slightly unbelievable but true story. need advice

Nope. Studly dads have relationships with their sons. Even/especially the dads who can only afford a Civic their whole life. As someone wrote earlier, life is complicated. Studly dads do their best to work through that. I write this with nothing but the absolute most respect for Beau. Sounds like at least he has the right mindset and priorities.

Beau, this is a really cool car. If you can make the numbers make sense, do it. For YOU and YOUR son.

And what's with all the "NATO" talk? Has nothing to do with "NATO", but is the Italian word for "born", i.e., birthdate. "Nato il xxx a New York..." Born on xxx in New York.

Keep us posted. Great story!

 

You are right !! me wrong. But what about the licenses plate ? must be a special one in Italy .

 

its just an EE plate meaning the italian tax has not been paid since it is destined for export.
but they fooled around with this in the 80's and you could just extend the waiting period.....

 

Hey Beau, did you see the recent post, “Who needs a parts car?” I see some headlights there that might just work!

 

anyone know if 89 headlights fit on an 85?

 

I think everything is the same through the 512 TR.

 

Check Ricambe and see if there are numerous part numbers for the item you seek. If not - it should fit.

https://www.ricambiamerica.com/

 

Interesting story. If your father was military connected, I'd try to get in touch with someone to review whether you would need to pay the taxes. Even at 2.5%, it could be a hefty chunk of change. It has had the US EE plates, so in limbo somewhere.

I wouldn't be surprised if the father was keeping up with the rent, at least until he passed away. So, rent due would only be minimal. Review the contract with respect to damage and theft. Insurance (either your father's, or for the facility) might be able to fork over some for the missing parts. Hard to say when the dents showed up depending on how the father drove. I do see some curb rash which is likely your father's.

What is missing?

• Headlights
• Taillights
• Rear grill
• Some kind of air intake?
• Mirror Lens
• ???

Unfortunately a lot of things get very expensive very quickly. But, as mentioned, Italy may be a good place to start the search.

I can't tell the difference,but would Metric wheels be problematic? Or if the car was at least partially US Specced, I suppose one would need to check what kind of wheels are actually included.

You haven't said how the car got stuck in Italy, but with EPA/DOT, it may have gotten stuck for the fist 25 years.

If you do decide to sell it, pay your $15 membership here, and give the people on this board the first crack at it. Of course there is also E-Bay in the USA as well as in Italy.

 

Ricambi had to take the Parts diagrams down.

Let him decide which way he's going, and a CoPart salvage or any other recycler is the way forward, IMO.

I have had a car sit "waiting on payment" for reairs and it also shedded parts as this one has done....they restored an identical car sitting beside it.

 

Take it here. The level of skill is incredible.
Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login View attachment 1404761

 

It has been a while since I have been in Italy, but they had a unique sense of integrity.

They would cheat at taxes. At least at that time, for example, they would write out a restaurant receipt. Then if a previous customer left it on the table they'd simply give it to the next customer.

And, I think they cheated at board games... as part of the game. But, I can't believe they would cheat at Briscola or Scopa, at least not a lot.

You could hand a shop keeper a handful of Lira (yes, that dates me a bit), and they'd pick out the money they wanted and hand the rest back. Go to a shop and everyone crowds in front. Then after a while the shopkeeper would point to the tall American standing in the back.

Anyway, it is not surprising if they had a faceless customer that nobody had seen for decades that the car would slowly lose a few parts.

On the other hand, go meet them in person, sit down for some Caffè, or some Grappa, and it is quite possible that they would make it right. In a sense, this is their company's reputation that is on the line.

 

You should be able to check and identify part numbers here; and availability of the part in the uk anyway.

https://www.ferrariparts.co.uk/

 

UK headlight lenses are different than US headlights, of course. Although the buckets and mechanism is likely the same.

 

Try this...

https://www.allferrariparts.com/ppa174.html

 

I think you misunderstood the ferrariparts.co.uk link. Maranello Classic Parts in the UK supply parts for all Ferrari market versions. I'm not sure exactly what their current arrangement with Ferrari is but they did have the worldwide franchise for all parts for Ferraris more than 5 years out of production. The website currently says "we are the only official Ferrari classic parts distributor in the world and have the most Ferrari parts in one place".

 

EE license plates: "EE" stands for "Escursionisti Esteri" which just means/translates into "Foreign Tourists" (or rather "Foreign Wanderer"). These Italian plates are customs license plates (no duty paid yet) for cars that can be driven during six months or a year and thereafter the car has to be exported to some other country. Since this TR hasn't left Italy yet NO taxes have been paid anywhere. If it is exported out of Italy to, say the U.S., import and registration taxes have to be paid in USA. Or any other country.
EE plates are usually issued for foreign people (non Italians) who picked up a car directly at the factory, drove the vehicle for a short time (up to one year) in Europe and thereafter had it officially imported into their country of residence.

Marcel Massini

 

Good morning all! I appreciate everyone trying to help me figure out what to do. It appears the #1 issue plaguing this car is the EE plate situation. Apparently no Italian taxes have ever been paid. So far no one knows how I can avoid the situation. With the amount of money I would need to restore this car on top of the tax issue, I don’t see a way out. If this is the final verdict, I am going to have to sell it as is (parts car). I appreciate the numerous members who have tried to help me in this ordeal. If anyone knows of an Italian vehicle tax/registration attorney or specialist, I would like to discuss my options with them. Aside from that, if anyone wants to discuss purchasing the car,

 

sent you a pm.
this is italy, where there is a will there is a way !

 

I think the best choice would to bring the car to the USA as-is.

Part of the problem is that Italy may want to tax the car at its 1984 value. It is quite likely that the rest of Europe would be the same. The UK might be OK, but of course RHD vs LHD.

If sold and brought to the USA, it shouldn't need to pay European taxes, and should be taxed in the USA on arrival at the sale price. DOT restrictions would be minimal. It may need an O2 sensor upgrade, but even that might be skipped if non-running.

And, of course, bringing it unrestored would mean lower tax burdon and allow the new buyer to choose how to restore it.

I have sent a PM to the OP. Unfortunately, at this point I have no good idea how to valuate it. I read most of the thread a few weeks ago, and am well aware of the asking price for new/used spare Ferrari parts, bodywork, paint, etc. And soon to learn the wonders of pulling an engine/transmission every time one wishes to do basic service.

I.E. Even with low miles, a car to be restored, missing parts, is far different from one that is showroom ready. There undoubtedly is a huge amount of "scrap value" in it, but my experience with scrappers is they will rarely give a fair deal. And, of course, I'd hate to see a very nice restoration candidate head to scrap.

 

OK, this thread has "sunk" and as there are some side bar activity on other websites, I just came back to tell a story.....

I had dinner with my son a very successful young man, and toward the end, after dinner....we had to cover some hard subjects:
He had announced his wedding to a young lady I really like...so, it was time to share some tales SHE had never heard, and my son had not either....

So "Life was discussed"...children, yes or no......his brothers and sisters living and dead...:/...and my Will.

He has collected some fine bourbons and scotchs, because "he's my boy obviously"...

Leaving as we had discussed my Will (complicated I am trying to simplify it, but the Hooters waitress wife of my own is looming)..

At the end of the night he burst into tears, saying "Put the Ferrari back into Special Instructions, as I could not BEAR to LOSE it, because of all these women you date and the ********!"

So to the OP, perhaps I am between what you enjoyed with you father, and what you have wisely created with your own sons.
But they gave you the answer...

You cannot change the past, you can only build the future.....
And for myself, there's other cars and Ducatis in the garage, my son only asked the ONE thing, and I am calling my attorney in the morning.....bring your blue TR home....

 

See you in the Owner's Forum, where my dancing girls are wild on the tables!!

Woooot!

 

This, exactly.....

Really a TR expert, some one like Rifledriver, would have this car ready for Keels and Wheels where the story alone would bring huge attention...

 

here in Italy a lot of shops can fix perfectly that single mirror Testarossa without spending too much money, so that's not a problem at all: the real problem is the EE plate. It's a gamble, as if the custom asks for something, you could face an out of mind money request from Italian Motor department due to not paid VAT and the fine for a 35 years delay.

Or maybe they won't ask anything: as said it's a gamble. I did my best and asked many experts here but the average answer was "better not taking the risk". But the car is very nice, a silver low miles single mirror with some missing parts and some minor body damage: I inspected it here in Fiorano.

ciao

 

i have conferred with the op and offered a few different suggestions, and called a few people on his behalf.
imo, this car could easily be exported as-is to the usa, pay the import duty on the value at transfer of title - ie in the last few months and therefore in the condition in which you now see it, and i see that at $30-40k.
the transport/logistics cost would total around $10k, so for $40-50k the op would have a starting point on the restoration here in the usa, where eventually it could be brought back from the dead and become a contributing member of his family, and valued around $120-150k.

if the op decided NOT to do this, anyone on here could buy it from him, and import it to the usa with the same math, except that the only person for whom spending the restoration $ is worthwhile for is the OP.....
those EE plates would only trigger an italian tax bill if the car were worked on there and tried to be registered there - the trick as Albert said is that you just engage somebody who can manage the risks in your favor.

 

I am going to try and keep the car. My kids really want it. It’ll be a fun/frustrating project I’m sure. Just need to figure out how to get it into the US. Haven’t found anyone who has dealt with this issue yet. May need an attorney in Italy or someone who specializes in knowing how to export this thing safely. If anyone knows anyone who could be of help, I’d appreciate if