I'm thinking of going for an 1998, 355 spider for around 57K. How much would it be worth in a year time, after I've done 2 to 3T miles? Of all the variations, GTS, GTB, F1, Spider, which one is going to hold up its value best?
You will almost certainly loose some money whichever variant you buy. Get the one that you want, not the one that will loose the least. If you are that concerned about the cost of ownership then perhaps a Ferrai is not for you. Nigel.
You think I can sell back to the dealer at around £54K in a years time? That doesn't sound too bad. Another question is: would it be possible to refit parts of the car, such as the centre console to conseal wear and tear in a year's time?
Assuming i could sell for £52k, I figure my car has depreciated £5k a year exc insurance and servicing. I've had it four years..
True to a point, but if there are some variants/options/colours that affect resale more than others, but don't particularly bother a prospective purchaser either way, then they can be slightly more canny with their purchase. ie. not wading in and paying top whack for a green one. When it comes to F355s/360s, most purchasers should be mindful that while an F1 box carried a premium (and some dealers ask for a premium) come resale time, they'll pull your pants down more than a manual.. so it's good to be aware of these things.. I may have been interested in an F1 F355 if it weren't for this, doesn't mean I didn't love owning my manual F355, and it doesn't mean I should be put off Ferraris.
I liked the overall athetics of the spider when the roof is up, but the quality of the roof mechanism and the looks of the car with the roof down is very disappointing.
I agree the roof mechanism is v poor but the look of Spider with roof down is sweet. But then again, i'm biased Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I think roof donw and the cover (or whatever it's formally known) on, it looks fine. But (1) the retraction mechanism is a joke, it doesn't even retract properly, very disappointed by the technology (2) it rule out a quick on the move roof down at the traffic light. With out unpredicatable weather, one has to be prepared to work the roof at seconds notice.
Tony I was impressed with the mechanics in your roof at the weekend. Although it was slow, it didnt grunt or grind and hit the spot first time.
Lee , it's a major PITA. The doors have to be closed, handbrake on . Open roof with handle and push back until you hear a beep, windows drop slightly.. Seats then slide all way fwd. Hood goes back then seats move back to orig. position. Takes about 30 secs.
I do think the car looks very nice with the roof up. Also, I've seen a number of GTS advertised, and the Spider looks like it's priced pretty attratively vs. those GTS and GTBs. Do you think 58K sounds about right for a 1998, 18T, main dealer sourced spider (although it was once a demo car of the dealer, does it make any difference)? If I wait, what are the chances of getting hold of a 1997-8 rosso/crema GTS at around 45K?
I looked at 355 GTS/Spiders long and hard last year (but didn't buy one, joined P1 instead) Of the 48 cars I saw advertised, of which I drove 6: Spider vs GTS: a Spider was on average 6k more than a GTS, pretty much irrespective of year. Historically two seat/roof off cars always have a ready market in the UK, look at 360 prices. F1 vs Manual there's no real difference, although F1s tended to be the ones that were priced "not to sell" (i.e. Silly expectations) Colourwise, the one to avoid is Yellow or Black, they're about £2-3k less than blue/red which are on a par with each other. Average price range was: (These are 12 month old screen prices so knock off 10-15% for negotiation. 95 Spider : £56k 99 Spider : £71k (!) 95 GTS : £49K 99 GTS : £62K I concluded that £60k would get you a very good, low mileage, low owner, FFSH Spider from a main dealer that would fall to £45-£50k in two/three years depending on how many miles you put on it (i.e a fraction of what, say, a Mercedes would depreciate). You seem to lose much less if you keep the car for a few years rather than trading it on at the end of the summer. People get very wary of cars that change owners too fast, assuming that they're a bad one passing from hand to hand. (Cue the rants about the data again? If you want the data PM me) They are super cars to drive and in the very long run I reckon they'll be comparable in price to 360s, just because there are so many more 360s out there. jg
Talk about a diversity of opinions. I paid £47.5k for my '95 ('96 model year with pass airbag and electric bobbins), 23k miles spider, 3 months ago. It was a good price due to selling in winter and dealer had had it over 9 months (due mainly to ridiculous original £59,995 asking price!). It also needed belts and major service immediately. It's black\black, a combination i spent ages trying to find, as black spiders are pretty rare and i didn't want red, which of course narrows the options considerably I went to the see the TDF car at Snipersgate, as that was my second colour choice and at the time they wanted a few grand more than the current £48,995 advertised. As far as resale goes? Who knows, but anything £40k plus in a year or so will do me fine after the spanking i just took on my Noble. Although i was advised that F1 cars are less desirable due to a) being pants b) eating clutches. But like most info can probably be dismissed as rubbish. My advice, just do it! Had the Capristo fitted by Verdi's and i LOVE it
If I extrapulate your mileage and year to 18T and 1998, how much would you recon is the equivalent cost?
One just went on eBay for 62K (red/crema/spider) ... it was slightly lower mileage but a '97. So I reckon 58K is a fair price for one your looking at. Depreciation as Tony said is prob about 4-5K a yr..
Hi, First post here I just purchased a 355 Spider, 1997, 18.5k, Manual, the cambelts were done last year and of course has a FFSH. It was from a main dealer and i got it for £57k, i also got them to include a challenge rear grill (was quoted approx £700) into the deal. Looking around this seemed to be an OK price. The car is Gailla (sp?) Modena (yellow) but this was what i wanted (fancied something a bit brighter (i also own a 996 Turbo X50 in Meridian Silver). Due to collect the car tommorow, can't wait - now we just need some sun ! Is the roof mechanism really that bad one thing i didn't try. Never mind as i had my heart set on a Spider so i'm sure it woudn;t have put me off. Cheers Matt
Hi Matt and welcome to Fchat. Don't be put off by my comments about the roof . By modern soft top standards , the operation is a bit of a malarky but you soon get used to it. Love the Giallo with challenge grill look, my fav combo. Any pics ,pls?
57K seems like a good deal, given mileage and extras. I think much easier if you colour preference is differenct to majority of buyers. Roof is IMO a disappointment. I like the idea of being able to stop the car by the curb and get the roof up/down quickly. I don't think you can do that with the spider. (1) it takes a long time to work the roof (2) it's very untidy once it's retracted and you need to get out of the car and fiddle with the hood cover before you can drive off safely and gracefully. I do think with the roof up, it's a great looking car. Have you seen your car up close? What is the condition of the interior? The one that I looked at as a lot of scratches on the centre console and the roof mechanism shows tiny signs of rust. Plus, the black bubber coating of the seat belt retainer has a one inch chip. I think if one can replace all the bit mentioned, it's generally in good condition.
Hi, Some pictures here (only the dealers ones): http://www.dicklovett.co.uk/gdlist?template=/dicklovettnew/hitlist_d&dgroup=105&pn=11 the 4th car down I will take some better ones once i get it here (if i can find my damn camera!) Regarding condition, i was stunned and how good the condition was - the exterior is flawless and the interior is excellent, the seats etc. are in very good condition (far better than a W plate 360 i test drove just before). I will say that i have only seen the car with the roof down (we had a bit of luck on the test drive as it wasn;t raining so we went 'topless' ), hopefully i will not find a big hole in the roof or anything! going by the condition of the rest of the car im sure it will be fine. On a side note, i am wanting to get a sports exhaust of some sort, could anyone suggest any recommendations / suppliers / installers? Cheers Matt
