Drive It Already - Your Ferrari

It is a matter of appropriate use for the type of car. Ferraris are not designed for short start/stop runs to the corner market any more than they are for off-roading. Ferrari's are like thoroughbred horses - you don't just take them out of the barn at full speed. IMHO you should get them up to speed using appropriate warmup periods and use cool-down periods before shutting them off. Ferraris have never been a particularly practical car.

If you don't value a Ferrari any more than a basic commute-mobile, then you are free to go ahead and treat it that way. As part of the ownership experience I acknowledge that there are many places that it is not appropriate to take or park the Ferrari if I want to maintain it in a good condition.

 

Not driving your ferrari is like being married to a supermodel and not having sex with her.

 

Karen,

While I'm not a Ferrari owner (yet), I try to live by the motto "You only live once, so have fun". Who knows, there may come a time where you don't get the time to drive the car and you may look back and wonder why you didn't take the opportunity to drive the Ferrari on more occasions.

However, if the issue is really this troubling, PM me and I'll be more than happy to put some miles on it for you!

Andrew

 

Okay, I'll bite. Unless you have a turbo, how does one "cool down" a car? And why would anyone need to do this?

Ken

 

Amen brotha!

 

I'm not sure if "cool down" is the appropriate term, but I think he was referring to the theory (fact?) that after you run your car hard, you should drive it easy for a period of time before shutting it off. For example, after driving hard (Italian tuneup, whatever), I usually drive and try to keep the RPM's under 4000 for 10 minutes or so before shutting the engine off. I've seen this reffered to a "cool down" period. Supposedly will help the engine last longer.

I just started a new thread about this in the tech section.

Dom

 

Hey Ghost, last time you didn't wanted to drive your 355 was b/c...wait let me think...oh yeah "I don't want it to get dirty in the rain cuz I just washed it."

 

I think we will see more high mile cars now that it's harder to unhook the speedometer.

Ha.

It should be something you love and keep special. Not only that they are not quite as usuable for certain things. Having said that I have 18k miles on my 360 spider so I put them on compared to some others

 

While this may not be true fully for the engine, though colling down is a good idea, it IS A FACT the brakes should have some time to cool IF you have been using them hard. It extends the life.

 

If you buy an expensive car and are scared to take it out of the garage, it will only piss you off.

The previous owner of my car drove it 7500 kms. in three years. My goal is to equal that mileage this summer!

 

BTW, I’m paranoid about parking my other cars too. After all, the blue book value of $200.00 on a custom 240Z & widebody 81 RX-7 hardly match what I’ve put into them. Driving in rain freaks me out too.
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Rain freaks you out, eh? We have a little bit of that here in the NW.

There were a few more Ferraris ahead of my 360 in the picture below. Also three Lambos.
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If I could actually afford a Ferrari, I would drive it at least 10k miles a year. With these cars never getting driven, I have to wonder if anyone has ever actually had to worry about how long the engine lasts. I just don't see the point in spending so much money on an item that you don't actually take the time to use. If everyone drove their Ferrari's, the world would be a happier place.

 

Saving it for special occasions? Decreasing pleasure? With all the people in this world that would kill for a Ferrari, I can't believe some people want to "save" it. Each day you're alive is a gift. Enjoy what you have. Enzo Ferrari must be turning over in his grave knowing that all he's put into these cars are wasted sitting in some garage looking pretty.Buy a poster and place it in your garage instead. The only good part is the more pampered cars out there, the better the selection for us drivers to purchase later on. And if you think low miles will command a premium down the line, just look at 360 prices going down now that the 430 is out,or for that matter the 355's.30,000 miles on my car in 3 1/2 years! Still look forward to it everytime.

 

Hi all,
I get the feeling that this isn't at all about driving the car as much as it is about the concern for what can happen while its parked in the lot. Venusone does not look like a woman afraid to put the pedal to the metal on the highway, or take on an opponent on the race track. BTW, its amazing how quickly the ding is forgotten after the DENT guy finishes his magic.
Cheers, Hank

 

I went to a function in my 360 in the Valley and it started pouring. I had a blast. The car did so well and felt solid. I don't mind it if the roads are clean. A a little donut or controlled wheel spin is fun.

I have a Laguna Seca Blue M3 and the day I got it was after a heavy heavy rain. I ran it up Mt Baldy above my house not realizing how many small rocks had moved onto the road. Because I was going so fast and accelerating so hard I brough the junk up and it even went around corners peppering my paint. Ugh. My first time out in it!

 

I gotta scan the pix of our SWB Cal Spyder in pouring rain, and the 166MM 0008 in hail. Regenmeister fan club here too.

 

I never got a picture of the 365 in the snow, but it has been driven in the white stuff before.

 

Had the 355 in snow on the continental divide on my way home from Houston. Not great but well worth the drive down the other side with no one on the road and no more snow.


10000 miles last year, it was a good year with some awesome roadtrips!

 

Didn't read the rest of the thread but I'm curious as to how many of you double park? The one time I drove an F355 spyder I double parked it when I pulled in a local lot.

When my best friend and I were driving his dad's 328 gts we simply parked out in the middle of nowhere and away from everyone.

Of course you always seem to get that one car that's barely holding together that parks right next to you when you make it a point of parking near no one.

 

THAT, is one beautiful Z!

Back to the topic at hand, I drive the bejeezus out of all my cars. They are toys, not investments and toys should be played with regularly I try to do as much of the work on them myself also and if they get scratched, it's not the end of the world, so long as they are excellent mechanically inside. I would never double park but I do park waaay out in the boonies of the local shopping centers if I can. The only exception would be if I had an older car that still had the original "survivor" paint. For some reason, I like the old cracked paint in the same way I like the yellowed patina of old watches or the insanely bright bluing on certain old firearms...It's just something that connotes age and pristineness to me.

 

Brilliant. I think the warming up should apply to all cars, but very important with a Ferrari. I unfortunately cannot afford to treat it like a daily drive, beside which my classic insurance limits my mileage to 3000 a year.

 

I have always felt that parking away from all others cars in a lot draws more attention to the car and therefor more people wanna miss with it.

I just park in between others cars, the 308 seems to take up so little of the parking slot that, unless the cars next to it have really long doors, it's almost impossible for them to ding the doors. but with the wider cars (tr's and such) I could see how this would be a problem.