Who here is a prior f430 owner?

I am a former 430 spider but I went to a Porto. Loved my 430 but missed modern features like Bluetooth, hard top roof. Not sure I like the styling of the Cali enough to trade. But very happy with the Porto styling and the modern interior.

 

Well I can tell you that the California is quite different then the F430. I like both cars but I can tell you this, the California won’t handle like an F430 will. But the California is a wonderful car for longer drives and It’s more useable as an everyday car.

The ones to look for in my honest opinion are the 13-14 Cali 30 or just jump into a California T. You won’t have a lot of the maintainance worries you would with an F430 but you have some quite expensive breakdowns and repairs to worry about. The DCT can go wonky and cost you quite a bit and the convertible roof can fail costing a pretty penny. And of course all of the modern cars are equipped with carbon ceramic brakes standard so pads and rotors are expensive. Annual maintainance isn’t too terrible on these cars and more or less consist of fluid changes and any issue found during maintainance process. Clutch should last the life of the vehicle.


The F430 will likely hold value better then the California and be more desireable over all. It honestly really depends on what you are going to use the car for, your personal driving style, and honestly your rate on how they look.

With all this having been said I have to ask if you are just interested in owning a Ferrari, or are just looking to get into an exotic. Only reason I ask is from your thread on the F430 in the F430 section. There are less expensive and very nice options to figure out the exotic ownership experience then just jumping on the cheap Ferrari wagon. If you haven’t read or been told this yet most of the time the cheapest Ferrari winds up being the most expensive. The F430 you were looking at really was a great deal and to be honest I’m quite suprised you didn’t jump on it.

 

I have owned 2 430 Coupes (gearshift/F1), and I agree with Shawn that the California with not handle like a 430, but I think it also depends on what kind of car you are looking for. Have you ever driven a 4C, with some very inexpensive modifications it can be as good or better sports car than a 430. I went to visit my California T yesterday (Algar installed a Capristo exhaust and a piggy back unit), the car now has 120 more hp and 115 lb ft of torque. It sounded like a 488 when they started it up. I cant wait till April when it and all my summer cars come out of storage.
Okay OP back to your question, every car I have (or had) has a purpose, I would ask what is your purpose for wanting a Ferrari. If it is that you want a sports car, well there are better choices that would not have the potential of costing you a lot of money. I am one of those types that thinks no car at of the box is perfect for me, so I change them (Steering wheels, tires, wheels, suspension, power, getting rid of drive by wire hesitation) and make them better cars for me. So if it is that you just want the prancing horse label on your car, well I would suggest a California T, it is in my opinion a much better car than the original. I also agree with Shawn, that the cheapest Ferrari is not usually the best Ferrari. I bought a Maserati Gran Turismo MC, a couple weeks ago (Cars sticker was over 160K) for below 50K. I had it out yesterday, and even with Bridgestone high performance all seasons on it, it really handled very well, makes a great sound, and I flashed my transmission so it shifts much faster now in manual mode. I was amazed at how many looks (and pictures taken) I have gotten in that car. A guy at a gas station thought it costs around 250K, he though I was messing with him when I told him what I paid for it. I see you have been a member here OP for a while but you do not post very often, I think the best advise I can give you is to make sure you buy a car from a dealer with a good reputation. It might cost you a bit more up front but it will probably save you money in the long run. Good luck.

 

I think the Maserati GranTurismo is probably one of the best values and frankly I went back and forth quite a bit between the California and the GranTrismo. I still really like the GranTurismo but ultimately like the California T better. From the discussion over in the 360/430 section and now this post I think you should test a California and a Maserati. But both of these cars are grand touring cars and will be less visceral then an F430, 458, or 488 all of which I’ve rented and driven for between 1-4 days. Having driven them all in city traffic and long highway jaunts and all of them an enjoyable experience I found myself many times wishing that I had the california many times. I attribute this to age and driving style for myself.

I have not driven the GranTurismo S for more then “test” drives but can say for the majority of the driving I would do it is more then adequate. It is a bit heavier then a California and you feel it quite a lot more when you push it, and it doesn’t accelerate as briskly as the Ferrari. But is very comfortable and I would assume would be so on Longer journeys.

So to the op to really help you figure out a car that best fits what you are looking for it might help to understand what your intended use and expectations are. I’d just hate to see you jump into a Ferrari and for a multitude of reasons wind up hating it.

 

I've owned 2 F430 Spiders! The Ferrari top down experience is just sensational and always puts a smile on my face.... The 430's will be more visceral for sure, but can you really go wrong either way you choose??? Not a bad problem to have...LOL

 

It's difficult to give advice or make assessments unless you've lived with both cars. I pondered these same things before I bought my first one a few years ago.

My first Ferrari was a manual F430 ... it was a terrific car but I bought a Berlinetta. I was happy to let it go and get a California 30 because the open-air experience adds so much to driving the car on the street. The California is also a little more under the radar and attracts less attention than the F430 did, so that is a plus, in my book. The F430 felt a little more analog, which I liked, but there are some things to contend with with the F1 transmission that would give me pause. They are giving me pause now because I'm thinking about an F430 again. I didn't have the F430 for that long, because right after I bought it the prices shot up on the manual cars, I wanted a convertible instead, and it gave me the opportunity to move into a newer California without writing a check.

I would say if you're going to buy the car as an occasional weekend car -- what people here call a Point A to Point A car (leave your garage, go for a drive, return to your garage) -- then the F430 is a lot of fun. If you actually want to use the car as a daily driver, i.e., run errands, take it out to restaurants, road trips, then the California is much more comfortable and versatile. You sit lower in the F430, it's more of a challenge to get in and out of, it's louder and it feels like you are driving a track car, there's no room in the cabin for anything except you and a passenger and it attracts a lot more attention -- people filming you while they are driving next to you at 80 mph, etc. The California has a split personality ... you can drive it docilely and it will not complain, and you can let it rip when you feel like it. Both cars are plenty fast enough and you won't approach the limits on the street unless you are totally crazy. I have a friend with an F430 Spider F1 and it frustrates him to drive it around in traffic during the summer, with no opportunity to open it up.

Had my F430 been a 6MT Spider I probably would still own it, but the non-F1 cars have gotten really expensive. It's a puzzler, because you will almost certainly drive the California a lot more than you will the F430, but you will also rack up a lot more miles on it. If you are going to drive the F430 a lot, then you need to consider the wear on the F1 clutch as well. Both cars have their weak points -- the gearbox and top in the California are complicated and expensive assemblies, so a Ferrari warranty is a good thing to have. The headers on the F430 tend to leak and have the potential to cause serious problems if you don't replace them, but the factory replacements are going to leak again eventually. Aftermarket headers are louder and you can have check engine light issues trying to pass emissions. And you will want someone who really knows how to set up and maintain the F1 transmission.

I would say it depends mostly on how you drive ... if you want the exotic experience and plan to drive like a banshee all the time then the F430 is the one for you. If you want to have a comfortable daily driver that has terrific performance when you want it but it totally livable when you don't, then the California -- any California -- is a nice choice.

 

Very surprised someone would think about either a 430 or a cali, as they are such different cars.
I had F430's for 5 years and loved them, but then got a McLaren as my 2 seater mid engined weekend car and missed not having a Ferrari so got a Cali as well as its a 2+ for kids in the back and a great GT tourer.
I think both are pretty much at the top in their class. F430 great handling fast car and sounds great (I had a tubi). Cali is easy comfy quick convienient car, good all rounder. While the cali T is a better car, Im not sure the T is worth the extra money personally.
Although for the price F430 costs now then the McLaren 12c / 540 etc are much better all round for similar price(In my opinion).

 

Have I owned one? No. Have I test drove one? Yup, prior to buying my Cali30. Here's my take. If you want to put miles on it, go for the Cali. I'm beyond happy I made that decision. With the coupe like looks with the top up, modern tech, lightening quick DCT shifts and great handling it's hard not to go with the Cali. The key is to go for a Handling Speciale version Cali30. This will you get the handling, the N/A engine, and the modern tech all in one. I went a step further and lowered 1.5" on Novitec Springs, threw on some ADV1 wheels and I have to say, It'll put a hurting on a 430 now. I just had the car up to 180MPH and it was ROCK SOLID, windows down and all. Love this damn car.

The 430 is more raw, more supercar feels. But older tech and it shows, bad. I would only consider that car with a 6SP manual and that puts you in newer 458 Territory. Go test drive both back to back and even better if you can find a HS Cali 30.

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That's an absolutely beautiful car.

 

Thanks! I'll have the center cap adaptors in soon and she's getting paint correction and Ceramic Pro 9H as we speak!



That's an absolutely beautiful car.[/QUOTE]