What Price Would You Consider to be a Fair Offer for this 348?

Without a full PPI from a professional with 348 experience, I wouldn't touch it. The "rebuilt" title, as described from a seller's ad, can mean anything (e.g. the worst repair imaginable).

 

Oh, and knock $10K off for presenting the car with its front wheels on backwards*.

(*makes me think they don't know anything about the car)

 

That car sold on eBay in February of this year for $34,421. It looked like a very nice car for that price. The previous seller seemed very forthcoming in his listing but it doesn't show up in a "Completed Listings" search. Might be worth searching the VIN to see if the listing is captured anywhere, but here's the text from the February auction so you have a better idea of what you're looking at:

Realize that Ferrari buyers are typically *very* put off by salvage titles, so consider that heavily in your pricing strategy. And yellow isn't everyone's cup of tea, so realize this car would probably not be a quick resell unless it were priced way under market (it's been offered on eBay a few times since the Feb auction, the price keeps dropping, and it hasn't sold yet).

Light switch: they all do it sooner or later. Repair is ~$500.
Alternator: probably can be rebuilt. See the relevant thread in the technical section of this forum.
Conventional wisdom says the car is overdue for a Major Service. Not going to open that can of worms other than to recommend that you do *lots* of reading in this section.

Looking at the pics from February, the right side of the rear bumper did not mate properly with the rear quarter panel. Looks like that's been mostly addressed through adjustment, but considering the damage history it's worth noting. The door shut lines look good from what the pictures show. The undercarriage looks straight. Some wheel scuffs, but those look like they could be resolved by simply repainting the wheels. Tires are probably timed out and in need of replacement. Interior needs a decent amount of TLC but it actually looks quite nice.

Without having seen the car in person any value estimate is just a guess. I get generally good vibes off the car itself, but I think the market spoke during the Feb auction. If you like yellow, prefer a less expensive car that you can bring up to spec with your own two hands, *and* you don't expect to have any reason to sell it in the foreseeable future I think the car is worth a bit more than the $34,421 it sold for a few months ago. After all, it is a TB and it's a fairly high SN TB for the US, both of which are pluses. But it carries a branded title, which is a clear and distinct value ding, and it's yellow, which is arguably a negative when it comes to resale. I'd say fair value is probably somewhere around $38k-- no more than $40k unless you really, really want a yellow TB.

BTW, I'm assuming you want the car for normal street use. If you're a track guy this car may have a bit more value for your purposes because it's a TB and because there's no reason to pay more for a pristine car if you're going to intrusively modify it.

HTH. and good luck!

Edit: the seller in February goes by the eBay handle of motogpdr in case you want to try to get in touch with him.

 

I echo Mike’s sentiments exactly. For $34k, I would have loved it as a track day toy, maybe even a Challenge-esque “replica”.

I second Mike on the value part. $38ish seems really fair. And if this is for a track day type car, I rather like yellow for that, even though I’m generally not a fan of yellow Ferraris—and this is coming from a guy who owns another yellow car.

Good luck!

 

I'm with Mike on most of this.... The 'black' on the lower suggests 1989/early 90's, older, and less upgrades/ .If you're looking for a 'Drivers' car, lots of negotiation built in! Vehicle will need a Major, has had a 'Rebuilt' title, Paint, and who knows what else. A decent Major, done by yourself= min $2K plus..., done by shop... min$5K going to $10K+, unless there are a plethora of documents....! YELLOW is where I differ..... I've had the RED/TAN in past... and was truly happy finding a Yellow... although Grigio will be in my future. LOL! Something about being a bit different! That said, RED will always catch a 'newbie' buyer. Ferraris' (especially 348s) can be reasonable if you're prepared, and do the work yourself. If you're a 'dealer' kind of guy... be very careful as your house can be up for sale soon!!! LOL! I'd work with a # around $38K.... that being said, have your 'knowledge' down pat, as to 'redirect' after the owner replies, "not a hope in Hell!"
My other thought is to go though a proper PPI, knowing full well that the Inspection will turn up both major & minor headaches. Both of you will be at crossroads in negotiation at that point, but the PPI will speak for you(most probably)
good luck, Yellow stands out from all the RED... LOL!

 

If you don't care about future value/resale, this could be a good deal.

 

Get a PPI then you can make an educated decision.

 

A rebuilt or salvage title cuts the value of the car in half. The insurance companys don't want to scrap a Ferrari, the cost of a proper repair excided the the cars value, someone cut corners to fix it. Find a nice car with a better history.

Sent from my SM-G950U using FerrariChat.com mobile app

 

This wouldn't be the famous "Golf Club" incident car of a couple of years ago?


Sid

 

no that car was a red/tan TS...lets not go there again

 

Sorry but I’m my opinion every single statement you made here is completely false, exaggerated, or your own assumptions with no basis in reality.

 

Looks like the OP is another hit & run poster. Joined on Saturday, posted once, hasn't been back since.

 

+1

 

Yellow is a tough color for Ferraris and the salvage title is also a very big detriment to most. While salvage titles definitely knock a car's value significantly (sometimes 50%), in the Ferrari world it's not that much. I personally wouldn't spend more than $30k on this car because it's going to be a tough one to sell if you ever need to. If that's not a concern, then you can pay a few thousand more. Otherwise, just spend 40 something and get one with no such history.

 

Not sure if OP is still on these boards, but I'd suggest a "no stories" car is a better choice for a first Ferrari. This isn't a "no stories" car.

 

Agree

 

Rookie question: how can you tell the wheels are on backwards please

 

The rears in the top pic are correct, the fronts are not. The venting is intended to pull air our of the wheelwells, so the narrow part of the spokes should be toward the trailing edge in forward rotation. Maranello spent a ton of time finessing the 348 in a wind tunnel. The wheels were undoubtedly a part of that effort.

 

Mnemonics are best - Angle Follows Flat, or AFF.

From the manual...
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Is that a verifiable fact or person deduction? I wouldn't put it past Ferrari to produce/try a wheel as an air management device, but clearly they did not further develop the technology on subsequent models. My off hand take on the 348 wheel was that is was meant to evoke "motion/speed" even while not moving. This is the first I've ever heard the wheels as an aero devices and would be interesting to know if that was in fact the intent.

 

perhaps the wrong way is would have be more correct functionally? seems like you would want to pump air out of the wheel wells for better aero and brake cooling

 

Yuuup BBS was doing a lot of that in the 80s on prototype cars