Have You Consolidated Your Car Collection to Attain a Grail - (F40!)?

The F40 is without a doubt a dream car. The questions that I would ask myself if I were thinking about getting one:
Will I feel comfortable using a vehicle worth $1M+... would I be ok leaving it parked? Would I be ok driving it in roads with holes and rocks that could damage it? Because of its current elevated value and potential for appreciation, would I enjoy it or would I be so concerned about it that would hinder the experience?

I have seen this going both ways... one of my friends will use his Enzo as there is no tomorrow; he racks up miles, don’t care much about rock chips, etc... his personality, approach towards Ferrari ownership and size of bank account allows him to enjoy the Enzo in such way without any concern. Another of my friends have a car of much less value but his approach is different as he is very conscious about mileage, rock chips, minor scratches, etc... When taking the car for dinner, he would be more concerned about what could happen to his car than to enjoy the food that he is having.

I fall somewhere between my two friends. When I traded my Scud for my Speciale, I noticed that I am a bit more concerned about the car than I was before... I still enjoy the Speciale tremendously but I can’t ignore the fact that it’s worth twice the money. To some degree, I don’t use it as freely and worry free as I would like.

I think everybody has their own thresholds and borders where “enjoying” the car starts to fade away and “suffering” the car starts to fade in. Knowing myself, I would not get an F40... not because I don’t love it but because $1M+ is beyond my threshold and I would be too concerned to fully enjoy it in public roads.

Only you know where your thresholds are.

Take care.



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Plastique999 -

Looks like the hunt is on ? This will be fun to watch.

MDS

 

I know of a 92 F40 whose owner is thinking of selling. Dm me.

 

When I saw the thread title and starter I was about to say not to sell the cgt for an f40, but those cars you named is a no brainer. F40 and cgt is a very sweet garage indeed! Get it done I say.

 

You are correct sir.... I’d say this will be a long journey of which I’ll happily chronicle. But the Engine “Start” button has been pushed.
16M is for sale and my MurcieSV is being shipped up to Roy Cats to sell....will see what happens.
No rush and researching for now...


Sent from my 16M

 

^^^

Good luck - I’m excited for you - the hunt can be the best part !!

Please keep us posted.

MDS

 

Cool topic.. enjoy the hunt! Hope to see you enjoying you F40 soon.

I’ve a couple of ‘weekend cars’... long term I think I’ll just keep the one that provides the most thrills... time will tell!


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Congrats on making the consolidation. Out of curiosity how are you planning to purchase the F40 - private, dealer, broker? Are you looking worldwide (row car) or US? Miles or not? I’m looking to get one too so I wondered what your approach is and what F40 you’re ultimately after. Maybe we can share notes along the way...

 

That would be great to compare notes, let’s keep in touch for sure. Right now, I’m trying to collect as much info as possible from current owners and such. I’ll take my time for sure...will look in the U.S. first and since I like to drive my cars I don’t mind one with some miles 5-15k miles, well documented....any help/advice will be appreciated.


Sent from my 16M

 

My question for you is what do you love about the cars you have now? If you like the pin point precision of the Speciale and CGT, the F40 is not really like that. The F40 is great, but you have to be on it, and you will want many twisty roads, it's not a car to dawdle down the road. You can enhance safety by moving to more modern rubber- just like CGT. The F40 exhibits a considerable bit of understeer at low to medium speeds. I interpret this as old fashioned safety. I'm sure this can be dialed out to some degree, though the crazy difference in front rear tire width as well as track is really designed to create understeer. It's a car that really needs to run and be driven, and run at least semi frequently- the more the better. You can get away with letting it sit for a few weeks at a time (3-5 max), but thats about it. Regular annual service at an independent costs around $1,500/ year. But then there are the differed maintenance items. For example, rebuild fuel system because the car sat for too long in the prior owners possession, that could be $20-30k! I would definitely recommend replacing all fuel lines and if possible get rid of the cats as they just make a lot of extra heat and rob power. If you want to buy a driver then Id say look at cars with more like 9k+ miles. Also you will find yourself replacing things like ECUs that just go bad etc... Its an older car so you get these kinds of issues. But run through the gears at full throttle and you won't care one iota about all this stuff- its just warp speed!

 

What are the possible fungible DD’s? Space a consideration at all?

 

Thank you, very helpful!
Interesting you mention understeer, which is what my 16M felt like...perhaps factory sets it as such for safety as you mention.
Correct, each car definitely conveys a different driver feel. Speciale is nimble, CGT takes a lot of attention and manhandling...would love to feel an F40 for how it drives, especially with the V8 turbo, since most my cars are NA.
I’ll definitely do more research.


Sent from my 16M

 

Fungible?.....
I’m pretty max’d out at home with 7 covered spaces (5 garages spots and covered car bay) unless I add another lift. SUV’s sit outside.
So unloading 3 or 4 cars would free up more covered space...




Sent from my 16M

 

No issue with the rest of the cars and your plans, but the first thing you need to do is burn that minivan to the ground.

 

If I had the cars to do it, yes, I would probably cash them in for a particular special Ferrari, just not an F40 in my case, though.

 

Without a doubt they do it for safety. But I think at least the 16M has some modern helpers. The appeal of the F40 is you're on your own- totally. @ttforcefed will say You could think of it as a ~500hp super go-kart - and I completely agree!

The driving experience is very much old school. Heavy clutch, heavy steering, unassisted. No ABS. Even a heavy/ sticky feeling throttle for the first 1/10th of movement when you are going slow. You could drive the F40 in traffic, but I wouldn't love doing it very often! And make sure to wear closed toe shoes with the F40 because when you have the clutch in and you're turning the steering wheel, one of the links in the steering column can brush right against your toe sometimes! HOWEVER, get up to speed with the car and it comes alive. You don't think about any of that stuff because its no longer an issue. The clutch weighting really isn't an issue, you just fire the shifts home- bam, bam, bam, bam! And the lack of power steering doesn't matter, you get a lot of feel- terabytes per second by todays standard. The ride is not bone jarring and even somewhat comfortable, perhaps even better than many of todays supercars! People say the brakes are not up to snuff, maybe if you are going to the track, but for the street, as long as you know how to put your foot into it, the brakes never once have left me wanting. They do squeal when they are just barely warmed up but still relatively cool. Where I live I don't have enough opportunities to come down from high speeds frequently to really warm them up. So as I'm coming to a stop, the brakes are often squealing. I laugh, its part of the experience. But someone else might find it annoying. You can feel the air rushing past the body panels and into the cabin, as the weather stripping is more of a suggestion. When I wash the car I line the interior in towels, especially the floor panels, there always seems to be some water that gets in- but never on the seats! Go figure. I have never driven it truly 10/10ths on a circuit, just on public roads where I am a bit cautious about deploying the power too early out of the bends, but I do frequently give it the full beans when the road is straight. The power delivery is not really as on/off switch as some people say. I think they are going for dramatic effect. Its a nice progression from the mid 3000s- ~4,000 RPM, it does come on pretty quick, the revs build faster in a logarithmic way, but it all makes sense and you can meter it out with precision. Then when the car is really under power, the feeling of acceleration will rival any modern car. I guess all that power in a car weighing probably around 2,900lbs will do that.

It's all very analog and I think its one of those cars that rewards you the more you put in. And then there is the shape, one of the all time iconic shapes for a car. Which makes for an endearing long term ownership experience.

 

How would your shortlist look like?


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I had an f40 for a few years to add to my 246gts. I decided to off load one of them to reconcile purchase of another toy, a boat! I decided to sell the f40 which from a financial point of view was a disaster! However, the decision was made as the 246 was and remains a very useable car for regular use ( as long as it’s not raining!). Also still the most beautiful Ferrari ever made! The f40 was epic round goodwood, when I could bribe the noise monitors, but for road use not really viable in uk. Plus it frightened my wife! I am keen to drive my cars so from that point of view I made the right decision but......mmmm..... the sound of the f40 at full chat takes some beating! Overall I guess my approach is about enjoying the machines I am lucky enough to own rather than looking at them as investments locked up in an air conditioned store hardly ever being driven. Unless you have track access an f40 is tricky to use I reckon.

 

Well, in that value range I would say 275GTB or F50 would be my targets. Yes, they are very different cars, but I consider the 275GTB to be the quintessential Enzo era car and the F50 to be the most desirable...for me....of the Ferrari supercars.

 

I’m lucky enough to have an F40, Dino GTS, 458 Spider and an 812. The first to go would be the 812 and although a fantastic machine with fabulous engineering, somehow it doesn’t have quite the same emotion. The 458 is just a wonderful drivers car, modern and you can drive it anywhere with total confidence. The Dino is lovely to drive and just beautiful to look at. The F40 is something else. Mine has done 69km so I’m happy to drive it anytime (in the dry). It’s a whole different experience, a bit like taking a light aircraft out for a spin. I check the tyres and make sure everything is OK. Just starting it is exciting (incredible unique noise enhanced with a Tubi exhaust) and I leave it to warm up. Get in, close the door and buckle up (I swapped full harness belts for inertial reels - much better for road use). On the road it’s actually much easier to drive than you would imagine. You just wait for a clear road and you will be itching to get into second gear. As you get to 3-3.5k rpm the boost gauge starts to move, the noise increases, the turbos whistle and the power comes in. It’s not fast like the 458 but it’s the nearest thing to Hyperspace you will ever experience. Change up to third and repeat! It’s quite incredible. Lift off and get brilliant popping on the overrun. Own one and every time you stop for gas, people will tell you it’s their dream car and the one they had posters of on the wall when they were a kid. You will be proud to be part of the F40 history. It just has to be the last car you will ever sell....

 

Well said sir!

Also, if it matters at all, the F40 is one of those cars that just gets a ton of attention and its all, always, 100% positive. Non car people, car people, Porsche lovers, Ferraristi, you name it, they all love the F40.

 

That is quite the portrayal of automotive wonder!
I realize there is absolutely no comparison but your description describes the absolute bliss I felt when I used to race Lotus’ in LotusCupUSA...some of my most dreamiest experiences ringing out a go-kart like feel on track, albeit with a lot less power than an F40.
Thanks for reminding me that there still exists those pure automotive analogue machines. It is those intricacies and nuances of effort and quirks that can make a car so loved.


Sent from my 16M

 

I’m curious - how common is it for F40 owners to modify their cars? Admittedly, I’m a total purist, but I ask because it seems far less common (thankfully) for cars at this level to be modified, than say, 348’s or 360’s.

 

Amazing thread.