First let me say what a great two years it's been. Wow It's already been two year since I bought my 355 10-13-07.. Here is a little recap of maint. cost 1st yr. I pretty much had to get everything sorted out. Not everything was needed, some I did because I wanted to and others just for the peace of mind. 30k major new tires new brakes clutch left cooling fan Fab-speed headers Hyper-flow cats Tubi exhaust challenge grill fixed A/C overlay fixed diverter flap tinted windows fixed front K40 sensor Total maint. cost for 1st year about 17k. I bought the car with 15,731 miles and put 7,032 miles on in the first year. Total cost per mile for 1st year (not including gas) $2.42 give or take... Ouch!!! As of today the car has 29,693 miles that's a total of 13,962 miles in two years... Total mileage the second year was 6,930 My second year of maint. New oil cooler oil change lowered the car two wheel caps Total cost for second year of maint. $1,214.00 Total cost per mile for second year .18 cents... That's more like it!!! Total cost per mile for 1st and 2nd year $1.30 and only getting lower. I just wanted to show all the people out there thinking about buy a 355 or everyone that has a 355 that once the car is sorted out, it's not that much to drive per mile. And lets face it it's way more fun than some of the other cars that might cost the same $$$ to drive.. Happy driving... Reg
My first year costs were about $19,000, but that included a new clutch/T/O Bearing, QV London headers, Hyper-Flow cats, Porterfield brakes, engine-out 30k service, tires, Quicksilver exhaust, all interior pieces un-stickied by Mr. Robbie, new headlamp motor....um...hope i'm not forgetting anything. I put 6k miles on her. I'm in the 3rd month of my 2nd year of ownership. Costs should be much lower this next 6k! I LOVE MY 355!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I don't track my expenses on this car. When it comes to my F355, nothing is too much or too good for her. Every mile is priceless. [size=+2]I LOVE MY F355!!!!![/size] ps. If you think spending on your Fcar is expensive, wait till you have a kid or two Edit: Forgot to add...this December will be 3 full years of pure enjoyment!
I dont track the expenses on my car ether, I know I could probably add it up, and I could probably work out the per mile costs, but I don't care, it costs what it costs and I love it. I think its a cool idea Reg, this thread is proof that these cars can be sorted and once they are they actually become cheap to own and maintain!
Fantastic thread !!! Since the cats/guides were done in the 30k service .... I have done a clutch, miscelaneous engine trinkets , tires and four wheel alignment .................... have not really kept track of total costs but whatever the numbers were, it pales in comparison to the extraordinary experience ...........
Wow Reg, in your first year you spent a lot of money, considering I went to check out the car at Luxury Motors just before you bought it, I am actually glad I procrastinated because I am pretty sure I couldn't have afford such expenses after. That's why I ended up getting my lowly 348 .... Hey, let's meet at cars and coffee one of these Saturdays, let me know when you are available ...
Ya I knew when I had it check out it was going to take some $$$ to sort it all out (but I did get it for a great price) at least at the time.. As I said some of the things I didn't need to have done Tubi, grill, etc. but what the hell... I had been looking for a '95 Red/Black for over a year with no luck, and then one ended up in our back yard. Are you doing the rally in the valley Sat? http://www.ferraricluboflasvegas.com/calendar.html I'll be there for Cars and Coffee and then the rally. It was a great run last year I think about 100+ miles...
Yep Gary has done all the work I listed above he's been great to work with... I saw your car in there when he was working on it...
That thread is actually scary ! I'm thinking of my first Ferrari; well it seems like the high maintenance cost is not a legend Thanks for sharing anyway, that's useful to know that a 355 can be pretty expensive the first year to be comfortable with her...
Reg, Thanks for sharing these information. 355s are very beautiful and does not cost much to buy these days. Just curious how much is the 30K major alone and how often you have to do the major?
Through my independent shop I believe the breakdown in price for JUST a 30k withOUT replacing the waterpump (mine was replaced during the 2005 30k service) was approximately $5200. I was quoted $8k from a dealer. Guys...all these cars that you see for ridiculously low prices WILL NEED all the stuff that I and Vegas-Guy have had done. I would strongly suggest looking at a car that has had these things done. Who cares if it costs you $10k more up front. That $10k WILL save you a lot of money and headaches in the future. Once most of the defective parts are replaced they are basically good for the life of the car. Oooooh!!!! You mean YOU saw La Bella BEFORE her daddy did???? Lucky!!! I LOVE HER!
+1 If you are seriously looking into 355 ownership your best bet to avoid a first year bill like Reg had is to buy a car that has been driven and has a full history with the known problems address by a competent workshop. Or buy a car based on the fact you will have this work done by a shop of your choice and front up the $$. Once sorted the 355 is amongst the best cars in the world, it really is that good. It is well worth the $$. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
+1. That's exactly what I did. I found a well sorted car with 17K miles, all work previously done, total expenses thus far $0 (besides my personal add-ons like Hyperflows, etc). If I could afford it, I would buy 5 355's in my favorite colors (yellow, red, titanium, blue, and grigio ingrid), that's how much I love the 355
I did just the opposite. I looked for a car that DID NOT have those work done so I can have them done under my watch and by someone I trust (in this case that would be none other than Eugenio) so that I know they are done right and done correctly.
Agreed....I'm in my 5th month of ownership and am dreading the upcoming winter downtime here in Michigan. However, installing a heater in my garage next week and then the fun continues with winter mods!
This is a pretty good thread. I'll have to bookmark it... hopefully you'll be updating it for year three? Come to think of it, it'd be nice to see more owners do this sort of thing (although I realise not everyone is comfortable broadcasting their running costs), as it would greatly assist those planning Ferrari ownership to see precisely what to expect. Thanks very much. All the best, Andrew.
This is a very realistic look at Ferrari ownership costs, for those of you who are thinking about jumping into buying a Ferrari. Especially one of those cheap 355's which seem to keep popping up on EBAY. BUYING a 355, and SORTING a 355 (or buying a SORTED 355) are two totally different things. This is also why many of us who own sorted 355's react to low sales prices with something like "well, I sure wouldn't sell my car for that little..." I have a '98 355, and have had it for almost 3 years now. My experience has been pretty similar to Reg's. What I think this illustrates isn't that 355's are neccessarily expensive to maintain, because a lot of these costs are "one time" costs to sort a car. This includes the headers, cats and valve guides (if you got ahold of one of the brass guide cars), as well as sticky interior parts (though admittedly this is not expensive, and really affects ALL Ferraris including the newest ones). However, once sorted, these cars are not that ridiculous to maintain. Yes, engine comes out every 3-5 years for $6-8000. Yes, alternators fry, but rebuilds are cheap and easy. But ask a 360 owner about clutch replacement, and you'll realize that the supposedly cheaper to maintain 360 loses all its maintenance savings as soon as it goes through a clutch. Realistically, depending on miles and/or habits, this could easily be as often as a major belt service. Bottom line: once sorted, 355's are not hugely more expensive to maintain than other modern Ferraris. And, as has been stated over and over here, they are WONDERFUL to drive! One ride or drive in a 355 and all the aforementioned costs seem justifiable. It's crazy, but it's true. That is, it's justifiable to the right kind of person... that is, the true enthusiast. This is who these cars were designed and built for, and who should be driving them. My 2 cents. John
+10000. Certainly most sensible and well versed post I've seen here in a while. Now can we put this post as a sticky here in the 348/355 section?
I think BLAMPEE was pretty close at $5,200.00 at least the place I go. Most shops will tell you it's about 40 hrs. labor plus parts. +1 This is how mine turned out. It wasn't bad to start with.. I knew when I bought it I was going to need a 30k with in a year, that the clutch needed to be replaced, tires had good life but were old and it was going to need brakes within a few thousand miles. Some of the other things were done just because it was already being worked on. No prob. I started keeping track after the 30k was done. I was getting tired of all the people out there saying how bad the 355 is to maintain and how much $$$ they waist. I think if everyone drove there cars more they wouldn't have half the problems, but that's just me.. I will keep adding to this as long as I have my 355. I put enough miles on my car every year that even with doing a major every 4 to 5 yrs I can get the $$$ down to .10 cents per mile or less... Reg
