Would you let someone drive your FCar?

My wife drives mine from time to time....I mean my wife drives ours from time to time, she hasn't receintly because the clutch is close to worn out.

We've owned the car for 2 years now and it's just ben the two of us. But you know, we bought the car used and you know it's had a history of drivers before you that would probably make you cringe.

As far as others,
if you trust them, sure possibly,
if they have some common sense and your wife dosn't catch them flirting with you .... definatly.

 

LOL...I read an article published not too long ago regarding Car Theft in the US....over 95% of all stolen/Joy-Ride cars in the US were equipped with automatic transmission. Reason being? Most new/young/inner-city drivers out there are NOT learning to operate cars with manual transmissions (and you thought the market popularity of F1 trannys was because of the 'racing tie-in'....right....and Lambo has an E-gear tranny because???). Present a car with a shifter and a clutch pedal, and quite a few people will not want to drive it - because they won't be able to (or at least well enough to not risk damaging the clutch or gearbox).

BTW, N-O-B-O-D-Y drives my car unless they lay up-front, cash money on the hood for a new clutch and belt/valve service.

 

Sure I let people drive it. It's a car. Cars are to be driven. If it breaks, you fix it.

 

EXACTALLY

 

I dont want to come off like a cheap sob, im really not. There are people on this forum I have never met that I would toss the keys without a second thought and never worry. But there are others who I wouldnt even let drive my lawn tractor. They either couldnt afford to fix what they broke, or wouldnt, and would treat it like so much dirty laundry. And therein lies the problem. I think its more the goofy state I live in than anything else. Not many up here seem to have much respect for anything of their own, why would they care about yours?

 

... words of wisdom.

 

I'm with you. Have also used my car to give pleasure to deprived/ill kids. The expressions will last a lifetime, so good to put something back!

 

The greatest joy of owning the Ferrari is letting someone else share the car. But not necessairly drive it

I have taken pictures of neighbor kids sitting in the car, then print and then hand them a photo, I have also taken pictures of some of the ladies I work with and forward the photo's to them.

The look on their faces is always priceless

 

Honestly, I've lost track of the number of people who had their first Ferrari drive in my car. I only wish it were a better example of the breed.

 

They are all great examples,
I remember the first 308 I drove, as I look back on it, it was a real pile, but it got me even more hooked

 

Do you guys agree?

 

I let any alfa owner friend,customer drive it for a little test,I used to let those guys drive my 330GTCs,never a problem with Alfa piloti. I had 2 Yamaha Vmax,we would offer a ride to every taker, we would take it out to the street and line it up for takeoff,then we would put them on that sickle and tell em to give it a good twist to clean it out but wait a second so we could get 25ft down the road. Priceless look on those faces going by. When I got my 1st Merc6.9euro we did the same thing,looks like a 450,put them in there and tell em to floor it,people screamed, bloody murder on the max.

 

Sharing your car is a matter of what it means to you and how much you trust the prospective driver. In its simplest terms, yes the ferrari is just another car, but it costs a lot to fix and you need to know that the prospective driver is an adult and willing to be responsible for his actions.

Part of the apprehension is that the car, being "exotic", has a mystique and you need to know that the new driver has a respect and knowledge of machinery before you let him/her loose with your car; i.e. that they are not going to redline it in every gear and do 135 mph down town - and that if they break it they fix it.

On a more enjoyable level, if you are going to let a fellow car nut drive it, drive him/her to a nice bit of rolling hills & good pavement with low trafic - so that they can have a fun low risk introduction to the car. This gives you a chance to demonstrate how you drive, smothness, gentle but firm shifts, what redline you are comfortable with others using.

Most people are not aware that the car is so low and needs to enter driveways/gas stations at a sharp angle and at a slow speed toavoid grinding off the front of the spoiler. Things like this need to be explained beforehand.

After driving a friends 928-S4 around for a bit, i recall taking it onto the freeway, near red line in 1-2-3 and he was cackling like a fool - (he was my best man and i have raced with him for 20 years). Trust is a wonderfull thing. gotta have it.

hth,
chris

 

I've said no to everyone who has asked, especially those that offer me money. I think if they want to give me money its because they don't want to feel guilty for how they would violate my baby as soon as they got around the corner. But so far I have let my uncle drive it because he had ferraris, my cousin who has restored many cars himself, my mother because she taught me to drive, and my old porsche mechanic (who has never worked on the car), jeez I have let to many people drive it already.

 

Tillman, what example are you sporting?

 

Tillman has a great 328, it just has a few more miles than normal 328's. I think almost 104,000 if I remember correctly. He is a true ambassador of Ferrari.

There is another gentlemen here in Arkansas that lets most anyone drive his 575. Like, people at rest stops, random people at gas stations, and overweight 328 owners. Last I talked to him it was close or over 70,000 miles. He'll drive the car to Las Vegas to get it serviced if the mood hits him right.

Letting people drive or ride in a Ferrari is something that will be with them forever.

Gene

 

308GTBqv:
Family: They are absolutely allowed. 2 sisters did test drive, one sister declined. One brother-inlaw test drove(at 6'6" it was a tight fit), other (6'6" too) is waiting to. Mother has ridden shotgun, father refuses to get in the car (he's a die-hard Volkswagen guy owning (3) Squarebacks & a VW Microbus...and now is into Subaru).
G/F: Only one wanted to. But she was too petite to reach the pedals comfortably.
Friends: I only offer to friends that I know I can trust. IDOC here has and I have test driven his (QV vs Carb'd). Jerrari's wife had excellent references & previously owned a 308 she she took my car for a hop.

Tire kickers & potential buyers & such? No. They can ride shot-gun. That's how I bought mine. I'll happily give anyone a ride.

 

I have an amazing example of a Ferrari owner being willing to let someone else drive his car.

About 12 years ago, my wife and I were planning our wedding, which took place in Middlebury, Vermont. Ever since I was a kid, I had always had a pipe dream of having a Ferrari as a "getaway car" after my wedding ceremony. Naturally, trying to actually pull this off consumed a great deal of my time during the planning process. But, I had never driven a Ferrari, didn't know anyone who had a Ferrari -- especially in Vermont, and had no connections to the Ferrari world other than worshipping all things Ferrari. I tried desperately, called random exotic car dealers, etc.; no luck (and, of course, great forums like this weren't around at the time, or at least I didn't know of any).

I talked to my father-in-law about it. Turns out he was friends with a guy from Vermont named Dave BuBrul, who used to own Ferraris and other exotics. My father-in-law called Dave, who mentioned that a friend of his, who lived locally, had a 308. Dave checked with his buddy (a guy named Dick Laberge) and called us with the good news - he was willing to let me drive his car. I couldn't believe it, and couldn't sleep for days I was so excited and overwhelmed.

Come the wedding day, Dave drove his buddy's 308 down to Middlebury early so that I could get a chance to drive it before the wedding, all at the insistence of his friend. And it wasn't just any 308 - it was a 1979 euro GTB, black, sport exhaust, 17" speedlines, lowered. Just beautiful! I still remember seeing and hearing that car arrive; all I can say is I should've been wearing a diaper at that moment....

Long story short, it was an amazing day that was made that much better by the fact that my entire extended family smiled as they watched me - I mean us - get in that car, start it up, and just sit there for a minute or two savoring the sights and sounds, knowing that my dream of driving a Ferrari (let alone on my wedding day) had finally come true. You can't beat those memories. And the car, on that beautiful day, on those Vermont roads, was simply unforgettable.

And it's all due to the amazing generosity of a man I didn't even know, and, to this day, have never met. I always try to keep that spirit in mind with the 328, and have let people drive it on a number of occasions. At the risk of sounding sappy, it's a remarkable gift to be able to share that joy with someone else.

 

I would - in fact, I would even teach someone to drive a stick shift in it. What a great experience that would be for them! Plus, it's one the easier manual transmission cars I have ever driven.. and I've had some crap (3 on the tree chevy truck for example in high school!) My philosophy about cars is probably unlike a lot of people's though - No matter WHAT it is, and I mean no matter what - it's still a car. It's replaceable, repairable, and usable - and meant to be enjoyed. I'm not going to baby it and savor it for someone else's enjoyment when I sell it - I'm going to baby it for ME, but also, I am going to drive the crap out of it.

If I can give someone the opportunity - absolutely. It's just a car, and meant to be enjoyed.

 

I am one of them. Thanks again Tillman. I hope to one day return the favor. If only Jimpo1 trusted me.

 

I let a select few drive the car that dont own a ferrari but let other ferrari owners drive it without hesitation because then I get to try theirs out too! Ive also let my 7 year old daughter steer the 308 sitting on my lap when she was 4, she still talks about it.

 

I let this cute high school girl drive mine...I need to look for that phone number, she's 20 now....

 

It's been six years already? Wow, how time flies.

Gene

 

If only!

You've already driven one, so there would be no thrill.

 

I let an italian xchange student take my Car to his ME Masters grad ceremony @ UT,he brought his cousin to guard the Car and he had it all day and had a blast.I have run the hell out of all my Cars,test drive rookies can be stupid,like that silver QVeuro wreck video but few can put their foot down.