Alfa 8C?

Since we are going the direction of newer cars as investment buy, I'm also interested in 360 CS. Do you guys think that that car will hold its value in a long term if I buy it now? Prices are falling fast. Regular 360s are falling even faster. I've been a Porsche guy but never know much about Ferraris.

 

The latest "Top Gear" did a test drive. In summary Clarkson loved the beauty but was not overly impressed with it's track performance. I have seen recent articles about Alfa delaying their entry into the US with this car. It's possible service and parts could be an issue. I wanted one earlier, but did not think it worth a 100k more than the Granturismo S when they look and act like sisters. I also have learned the hard way that the more they cost the faster they can, and usually go down in value. However I still love my 599GTB I bought about three months ago.

 

This is it in a nutshell, no new car is an "investment" they all follow depreciation curves, some of them quite rapid.

So buy it to DRIVE it......otherwise get some T Bills, a 412P or something...

 

I have always wanted a set of Simon's books......

Actually, you run across the Milano and GTV6 here in the PickaPart yards, obviously they are still pretty much complete cars! LOL!

 

None of them, as Napolis states early in this thread.....don't believe me, believe HIM!

 

I love the 8C - maybe the most beautiful car being built today - but agree with the consensus here. They will launch an improved model, and the depreciation on Alfas could be breathtaking.

I wouldn't bet on the F430 or California to hold value very well either. Buy, drive, enjoy. But the economy just isn't going to support speculative pricing on mass produced luxury toys. There is a glut of lightly used modern Ferraris on the market.

It's a better value now, but there are 16,000+ 360s and 1,300 360 CS's, making them relatively common. The investment Ferraris are probably going to remain the older cars and the limited production models (288 GTO, F40, F50, Enzo). The good news is that a 360 Modena at $80K is a lot of car for basically Mercedes money. So you can drive it.

If I had to invest in a Ferrari for the medium to long term, I'd feel safe with an F40 or one of the vintage classics produced in the tens or hundreds.

 

Thanks for the reply. Didn't know there are 1300 CS out there. I was under the impression that it's around 300. Do you guys think I should wait longer or now is a good time? Sorry I'm asking these questions here and not over at 360/430 section. The reason is that some of 430/360 owners who post there get defensive really quick if I ask questions like this. Anyway, there are 10 CSes on eBay and very tempting.

 

Testarossas are twenty years old now and have not done to well in the investment outlook. Maybe we should be looking forty years down the pike to be realistic here.

 

I don't think any of us really know. Historically, new Ferraris depreciate for 10-20 years; then the top condition cars appreciate. But that's generalizing, and the current market is soft everywhere and could get worse.

I have been advised to wait till later this year.

The 360 Modena/Spider/CS probably will drop in value further. But if you want to buy one of these cars to drive and enjoy, there's not much downside.

 

The last Alfas in the US were the Alfa 164 and the S4 Spider.
164's were over 30.

 

If I were a betting man, I would put money on the CS appreciating and the not the Scud. It's just too clean, too raw, and too classic of a vehicle to not go up in value at some point.

 

Around 1990 there was the limited edition (1000?) Alfa SZ (Zagato Monster) they were I think 80.000 Euro new, they trade now at around 30.000.
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The problem is that Ferrari didn't really mass produce anything until the GTE and not that many of those. The reason that Daytonas are so valuable is that there they were really one of the first supercars, and there aren't that many around, and the reason Dino's appreciated is that they were cheap, so a lot of them ended up getting broken up, and now there aren't that many left. I don't see 308's as ever being that valuable, too many around, not that good a level of performance. Nice car but not likely to appreciate a lot.

The more there are of anything, the less it will be worth in the long term. While maybe you would get some appreciation from a newer Ferrari in 20 years, it won't be that much since there are that many more of the newer cars around, and there are plenty of owners who keep them in realtively pristine condition. I'm not saying that they won't bottom out and eventually appreciate, but it won't happen all that fast, and it is going to take a lot longer for the cars to eventually appreciate very much...

The reason that Ferrari's haven't depreciated all that much in recent times is that there was a supply issue, and that is likely gone, so expect that a new 430 is going to depreciate right off the showroom floor, where that wasn't the case in the past.

If you are looking for an investment, look at something more than 30 years old, since that is more likely to be able to see some appreciation.

Better to buy what you like, enjoy driving it, and not look at it as an investment.....

 

A $40K 308 will leave a $150K 246 behind pretty easily, and I would bet thousands of 308s have already been crashed, scrapped, modified or simply rusted away. Whenever cars go through a cheap cycle, attrition goes up, and the older cars just aren't as durable. What's at work now is time -- we've been conditioned for years to think of the 308 as the entry level Ferrari. Now the 348 is becoming that, and people are driving the wheels off of them. When the economy gets pumping again, and people have money for toys, some of those people will go looking for a nice 308.

I do see the occasional, well-preserved 308 as eventually becoming more valuable than good 360s. In fact, Steve Harris had a very nice low mileage '76 glass 308 with an asking price about $15K less than what you'd pay for a decent '00 360 Modena today. The primary driver behind 308 price appreciation will be the widespread attitude that they are cheap and plentiful and always will be. That's the Dino 246 story as well -- slow, common, not worth saving.

Ultimately, technology and performance fade, and looks linger. The Daytona, 246 and 308 are not rare cars. But they are beautiful. (Ditto the Porsche Speedster, if you want another common car with wretched performance but a lot of style.)

</hijack>

 

Another pic. I think it was similar in rarity and performance back then as the 8C now.
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Glass 308's are already worth significant money. A 308 is also beautiful in a way moderns are not, it is also one of the last classic style ferraris, ie construction method and function that follows form. The driving experience may not stack up in terms of raw numbers but exceeds the moderns in terms of on the road usable thrills, and yes many have been scarpped too. There were a lot made but there are also a lot more enthusiasts compared to days of yore. What would you rather have a Big healey 308 or etype. Look how many etypes were made, how many survive and the priceof a good one. The 308 will be like the etype.

 

Entirely different thing. That was a commercial failure, basically nobody bought it and many Alfa dealers had them in stock literally for years, some for more than 10. By the way, it was cheaper than 80k, more like 50-60k here in Italy. With the 8C, they sold out the entire production run in a few days.

 

+1

Zagato's typical slab sided styling isn't for everyone.

 

There is an 8C on the showroom floor at Ferrari of Atlanta. It's nice but I'm not sure it's worth the sticker price.

 

Gotta say I love the 8c and think it will hold up better than most. What will devestate its cachet is if Alfa build a similar looking car based on the Brera chassis or similar and price it at 60k or so.

 

As long as the production numbers stay low(Alfa doesn't make updated new versions) it should hold up in the long term. In the short term everything is going down, unless its not for sale. I bet 25 years from now the new 8C will be worth more than the new Ferrari 599 in value.

As for the 308, its a nice looking car, but you cant compare it to the 8C as it was not very limited production.


Tom Tanner/Scale Designs/Ferrari Expo 2009 model contest-Chicago April 25th 2009

 

I got delivery of a 8C last November. I loved the looks of the car from the first moment and ordered it on the eve of the presentation in Paris 2 years ago. I never had the expectation that the car would be a milestone in the sense the 430 S or 599 would be, I just regarded it as a master piece of art by design. Of course it helped that I'm a true alfisti (which by the way helped to get the car here in Germany where they had 300 orders for 87 cars!!). Because of the delay with the delivery of the car in rosso competizione Alfa made an race track event for customers in Balocco last summer where I had the chance to drive and acustically enjoy the car. Of course I would not take the car to the limit on that day.

After 300 miles with the car now (the winter came to Germany exactly after I took delivery of the car) I'm positively suprised about the 8C. The sequential gearbox is a delight, there is no noticable interruption (You know that famous knick head) on the shift and it's by far the best gearbox of it's kind I drove until now. The engine is a music box composed by some of the finest italian tenors, but not only that. The response of the engine to the slightest movement on the gas pedal is fantastic.
Okay, now there are some critics about the car regarding the handling. My impression until now is that the feeling of the chassis and steering on the autobahn is gorgeous. The highest speed I drove until now is 280 km/h, and at that speed it felt as composed and secure as the Gallardo I have, although the steering is bit slower.
I'm really looking forward to make a test drive on challenging alp routes as soon as spring arrives here in Europe to make a final judgement for me regarding the handling, but until now I think I will not be disappointed with the car. Of course Jeremy Clarksons critic is always on my mind and I aggree on many cars with him, but I will really be excited to see If I break with him on this issue as soon as I set my mind. Regardless of the outcome, I will keep the car forever (so god will) and regard it as a piece of art on four wheels as I did from the first day.

Will the car be a good investment? Only time will tell, but I thin it will depreciate much slower than the 599GTB. Here in Germany they sold the car for about 170.000 EUR including vital options and You don't get a car for under 200.000 EUR at the moment.

430 S are already sold here for MSRP or slightly lower although the car is regarded to be much better by many enthusiasts.

 

I don't get all the Alfa bashing, not being worth it's money etc. etc.

Then why on earth is a F430 or California worth it's money? All kind of answers like heritage, passion and whatever would arise.
But if there's one brand out there who can match Ferrari's heritage or even exceed it, it's Alfa Romeo.

In Europe prices for 8C's on second hand market are around 10-20% above MRSP. So it isn't depreciating yet and that for a new car.
That said, it will definitely depreciate within a few years, but the 8C with it's limited production run and being heavily sought after will never depreciate as fast as let's say a typical F430.

With the more expensive 8C Spider coming (also 500), the 8C Coupes might drop a bit in value.

My advise would be to hold back for a while, since there are rumors of a limited 8C GTA production run of 100 cars (a CS/Scud/SL/GT3 style semi-race car, for the ones wondering what GTA stands for).


But after a year or 25 this car will still be the instant classic it's now, a museum piece. Will it still be worth $300k by then? Only time will tell...

 

So true.

 

It's now 2025 and I just bought an Alfa 8C, buying it back in 2009 would have been dead money. Now 18years later, the cars are starting to sell above MSRP.