So I think I am may pull the trigger on one of these. Here is the decision process and I appreciate any opinions. I saw a brand new one at a dealer, which was part of the one to one edition. He claims there are only like 30 something in the country, and Ferrari is not letting him place orders for any more, perhaps he will get allocated one every 6 months. I really like the glass roof, and improved nav screen. I am sure I would enjoy the improved shifting, but have not driven it so I cant say for sure. It is a Silverstone (my second favorite color) with the cuoio interior (my preference), and piping which I like a lot. The price is a fairly brutal $345K. Where the depreciation wont change my life, I really am not sure how good I will feel if this car is worth 200K in 18 months, and 160k in 24. That is quite a hit. I dont really have any reason to believe this car will depreciate any slower than the standard 612, is it really limited at all? And the OTO program does not seem to make much sense to me if the dealer is ordering a spec car and customer allocations have been discontinued. OTH it would not be the first ferrari sales process that failed to make sense to me. Edit: Oh I would be buying the F1 for sure, I drove an 05 and loved it. I can pick up a pre owned 2005 for around 175 or so, I can also find a TDF which is my favorite color, but cant seem to find one with piping, I will survive. Potentially an 07 for 220 or so. I currently have a bentley gtc (which I would be keeping), and am concerned that I may prefer having a convertible despite loving the 612--which is one reason I lean towards the older one in case I "change my mind." My last 2 ferrari's were a 360 Modena (6 speed manual), and 360 Spider (6 speed manual), both of which I liked a lot, but were not really all that comfortable to drive long distances. Plus I now have children so I want to have the backseats. I am on the list for the California. I could see getting a used 612 now, keeping the gtc, trading the GTC for the california, then ordering a new 612 (or replacement later). Sorry for babbling, but what are your thoughts? New? Will well designed OTO's hold up better than std 612? Used? an 05 with no warranty, or an 06 with a little warranty for 20K more, or an 07 for say 220. Or of course, wait 12 months or less, and try to get a glass roof 612 used for 240 or so? I prefer this, but patience not my virtue.
The 07, 08, and now 09's are significantly reduced in numbers in the US vs the 05 and 06 - one source of info indicates something like 150+ 05's vs only 25-30 08's - so they may be right about the 09's too. Will that help keep their value a little higher? Dunno. Not sure anyone could say for sure. Buy the car if it is what you want. If depreciation is too big a concern for you, buy one a year old and save that big first year drop. I have driven 05's and 07's - I prefer the 07 or 08 with the sport package and newer F1. Big difference.
Here's my opinion, based on one week and 600 miles of OTO ownership: Great car. Fantastic car. "Rare" doesn't always mean "valuable." I've never heard the OTO presented as a special or limited edition car. But I'll remember that when I sell mine! Your seeing an unsold OTO on a showroom floor may tell you all you need to know about value. Make them an offer. Color (opacity) change in the roof isn't all that dramatic IMO. The roof is gee whiz stuff, and I like it, but I'm not sure I'd buy an OTO simply for the roof. Five years from now an OTO might be a bit more valuable than a prior 612, but I suspect both will experience substantial depreciation. If depreciation is a concern, buy used. I've seen great cars for sale. $175 for an '05 v $345 for an OTO makes you think. Good luck.
BTW what are the practical differences in the newer f1? I understand that it shifts more quickly but what is the real world implications of this? Smoother shifts? Faster car? And as to "value" i have now seen 2 dealers with 08's in stock.
I've seen the dealer memo. The OTO can only be ordered with a customer name attached. In other words, they are not supposed to order them for inventory, and I can't see any reason on earth why they would. That said, times are tough right now, and there are obviously some customers who ordered their 612s last year (because that's how long it takes) and now either can't take delivery, or need to liquidate them. So I think that's what you are seeing. In the old days, in contrast, Ferrari used to tell a dealer that in the next allocation they were getting a 612, and the dealer had to sell it. If the dealer didn't sell it, it showed up and sat in inventory. That's not happening any more. As for value, the reduced numbers of 612s in the US may help the depreciation out a bit, but I doubt it. Big depreciation is a fact of life if you own a new Ferrari 2+2. If that really bothers you, and the intangible value of buying new isn't worth it, buy a used one now. As for the new F1A, I found it to be much smoother at light throttle and driving around town, and even in auto mode. The old F1 in the earlier 612s seemed almost unusable in auto mode, because it lurched at each shift. This one is quite smooth-- almost as smooth as a normal automatic transmission. It's also supposed to be faster at high throttle settings, and it probably is, but the old one was fine for that anyway. Depending on how the car is optioned, $345k would either be MSRP or even MSRP plus a premium. If any dealer is actually getting a premium over MSRP on a used 612 OTO, I'd be amazed-- but I've been surprised before.
http://excellauto.com/pre_owned.html This is a nice car and reputable people. Excell has dropped their asking price by $15,000 in the last month. I saw the car in person, and know something of its history - - almost bought it at 162 but I wasn't ready. I believe the car was serviced at Shelton in Ft Lauderdale and understand that the previous owner bought a newer 612. I was told by a friend at Shelton tht the owner had no issues with the car and tok fine care of it.
Last week, my local authorized Ferrari dealer offered me a very nice, documented 05 612 F1 Titatinium around 7,000 mi for an unheard price of $160K, with one condition, that I had to make decision within 24 hr. I almost bought the car, except for the black interior, which I do not like (although most of my cars have black interior, including my last Ferraris, and the current one), so after looking at the car, I passed. Then I thought it over, (well, kind of I can live with whatever interior color as long as it is cheap), came back to the dealer the next day, and the car was gone. Dealer told me, it was sold within an hour after I passed. What a lucky buyer who doesnt (or does) care about the interior color!
Funny I also dont want a black interior, and my car currently has one. It is a black black convertible, and I almost traded recently just to get a lighter interior. I moved to las vegas about a year ago, I think that should answer why I dont want any more black/black cars. I am also partial to the Cuoio interior. As to exterior I really like the TDF and the Silverstone. I might consider black exterior if everything else was perfect in the car (ie newer model, Cuoio interior, piping great condition, and oh yea price). Not sure if I would consider any other colors. Not that there are many others out there. I also would have passed on the black black, and probably also regretted it. AS to the person who asked me hoe the dealer could have anew one on the floor when they are supposed to be OTO only? I have no idea, I would suspect someone did not take delivery, but the conversation implied that the dealer spec'd it. Thing is, I cant fathom why a dealer would bother volunteering for an extra 612. Slightly off topic, So I bring my wife in on Friday to test drive the 08 maserati QP, they only do test drives on tues-thurs and MAYBE monday between 11-2 because of traffic. OK if you say so. I also wanted her to see the 612 on the floor and the love it or hate it color combo of the QP (Blue, with a 2 tone blue cream alacanta interior), she loves the interior (and the 612), but since I have not driven a QP since the 05's I rally wanted to drive it first. I jump through the hoops and come back on monday at 11 with wife. I drove first and liked it a lot. She was afraid to drive it, then when she did, she asked to extend her drive, she loved it. Great deal also, 18K off list, and .45% financing for 48 months--hell normally I wold pay cash, but .45 is like free money. Kind of like saving 5K a yr in interest. Oh just one thing went wrong, they sold the blue/blue on saturday afternoon. I may order an 09 QP S. Not sure yet.
