1st F40 venture. Looking for help

Consult a pro. I am too thinking about going the F40 route. Joe is one of the experts
Joe Sackey Classics

Good luck with your journey!

Cheers,

Rb

 

Thanks for the recommendation Robert.

Discussion is needed because owning an F40 may or may not be a marriage made in heaven.

They are extremely iconic, and have become increasingly so over time = higher values as more who have them refuse to let them go.

An e-ticket Ferrari ride that cannot be duplicated on full boost, it deserves both driving skill & respect.

Downsides are the low ground clearance, and the effort it takes to climb over the sill and settle into those bucket seats.

If you are in the USA, only a USA example will do, and this has been much-discussed already.

Prices can be extreme for the very best cars, and in recent times I have seen everything from $700,000 to $1,100,000 for nice, well-maintained, no-stories examples of varying mileage from delivery miles on up.

I typically operate amongst my set of collector clients with private unadvertised sales, and I place 6 - 10 cars a year. This year has been typical with 4 so far.

Do I have one to sell you today?

Nope.

But I can always ask one of 40-something people in the USA on my database who have one. The usual response ranges from "if the price sounds great" to no response at all. Sometimes we get lucky.

 

By the way I just realized: My first Ferrari was an F40 too! In fact my second Ferrari was also an F40, as was my third. Then 288 GTOs started getting in the way...

 

I wish my first F car is a F40.

Good luck on your search Paul

 

Mr Sackey you're killing me. Please stop.

Best

 

Can an 89 Euro be easily registered in the States ?

 

They need to be 25yo to be brought in legally without needing to federalize them.

 

"If you are in the USA, only a USA example will do, and this has been much-discussed already."

Well, so much for my advice.

 

25 years old or older gets you in without epa or dot crap to deal with. so go ahead and buy the 89, but you will have to wait another year at least before it lands in miami.

btw, have you driven one of these before? if not, then do. it is NOT like anything you have driven before unless you happen to have driven a 917 or perhaps a 935 whale tail in period.

it is also not comfortable, it is not cheap or easy to maintain, and its primary desire is to kill you.

 

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/142375034-post9.html

That aside, you'll have a car that's worth less in the USA, and is accordingly less desirable.

My advice, since you asked, is to get a USA F40.

 

sorry, that wasnt particularly helpful.
i will try again.

if you are in the usa, first stop is joe sackey.
next thing you need to do is spend some time on this section of the site and look thru all the threads on the f40.
then you need to at least get somebody to give you a spirited ride in one.
then you need to drive some other ferraris for comparison.

after all that, you need to give the whole idea some more thought.

basically its like saying that you have decided to buy some art, and having tired of some very nice peter doig's, you would now like to buy a significant picasso.

if your intention is solely to own it, and hold it for a time and then sell it on, joe can help you with that too. if you want to know what its like to own it and use it, you need to follow the steps above.

 

This is true.

The F40 is a big commitment in both in terms of maintenance & responsibility. I recently sold an F40 for a kind gentleman who was smart enough to decide that he better sell it before he hurts himself or others.

Its a very raw car, for special occasions when you are feeling up to the task of controlling its not inconsiderable performance capabilities. If you don't consider it in those terms, ownership could become a let-down, or even a hassle.

 

I am surprise to see European prices much lower than US cars and remember you still have duties and what may become significant shipping and forwarding fees

 

the value differentials between usa and euro cars will vary. currently the age makes the usa ones more easily collectable for you, and then there are a few spec differences that can be argued to advantage the usa versions - altho you can do the same on the euro versions if you like (thinking aluminum tanks for example).

eventually, once the euro versions can flow freely into and out of the usa, the value delta will not be such a big deal, imo.

 

The answers you're getting apply to pretty much every car imported from Europe. It's not F40 specific. I feel you have a lot of research to do before you start importing cars and this is separate from the F40 research you should be doing also.

 

btw, given that you have not filled out your profile, we dont know much about you in order to tailor our advice...but from your chosen handle, are we to infer that you might have a yellow bird?

 

I agree. The Euro F40 is lighter and since we are talking about F40's here and no a BMW m6 or a Bentley, lighter should mean better. They also sound better stock in Euro guise but that is easily corrected with a Tubi or Tubi LM. Finally, they look better without all the rubber added around the car.

Maybe the main reason would be that the car will be a grey import and parts might be more difficult to obtain. I am not sure if that would apply to the F40 but i was told that US dealers would not order parts for your Euro Vin Ferrari..

 

1/ Not modified, completely unique version for USA market.
2/ 1,102 euro versions, 213 USA versions, so the supply/demand formula kicks in.
3/ A USA version is virtually worthless in Europe because of the reverse "grey market" perceptions. A Euro version in USA will always be regarded as an orphan alongside the pure American car. If you want a car in America, best listen to the American experts, isn't that why you came into the forum? Anyway good cars will always get good prices in any market, a nice one owner Euro car with low kms has just sold at the equivelant to US$730,000

 

The Tipo USA F40 is a purpose-built variant, not a modified Eu/ROW car.

It is much safer (trust me, if you crash, you'll want to be in one of these), and has a limited production run of just 213 cars.

Here are some differences of the type USA car versus the Eu/ROW car:

1. USA production spanned from early 1990 to late 1992. Chassis numbers to follow (European production started late 1987).
2. USA F40s weigh in at 2878 lbs dry. Actual USA F40s weighed by FNA with all fluids and half-a-tank of gas weighed in at 2969 lbs (European cars are stated at 2717 lbs dry).
3. USA F40s have aluminum gas tanks with twin fuel pumps mounted within the tanks ( European cars have rubber fuel cells which require replacement each 7 years with externally located fuel pumps ).
4. USA F40s have twist-off gas caps (European cars have the locking items).
5. USA F40s were all supplied with the variable ride height system deleted (some European cars were thus supplied).
6. USA F40s have 2-peice seats with reclining backs and a passive restraint system (European cars have single-peice seats with 3-point seat belts).
7. USA F40s have their tow-hook attachment mounted directly into the chassis (European cars attach to the front body).
8. USA F40s have a final drive ratio of 10-29 (European cars are rated at 11-30).
9. USA F40s acheive maximum torque of 58.8 kgm/427 ft lbs at 4300 rpm (European cars acheive this same torque at 4000 rpm).
10. USA F40s are rated "at or above 500 bhp" @ 7000 rpm (European cars are rated at 478 bhp at same rpm).
11. USA F40s were the first car to utilize metallic (titanium) based catalysts to allow faster warm up and greater resilience.
12. USA F40s have a 'secondary air injection' for emissions that can be heard at each start up.
13. USA F40s had to pass DOT front, rear & side impact tests. These include the 2.5 mph front and rear tests. Accordingly the bodywork is strengthened.
14. USA F40s have a drag co-efficient of 0.34CX including the rear wing (European F40s are rated the same).

With respect to the gear ratios, please note the following:

First gear - 1:10.707 (USA), 1:10.069 (Euro)
Second gear - 1:6.628 (USA), 1:6.262 (Euro)
Third gear - 1:4.745 (USA), 1:4.463 (Euro)
Fourth gear - 1:3.724 (USA), 1:3.501 (Euro)
Fifth gear - 1:2.965 (USA), 1:2.787 (Euro)

Hope this helps.

 

I think most buyers in the US, including myself, are willing to pay a premium for a US car. It's a special 213 car variant that Ferrari spent 10s of millions of $ developing. The US cars are very fast. See the acceleration thread. I believe this is the latest...
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Very true Bill.

I believe the factory lost money on the USA cars, such was the extent of the development & testing. John Amette can shed more light on this than anyone.

Also, if anyone can tell the difference in speed between a USA car and an Eu/ROW car on the street, they are out of their mind.

Lastly, I will get the owner of a USA car more money than I can for a Eu/ROW car in the USA. One should always consider the possibility that one might need to sell one day.