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Reasonable price on a 1999 550?

Discussion in '456/550/575' started by twk63, Jul 3, 2006.

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  1. twk63

    twk63 Formula Junior
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    #1 twk63, Jul 3, 2006
    I am looking at a 1999 Ferrari 550, silver/black, with around 5K miles. The car is being offered by a Porsche dealer who took it in trade for a Carrera GT. It is a one-owner vehicle. Asking price is $129K

    The car has had regular oil/fluids at Ferrari of Long Island twice a year. I don't know if the belts have been done but I have been told that the service records are available, so I will make sure this has been taken care of.

    What is a reasonable price on the car? In addition to the belts, what other service should I check for. Are there any issues specific to the 1999 Model Year I should check for?

    I have gone through previous posts to get a list of general items to check.

    Any advice/assistance is very much appreciated!
     
  2. darth550

    darth550 Six Time F1 World Champ
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    #2 darth550, Jul 3, 2006
    110K with service 105K w/o. Run the vin for recalls. Check the motor mounts. Get a PPI. Pulled dash R & R (if needed) is 1.5K.
     
  3. Jsuit

    Jsuit Formula 3

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    #3 Jsuit, Jul 3, 2006
    Options?

    Fiorano ?
    250GTE ?
    Daytona?
    Carbon Fiber?

    People told me these things didn't really effect the price, but in my search for both 550s (both 99), it made a difference in the thousands.

    John
     
  4. darth550

    darth550 Six Time F1 World Champ
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    #4 darth550, Jul 3, 2006
    No Fiorano for US 99's. :(
     
  5. twk63

    twk63 Formula Junior
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    #5 twk63, Jul 3, 2006
    I don't know how the car is optioned yet, I am going to see it on Saturday. Since it is a Porsche dealer offering it, they really couldn't tell me much and weren't sure what services had been performed, other than regular oil and lube (verified by carfax).

    Since the car is routinely serviced by Ferrari of LI, I would be surprised if the service bulletins were not taken care of during the routine services, I would also be surprised if the belts haven't been done, especially with their asking price.

    The dealership is offering my the car for $20K above my trade-in (a 2004 Porsche 911 Turbo Cabriolet 6-speed with 18K miles, fully optioned). That may be a little high but not too much, is my guess. My main concern is that the big-dollar services have been completed.
     
  6. johng

    johng Formula 3

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    #6 johng, Jul 3, 2006
    sounds like the best thing to do is call FoLI and ask them the service-related questions.

    john
     
  7. Doody

    Doody F1 Veteran

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    #7 Doody, Jul 6, 2006
    you say they have the service records - have them fax them all to you for your review.

    then i'd call FoLI to verify they're complete and ask questions.

    doody.
     
  8. twk63

    twk63 Formula Junior
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    #8 twk63, Jul 6, 2006
    I am going to see the car on Saturday and will go over the service records then. I am having Ferrari LI do a PPI as well.

    My primary question was regarding a reasonable price on the vehicle, even with a completely clean maintainance history, 129L seems a bit high.
     
  9. teachdna

    teachdna Formula Junior

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    #9 teachdna, Jul 6, 2006
    It might be a bit high but not out of wack if the car is clean, the service records are complete, the colors are right and a major has been done in the last year or so. I can't figure out where people are coming up with the lowball prices they're quoting.

    I looked into wholesaling my 1997 with about 8K miles. Very clean car that would score close to concours condition (9.5/10) with a recent major and all recalls, updates, motor mounts, actuators done. Red and tan with no shields. Took it to two dealers who have had a history of lowballing me on other exotics I've considered trading in. They quoted me trade-in prices of 92.5-95K, so I would consider those rock-bottom prices on an older 550 with more miles than the one that you're considering. You could try to get him to knock some dollars off, but it sounds as if he's giving you top dollar on the turbo trade-in.

    Good luck
     
  10. Mbutner

    Mbutner Formula 3

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    #10 Mbutner, Jul 7, 2006
    I agree. If he is going to give you the car for $20k over your trade then I would run to the dealer.
     
  11. Senna1994

    Senna1994 F1 World Champ

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    #11 Senna1994, Jul 10, 2006
    Did you ever look at the car?
     
  12. twk63

    twk63 Formula Junior
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    #12 twk63, Jul 13, 2006
    Yes, I did. Belts were not done but car was otherwise in good shape.

    I took it for a spin but it didn't thrill me. I decided to hang onto my 911 Turbo. To be honest, after my 355 experience I don't know if I will pull the trigger on another Ferrari.
     
  13. rllucero

    rllucero Formula Junior

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    #13 rllucero, Jul 13, 2006
    I'm in the market for a 355 and I read your quote. What bad experience did you have with your 355? Should I be consideirng a 550 instead? I've also look at a Carrera for the simple fact of having a 4-yr warranty. Sounds crazy but I've owned a couple of Ferraris before and I'm well aware of the maintenace and the difficulty to find parts.

    Thanks
     
  14. Senna1994

    Senna1994 F1 World Champ

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    #14 Senna1994, Jul 13, 2006
    Did you have service issues? I had a 355 B, and the car was a blast, I sold it to a fellow F-Chat Member, and it is the only car I ever regret selling. It was like a go-kart and the sound at high revs was thrilling. It was beautiful to look at. The service was a bit of a handful, but the car was great. I didn't like my 360 Spider as much. But I think the reason was because it was not a coupe and not a 6 Speed but an F1. The 550 is a totally different animal, a real GT with great torque, but doesn't give the same buzz as a mid engine Ferrari. Good luck either way.
     
  15. twk63

    twk63 Formula Junior
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    #15 twk63, Jul 14, 2006
    I had a very similar experience. I kept the car at my Florida home north of the Palm Beaches. My problem was that I allowed the car to be serviced by Dave Castallano (sp?) at Servizio, they were horrible. I didn't know about Tim Stafford in Ft Lauderdale at the time otherwise I would have sent the car down there for work.

    I owned the car for 13 months, when it ran it was beautiful, especially that engine sound. The problem was that my car spent nearly 6 of the 13 months at Servizio for one minor problem or another. They ranged from bad injectors and faulty oxygen sensors to windows that stopped working and short-circuiting heating ducts. It was a huge pain in the ass.

    I have pretty much confined myself to Porsches ever since and just recently took delivery on a Ford GT after also looking at Gallardos.

    Every now and then I get the Ferrari bug, it is like an old girlfriend. You reminisce only about the good times and forget why you left. You sometimes have to revisit in order to have some sense knocked into you...
     
  16. Senna1994

    Senna1994 F1 World Champ

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    #16 Senna1994, Jul 14, 2006
    I feel your pain, I have the world's best Ferrari Mechanic (IMHO) so service was not an issue, especially if I drove the car. I was thinking of a FORD GT myself. Beautiful car, I love Porsche's as well, but I just don't get the same thrill as a Ferrari with them. Best of luck anyway you go..
     
  17. mpatrizio

    mpatrizio Formula Junior

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    #17 mpatrizio, Jul 15, 2006
    The asking price for my Red on Tan 1999 with 7k miles was $129k. This was in January of this year. I got it for less than that, but I would have liked to have paid $110 for it.

    The bottom line is that the car was clean and came back with a flawless PPI, with the major service done.

    The result of the PPI gave me the confidence that I was paying a little bit more for the exact car that I wanted, in stunning condition.

    Biggest thing.... The PPI. I know that I overpaid, but I got a peach of a car, which has since been confirmed by another independant F-car mechanic.
     

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