Rick.......

I saw your post about the Pantera. Cory is my mechanic. Great guy. Knows his stuff.

Anyway, I had a question. If you also love Ferraris and you were willing to go to 40K for this Pantera, why not take 25k and get yourself into a NICE carbed 308 so you can start enjoying the benefits (and negatives) of a Ferrari and its sound?? You would still have 15k left to do repairs (which would go a long way since you seem mechanically inclined).

I just don't understand. You obviously love Ferraris as you drive with a Ferrari club, have a Ferrari replica, chat on a Ferrari board. I just don't know why you just don't go and get a damned Ferrari. At least you could finally say you owned one!! And, at the end of the year, when you got to truly experience it, you could keep it or sell it and wouldn't lose a dime. But at least you would have gotten out of that replica and into the real deal. I really think you should try it.

What's the deal?? I am trying to understand your thought process here. I guess it would be like being in a "diamond club" where everyone wears their rings and talks about them and someone shows up with a CZ rock the size of Texas and says they like the sparkle and clarity of the CZ over the guy with the G color and S2 clarity diamond.

Yet, you could just go out and BUY a diamond. Might not be as big as the CZ, but still. I don't understand.

 

Rick can answer for himself and I'm sure he will. From having talked to him, I think he is just not into the 308. And I understand that.

The 308/328 are cool cars, which is why I have one, but they are not that hot to drive and besides that everybody seems to have one. You don't seem to like replicas, but I'd say in a quarter mile race Rick would smoke me with his Daytona. A small block Chevy just has so much more umpf.

So in short loving a Ferrari has many aspects to it. Just having one to say you own one isn't all there is.

Another argument pro Pantera and pro Replica is the maintenace cost. Also if you like to burn some rubber you don't have to worry about breaking the bank if something in the engine compartment lets go. I see a similar attitude with the Daytona replica guys in England: Worst case they buy another V12 from a Jag for another grant and replace the engine.

There is however one scenario I can think of where Rick buys a 308 and keeps it for a year: To visit the factory.

 

BTW: I hope we can keep this civilized. I heard you guys are talking to each other, so I don't expect a mud slinging contest.

However a thread like this has a good chance of getting emotional one way or the other, so fair warning to everybody. I'm taking no prisoners.

 

Now wait a dog-gone minute.....

Andeas, you got me all heated up and now you say you don't want to get into a big fight about it, huh? ......

just kidding

 

Ah, Billiam, how is that replica project of yours coming along? I hear you're building a Testarossa clone on top of your 365 2+2. Great idea!

 

Andreas,

The parts are in the hands of the Doctor. It is on his schedule now. There are 2 parts left to be X-Rayed, as for a projected date of completion, I dunno!

Actually, it is going to be a streched Fiat Topolino, front-engined V12!! I wanted to retain the 2+2 convenience, yet have a classic luxury/sports GT design.

Here is the progress so far.....
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I understand Rick, without actually talking to him about his thought process. While I think WAY too much about Ferrari's, love seeing them, go out of my way to go to dealers (was @ F of Denver the other day!), there are only 2 other F-cars I truly desire to own, a Dino and a Boxer. 360 would be nice for awhile, but all of the above are WAY too much $$$$ at this stage in my life. So, spackel in the holes with some more affordable cars that can be a whole lot of fun, and scratch a variety of those boyhood fantasies!
It ain't all about Ferrari's!
Pantera, stingray, old 911, all "affordable", loads of fun, boyhood dreams...

 

I can totally understand the Pantera, Stingray, 911, etc. I have had two of those afforementioned cars. I was hoping he would get the Pantera, but I was willing to bet he wouldn't. In fact, I was going to post that I would bet him $100 that says he didn't buy that car he was talking about. I just KNEW something was going to wreck the deal. Didn't foresee the owner going from a $42k sale price to, not accepting his $40k offer, and then raising his asking price to $45k. Never have heard THAT one before.

 

Not a huge replica fan, although one of my favorite Ferraris of all time is a "replica". Actually it is made from all Ferrari parts, but is made to look like a GT. I can not only live with that, but actually can LOVE that car. Not to mention it IS a Ferrari though.

I would imagine his car could beat yours and mine on a quarter mile. I have friends with Civics on the import scene who could beat a 360 in the quarter. Serious. SO that doesn't do much for me.

I really wanted him to get that Pantera. That would have been pretty cool and he would have been not only welcomed, but envied by some on drives, I am sure. Wish he would have.

 

Alright, I will throw this out there.....

I was sure Rick was NOT buying that Pantera and that something would come and wreck the deal. I was going to offer $100 in a bet that said he didn't buy that car. And I am sure he is not buying one anytime in the near future.

So I will offer this up...

POST EDITED>>>>>>>>>>

 

Better yet......

I will make it $200. Buy and title a driveable (or even repairable since you probably could do the work yourself) Ferrari/Pantera before Dec 31st and I give you $200. And if you don't, you peel the Ferrari badges off your car and send them to me.

What do you think??

 

I need another car like I need a hole in the head. BUT, I'm - a - gonna get another one soon....
what's in it for me????????????

 

I will buy you a sandwich sometime if we meet. If you are ever up in Madison, I will buy you a BBQ sandwich from Famous Dave's, the best BBQ around. And,if you are a cool guy, maybe an order of bread pudding with whipped cream and ice cream for dessert. If you are a jerk, you don't get dessert and you pay the tip.

Kind of the same treatment I get from my wife!! Ha!! ;-)

 

Ok thanks everyone but let me try to explain a few things.

1) No mud slinging - we did that once about replicars. I don't like to criticize anyone who likes cars no matter what they drive or how much thay put into it. Some people are just richer than others. Bottom line we are all Car Crazy. I am a lover of "ALL" cars not just the Ferrari. If I was able to win the lotto, I would need minimum three car haulers for the variety of cars, and yes only a few would be Ferraris or other Italian cars. Am I partial yes, for whatever reason would I try and do Pebble Beach and other shows each year?

2) I don't buy anything just to impress others, period, end of discussion! I buy for my own enjoyment and that's how I tried to raise my daughter.

3) Ferraris are fantastic toys but high insurance, maintenance, cost. I fell in love with a Daytona when I spotted one on the highway and litterally chaised it 20 miles till he pulled off and I was able to talk to the owner. It was a real Daytona Spyder and yes before Miami Vice. I've never seen or heard of it before but fell in love with it. Once Miami Vice came out and the replicars followed, there was my chance to build, (I love to build things) something that I thought I would never be able to buy. Gee the Spyder had a price of $90k back then. But here was the good part, the running gear was good old GM, not a VW or homebuilt. Good old American Iron, tested by engineers, yet affordable and "I" could build it for street racing , autocross, etc. However I built it again for myself for cruising and an occassional show. Three yrs later I never expected to have a winner, remember this was my first attempt of building a car, without the fancy garage and tool.s A true in the home garage attempt. I'm a Bastard child in most car circles, but you know what I don't give a damn, I built it for myself. I have no problem taking it to any show. I put up with comments for nearly 17 yrs with that toy and I can still sleep at night.

Now to buy a Ferrari just to have one. Who am I trying to impress? No offense to the 308/328 guys, but that model isn't for me. If I didn't go through a very meshy and costly divorce I probably would have bought a 348 or Testarossa by now. But I have to rebuild again. I just happened to see this group four Pantera on EBAY, Except for the color it is a copy of the first car poster that I had professionally framed and still hangs in my house. I always loved that model. When I saw it was a local I did jump, a tough decision when you are trying to rebuild, but this was going to be my 50'th B Day gift to myself, or a new Vette (sorry on the Ferrari). I did offer $40k and was able to drive that Beast, however according to Rich the owner, I guy came in at $47k, I couldn't match it, end of story.

There is a Rick's top ten list of toys that someday I might have, even one of them would be great. For now I am very content on my replicar and starting a new life. Hey does anyone need a Realtor? I have my license and plan to start using it again both for making some added cash (daugther starts college next year and I'm paying) and for some spec buying. This has been a paid commercial! So with the new friends that I met here over the past year I'll go on enjoying my love for cars.

 

I don't think Bill is showing his true colors as best as he can. I really don't think he has a contract out on Rick either. Bill has chatted with Skip and I ( along with many other Fchatters, ) in the past year or so and his will that has really worked hard to become a Ferrari owner is the best thing I know about him. I think he weighs his sacrifice of getting into ownership versus a well local known car, spotted at many events, and which is, ( probably the straw on the camel's back, ) registered many times simply as Ferrari Daytona or talked about often as is. Salt in the wounds comes with the mentioning of his Chevy work being more reliable, easy to manage, dare I say better than the real deal?

Hate to break it to all the people who never had to visit a mechanic, but its not a Ferrari without the pains of tweaking in the engine and wheels all the time, cringing at the sounds of bad roads, the nervous reaction you expect to have from gear shift to gear shift. When I heard the 575 had synthetic, I thought, wow I won't have to worry about that till a few years like my Benz. I kind of knew that service would be costly, but it would be with me adding different ECUs and Tubis, not fixing broken wheels and 1K+ oil changes. Well Lee at LFSC told me otherwise. The 575 is supposed to be more reliable then any other Ferrari out there today yet I forked over more repair money than anyone else did this year. Then again, I'd rather baby a car then feel so comfortable with it I can leave it parked just about anywhere and hop in it at anytime. There is something so much more special and rare about the car being 100% authentic and monitored to perfection. I am in a similar boat as Rick but through addition not subtraction. There was no reason for me to tap into my own inheritance and home funds to buy my family's car even after I purchased a $50K+ tank on wheels. But I wanted to say I lived the dream, even though it will take a few years to get back to it.

With all the stories of great financial success, the famous collectors involved, how rare the dream cars were and where they wound up, Ferrari ownership should be exclusive and more appriciated as something you must acquire, not build on your own or substitute. If I didn't know Rick, I would think his car was complete garbage as it basically says to people like Bill: mine's the same thing just more reliable, completely nixing the sacrifice Bill had to make. So Rick's Daytona is on par with someone like Ralph Lauren who built an empire and babies his cars like art? I think this is the problem that irks Bill, Rick's is a fake, no matter what, and registered as the real deal and if its not commented on how its better and that his work should merit the car. Great collectors or car guys never state, look at my business empire, I deserve car, me big man! Nor, well I know how to change the battery with something at Autozone. You only hear murmurs about how they treat such cars as a Daytona Spyder like a treasure. Then people like Bill who's dream car is the same as Rick's, tapped into everything they have to be part of that exclusive club and experience. That people like Bill might not have the best one out there but they do have an authentic. Then to hear of a cheaper way, a non authentic way, being just the same... whatever.

I think Bill's comments to remove the stickers are a bit too much. Everyone who comments in the Chicagoland section know's Rick to be one of the most friendly guys and if anyone of us had an extra million lying around I bet it wouldn't just go to the bank or charity. But I would like to add my opinion, no matter how much hard work goes into what, that I feel slightly offended when I see claims of fakes being better than the real thing. Beautiful women can get bossy and fat, famous architecture cracks or fades in looks, the most famous stories of all time can get boring after a few reads, but they are the real McCoy, the one's that set the standard and can never be surpassed nor duplicated completely. If you have your hands on something like that, you craddle it with the most care. If the guy next to you went into the spare bins pile, mashed it all together and looked at your treasure then commented, " mine's just as good," I doubt it would make you happy.

I think the bickering between these two would cease if Rick got to meet Bill ( not in a boxing ring of course. ) I am certain they would get along after Rick sees how much sacrifice Bill made just to get a Ferrari. I think Bill would start to admire the fact Rick knows so much about the history and is more of a Ferrari fan than he claims he is a Ferrari owner, or partial one. Then Rick can get a ride in the 328 and feel a real Ferrari experience. Then Bill can get a ride in Rick's car and see what a great tribute, not Daytona, he has made.

RocketBoy

 

Actually, I quit my part time job at UW Hospital in March. Too bad I didnt realize this before.
BTW, Famous Daves is a chain, and I LOVE THEM! Not enough of them around!

 

Too bad you aren't at UW anymore. I am there every week. Was just there two hours ago. We could have met for lunch of something.

I LOVE Famous Dave's and would seriously love to look into franchising one. I would doubt they are offering that up right now though.

They are offering up Culver's and my wife and I are thinking about getting one.

Also, I am not saying the "peel the badges off" thing for any reason other than to make it a reasonable, fun bet. Kind of like racing for pink slips back in the day without having to actually lose your CAR!! Thought it would be an interesting bet.

Heck, I am offering $200 for a guy to buy a fricken Ferrari or Pantera. You don't see that offer to often!!

 

If you are that hot for me to own a Ferrari then I'll let you buy me one. $200 doesn't go very far even with a replicar. I still don't understand your hangup here. I built a car that I wanted to do, plan and simple. People can like it or not. I don't care! I didn't do it for anyone else but myself. I don't need to try and impress anyone except that I can claim that "I" built it from the ground up. Just like the ladys building the 250 GT. Why because they wanted to, simple. I don't try to pawn it off as real. I take it to any car show that I can if I get in great if not no loss. If you like it great if not again no loss. If you care to talk to me then fine, either way I'm a car guy if I own this, a $10 mil exotic, or nothing. Real car people can tell it's not real, just look at my dash it says corvette. So let's drop this hangup and move on. I'm wasting to much time trying to explain something that some poeple can't seem to understand.

 

Do you have Ferrari badges on it?? Wouldn't that be pawning it off as real??

I understand it is titled as a Ferrari. Wouldn't that be pawning it off as real??

I guess, my whole point was the original question of you explaining you r thought process on it. I don't get it, but I may never.

I guess I would just feel weird around Ferrari people if I had a car that appeared to be passed off as real. If it wasn't, I don't think you would have put the badges on it. A Daytona would NEVER be guessed as a Ferrari by the average Joe if it didn't SAY Ferrari on it. Miami Vice was so long ago, and most people can't tell a Ford from a Ferrari unless they SEE the word "Ferrari" on it. Yours has it. That's where I am disagreeing with your statement of not trying to pawn it off as real.

As you remember, I told you I had a Kelmark back in the day. Resembles a Dino. Yet, I didn't put ONE SINGLE Ferrari badge on it. When people asked what it was, I told them a "Kelmark" and that it came from a small factory in Michigan, just as you could say a "McBurnie". And that would end it. And if you DID that, I would "get it" and say, "Yeah, Rick is a car-guy and simply likes the lines of the car." But in the current state, I don't, and will simply think, "Yeah, Rick likes people to THINK he owns a Ferrari."

Alright, I am DONE talking about this, asking questions about this, etc. And if/when we meet, I will never bring it up.

But if you EVER buy a Ferrari, you will get one helluva congratulations from me. ;-)

 

So does this mean you're not going to buy me a Ferrari? Boo Hoo, I was counting on it. I am glad you own one and when a style that "I" like and can afford comes my way then maybe I'll buy it, maybe a Lambo instead, or a Hemi toy. You are entitled to your views and that's cool but I am also entitled to mine, and once again I dont' give a S#%$ what you or anyone thinks of it. I have enough self confidence and thick skin to take that car anywhere and display it, just ask Andreas at the Ferrari Nationals. Most people pay complements to me once they talk to me and understand that I built it from the ground up and don't do this professionally. One last thing it is titled, insured, and EPA tested for what it is a 1979 CHEVY CORVETTE: American made and proud of it, RED WHITE & BLUE all the way! Just with an Italian twist As my poster states best of Both Worlds: Italian Styling and American Power and Reliability

 

Wait a minute! Are you implying your car is not a real Ferrari? And you came with us to all these events and we had fun together and drunk beers together and talked cars, Ferraris and otherwise and now you're telling me that your car is not real? Damned, what a let down. I wasted all that time enjoying talking to you and now this. All the magazines you gave me and I happily read have become meaningless. Along with all the car pictures we swapped and the stories. All for nothing. It had only mattered if that car of yours had been a real Ferrari.

 

Hey people,
Doesn't anybody like my streched Topolino re-creation???

Does it make you too nervous to comment???

What's up with that?

Bill

 

I think it is a splendid idea and makes great use of the true Maranello powertrain.

Here is an alternate approach to things I came across in Glasgow:
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Bill -
Do you feel the same about fake boobs / "surgically enhanced" women? Just curious. (Can of worms??)
Ricks Daytona-vette actually looks pretty nice, and the fact that he built it himself is really quite cool (in my opinion).
Ever seen that reproduction porsche 550? $25K, fast, fun (by all accounts), and can thrash it without feeling bad.

 

I think I got it! For us to stop this so called feud I need to ensure that I: get rid of my replicar, don't ever buy another one, can't have girlfriends or wife(not) with fake boobs, clothes, purses, colognes, corrected teeth, watches, copies of famous art, jewlery, even imitation crab meat out of frig, correct? And don't ever cross the Wisc/ILL border. NOT! Better suggestion is let everyone enjoy how they live and what they like. Can we hold hands and sing around the camp fire?