I love it when old threads like this get a bump.... what a JOKE!!! There is NO Ferrari that is a "poor man's Ferrari".... nothing I can add that modifies the aged discussion.... Just fun to see the bump. Jedi
Agree..."poor man" and "Ferrari" don't match, but then "rich man" and "Ferrari" don't necessarily go hand in hand either. Where there's a will there's a way.
Holds hand up over here Tillman. I can vouch for that mate. Almost hit 6 figures and she hasn't started going back together yet.
As an owner of a Dino during from the early 80's through the mid 90's. I heard it MANY times from owners whose cars that had Ferrari badges and prancing horses on them that the Dino was in fact a "poor man's Ferrari". Now, when I look today at Dino prices vs 308 prices, I chuckle at that notion. The little Dino had the last laugh. The real poor man's Ferrari's are the MR2, Fiat X1-9, or Pontiac Fiero.
I took a similar route....1991 Alfa spider and now an 84 Mondial QV Cabrio....a smile on my face the whole time. Enjoy!
I like reading the old future market predictions. Some are so right, others so wrong. Still fun to see the differerent perspectives from a few years back. Dino continued to rocket up 348 and 355 dropped faster than predicted 328 and 308 seem to have held or dropped slightly rather than appreciate
There were 13,136 308s built over 11 years, this includes all flavors (glass, steel, and 208 turbos). Individually within the series, maybe 3,500 of each version (carb'd, injected, QV) were made, but the glass production subset numbers are the least. This equates to about 1,300 cars per year, for the entire world market. Maybe half are left at this point - maybe. I'd say this points more to being exclusive, than not. With the exterior and interior styling changes, I see the 328 as a separate and distinct car, of which about 8,500 were built over 3-4 years. In my opinion exclusivity (if that term and Ferrari can even be used together) ended with the later models - about 12,000 355s and 12,000 360s made, over 4-5 year periods. At 3k per year, that's twice the production numbers of the 308. Phil
I think it ended with the 308. Where the 308 is getting interesting now is the relatively low number of decent cars. The newest 308 is now 25 years old.
At this point, the definition of exclusivity and appreciation is not how many 308s were made, but how many are left. And of those left, how many are cared for? With 13k 308s made, it's probably reasonable to think half are gone. And within the half remaining, there are a small subset of museum quality specimens that wouldn't be able to be driven without complete overhauls. Then there are highly cared for versions; cared for; somewhat cared for; and then abused/ignored specimens. Assuming an even split along these categories, there are under 2k highly cared for 308s left, quite a few of them are owned by us here. I realize these are broad based assumptions, even guesses, but I doubt I'm far off. We all follow the market here, and it's a small community. It would be interesting to overlay Wade's and the other registry data with this type of information to get a better picture of how many are left. Phil
As an answer to this question, it really depends upon where you live. In California, where 430s, 599s, Californias and other newer cars are everywhere, it is absolutely a poor man's Ferrari IMO. Having owned one for 4 years here, the disrespect from newer car owners was constant and it affected my enjoyment of the experience, without question. In another state where there are very few F cars, they are unique and probably more appreciated by the F car crowd. Personally, I'm done with Ferrari ownership for the foreseeable future. It was interesting and fun, but I was glad to see the car go to it's new owner.
If you want disrespect try owning a Mondial....;=) But I love mine, the heck with others opinions (F owners or not)
Really? Maybe it's just the crowd that I hang out with, but I don't really see much disrespect - and I have a GT4. The socal guys seem to be pretty nice regardless of what you are driving. I've participated in drives/lunch/events with a range of cars from the newest exotic to even non exotics. Come on by to Haus Of Pizza one thursday for lunch and hang out. Nobody will disparage you car. That said, I agree with the guys that said owning a 308 will make you poor
No, not really. There was a little smile ;=) on my post...meant to take it with a grain of salt. My point - in an oblique way - was that the Mondial is IMO even less appreciated than the 308. But why worry about it. If you ar lucky enough to drive one, just enjoy !
I've run into the same thing but frankly, it doesn't bother me at all to say, "Yeah, I'd like to have an F 430 (or whatever) like yours but I can't afford it." What's the shame in realizing/acknowledging that there are plenty of people around who make a LOT more money? If you bought a 3x8 for "respect" you bought it for the wrong reason anyway. Heck, I've never heard or "respect" being generated by the kind of car a person owns. Envy is a different thing...
+10 Who cares what anyone else thinks, only you know why you bought your 308, and it's no one elses business. Entry price isn't always the driving factor. If you want a timeless, drivable expression of art, you acquire a 308, it is the most beautiful, well balanced car ever designed. Here in NY/NJ area, I've met a lot of other F-car owners, and on average they are the nicest people. From a guy with an F40, to a bunch of 360 owners, to Dino, Mondial, 410 and various 308, 328 and TR owners, never really encountered any snobbery (certainly not the kind I found in the Porsche world where you either own a 911 or you don't own a Porsche). Phil
I bought my 308GTSi in late 2001 for about $40K and then set out to make it the best 308 possible. I/we have upgraded the exhaust (Tubi), brakes (Brembo), did a complete engine rebuild, overhauled the cooling system, new tires, new clutch, new waterpump, new fuel pump, and a new paint job. the result is a car that looks as good as the day in February 1984 when it came out of the factory and performance wise is unbelievable. I did all this because I have a deep love for the 308 and cost was not the issue. I think most Ferrari enthusiasts will echo the sentiment that each Ferrari is special regardless of sticker price or year built.
I think Tillman has a long-term vendetta against Joe G. There is no such thing as a poor man's Ferrari, but a Ferrari can sure make a man poor.
Funny, I have found that any aftermarket part on a car is referred to as an "upgrade" by whoever does it! This in spite of the fact that a car that will bring the most in a sale is the one without any "upgrades."
I could buy a 360 F1 for what i have into the 308 so far. But i dont want a 360, i will keep my lil euro 308. Folks ask me if I am rich cause i own a ferrari - and i tell them that i would be a WHOLE lot richer if i DIDNT own one.
"I could buy a 360 F1 for what i have into the 308 so far. " Sure, but the reality is that it's a lot easier to come up with the cash to buy a 3x8 and then spend money as you can/want/need to than it to come up with the cash to buy a 360 in the first place. If I could actually afford to buy a 360; I'f buy a 360. But I can't. I suspect I'm not the only one...
Jay Leno has a 308.... soooo If you want to put people in a class based on the type of Ferrari they own, then you're wasting your time. TRUE ownership extends into the preservation and proper maintenance of the car. That's where the money is spent. You can buy that POS $4500 GT4 shell on craigslist if you want. But do you own it, or does it own you? A Fiero is a Poor Man's Ferrari... and I've owned 'em both. ;-)
