Advice on 1st Ferrari, please

First question:

What type of experience are you looking for, a purist sports car or a GT?

 

At $150K, you can probably get pretty close to a nice, early 599.

Otherwise, if you really want a V-12, I'd recommend the 550/575. The 612 is a wonderful car, but it is a little bit of an outlier for Ferraris. It is elegant, where the others have rougher edges. I have very limited time in the 612, so others' opinions on it will be more relevant than mine.

 

To me 'no wait list' as a prime criterion suggests you think you can get a new Ferrari for USD 150 000 - you can't

Before you restrict yourself too much try an F1 - that will open up 575/599/612 all of which generally do not have manual

The last manual only for you is the 550 which is now over ten years old

Spend some time reading in the 550/575 & 612/599 sections to learn more about them

And then try a 360/430 manual for a V-8 contrast !

 

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/ferrari-discussion-not-model-specific/424627-i-think-im-done-ferrari.html

 

550/575. The best of the GT cars with a 3 pedal manual. There were a couple 599's built with a gated shifter but you will be hard pressed to find them.

 

575 comes to mind first. And...

a partially wrecked 599 GTB .

 

Should you intend to stay with the marque, I would suggest you try and buy one you can afford, can insure and maintain. Enjoy that one, learn everything you can about the cars while saving for a move up. If you aim too high on the first car, you may not be able to maintain your long term focus.

 

My suggestion would be 550. Not a lot of difference in the 575. Both are getting old. Both will need work here and there. But it's a hell of a car, gorgeous, well within budget so why push it. I also think the 550 is more timeless than the 575, softer and more elegant while still badass.

 

Tough set of requirements. Withou reading anyones posts, here is my response:

512 BB or BBi Boxer - This would be my personal choice. Parts are available but you might have to be resourceful

512TR - The more refined Testarossa

550 - The modern Daytona

575 - Harder to find in a stick, but possible

 

I vote the 550. It's a classic car, most of the issues are well known. You have a good support network and money left over. Then you can think about the second.

 

for me the 550 .. very nice looking and the last 12 cylinder designed for a manual transmission....
very attractive design and comfortable car..

 

+1. If you can get passed the electrical gremlins. Other then that, one of the best gt cars ever.

 

As a new first time Ferrari owner, 2001 550, I would suggest that you drive a bunch to see what you like and what is really important to you. During my search what I wanted changed a few times, so I wouldn't rule anything out. I love my 550 but during my search I drove a 575 with the f1 transmission, and really liked it, when I didn't think I would, just couldn't find the one I really wanted, but found an excellent 550. Do as much research and drive as many as you can. For me the search was almost as fun as ownership, almost.

 

The OP did not mention if he wanted a modern f-car or a classic one. A 365 GT 2+2 could also be bought for his budget. Having owned a "queen mother" and now a 575 the difference is night and day. Both are lovely for different reasons. The one thing I miss most that my queen mother had to offer was that wonderful 5000 RPM sound. The 575 although much much faster doesn't sound like a classic.

 

Your pile of money is large enough (used car of course). Generally speaking, parts aren't a problem if you don't go too far afield. Forget any waiting list, (you don't have enough money accumulated to qualify for a wait). But I would say give more weight to what kind of driving experience you're after.

A quick look at the local (Italian) market for four different cars shows this:

A 575 sells for roughly the same as a 360 here in Italy with the 550 coming in a bit less and a 512 priced at a little bit more, all depending on year, condition, and to a lesser degree on mileage. Two of these are front engine and two mid engine with only the 360 having a V-8. But the 512 and 360 will be roughly similar when it comes to driving experience with the 512 being a bit more exotic, a bit more primitive, and with that 12 cyl "cool factor". The 360 will be more user friendly and you'll have less angst about bad (read expensive) things happening while you're driving. But all-in-all these two cars are comparable in many ways and both were serious contenders for my purchasing dollars (Euros actually).

The front engine 12 cyl cars (550/575) are significantly different from either the 512 or 360. In other words, I don't believe the 12 cyl engine has as much to do with the experience of driving a Ferrari or the experience of owning one than does the engine placement.

Any of the four cars, one might argue, could be a good fit for first time Ferrari owner, depending on what you're after.

In theory it would be fun for my 360 to have a 12 cyl engine because.......... well.... I suppose I just associate 12 cyl with Ferrari ............. that's just the way it is. But that desire for more pistons is (and should be) pretty far down a buyers wish list, at least as far as I'm concerned. In my case, I definitely wanted a manual transmission on a car which wasn't too expensive for me, with available parts, but one which had the engine in the middle. Yes 12 cyls would have been nice, but the piece of mind and user friendliness of the 360 won out over purchasing a TR in my case. Now that some time has passed, I'm even more happy with my decision. I'm quite satisfied with my V8 by the way and I don't really miss those 4 extra cylinders. Of course, you may reach a completely different conclusion and that's fine.

Bottom line: I would recommend you think a little more about where you want your engine and put that criteria higher on your list than the number of cylinders in the engine compartment.

 

Can we tell where the OP lives? Having fuel injection at high altitude is a definite plus. carbs work fine at sea level.

 

+1

 

365 GTC4

 

His budget is $150K not $1.5M.

 

Like most, first one that came to my mind when reading your post was 550.

 

I think the other thread you posted in had a very nice starting question.. do you want a 12 cylinder car or an 8 cylinder car? Do you want a more refined GT experience or a sports car that can be thrown around the curves?

-then-

What car do you like the look of the most? Is it a 355 or a 308 or a testarossa?

When you say no restorations.. it kind of gets into the question above. How new a car do you want? The newer the car, the less "restoration" it's going to need in general. Perfect older cars do exist but the need for restoration is proportional to age in general.

Will need a little more guidance as to what YOU want. All Ferrari's from a $30k 308 to a Testarossa will give you that italian experience. Oh and despite your budget, there will be at least one response on this forum that suggests you buy a $200,000+ car.

 

With very little new information compared with the last thread (to which a reply rather than a new thread might have been easier so everything is together) a 550 still makes a lot of sense