Could Resentment be up?

Don't forget that people also keep the older ones on the road. Enthusiasts like me with my 25 year old one and up. Every year, the odds go up that you will see one out on the road.

 

It's not the number. I don't think the brand is disluted at all. I say that it's becoming viewed as a party toy for the rich and famous rather than a car that a true car enthusiast would own.

Look at what people complain about here on Fchat most about their new cars:

1) the paint quality

2) the stereo

3) why their bluetooth device can't sync.

What does any of this have to do with a car that goes 200 MPH? Does the shiny paint make it go faster?

Steve McQueen would LAUGH. Justin Beiber agrees.

I can just imagine Steve complaining to Enzo that there are paint swirls in his paint. And, I can imagine what Enzo would say back!

 

They better be if they hope to compete with me.

Cheers,

George

 

LMAO!

 

+1

 

I dont agree about the volume, that is but acontributing factor. In most parts of the world even the well off parts, you hardly ever see a ferrari if at all. What diluted the brand is the client base and their habbits.
The dilution of brand equity started with the dilution of the essential product. This came about by diluting the essential rawness and directness of the product so any old fool could just hop in and drive one to the resteraunt and hand the keys to any old valet. This made ferraris useable expanding the potential client base, corrospondingly putting ferraris into the leaugue of fashion/wealth statements. In the past to own a drive a ferrari you had to be comitted and somewhat knowledgeable.

Now we have stockbroker poseur flippers buying and selling in 6 months, its the in gotta have it to show everyone how sucessful I am trinket. That is what is killing the brand. Sportsman drivers need not apply. In the public eye Ferrari drivers are rich ****s, and the impression is not far off the mark. As good as a ferrari is these days, do you really want to be associated with 90% oof new ferrari owners. Truth is most ferrari owners are aholes who cant drive for crap.

The tech car bought by people who can drive is a GTR, the hard core car bought by people who can drive is a z06 or even a miata. Ferraris are bought mostly to be seen in at the valet parking area, this is destroying the brand equity. Thay also dont manufacture any fully engagin hard core models, ie no stick. Although those that now say the 360 scud was the last real ferrari and that was pabble, so maybe its just the inherrant softness of the cars now attracting the type of buyer who is, well attracted to that. Its sort of like a mid life wealth projector/investment instead of being the ultimate acheivemt for the sportsman driver.

If you want to see the fall of ferrari look at the boutiques, look at who is driving them.

 

254.4 million registered passenger vehicles in the United States.. and 5000-8000 models is "alot"... riiiight. It's just enough that people (your average driver) know what it is, without having to say "what is that?". I.e. a Spyker is REALLY rare, but people do't know what it is. Versus the average driver knowing what a Ferrari is.

 

What he said.

I'm amazed at how hard the cars were driven back in the day. I remember my first email exchange, after my car had come back from the restoration shop, with the guy who raced my Speedster in the '60s and '70s. First question: "What gear setup did (you) go with?"

 

Jenna Jameson......mmmmmmmm

Bacon......

Sorry, I spaced. What were we talking about????

 

Poor you.

 

oh please.

Back then, ferrari, lambo, porsche, etc built maybe 5,000 cars per year combined. When you're one of a few games in town, you can produce inferior products with a good drivetrain/suspension and nobody says nothing.

Now you have $80k nissans performing at the level of $250k ferraris. Not to mention the litany of brands that offer similar performance with better quality at a lower price.

At the end of the day, ferraris are just cars...expensive cars. And at this stage of the game, you need a good stereo, bluetooth and decent paint when you sell $250k vehicles.

Who cares what Enzo would have said? Its pretty clear that he couldn't care less about road cars anyway. Why so many people defend his acceptance of inferior products sold under his name, I'm not sure.

 

Just saw this on the street. Ferraris are common over here. This guy decided to take up half of a handicapped space and a handicapped driver was actually waiting to park because of that.

Actions like these causes resentment towards f car drivers!
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Edit : they cause resentment towards ANY driver that does that.

 

It looked pretty empty in front of the Ferrari. Also, let's not forget that some handicap drivers drive Ferraris.

 

Meh... fail. The F-car driver in the photo was just being an inconsiderate scofflaw. You're either permitted to park in those spaces or you aren't.

The Porsche driver behind him seems to have been able to park within the lines.

 

I'm one of them. I seem to be able to park within the lines. If the twit was handicapped, it certainly was not physical! Capito?

 

You miss the entire point.

What I'm referring to is that a Ferrari used to be owned by a rich sportsman who appreciated the car for it's driving.

What we have now are fake celebs who own them like expensive shoes, more interested in how they look than what the car can do.

One group you can respect. The other you roll your eyes.

 

The times and tech have produced a super Anti-Meritocracy, plus most new exotics DON'T look very exotic.


BTW the economy is back and booming where ACTUAL work happens.

 

It depends where you are located.
Car gets lots of attention in Aspen even when the tourists are not in town (fall and spring). Not many Fcars in town.
Tourists are very enthusiastic about the car.

The year-round residents are ~6,000 people. Most popular vehicles vehicles are SUVs...seems most are Porsches. Many 911s in the non-snowy weather. and Prius' are very popular as well.

All the reaction to my Fcars here has been positive. I guess folks who object just ignore you. Many many people stop to take pictures. Lots of girls like to have their picture taken with the car. If I am present they always ask if they can take a picture. I always say yes.

When I am out of town at a gas station, People usually come over to see the car, take a picture and ask questions. When I go to Costco for gas in Eagle (near Vail) people always come over and ask about the car, take pictures, etc. Have only been to the Park Meadows Costco (Denver) 1 time and the car got no attention. but got lots of attention at the restaurants.

Our Porsche gets practically no attention except maybe the occaisional waive by another Pcar driver (male or female).

 

Get a Lamborghini. The attention is off the charts.....still. I have a 22 year old Lamborghini in the Silicon Valley and it gets a LOT of attention still. I do believe that there is resentment. [*** P&R deleted ***]

With that being said, some cars on some locations will elicit different responses. My 328 back in Wisconsin was treated with rock star status. Here in Cali it wouldn't even get a second look. But out here a 360 gets very little response. I think accessibility to photos from the net paired with build quantities these days and some cars just aren't "rare" enough to have a "wow" factor.

So get a Lambo. They attract attention no matter where you are and who is looking. With all this being said, I'll own another Ferrari someday. They are great machines in their own right. I was simply making commentary on "attention" and Lamborghini gets a lot more than Ferrari. It's not even close.

 

Having come from a Viper GTS lowered,aero nose,splitter,canards,wing,dffuser. I am approached less in the red 575m. People seem more respectful and intimidated. Lots of looks but more of the peeking type. Bruce

 

A recent story in the news about the largest bank in Switzerland, paying a huge fine, for helping dozens of ultra wealthy Americans with tax fraud and tax evasion, only makes the working class more angry, at the people showing off their wealth. Many of us have our money, because we worked our tail ends off to achieve our goals, but that doesn't cut any slack with people disgusted with stories about the very rich paying a lower tax rate than they do.

 

[*** P&R deleted ***]

Social mobility is lower now than it was 30 years ago, despite the recovery, and it has been trending down for decades. A lot of us need to look in the mirror and accept that we've benefited big time from cheap capital gains taxes and mortgage writeoffs that middle and lower class Americans can't touch. It ain't a level playing field, and I admit that I've had a pretty good Great Recession. Throw the word "meritocracy" around and yes, I can see how a lot of people struggling to make the payments on their entry level economy cars would resent someone who needs to blow $200K on a flashy sports car. That's a HOUSE for most of the country. So yeah, I get it.

Exactly. The media attention on the financial sector has been all about scammers and crooks, and of course guys like Mitt Romney working the system so he pays a lower tax rate than working class voters and needs to keep his tax returns a secret. Stereotype confirmed.

If I get another Ferrari, and when I'm out in my Porsche, I will go out of my way to be courteous and talk about the car from the perspective of a car enthusiast -- and a fortunate one.

 

If I get another Ferrari, and when I'm out in my Porsche, I will go out of my way to be courteous and talk about the car from the perspective of a car enthusiast -- and a fortunate one.[/QUOTE]

IMO you can go out of your way all you want and it won't do a bit of good. You are the evil one that should be paying more in taxes so that those less fortunate than you can have a better life. You my friend are seen as evil. There is a definite and conscious re-distribution of wealth going on all orchestrated by the current administration all in the name of good things like the environment. Hang on to your wallets everyone.......

 

Once again, I believe there are multiple reasons why someone decides to buy a Ferrari, and not all of them are good. In my case, I hated driving my car in urban areas. But going out to the sticks? Priceless. Seriously, I once told a group of hanger ons at a gas station that my Maranello was the Mexican prototype for the new Camaro. Not only did they believe me, but I wish. Damn, I wish Chevy had gotten the joke.