In hindsight, I guess you may be right Jimmy, as I was put off the 355 at first due to potential maintenance disasters, so I do have to rethink and withdraw my statement. I am however curious as to how maintenance aspects of a classic Ferrari will affect its value in the future, as parts will become increasingly scarce and people who can work properly on a classic Ferrari will also become rarer. I guess at some point maintenance will become so (much more) specialized that ease of maintenance will become an obsolete worry, as maintaining ALL classic Ferraris will become a handful. Kind regards, Nuno.
I honestly dont think anybody would buy one of these cars if they just worried about maintenance..If you think about it its like look to worry and you will..and you wont buy it at all!
Regarding the poll: Results so far seem to indicate that people prefer a manual F355. Another poll conducted on the355.com further highlights this trend. Where we disagree is how this impacts market value Kind regards, Nuno.
Fully agree with the first part of your statement. But I do have to worry about future maintenance precisely because I don't intend to sell, ever! Cheers, Nuno.
One word for you RELAX!.. I have to say that Im hoping that Ferrari will do what Porsche has done and make parts for older models..I think that they know there is a need and they are all about profit now..Thats why they are increasing production as well..
Spot on. But many have already said that there are many factors ahead of transmission type which affects value such as miles, condition and history.
Do you have a particular problem with my previous car? That's the third time you've made a negative comment about it.
The only conclusion which can be made from this is that most of the 355 owners on this forum would prefer a manual car. As someone else has already said, this forum is but a tiny % of owners overall, but it is what it is. The argument is really about whether or not that makes manual cars more valuable. I say no, and there is no conclusive evidence that manual cars are fetching higher prices than six-speeds. The other thing which demonstrates without a shadow of doubt that the views of this forum have no real weight is simply that: Manual cars are in such demand that.... errrr... Ferrari stopped making them!
Steve, nice summary! What I will add is, I started my search looking for a manual. I always want an F1 GTS since I first saw the car back in 2000. The crap I read on this forum scared me so much that I was swayed toward a manual. I was then fortunate to be able to drive an F1 430. That was all it took to bring me back to my hearts desire!
Me too Dave. I actually started out looking for an F1 GTS as well, but then a friend of mine convinced me that I really wanted a manual car (because, you know, that's what real drivers want). After many months of searching I decided to just buy the best damn car I could find, regardless of transmission. Boy I'm glad it turned out that I ended up with the car I really wanted in the first place. I think there is a real danger of "newbies" being railroaded into a car that this forum dictates they should want, rather than the one they really want. I'm just glad I didn't stumble upon this forum until I'd actually bought my car, otherwise God knows what I would have ended up with?!
Finally some sense brought into this debate. Thanks Steve, great story and sound advice. Kind regards, Nuno.
Ditto to both. The F1 shifting in this car is amazing. Like I said, I checked the last box in the poll. I could have went either way, priority was condition, service history, and paintwork........glad that my F1 met all the other requirements!
My Mondial is a 5 speed manual, so I tried to enrich my Ferrari ownership by going in a different direction and try an F1. I had automatic daily drivers in the past and I really liked them. I never considered a manual 355 in any circumstance and decided to wait for the right 355 F1 to come along and eventually it did. If I hadn't bought the Mondial first, I would have most likely gone for a manual 355 and never consider the F1. Another sub-poll that I think would be interesting was one targeted at manual owners: how many tried an F1 on the road before buying a manual and/or how many have actually driven an F1 at all (prior and/or after purchasing their manual 355). *NOT* saying people only bought manuals because they didn't get to experience the thrills of the F1, otherwise they would have bought an F1 because it's better or more valuable. Best regards, Nuno.
Cheers, Nuno. And all the other "F1" guys here. I really don't care if someone prefers one transmission or the other, I just think there's a lot of biased crap on here, and it's about time it was called out for what it is. Any suggestion that a particular year or transmission is more valuable than another is rubbish. ALL 355s are superb cars, and they are all future classics. Just buy the best example of whatever variant you really want. You can't go wrong.
I travelled to see, drove and made an offer on a f1 355 spider identical to mine. At that point I had walked from another manual because of a ppi issue and had vetted maybe 6 over the phone and internet and was frustrated and impatient and said what the heck and made the offer. The seller wouldn't budge and that was that. I came home and thought hard about it and realized it wasn't what I wanted and I didn't pursue it further. I have since driven a 430 f1 quite a bit as well. It is what it is. My wife got in it and said oh this. has automatic transmission? It is a more modern car and it fits. The poll is in reference to 355s and being that is at the end of the era of gated Ferraris I think that many in terms of owning what is now becoming a classic Ferrari value a more traditional transmission thus the results of the poll.
I've been asked for a dealer's perspective on this debate. From a valuation perspective, a 6-speed gated manual 355 generally can be priced higher than an F1. One variable is that people that want an F1 really want an F1. Sometimes, people don't care; they just want a 355. (I am in the process of selling a 355 F1 Spider. The buyer hadn't driven an F1, but once he did, he was sold on the F1.) Another variable is that some people just want a later model car, with all of the updates (perceived or not), and most of the 98 and 99 cars on the market are F1. But, from a pure valuation perspective, the gated manual carries a premium. I will keep my personal opinion out of this discussion.
I dont suspect this is true when it comes to year. I have heard from one dealer first hand that a 99 will be priced higher than a 97 per say. I believe this to be true (taking into account they are equal in maint, mileage and condition)
First off..I love your ex car..White 95 GTS!!..first comment about the price..yeah that seems a little crazy..black wheels i dont like..thats why i said he must have ruined it...to buy a car sight unseen..no ppi either..comment speaks for itself..but nothing against your car..Love it!
