Has Ferrari Lost It's Luster?

Yep, fast but ugly doesn’t cut it . Beauty becomes more scarce and more valuable by the day. They don’t make it anymore….

 

Problem is what younger generations think is 'beautiful' is very different than what older generations do.

The current young Ferrari buyers grew up on Transformers cartoons and toys and thats what they think is cool

 

True but they dont have such great sales either

 

Ferrari could pin a Cavallino badge on a turd, and it would sell out.

 

And they have indeed done so

 

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Ferrari has been becoming just another auto company swimming in a sea of so many other so called exotic marques. In addition, they are putting out more models than ever before, making them even more , just another car company. All good things eventually end . Corp greed is the culprit.

 

Only because of how limited they are. If Ferrari increased the qty by 2x they wouldnt sell out.

 

What if they painted it resale red?

 

WTF is that?

 

From my 75 year old POV, without discussing racing, financial/business, marketing, or social aspects:

Ferrari road cars became a lost cause after the 365 GT 2+2. Over the next 25 years, there were a few high spots, then an all too brief return to greatness with the 360, 550/575, and 458. Afterwards, I lost count and don’t really give a rat’s rear end.

footnotes
- I’m eternally thankful for having had the privilege of owning an Enzo-era V12, albeit an “ugly duckling” 4-headlight 330
- with just one more silly liter, the 308 would have been an awesome car, one for the history books. As it was, somewhat of a mediocrity.

 

It’s the new Ferrari 12 Cindi.
Perfect for the comment.

 

If they ever catch the ugly stick that inflicted all that damage it will be burned at the stake.

 

Ferrari should have never let PininFarina go. Now everything is designed “in house”. Big mistake when all the cars look the same.

Bring back the companies that know how to design a car. Scaglietti, PiniFarina, Vignale, Ghia….these were houses with great individual designers. Now Ferraris are designed by committee. Notice the 12 Cilindri uses the copy of the Daytona’s nose. No talent using old designs.

 

"Harking back to the days of Pininfarina's better designs" is an odd sales pitch.

 

A couple of years ago I was at a small event where Maurizio Corbi (designer of the F355 working at Pininfarina) hand sketched a car design on a piece of paper that was then auctioned off a few minutes later.

Took him maybe 25 minutes?

Tell me this isn't incredible...

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I felt pretty stupid for not bidding on it. Think it went for $750?

 

I am only 72:: Ferrari lost me when they quit manual transmissions.

The only thing wrong with the 308 was it did not have 125 HP/litre.
With 125 HP/litre nobody would be thinking the 308 was an underperformer.

 

As long as there is demand, the aftermarket will figure out how to make or fix it.

 

125 hp/liter is not exactly trivial for naturally aspirated engines. If I am not mistaken, the first series production Ferrari to breach that threshold was the 458.

So nothing wrong with the 308 in that regard ... can't expect carbs or K-jetronic to be as efficient as GDI

 

Because I am an “old-timer”…..lol
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That really puts the modern cars to shame aesthetically.

You don't have to be an old-timer. I grew up in the '80s, but the cars that top my personal want list (money no object) were all designed in the '50s and '60s. Ferrari and Pininfarina were at the top of their game, with Porsche, Jaguar, Alfa and Lamborghini producing iconic or at least elegant cars. As I posted earlier, I think Ferrari is a casualty of the era. Performance has robbed style. Not that you'll ever see one on the road, but a Daytona Spyder or Islero just buries the new stuff in terms of presence. It's like having George Clooney in your high school play.

 

Jon, you can add easy to repair and good investment to your list too. Needing/selling 7 year service plans on newer cars makes you wonder?

 

This is the 330 GTS i grew up with. My dad bought it when I was 18. The girls loved it!! I convinced the new owner to bring the 330 to the car show in Highlands NC. He asked if he could bring another Ferrari? He has a 250 Lusso and a Daytona Spyder too! Sure!!
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Well I guess I am naive. I never realized there were Ferrari buyers that this was just an investment game too. I assumed the high end models that went to guys who had bought a certain number of Ferraris were actually car guys, not bean counters.

Sure, there are always low mileage cars that pop up on BaT. But maybe now more than in the past. Again, call me ignorant.

I never bought a car with a thought of profit. I always assumed it was lose money, especially if I spent a lot of money restoring it.

To me LdM killed the marque. The day he started offering side shields as an ordinary option was the day he sold the soul of the company. Eliminating the manual transmission was the final blow.

I just can't believe there are guys that sit around calculating depreciation on these cars. I guess the answer is they are not car guys, they may as well be dealing in art or wine, it doesn't matter.

 

From the perspective of someone who got into the brand with the 458...It's...challenging. Whatever company wide ethos prevailed in allowing the red engine start button and analogue tach to be replaced represents all that is wrong.

I agree the design has more or less gone in the wrong direction.

If Ferrari was listening to their customers and the market IMO (but it will never, ever, ever happen)

A basic mid engine NA V8, power not important (fast enough), that Revs to 9K plus. Gated manual optional. No screens anywhere. A built in phone holder and decent bluetooth. Physical and timeless buttons, controls, and gauges. All the min regulatory crap needed and nothing else. Price is $300K and get rid of the mandatory min spec bs, include all the necessary stuff as standard. Offer the car to anyone who bought Pista/F8/296/SF90/12Cyclindri new as an olive branch. Everyone who bought can order a car however they want, if they refuse then it goes into a general pool. Beyond that, limit production.

Anyway, my impossible wishes aside, there's just too many cars being made by all the exotic brands at prices the market is no longer willing to bear for an experience that is becoming less proprietary. At $300K reasonably specced new a 296 would be great. at $450K avg spec, you're staring at a 50% haircut in a timeframe previously reserved for an Aston. Tough pill.