) ---- you'll see the same blank expression come over their faces.....

 

Sad but true.

 

I just tell people:

"For my side business, I write cheesy romance novels for stay-at-home moms. If you have decent grammatical skills, know how to perform in bed and can describe it properly, you can get a Ferrari too."

That knocks people for a loop. I get a lot of blank stares.

 

this is particularly sad because you would think a community of online racers would be supportive of ferrari ownership AND would be knowledgeable enough to know that a 348 is an attainable car...

 

Seriously. What a bunch of computer nerd wankers .

 

Ouch.

 

Where I live, nobody asks.

 

phunny... someone can have more than one Harley...rabbid owners have several, and no one thinks twice... check the price of Harleys... having more than one Harley can put an owner of a older Ferrari in the "cheap seats" in a hurry

it's all about perception... Harley-Davidson motorcycles don't cost "that much" (yea-right) while everyone knows even a preowned Ferrari price is off the charts... maybe it's the way Ferrari owners dress... lets switch to basic black, shirts with sleves torn off, accessorize with studded leather and a few chains and heavy boots...finish with an unwashed look... no one will thiink about high cost again :=)

 

Cars / Ferrari's are funny. They trigger the kind of reaction that rings true to the core - either jealousy or euphoria.

At work, I'm very open about my passion for aviation. I have blown-up photos hanging on the walls of my office. People in general know it's a very expensive hobby, but it's so different than their everyday lives that a lot of them are intrigued. Half of the people in my office don't make a lot of money (the manufacturing side). But I have never gotten any grief from anyone. All I get are questions on flying (how it works), stories of their relatives who are commercial pilots, and requests to come fly with me (which I was happy to oblige a number of times).

The twin-engine plane I've been flying costs $150 per hour just on gas (a fill up is $800). Annual maintenance is mandatory and expensive. Plus hanger, insurance, etc. But people don't care about any of that stuff and instead choose to live vicariously through me in a way. Which is cool.

My 348 on the other hand, has never gotten onto the company parking lot. The closest it's been was about 3 blocks away. Nobody knows I have one. If word ever got out, all hell would break loose.

That's the reality of not just "Ferrari", but any nice vehicle really. Because (almost) everyone has a car, a "much better" car (whatever that means) causes lots of emotion. Planes, bikes on the other hand, not so much.

People are funny that way. It is what it is. We just have to deal with it.

On the bright side, it's a good problem to have =-)

 

On the other side isn't this whole thread rather arrogant with replies!

Hard work and "sacrafice," some of you don't even know how to spell.

Yeah , I've owned a number of exotics over the years and to you aviation fans a twin Cessna 310 J.

Today a Ferrari can be had for under 20K. I don't have a pot to pee in but have owned some of the best and still do.

I can't say that this was due to hard work, sacrifice and a diligence to making lots of money. I was lucky because I had good business sense and a desire to take chances in what I believed in. Because of this attitude I was able to sell my corporate interests when I was 37 and retire(I'm now 68 yrs old). Investments in the stock market have also helped me to live a quite comfortable life.

So again I say hard work and sacrifice is not the true road to success in ones desires. A lot of luck and being in the right position at the right time is often the main factor.

 

Every single friend and family around me knows I'm crazy for cars. I have never owned a reasonable car, only rare, classic (old icons), sporty looking/driving cars. I think all my neighbors have seen me doing random small car stuff in my garage spot over the years.

The neighbors in my apartment building often ask how my cars are doing. That's because if there's a chance during the introductery (is that a word?) stage, I will slip that I'm into cars as a true passion and spend most savings on it - I don't drink, I don't eat out, I don't travel that much (except a couple of roadtrips every summer), I don't smoke etc so my cash usually builds up faster than most guys.

Even my personal business has the word Auto in it, it's on my mailbox and e-mail address too.

All this combined, I don't feel the need to hide anything. Only uncomfortable thing is when you get stares from strangers, sometime jealous looks, but I have gotten used to avoiding eye contact.

Ps. No Ferrari ATM, but an F430 is around the corner and I'm already hinting it to those around me to soften the news impact later