Introduction for hopeful 328 buyer

Sounds Great. Im not far away in SC and bought a 328 five years ago. Lots of work done to it and I did a lot of research. PM me if you want exchange info and talk 308/328. I have toyed with selling mine, but each day I grow more and more fond of it. Happy to share what knowledge I have…

 

328's look nice. But buy a U.S. 308 for the giant bumpers like I did. Coz Murica!

 

That's all that matters Joe, welcome.

 

I love that 1984 911. If I had one, it would be long term.

 

The 328 is a wonderful car to own, drive, and work on. Like the 308 which came before, you can do much of the work yourself if you're patient and have some small level of mechanical skills. Everything can be done with common hand tools and mechanics tools.

Personally, I liked the evolved shape of the 328 over the 308 (bumpers!) and the revised interior. Sounds like this is what does it for you as well.

While there is some near-term benefit for staying as inexpensive as possible, long term you'll want to get the best car you can afford -- and those with full history and excellent condition will come at a premium, as I'm sure you understand. Take the time to look around before making the deal: There are plenty of good ones out there. Have fun and enjoy the whole experience: From search, to deal, to ownership, to maintenance, to driving...

There's just nothing like owning your first Ferrari

 

328 are great Ferrari's. They have all the Ferrari experience with not as much pain on the wallet. And mechanically they are very solid.

I would suggest a 328 GTB but a GTS would be fun to have in Lowcountry with the beautiful scenery and nice weather. (Grew up there, that's how I know.)

Spend as much as you can on the purchase price. Things get expensive on cheap Ferrari's. And yes, anyone with decent mechanical aptitude can do the basic maintenance, specifically fluids.

-F

 

Millsj, welcome. Just to add to the thought, you can definitely do most of the work on a 328 yourself. They are not that complicated, and between the workshop manuals that are available on line (free), and the thousands of threads in this forum discussing almost every possible repair, you can work your way through just about anything, including doing your own timing belt changes. If I can do it, (which I have), anyone can!!

Good luck with your search and keep us up to date on how it is going.

By the way, do yourself a favor and read the "sticky" at the top of this forum on Buying a 3x8. There is a lot of great information in their on what to look for. Also, search on line for Birdman's Ferrari website. He has a great article there as well on buying a 308, and most of what's in there applies to the 328 as well. Look through the threads in this forum and get familiar with the major issues with 328s so you know what to look for when you see a car. And when you find one, invest in a good pre-purchase inspection (PPI) by a mechanic that knows Ferraris. In the long run, you'll save yourself a bundle of money having someone point out what is good and not so good about the car you are considering buying.

 

I have also been lurking around, gathering as much knowledge as possible. I have narrowed my search to the 328 GTS of 88 1/2 to 89 vintage. I am still amazed at the variety of asking prices, condition and owners. Which brings me to my question: Is it better to have a low mileage - under 10k but multiple owner car that is pristine and well maintained and records to prove, or an orig owner that needs service with higher mileage 20k? How do you really determine a fair price?
Thanks

 

I've owned my GTS for nearly 13 years. I wish I would've bought the GTB that I wanted originally.

Have fun in your search!

 

Great choice with the 328. I bought mine almost 3 years ago and have driven almost 10,000 miles. Like you, I went back and forth with the 308/328 dilemma but chose the 328 for reliability reasons. I haven't been disappointed. Don't save money getting one that needs a "little" work. I was given the advise to get the best one that fit my budget and haven't been disappointed. Good luck with your search and keep us posted.

 

Yes, due to the cost of parts, mainly; a lot of these are becoming No Longer Available; it can be some "not so relevant" parts, but nevertheless needed: try to buy a pair of "New Old Stock" OEM fog lights, for instance...

It is difficult to compare "cost of ownership" over the Atlantic, due to differences in taxes (VAT or no VAT) labor costs, parts procurement, but I've got two 328 in the garage, a '89 GTB (for six years) and a '89 GTS (for three and a half) and mechanichally, I have had no nasty surprise, just the expected costs; a well sorted 328 is a very reliable car, and both were well sorted before I bought them.
Buy the best one you can afford to avoid nasty surprises, those for which the bill could be staggering.
Pay particular attention to the maintenance history as told by the bills, and what has been done, or not done, on the car.

Rgds

 

IMHO, the answer is "it depends." Certainly, regardless of mileage, a "well-maintained" car is always better than one with a sketchy service history. Low mileage cars can be a problem because sitting is generally not good for these cars. But if it was maintained, if hoses, fuel lines, etc. were changes, fuel properly treated and belts changed and fresh, tires of recent vintage, etc., then you have little to do other than keep up the maintenance going forward. On the other hand, if none of that has been done, or little of it, you will find yourself doing all of that work, regardless of miles, just because of the age of the car. Hose and fuel lines and tires and other things deteriorate over time, whether the car has been driven or not.

Now when you say a single owner car that needs service, what do you mean by service? A belt service? Fluids? All of the hoses and fuel lines? All that other stuff as well?

From my experience buying older cars and several older Ferraris, you have to take the car as a whole and assess what condition the car is in and what needs to be done. Yes, a good maintenance history is a good thing. But that's not the end of the inquiry.

As for price, any car (or house or diamond or anything else) is worth what someone is willing to pay for it. There are a few threads on here regarding prices. One has a list of recent 328 sales. You can look at FerrariAds on this site and see what cars have been listed for. You can look on Ebay. Look at some of the auction sites like Mecum. Check out Ferrari Market Letter, which has car listings and price ranges that are fairly up to date. Beyond that, use your own best judgment. But remember, it is easy to get caught up in the passion of buying a classic car. Buy with your head, own with your heart.

 

+1 on this, the GTB is a better drive.

 

The cost of parts is so high with Ferrari's the cost of doing it yourself can still be substantial. You would be wise to buy a car with higher mileage if you want to drive it. I bought a 50k car that needed a major. Now 8 years later it has 68k and is still worth it's purchase price $36,500. Don't be fooled that low mileage means better. Had a friend buy a perfect 10k mile 328. Whenever he drove it something broke. Unused equals neglect. Also your on the right track with the GTS. Removing the roof transforms the car and the flex is grossly overstated. I owned many convertables and the 328 is not a flexible flier. I agree that the GTB is prettier but I bought the car for me and you can't look at the car when you are driving it!

 

Howdy from Fayetteville, NC!!

Dont be afraid to check out late model QVs either. Welcome to the board and I also love the 80s 911s.




PDG

 

A 328 with 20k miles is just getting started. It shouldn't be considered high miles at 20k. Maybe 60k or 70k miles but not 20k.

Condition and service history are the main things, regardless of mileage. A 328 with 20k miles and a solid service history can be a great buy. Even one with a solid service history that needs an updated major is fine too. Just figure that all in the price. Tires are another thing to review. Often these cars have old tires.

As far as actual price, the pricing is firming up. Some 328 for sale are priced in the old pricing range ($35,000-$45,000). Some 328 for sale have gotten ahead of the curve ($70,000+). Obviously pricing is dependent on mileage, condition and service history. But the sweet spot for good cars, with mileage between 20k and 30k, with few mechanical things to address is around $45,000-$65,000. Yeah, I know, kind of a big range.

To any new buyers, feel free to post up cars for sale and we can help review them.

-F

 

Yes.

 

I bought my "86 328 GTS this past December, and though I have very few miles on it due to the pickup work it needed, redoing the interior, making new seats that would allow me to drive the car with the targa roof on,and so on, I've really enjoyed it a lot, even sitting in the garage or working on it. Nearly all of the cars I've had over the past 50 or so years have been British, but there's something special about the 328, even comparing it to the 4 E-Types I've owned.

My reasons for preferring an early 328 over wither a later 328 or a 308 were- improved performance, fuel injection, galvanized steel body panels, more practical size rims (normal ones that take normal Goodyear Z rated tires at $100 each, not weirdo Michelins that cost $400 each, nicer looking bumpers, and so on.

As for GTB vs. GTS, this is a very quick sports car, not (by current standards) an ultra-high speed long distance luxury GT car; and so it really makes no sense to not be able to take the top down/off. Brilliant concept, in my view probably Porsche's best idea, ever! (For THAT matter, maybe their ONLY great idea...) How can you really enjoy the views driving through the Sierras or the Redwoods in a smallish (for Ferrari) closed car??? And I might add that having the later 328 (88-89) with ABS only gives you something else to maintain, at no small expense, and goofy looking bulging wheels, too. IMO.