F355 as first Ferrari

Great to hear that you're "in the hunt". If a 355 is what you've always wanted, you will NOT be disappointed...it hits a sweet spot on so many levels (looks, performance, sound, comfort) that it's almost a no-brainer.

Certainly add me to your list of people to talk to...PM if you want to talk on the phone. There are lots of great cars out there...one just perfect for you. Just go in with your eyes open and you'll be fine.

One thing I wanted to mention: One of the first guys I talked to, Geoff Provost, an independent Ferrari/Italian marques tech out in SF, said "drive as many cars as you can...get used to the nuances and quirks". He went on to say that, for him, a good hour-long drive is as good as any PPI. Don't get me wrong...I got a PPI, and I definitely recommend it for you as well. But...now at a solid two years into the ownership experience, I fully understand. But, the only way I came to that understanding was lots of seat time. So, anyway, make sure you drive every car you look at...heck, even drive it if it's not your dream color/interior combo...a Ferrari F355 is a beautiful and complex creature; you must surrender yourself to it in order to understand it. It's just like dating women...at first, you don't know the territory, but as your experience grows you bring more to the activity, and it gives more to you. So go drive some 355's as soon as you can.

If you're ever in the Detroit area, you are welcome to drive mine. And not just a "get your feet wet" kind of thing...nuh uh...I let you drive for hours to really get a feel for it.

 

No leg room is lost if you don't mind a fairly upright driving position. See also this post:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/348-355/390483-meet-new-guy-1995-355-gts-pics.html#post141920898

 

OH JEEZ...HIS NAME IS GEOFF PROVO. FACEPALM.

 

Hey Andrew, see this thread, I've not raised the price one cent: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/348-355/390441-newbie-looking-get-f355.html

However, we can certainly agree that Robb's photos are awesome!

 

OUCH

 

So you're saying you spent 68,000.00 over 8 years to maintain a 355 with only having done a single major? That's more than I've spent owning 1 355 spider, 1 F360 MT, 1 CS, and a 6.0 Diablo - combined. I have to ask how this is possible? Engine rebuild? Anything short of that just doesn't add up to 53K no matter how you price it.

 

Thanks Dave!

It's good when your job is your passion. It makes it easier and more rewarding.

Popcorn ready on the $8,500 per year maint...

I'm not doubting it, because anything can and does happen with Ferrari, but I will not be anywhere close to that.

I'll hit that every major service from my independent Ferrari mechanic. Tires, every 2+ years. Brakes and clutch will be a long while. Hyper flows or test pipes save the headers and a gold kit takes it a step further.

Robb

 

Yep, that's exactly what I'm saying. It was a low miles '99 from an authorized dealer that had just performed a major on it when I bought it. It was a reliable car, just expensive to maintain. I'm anal about my cars and took care of every tiny thing that popped up, but the bottom line is that parts are overpriced by an order of magnitude, my local dealer was running a rip off scheme (confirmed to me by an involved employee), and Ferrari quite frankly did a ****e job on a lot of the parts on these. I replaced all the crap parts with aftermarket items which solved those problems, but a lot of the other things just kept cropping up.

I still love the stupid thing however and would like to have another, I just don't hate myself that much yet so I got a 911 to hold me over until I get a newer Ferrari...

 

I just bought a 95 with 60k in service recites In 5 years.

3 majors, yes in 5 years and valve guides, new cats, all at Ferrari of Seattle and Beverly Hills.

One owner car - so it is possible, a little over board however it is the case. The last 20k was spent at Ferrari of Seattle to make car perfect for sale by dealer.

 

Andrew, glad to see you are back in the 355 club.

 

My Avatar Picture is your car? In Newport at Concours circa 2010 - Perhaps we meet up for a drive some weekend this summer mid Mass?

Best,

AK

 

While I haven't spent quite that much, I have no difficulty believing $65k in running costs over 8 years. Sorting these cars costs big money. It's not just the labor, but the parts prices are crazy. Look up the parts price for a wheel bearing, for instance. This is why there exists cars for sale for $35k alongside cars priced at $70k. Both cars are probably priced correctly.

Remember, a sorted car has headers, cats, F1 pump, gold kit, etc etc. Plus, cosmetic sorting will include sticky stuff, dash leather, maybe paint work, maybe seats, etc etc.

These cars are of course beautiful, but they just don't seem as durable as the newer stuff, much less cars from other makes. To make things worse, Ferrari doesn't use economy of scale principles in its manufacturing process. I had to replace my hvac ecu, and found out that every model of car has it's own hvac ecu. Who would care at all if the 355, 550, and 456 from the same era used the same ecu? Only Ferrari uses unique parts for each model. So each one is nearly $2000. Ridiculous. That sort of thing is pervasive in the cars, but unfortunately contributes to the impossible-sounding costs mentioned here.

Having said all that, I still love that crazy car!

 

Once the car is sorted they are reliable and much less $$ to operate as we all know. And getting one like this IMO is a great car for person looking for their first Ferrari - if they love the model.

However a sorted 328, 550, 360 - will be much cheaper to own usually.

HOWEVER - Do not buy a cheap one, buying a cheap Ferrari can be a nightmare and incredibly expensive (That is said on FCHAT all the time). Finding a great sorted 355 in todays MKT is very hard and when they come up they go for top the MKT, as they should. Could you imagine buying my recent purchase of a 355 6 years ago and having all those issues come up. Part of the situation with my car is I'm sure the owner was rich, brought it to the authorized dealer and said "fix it". An owner that wanted to save money could have done it much cheaper, if you can do it your self (not me) you can save that much more.

With all that being said I would recommend a new Ferrari owner buy a car like the one i just bought - when I go to sell it as I think it will be years of regular fluid service for that owner. You never know and I hope its a good car for me, and for the next person when I pass it on.

 

Not every car needs the level of extreme "sorting" you mention. Also, Ferrari does use common parts accross models. I think the need for this level of up keep is very rare and not the norm by any means.

Maybe we should do a poll?

 

Sounds good.

 

Well I guess I need to jump in with my two cents. I am at the extreme end of things with many of the questions but before I start I wll say that if I had really studied this forum before I bought my 95 GTS 6 speed two years ago I would have run screaming for the hills. I have a good income but I also have a family and I do not make enough to spend 15k a year on a toy. With that being said I am glad I did not run from the car, it is a blast and has been nothing but reliable. I am 6'5", with long legs and while I could not fit the GTS top behind me and I have the seat all the way back I am very comfortable so do not be to concerned about the hieght issue. I bought a well sorted out car with all the major issues taken care of but it was on the high side of mileage at 36k. I paid top dollar for it because of its past history and general good condition. It was a good decision because I have not had any issues to speak of. I have had to reset the ECU one time but that cost nothing more than a few minutes of my time. I just had my first major and it cost me 8600.00 total. I am often amazed when I look at these cars with supposed low miles and they appear to be in much worse condition than my "high mileage" car. During my major I was able to really look at my car with all the covers off and it was spotless, the mechanic remarked that he had never seen a 355 in such good condition and remarked that he did not feel that the car had ever been driven in the rain. My Majors cost included having bypass pipes installed and new engine mounts. My car went a few months past 5 years between majors, I examined the pulleys and belts that were removed and found them to be in like new condition. I am not advocating not having a mayor or even extending the time between but simply stating my observation.

Would I do it again? Yes I would, my experience has been good. Would I sell? Sure I would but not for a bargan basement price that some folks seem to feel is required once the car exceeds 30k. I really feel that a well sorted out well maintained car that has been used will be far less problematic than a 15 year old car that has sat in a garage. I also believe that this forum is probably the most viewed resource out there for the 355 and to constantly beat on the vehicle value and cost to maintain rather then focus on the great car and how to keep cost reasonable is doing the marque a disservice. A few months back a major shop offered a spring special for the major that was very reasonable, this shows that it can be done for less and we should be encouraging this, of course every situation is different and we know parts prices are high for these cars although there has been some recent reductions and this should help some with the cost to keep these cars running.

Just my 2 cents worth and of course you get what you pay for

 

Great real world post.

Thanks

 

No need for popcorn, but keep some lube and a good single malt handy when the car goes to the shop, just in case

Of course no one plans on spending that much, but you don't get to decide when your car breaks. A few thousand of that was for mods and cosmetic repairs but the rest was for basic maintenance and fixing broken parts. I really liked that stupid car and spent the the necessary time and money to fix everything that cropped up, so maybe I spent more than most, but I know for a fact there are others here who have spent similar amounts. There have been multiple 355s for sale with receipt tallies of $50k and up, and most of those have a fraction of the mileage mine had. Maybe people don't want to talk about it for fear of "ruining the value" of their cars, but I'm sure a lot of owners and a few of the mechanics on the board could attest to seeing many $20k+ tabs... Then again there are other people who somehow escape this curse and have no problems, but if someone like the OP asks, I think they should at least hear about various experiences so they know what they're potentially in for.

I had 90% of the work done at the best independents around.. they're not cheap either And I'm not convinced that test pipes help the header issue. Mine had test pipes its whole life and the headers still exploded at 22k miles. Others have gone almost 50k with stock headers, so there are no guarantees really. Just do what you can for the car and hope for the best. They're great fun, and there's really no other car I want more, but they can certainly cause some headaches.

 

Man...I gotta say that I LOVE 355s, but some of the repair records/$ are just absurd/scary/mind-numbing. I understand the "pay-to-play" mantra (I have owned 3 F-cars), but it's the real possibility of taking it in the shorts on a 355 that has always, and continues to, steer me away from these beauties.

 

Eric, your process thus far is spot on and I'm sure you will find a great F1 GTS!!!

 

+1 Eric...it's now just a matter of time until it all comes together!