Yes I was told that too some time after I'd already ordered my 488 when I'd asked about if there was to a special version and when it would be available, but the VS was never any motivation for me to buy the 488. As you point out Shack, 488 ownership over here was quoted to be a key entry criteria for Pista and without it forget Pista regardless of who you are or what may have been previously purchased - never any mention of Lusso being part of the Pista equation. Maybe they only tried that one on buyers they knew they could work the Lusso into lol.
I hear you, and we've all been there. Stay with it is my recommendation, and stuff happens. But I understand fully if people think life is too short. For me Ferrari has been a life long passion from a very young kid so moving to another manufacturer in anger because I missed out on specials would be cutting my nose big time. And I considered it on a few occasions. Instead I thought, sod it, and bought an F40 in 2011 and F50 in 2014 from outstanding independent specialists. There are other ways to skin the cat. Regarding the Pista, my gut feeling is dealers and the public thought volumes would follow the Speciale's volumes, and dealers have been caught out by a reduced Pista number. Not LE as we know but not Speciale numbers either. The replacement 488 is around the corner and with the not so well kept rumour of Kers, it promises to be a junior LaF. The Pista will be awesome (and I'm delighted to have one) but the replacement 488 sounds like it will be sensational.
They were 100% consistent with me i.e. 488 ownership was mandatory. BTW: try walk in Hermes and buy a Birkin bag for your wife - no different 2+ year wait list and you need to buy some other products first. Try buy a Patek 5711 / 5712 - Forget it same story. I really dont get why people get so fired up over this issue
I don't have a 488, but I have the 458S and 458SA both new through them, so I guess that helped. Certainly no mention to me ever of the GTB. Cheers.
Agree life is too short to be cutting of one's nose to spite ones own face just because one missed out or felt entitled in some way to something only to be later deemed as not qualified. There is always a next time. It can can get worse if we ourselves make it worse.
I understand your frustration but really I don't feel this way is the best way forward. Personally, I would not do that as I've seen some examples of this happening and it hasn't wound up to expectations. Then you only look (and feel) more of ******. The next car will also be brilliant as camlet1 has pointed out.
I appreciate all the input and discussions from everyone. The only reason I brought up this question was because I'd never been asked by the dealer to get something else before getting my desired car, throughout the years they have always been able to get me one of the early builds at the dealership starting with the Scud, 599, 458, Speciale, F12, 488 Spider, and now 812 without ever asking me to get something else first. This is the first time so I'm a just bit surprised and wanted to ask if you guys are hearing the same.
Curious...wonder if more buzz and desire for this car than when the Speciale was first being introduced?
I have not been asked anything to get a Pista allocation, so there could be different factors at play here - from some slides of the dealers presentation, one criteria was to have had a 488 GTB (the spider was not mentioned) for more than one year, which I comply with. I think a V8 special series owned for more than 2 years was also mentioned, if you did not keep your Scud or Speciale that long it may be that you did not comply with any of Ferrari initial criterias. Then the dealer is willing to take advantage of it, since it does not seem to be a requirement (from the factory) to buy a Lusso to get a Pista; it could be that by selling some Lusso the dealer will be closer to a required product mix and get more Pista allocations as a result, but again I do not think it is a direct requirement for the customer. Another strange thing is that at this stage most people being approved for allocation have been told so, and I'm not sure where additional ("conditional") cars will come from - if some dealers have "spare" allocations and put some new requirements, how could they know they'll get exactly the right number of people accepting?
Not in the two geo's I purchase in. In fact as of two days ago my local dealer still had no idea how many cars they would receive let alone who would get them
Today I went in to my San Diego dealership. Over the years I bought a 360, 575, Challenge Stradale, 430, 430 Spider, Scuderia and then another Scuderia. All the cars purchased from them I traded them back to them. When they thought the Dino name was going to be brought out again I loaned them one of my Dino's to display in the showroom. I asked if I could buy a Pista, and I was told I was not a top tier customer but if I bought a Lusso they MIGHT consider me. They said I did not rank high enough to even buy a 488 but that I could possibly buy one that someone didn't go through with their purchase, but I would have to pay a premium. I won't ever darken their doors again and I'm sure they could care less!!!
Very odd. I thought they were or had opened up a store in the Desert cities? One of my neighbors buys through them and they have been very easy with the allocations (first car was 458 spider brand new then traded in and brand new 488 spider). He was told that they have plenty of Pista allocations and that he could get one (convo didn't get far because he turned it down before the possible purchase of lusso could come up, if at all).
Employees/managers often switch jobs or seek opportunities, so those individuals you did so much business with and favors for may have left, meaning all is left for naught. Really sucks to be in the "what have you done for me lately" mentality. Regarding allocations, just hang in there... as I've mentioned way earlier, if you want one and have the history, you will get one. So much misinformation on forums be people "in the know" basing their info on dealer nonsense. Pay attention to what is said towards the end of the video (1:17 mark):
I believe Pista allocation is only an issue in official dealers in which there are more demand than supply (most if not all Ferrari official dealers in the US). In my country, official dealer sells on average 2 cars a month in a good year. If I said I wanted a Pista, I seriously doubt they'd give me a hard time. There are a lot of things that may seem strange to non-Ferrari owners and customers, and we as owners and customers endure a lot: waiting lists, overpriced items, etc. Buying a car you don't want only to have access to the one you do want doesn't seem nice, nor is one of the things I like to endure as a brand's customer. Some things I have to accept, to keep the brand's aura of exclusivity. Stuffing a car down my throat isn't one of them. Kind regards, Nuno.
It is early days, think US cars are not due until Jan '19 for the first ones so let's wait and see how things shake off. Wouldn't be surprised to see more movements next year and few allocations available
It does seem that there is a finite production period particularly for cars destined for European markets. I heard from my dealer today that due to some Euro 2020 noise/emission rules, ALL models with variations of the twin turbo V8 must be registered by the end of 2019. Production of European Pista's will therefore end completely by Oct/Nov 2019. That is quite a short run.
Any idea when actual production starts for Europe? US cars seem to start late 2018 Nov-Dec for Jan '19 delivery earliest
Wow, they said you didn't rank high enough to even buy a 488, while there are many many 488 now on the market with discount. Did you check properly that it's not the cleaning service guy you were talking to???
I noticed that, too. Which, presumably, means anyone can get one, the only caveat being that you might wait longer if you're not one of the chosen few.
