I'm surprised / disapointed with Boston Sports Cars' behavior...

have you spoken to darin about this? i've found him to be a reasonable guy in my dealings with BSC. i wouldn't make any rash assumptions about who said what to whom. for all you know, steve found another buyer for the porsche willing to pay more, and actively or passively interpreted darin's comments to arrive at "mediocre".

doody.

 

I have personally seen and ridden (many miles) in Jay's car. It is in great shape. The term mediocore is WAY off the mark. While the front may have been resprayed the paint over all is in good condition with no major blemishes. The car rev's, shifts and drives smoothly. It also pulls incredibly hard in all gears. The interior is about at good as it gets for a 19 year old car. I didn't see any curb rash on the wheels either. The only thing of minimal concern is a minor oil leak that he will be fixing soon. (I should know I'll most likely be helping with the repair). Lets be honest. Ferrari's along with all cars develop small leaks here and there.

I have grown up around Ferrari's and spent some time at a dealership in the south getting know trouble areas for the 3X8 series cars. Jay's car has been well taken care of and does not have any rust in those little areas around the wheel wells, near the "boxer line" (the black line around the middle of the car) Also, the doors, windows and top all close and fit together very well.

If I had to rate the car I would call it a GREAT driver Ferrari with over 30k miles. The over all condition should be listed as a "very high good" to "low excellent" not mediocore.

 

Jay, this is Darin's way of keeping you from making a very big mistake and trading a 328 for a Porsche. Ugh. Now we're going to have to kick you out of the "Ferrari Friday" club.



Birdman

 

LOL!

for a 996 no less!

what on EARTH are you thinking, jay!?!?!?



doody.

 

I think this is unfair to Darin. An attempt to publicly eviscerate him is not a fair way to deal with what is a private offense of telling someone he didn't like the condition of your car. Frankly, as a sponsor and someone who has dealt with other Ferrarichat sponsors I get plenty of feedback from vendors who are frustrated or too scared to be Fchat sponsors because of behavior like this - one false move and 20,000 people will hear about it. Typically, the company has little chance to respond in a fair setting - usually explaining why someone is a bad customer is a lose/lose situation.

There are probably plenty of reasons he couldn't tell you right there what he thought of your car - especially since you seem so passionate about its condition as it is. It's a daily driver, and you say that up front. He gave a professional assessment. What would you have said if he told you to your face he didn't like it? Would you argue with him? Would you have been mad? If yes, then there's your answer as to why he didn't want to offend you.

Would you be one of those people on American Idol who argues with the judges that you ARE a good singer, even though you are not really pop star level? Are you going to be that parent who launches a crusade against the high school when his kid gets cut from the football team (because he is not good)? You just can't be that sensitive. I've done over 40 law firm interviews with people who are super nice and kiss my butt, but they don't give me a job anyway... should I write all their names on a public board too, for having deceived me with good manners!?

There is also a flip side to this: before you made this thread, the only people who knew about this were Steve and you... and now everyone who reads it will know Darin thought your car was mediocre! And although the opinions of others on the car's condition might be positive, Darin deals with all manner of Ferraris all day every day - I would trust his analysis over the casual observer (although I see Scott does have Ferrari experience). Maybe he was protecting Steve from problems he noticed. Performing the PPI on the buyer's behalf, his loyalty is supposed to be to Steve. If I were the buyer, I wouldn't care if he told the seller it was the most pristine, cream puff, concours winner he'd ever seen... but when he told me, I expect the cold, hard truth.

 

guilty as charged!

i don't think i'd buy another 996. if i wanted another 911 i'd buy a 993 Turbo or a 993 C2 S or maybe a new 997 (in that order of preference). take the extra cash you save and put it in an account for maintenance and whatnot.

i like porsches too! no twelve-step plan necessary! but the 996 was not the 911s crowning moment, imo.

doody.

 

996's are great for what they are - cheap disposable track cars. Who would have thought that you could buy a 5 year old 911 (99 996) for 30k? Porsches NEVER dropped like that. Buy it, abuse it, use it...sell it. Great bang for 30k$! I am somewhat sorry I sold mine, will likely buy another soon. Yes its cheap (literally and figuratively), but its fun!

 

I was at the event, and none of the F cars were mediocre; if you were trading it in as a trailer queen, then a critical review could be understood. If the dealer that planned to resell it knew that it was a driver 328, he would price it accordingly. WIthout a PPI, turning the car down on just a visual issue is an insult.

328s resell in almost any condition, and not accepting the trade is possibly just a cautious move this late in the year before the winter. A 328 plus cash is win-win on an older 996 trade.

 

Sorry Ryan, I don't agree with you. If Darin was being honest about his condition of the car with the Porsche dealer, then he was being dishonest about his condition of the car with Jay. THAT is the issue here. Condition is relative. I'm sure Darin really does think that Jay's car is mediocre if he said that to the Porsche dealer. I personally don't agree, and neither do most of the people who have seen Jay's 328. Nonetheless, that is Darin's opinion and he is entitled to it. What is wrong is to indicate to avoid conflict by telling Jay that his car is nice, then turn around and say something else to the Porsche dealer, making Jay look dishonest. Hey, if you think my 308 is a POS, tell me to my face. Don't tell me its nice then tell someone else it sucks. Just my opinion. I do agree that Jay should have confronted Darin about it first before posting here.

Birdman

 

The fact that Jay started this thread without first contacting Darin to find out his side of the story is pathetic! Now you know why i have so few posts here...

 

I do hope Jay steps up to the plate and has that conversation with Darin.

Doody.

 

I bought my 328 from Darin 2 years.
It was a car that was serviced by Boston Sports Car; they were selling it for one of their customers. He was honest and professional, the transaction was very smooth.
As others have said on this thread you should have contacted Darin first before you made the post here .

 

I have never had any problems with Darin or BSC. They have always gone the distance to make sure I was happy with their service.

 

I'm with Doody on this one - this isn't really a debate that should be had here on F-chat - I'm sure Darin is reading this, perhaps Jay you could give him a call. Maybe one or both of you can post the results of the convo?

 

Time for me to chime in with my 2 cents.
I have had several dealings with BSC, all perfect,I would recommend them in a minute.I two agree that Daren should of been called first smearing him and BSC on this board is a bit of a knee jerk reaction,certainly not well thought out.

"I have had John Terell go over the car and he reported to me that it is a "very nice car overall." Now, you have two "experts" with completely different opinions." And you said that Darin said your 328 was "mediocre"
Well here you have two different people talking about the same car ,one who FIXES them and one who BUY'S them.Not the same thing. "a very nice car overall" My 355 has never been called a very nice car overall it always get comments like "that is the best 355 I have ever seen" "Look at this car no seat wear 17,000 miles and no seat wear ,the interior is perfect." "do you use this car ?" My car has had the nose painted but the difference here is that you can not tell It cost stupid money to do it but it was worth it.
My point is that in the Ferrari world when you are a buyer like Darin is :you need to Jude cars to a very high standard.A car that has noticeable paint work and an oil leak some interior wear to a buyer could be considered mediocre. John saying that the car is very nice overall says to me that the car is nice with some issues.In the Ferrari world of perfect 10 and 15 and 20 year old cars available He would of said the car is one of the best or perfect,to good buyer in a competitive market anything short of one of the best ,is just mediocre.

 

David,
I think you might be missing the point a little. Darin's assessment of the car is not the issue. Jay was upset about the fact that Darin saw the car, said it was "nice" and gave no indication that he was going to tell the buyer that it was "mediocre." He just felt Darin was dishonest with him about his real opinion. If Darin thinks Jay's 328 is mediocre, he would think my 308 is a hunk of dung. That's ok, it's his opinion.

So Jay, what was the end result?

Birdman

 

I will stand by what I said: Darin's shop fixes cars and sells them .I wonder when was the last time Darin's prime job at BSC was twisting wrenches? Darin's primary work for some time now has been in the BUYING and selling of inventory.He dose a great job of it.People like Darin and Hatch and Sons are in a different world ,they are looking for the top of the top cars that are unusual stand alone on their condition,that makes them easier to sell and more profitable
By saying that your car is mediocre is really saying that the car dose not stand alone ,it lacks that something that would help it sell over another 328.When you are looking at cars to resell you need to find the best example available this helps hedge your Position.Otherwise you are buying just mediocre cars.That is the mind set of good high end buyers.

Birdman I hear what you are saying,but in the above described mind set Jay's car is nice;but it still might be considered mediocre.

 

Well, it sounds like everything is all settled out now. Nobody wants to hear that their baby is mediocre but as anything in life, opinions vary and it's all relative. I personally think most Ferrari owners are WAAAAY too concerned about the car being all original and not enough concerned with how well the car runs and how reliable and driveable it is. But then again, most Ferrari owners barely manage to drive their cars more than once a week. If you drive your car, enjoy it and do what Enzo intended, there is no way you can keep the miles down, keep the paint from getting chipped and preserve your originality. So be it. MY Ferrari is for my personal entertainment. I'm not "saving" it for the next guy. So I guess it's mediocre too!

Birdman