Can Maint Really Be THAT Bad?

A Ferrari is not for everyone. Clearly I do happen to like them but I also think we are doing a disservice not only to buyers but also the reputation of the brand by not being totally up front about real expectations. Everyone who is talked into one and is disappointed trashes the brand. That hurts the owners in the long run.

 

The answer is 'it depends.' It depends on the car, on you, and on your mechanic. It could be cheap to own compared to those cars or it could be a lot more expensive. In my case, it's one of my least expensive cars to own. If you get one that needs headers and valve guides in the first year, it will be the most expensive.

In any case, there's no way you'll spend the $70k in maintenance it would take to equal the cost of a Gallardo or new Viper in a short period of time unless you and your mechanic have no clue what you're doing. Over 15 years, maybe, but who cares at that kind of time? The Viper and Gallardo will also have depreciated to between half and 1/4 of their current values and the 355 will still be worth around what you paid. For the cost to truly equal out, you'd have to factor in the $50-70k in deprectiation those cars will take over that timeframe as well, meaning you'd have to spend $100-$140k in maintenance on the 355 for the costs to equal out.

 

Hey! I don't drive a camry!!!

 

Rilfe.

what do you mean by "real expectations"?

You ones that are driven require less. Also, certain years had certain inherent issues. This is what one should know before buying

 

The dealer I bought mine from did about $5k worth of work on mine just before I bought it. I spent another $20k on it in 2 years. That included one major, 2 cats, a 360 F1 pump, fixing a few stickies, yearly services and a few minor fixes. When I traded it in it probably needed another $5k-$7k done soon.

 

It so much depends not only on this discussion but you as a buyer at the time you are buying, the cars that are on the market st the time you are looking and hoe long you will wait to pull the trigger given your wish list. Then add into the sellers needs and who knows where you start your ownership point from

The reality is that it is all somewhere in between ideal and a mess and it is a bit of luck. If you parsed every car you wanted to buy to get every check mark ticket off you are either never going to find it or maybe pay more than you'd like.

Start with the basics and the big ones out of the block. Headers, recent major, I'll add cats now given my recent experience , compression check and then start picking apart the detail stuff , dtickies, tires, check the obd stuff carefully, leather and interior cismetics, clutch , top on a spider , f1 on them.

Realistically decide how perfect you want and expect a 20 year old used car to be. If you want and demand perfection then you need at assess your mechanical ability and tolerance or your wallets tolerance. There is a lot that can be done DIY and can make ownership fun and not horrific money wise. If you are one to not get your hands dirty abd not even change the battery let even know where it is.....Caveat Emptor!!

A lot of ways to buy own and maintain them. No one size fits all.

 

I can relate to the OP's question insomuch as the cost to maintain the car isn't the total cost of ownership. When a company does a TCO analysis, for instance, they take into account hard costs as well as soft costs. In this case, we're only talking about hard costs - what does it take to buy and maintain.

So, the 355 may be $65k - $80k to buy a near perfect one, and then you may spend anything from "$200/mo" to "$20k in two years" (the spectrum of answers given here). But I believe the OP is trying to get at soft costs, as I'm also struggling with in my decision making process (that and I can't find a darn soul to sell me a rosso 355F1 GTS - off topic!). One of those soft costs is owner satisfaction. It's hard to put a $$ figure on it since two owners may react very differently to something like a weekend trip being rudely interrupted by a CEL or a car that leaves them stranded on a 200 mile jaunt away from home. One owner may shrug, get it towed, and move one, and the other may feel as if their entire weekend (or several - depending upon the length of repair time) has been flushed down the toilet.

I'm in the camp where I'm pretty sure the hard costs, alone, wouldn't deter my satisfaction... but the soft costs may very well. And therein lies the allure of a modern alternative, like the R8, 458, etc. Yes, they cost boatloads more than a 355 in hard costs (capex, at least), but their opex is lower (thanks to a warranty, modern design, newer parts, etc) and soft costs that lead to overall satisfaction may be MUCH lower.

I think it's clear that going into 355 ownership one should anticipate both best and worst case scenarios, despite the best due diligence and pre-purchase inspection... and that may lead to a car that costs $1,000 in maintenance the year you buy it or $20,000. And if you're comfortable with those potential ends of the spectrum, great. As far as the soft costs, though, it's really more about gut feel - what's an interrupted weekend worth to you? What's your time worth in towing/shipping a car? If you were without the car for a few weeks during the height of summer, what's that worth? If you've mentally accepted the realm of possibility in hard costs, the soft costs will then likely dictate the real ownership experience and satisfaction level.

 

I can honestly say that I will spare no expense maintaining my car. But, I do and will do all of my service. In a sick way, I like when stuff needs work coz I learn more about the car. As long as I'm not stranded, I really don't care what happens, I'll fix it.

If you are worried, buy another car.

 

Yeah what he said ^. And that car should be a 348.

 

+1. Well said.

 

Is it so difficult to find a car with all the common issues already addressed? I would think that would minimize the risk. The good news is that these cars may have higher mileage, so your initial investment will be lower.

I'm only 1.5 years into ownership, so I may not be the best data point, but so far so good.

 

The paranoid behavior that these cars elicit is essentially unfounded. I have had a 308, Mondial t, F40, TR, Challenge Stradale and a 348 for 20 years. I thoroughly maintained them and they were mostly bullet proof.

My 348 was sold to a fellow FChatter and it continues to be loved and soldiers on with no real problems.

Just buy the absolute best car you can find, buy it and enjoy it. If you let it sit, it will fall apart!

 

It does, however I bought my F355 cheap, it needed some work as it had been in a dealer for six months from what I could see. I purchased it in Feb 2010 for £32k. I spent about £4000 doing buttresses and other work. Since spent £3600 on a cambelt service (+ more work) (other sundries to about £1000, and oil changes etc) and a further £600 when it failed the MOT on emissions. So £9200 in 50 months which comes to about £184/mth which shocked me a little. However do many of us sit down and work out how much a brand new daily car costs per month, figuring in depreciation?
At the end of the day as many have said, Ferrari, Gallardo and even R8's and Vipers (I suspect) are heart choices.

Photo is a picture and a half.

I have thought about what to do when I retire as I suspect continued ownership of my F355 will not be possible. Maybe a 360 where cam belts don't require engine removal, or maybe that late 60's fastback Mustang I will eventually get.

 

To be honest, I was never a fan of the 348, but it really started to grow on me over the years. Now, I have one. It isn't the best one, and I'm slowly wrenching through it. What makes it appealing, similar to the 308/328's, is the community here because it is a very DIY friendly car. That's just my opinion though. You can easily wrench on a 355, but when it comes to needing an SD2 to tune the intakes, you'll need to take it to a shop.

Does it feel like a Ferrari? Yes, very much so. To be honest, I've never driven a Ferrari prior to owning this one, but I have instructed many drivers at the track from 308's to 458's. It doesn't have the wonderful sounds of a 355, but it does have a wonderful engine note. The 355 is quite special, but it is also a bit more expensive to maintain.

Without power steering, below 3mph, turning in a parking lot or out of the driveway, you feel it. Once you are moving, you don't even notice it because there's no weight over the front wheels with plenty of feedback. Compare that to my old 94 Miata R, which had no power steering. You'd have to muscle it most of the time.

At the moment, 348's and 355's appear to be fully depreciated. Either way you go, as long as you maintain it and drive it often, you'll get your bucks back for the car.

 

The 355 has another 75 HP with the same or less weight.

 

10 years with a 355. Spent around 40k on R&M while driving around 50k miles. Incidentally, have spent almost the same on the 308 in that same period.

 

There are a few reasons in favor of the 355. For me, it boiled down to all of the below plus the looks (which are subjective).

extra 75hp and 1000rpm is nice in the 355
~150lbs weight savings
6 speed
solid shift linkage vs cable linkage
airbags
adaptive suspension
power steering (could be positive or negative depending on your opinion, manual steering was an option on the 355 in the first year but nobody ordered it so Ferrari dropped it)
aero was improved, 355 was the first Ferrari with underbody aero and diffiuser
18" rims give much better tire selection

The 348's do not have the header or valve guide issues that the 355 does. They do have their own transmission issues, and earlier cars have a more expensive dual disc clutch. The rest of the issues save maybe stickies are similar between the two. Major service intervals are the same and both require engine out. I'd expect maintenance costs to be around $500 a year cheaper for the 348 over a longer time period given that unless you buy a 355 that has had them addressed, you'll probably have to do either valve guides or headers at some point.

 

+1
59000 km or 37000 miles in two 2.5 years

 

But it only equates to another 30 lb-ft of torque, which is what you feel. I'm in the market for either and I keep thinking is the limited increase in torque worth the maintenace overhead of the 355...?

I don't have an answer yet.

Looks wise I love them both equally and differently, with the 348 having a much more muscular look whereas the 355 is prettier.

While the 348 doesn't have the header or valve guide problems, given the single belt setup if you loose the belt or bearing you loose the whole motor. Same situation on the 355 and you loose one side. You can go on and on with the list of pros versus cons of one model over another or even to get in a Ferrari at all.

Toyota just recalled like 7 million vehicles, all machines have issues, and they all need maintenace. Regardless of model or even the brand, get what you love. Get the best one you can find. And then work through the problems. And drive it.

 

Because you don't like spending your time dicking around with an unreliable car!

 

May be just me, but I don't get this level of pre purchase analysis, I just wanted mine so I bought it....jeeeez.

 

Have you considered possibly looking into a 360??

Its basically the same engine/power train, and has the added benefit of a stiffer shell and the Montezmolo panel will save you the hassel of dropping the engine every 5 years..

It is not as raw on the sense as an F355, but it does have a more "modern" feel from the drivers seat...

 

Montezemelo panel??

Where did that name come from? He sure didn't have anything to do with it.