488 - First time exotic - What to ask dealer to inspect before buying vehicle? | FerrariChat

488 First time exotic - What to ask dealer to inspect before buying vehicle?

Discussion in '458 Italia/488/F8' started by MishaTexas, Mar 23, 2024.

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  1. MishaTexas

    MishaTexas Rookie

    Mar 23, 2024
    5
    Full Name:
    Misha S
    Hello All! After a few years of patience and consideration, I have decided to make the decision of getting my first exotic. Having tried the Huracan Tecnica, Mclaren 720s performance spider, and 488 GTS - the 488 gave me the biggest grin. Although I seriously considered the Mclaren due to its speed and style, the closest dealership is 4 hours away and the reliability issues were worrisome. I am 27 and worked hard myself to get to this position, so it is a nerve-wracking occasion.

    My local San Antonio Ferrari dealer just got a 2019 488 GTS on consignment with 10,500 miles. Rosso fiorano with beige alcantara interior. Fully optioned out with a sticker of ~$430K, Tubi Exhaust, full PPF, Capristo engine bay glass, lowered, and on Cup 2 tires. It has completely clean service records and was tracked 5 times at Circuit of the Americas with dealer inspections before and after each event. It also will be CPO with 2 more years of warranty, and still has 2 more years of free maintenance. I'm planning to keep this car for a long time ~10 years. Pictures attached.

    Due to all this, I have put a deposit for the car but it has not been inspected by the dealer yet.

    I have the following questions:

    1) Is there anything specific to watch out for?
    2) How much life would the rotors have at this mileage? I asked the dealer to take them off and weigh them, but they said in their CPO inspection they will only check the pad wear.
    3) Is it worth taking off the Cup 2s and putting regular Sport 4s on them? I want to track the car once or twice, but will use it as a weekend fun car.
    4) What is it OK to ask the dealer to fix? For example, some of the seals for the roof seem to be a bit crooked and not perfectly straight.
    5) Do dealers check for any fluid leaks during the CPO inspection process?
    6) Should I trust the dealer or look for a separate PPI?
    7) How bad are the 5 track days for such a car? They were official Ferrari events.
    8) Is the mileage considered "high" as far as wear and tear?
    9) When driving it, one of the front brakes was quite noisy. Is this just because the car hasn't been cleaned yet? I believe it's normal for CC rotors?

    Many thanks! Looking forward to hopefully being a member of the community soon.

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    Cigarzman likes this.
  2. Trev450

    Trev450 Formula Junior

    Mar 11, 2024
    623
    UK
    Full Name:
    Trevor H
    WRT rotor wear, a Ferrari tech told me that they can judge the wear based upon an algorithm in the ECU that assesses how the car has been driven and calculates the percentage they've worn. This data is part of the health check they have to do for the pre warranty inspection and should be available to potential buyers.

    The Cup 2's will be fine unless you plan to use the car in heavy rain.
     
    Caeruleus11 and MishaTexas like this.
  3. Carbon777

    Carbon777 Karting

    Dec 9, 2023
    77
    Westminster CO
    Nice car but a few things to consider....

    1. CPO from Ferrari (5-6K) is somewhat worthless unless the car is bone stock and then they still might deny any claims regardless.
    2. Aftermarket exhaust will void any factory warranty on the exhaust system including turbos.
    3. Track days, who knows if they can test this but Ferrari is known for denying warranty claims so be informed.
    4. Brakes rotors fine, pads likely ok but might need scrubbed if the squeak. CPO will tell you wear index.
    5. Just use the existing tires unless they are excessively worn, lets face it you are not going to drive it like F1.
    6. Have the dealer fix all they can find and keep your wallet handy for the rest.
    7. Find a good dealer that wanted to retain your business long-term otherwise warranty work is a nightmare.

    All exotics have some issues so the initial cost is just that "initial". The real cost is ownership!

    Drive it, enjoy the car and be informed.
     
    Eric C likes this.
  4. Clembo

    Clembo Formula Junior

    Buy it.

    Press the Start Button.

    Take it out of Auto.

    Drive really fast to the first corner.

    Only slow a little.

    Whip around it.

    Accelerate like hell again.

    Keep doing that and you won't care how many things break and how much you will spend :)
     
    Carbon777 and rob5819 like this.
  5. dgoldenz94

    dgoldenz94 Formula Junior

    Apr 13, 2020
    647
    Las Vegas
    Full Name:
    David Gold
    How did they CPO the car with lowering springs and exhaust on it?
     
    Carbon777 likes this.
  6. Carbon777

    Carbon777 Karting

    Dec 9, 2023
    77
    Westminster CO
    Dealers can CPO anything but it is ultimately not up to them but Ferrari North America
     
    Voda likes this.
  7. dgoldenz94

    dgoldenz94 Formula Junior

    Apr 13, 2020
    647
    Las Vegas
    Full Name:
    David Gold
    Every car I looked at that had lowering springs or an exhaust I was told couldn’t be CPO’d
     
  8. 05F430F1

    05F430F1 F1 Rookie
    BANNED

    Oct 22, 2005
    3,600
    Fort Lauderdale, Florida
    Full Name:
    Todd
    That is incorrect.


    Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
     
  9. 05F430F1

    05F430F1 F1 Rookie
    BANNED

    Oct 22, 2005
    3,600
    Fort Lauderdale, Florida
    Full Name:
    Todd
    That is correct


    Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
     
  10. AD211

    AD211 Formula 3
    Owner Rossa Subscribed Silver Subscribed

    Aug 19, 2017
    1,232
    South Carolina
    Full Name:
    Andy
    You are successfully channeling the other Todd!


    Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
     
    05F430F1 likes this.
  11. MishaTexas

    MishaTexas Rookie

    Mar 23, 2024
    5
    Full Name:
    Misha S
    Thank you, all, for the replies! I ended up buying the car last week and have already put over 500 miles on it! I'll be daily driving it and am having a blast. Managed to go viral on the Ferrari subreddit with some pictures of it :)
     
    Giallo27, gabf1, AD211 and 1 other person like this.

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