Need advice on Dino before purchasing

i think this car would have sold by now if those stupid light covers were removed. they aren't like the ones that follow the contour of the body and look silly.

 

I believe only the early cars had multiple alloy panels. My GT of 1971 manufacture date has only the front cover in alloy.

1317wholesale, I think you would be wise to look into that less expensive car promptly. There may be something wrong with it that an inspection will reveal, but you could use that information to make a lower offer, get the car, have some work done, and still come out with a decent final cost.

 

1317wholesale,

Have you ever been for a ride in a Dino?
I posted some video on youtube that gives an idea of how they sound in the car:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_9qCDN1GKtc

 

The side profile shots that I have seen of this car look correct, compared to the headlight covers on the UK 246s that I have seen. Is it just the low angle from the front that makes these look incorrect? Or . . .?

Mark

 

Where are/were your windshield wipers?

Mark

 

1317 Wholesale; as a car enthusiast and collector, I have an interest in Dino's and have been keeping an eye on the Dino market. Since the mid 80's I have bought, sold, restored, and been involved with many various collector cars, and every time I think I've seen the top or the bottom of the market I have been fooled. Not that anyone cares to hear my opinion, but, there appears to be about a dozen Dino's currently advertised, some may have sold, this I don't know for sure. There seems to be resistance at $200K for GTS's unless the cars are extremely nice and or have chairs and flairs. For the most part; Dino owners who say they wouldn't take $250K for their Dino's (assuming it is not a chairs and flairs or Concours example) are not necessarily saying their cars are worth that much on the market, they are saying they are not interested in selling their cars. If you want a Dino and are prepared to pay $175K to $195K I would expect there is a car available for you. The standard advice for buying a collector car is: "Buy the best car you can find and don't be afraid to pay a fair price for that right car; you'll enjoy it immediately and probably save money in the long run". I would say this applies to Ferrari's as much or more than any other collector car. Try Fantasy Junction, Hemmings online, Ferrari-online.com, and as you know DuPont Registry. It will be interesting to see if the market absorbs these cars at this new price level and then continues to move up or if they have found their new ceiling. Even though we are all affectionate toward Dino's, they will stall at some point, but for the long haul you'll always be safely invested in a timeless treasure.

 

Spot on Jeff, but as other early 60's Ferrari's rise in value do you not think that the next generation of 70's cars get sucked along with them. As long a people see them as a haven and a better investment, then the price will continue to go up. Personally i just love the Dino 246, always have & always will, no other car comes close (except a 206SP & Maserati birdcage) so my affection is more out of love of the car.

Tony

 

In a box in my garage. I think the car looks better without them and I never drive in the rain.

 

Tony -

While I tend to agree with you in general, the problem with the market for Dinos, Ferraris, and other special interest cars is that all it takes are a few exogenous shocks to ruin the market and shake the confidence of potential buyers. So far, in part because of the changing exchange rate between US dollars and Euros, Dinos and Ferraris in the U.S. seem to have benefited because of continuing European interest in them, while muscle cars (including Hemis) which have not experienced widespread collector interest in Europe, have suffered 10-20% depreciation in the US over the last year (as per SCM). Continued instability in Pakistan could easily affect markets worldwide, not just the market for special interest automobiles, and could easily destroy whatever haven people see in collector cars.

So, buy the car you want because you want to enjoy it, not simply because you want to put it away in a vault.

Mark

 

Ah hah! Lucky for you that you live in LA!

Mark

 

Under $10,000 for nice cosmetic repaint with only minor body work. Twice that for serious restoration. Engine rebuild with no broken large pieces under $20,000. Suspension maybe $5,000, not much goes wrong. Interior under $10,000. Depends on you. You have to be sure that each shop has done VERY FINE work before. Look carefully at their finished work and the cleanliness of their shops. All much cheaper if you do some work yourself.
John

 

you have a pm

 

Having bought my car 9 months ago and paid "ahead" of the market for one that appeared to be in almost perfect, unrestored mechanical order (with only 12,000 documented miles -- I spoke to both previous owners in detail!) I have since started to feel the itch to make the car look brand new. I am trying to fight it.

I think that since you said you never have bought a used car (300 miles on a 430 does not count) the idea of buying a Dino and then embarking on a restoration to make it a great car is just a massive leap of faith, a potential hedache without end and a possible money sewer. Not every shop understands the Dino, all shops are incredibly expensive, and the fun of a Dino (unless you are a massively obsessive-compulsive artisan/looney bin candidate like some of the DIY restorers on this site) is actually driving the thing, not igniting piles of cash to buy it then get it running right.

I appreciated the compliment about how I bought my car, and believe that anyone who owns an almost-new 430 is not going to be happy buying a semi-beater and then getting eyeballs-deep into the arcana of restoration work. Also, John's $10,000 paint figure is probably on the very low-end, unless you are on a first-name basis with every painter and mechanic within a thousand-mile radius like he undoubtedly is. In the NYC area, no one seems to be interested in even looking at painting my car for anything less that $15,000, and $20/25k+ is the number most floated (mind you my car has only a smattering of gravel dings and what looks like one area that might need a little smoothing (old dent?) for a bare-metal repaint. They all warn that anything unanticipated (even after a thorough inspection up on the lift) will cost more. Of course, maybe I just look like a total sucker (which I am!)

SOOOO - the best advice I can give you is this:

1) Don't be in a huge rush - wait for the right car to come around (you'll wind up driving it sooner than the wrong one that goes into the shop forever!);
2) If you're OK with repainting the car, then don't let its present color effect your decision at all. Once you repaint it (or if it has been painted already) I do not believe staying true to the factory color has any meaning at all;
3) Buy the car that is in the best mechanical condition with the best suspension you can find - this usually (but not always!) goes in hand with lower miles;
4) Try to track down previous owners and talk to them - this is not a matter of national security, and most Dino owners love to talk about their cars (if the seller doesn't want to share this info with you, he's hiding something);
5) Post on this site about any car you are looking at -- these guys know way too much about every car you're likely to see!
6) If you are worried about overpaying 10 or 15%, buy something else. You can burn $20k in a second if there's something seriously amiss;
7) Get recommendations from this site on mechanics for the PPI - my inspection was realy well-done and the mechanic (who the SELLER recommended) hit the SELLER with a significant bill (he had agreed to pay for anything over $2k that the mechanic said was needed!) Honest mechanics are like gold;
8) I had a very good experience with a local super-overpriced Ferrari dealer's shop. He diagnosed and fixed a thorny problem quickly -- and offered me the chance to do the work myself or use my own (cheaper) parts when he found it. If you have a 430, I suspect they'll view you as a good customer and revenue source, so ask them what their mechanics know about Dinos for the PPI and ongoing service.
9) When you get the car -- DRIVE IT!

 

"the idea of buying a Dino and then embarking on a restoration to make it a great car is just a massive leap of faith, a potential hedache without end and a possible money sewer. Not every shop understands the Dino, all shops are incredibly expensive, and the fun of a Dino (unless you are a massively obsessive-compulsive artisan/looney bin candidate like some of the DIY restorers on this site) is actually driving the thing, not igniting piles of cash to buy it then get it running right."

Just to clarify, unless you can write a blank check to a really good shop or are the sort of O.C. detail freak that MRONY noted above, do not buy a car to restore. You will go underwater big-time restoring a Dino and unless you are comfortable using a restored car and plan on holding on to the car for a very long time (15 years or more), I think you are better off finding a great, unrestored, mechanically sorted car and enjoying it.

My $0.02.