458 New to Ferrari! In market for a 458, any buying advice?!

Get it! great car.Bought a 2015 close to a year ago, I love it!!

 

My advice, scroll through the forums and read through the hundreds of threads that already cover this topic.

I just bought mine a few months ago, trading in a ‘16 GT3 RS. As a Ferrari fanboy who cannot afford a Speciale, the 458 was the sweet spot.

 

As with most models, the later the better. I was told 13-15 are the best iteration of the drivetrain. Earlier DCTs were more prone to failure. For me there was value in CPO warranty because DCT failure is $$$$$$$. I heard replacement numbers in the $36-40k range.

 

Mid to late 2012 and after and you should be in pretty good shape. As mentioned, there are plenty of threads which are specific to your question.

Everyone has their opinion. Some people say you must have the lift, others say no. Some people say if you don't have the LED steering wheel, you might as well go hang yourself from the rafters in your garage. I will say that a backup camera makes life so much better in the 458. Also you might want to check wheel weights, as I seem to recall the forged wheels are a lot lighter than the base wheels.

Ray

 

2010-2011 with original software a plus.
Otherwise, 12-15 racing seats and led wheel.

Buy on condition and known history. Miles wouldn’t scare me.

 

also buy the Spec you want. ...although your not going to get everything you want, but find whats important to you. For me it was the Race seats and full carbon fiber interior, Nero with red stitching.

 

Agree wholeheartedly with Dustman.

Just like to add that from 2012 onwards you get the 7 year free maintenance perk, although I don’t think that’s reason enough to choose one car over another.

Condition, options/spec and history. The rest is of little consequence.

Being a 2011 Italia owner I may be biased, but don’t underestimate how fun, loud, engaging and special those exhaust crackles/pops on liftoff are. Sometimes I go for a drive just because of them and I smile everytime that son of a gun backfires on me.

Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Made by yours truly back in 2016:

(2011 Italia - stock exhaust)





Kind regards,

Nuno.

 

Shoot me a PM with an email address and I’ll share my ‘questions to ask’ list that I put together while shopping for mine.


Sent from my iPad using FerrariChat

 

If you find one from 13 and on, it will have had the 7 year service plan, that now comes with all new Ferraris. Ger warranty on the car. Some of the early cars had some teething issues with trans etc. But anything m/y '13 and on should be fine.

Other than that, not much to say. Don't worry too much about milage. A car that has been driven but well maintained are often in better shape than a low milage garage queen. These cars don't like to sit.

 

LED wheel, Shields, and forged wheels are the biggest resale options that almost every buyer wants.

Lift, Racing Seats, Parking Sensors, and Rear View Camera are also desirable options, but not to the extreme of the above 3.

Cosmetic Carbon Fiber are the most expensive and generally most frivulous options in that they hold little resale value. If a car's MSRP is massive because of carbon fiber, you should get a huge discount on that car versus original sticker.

Buy on spec and condition.

 

Original NON-UPDATED ECU spec 2010/2011 Italias still in possession of factory run-on have become absolute unicorns -- totally unappreciated and largely UNKNOWN by most! You have an absolute treasure, don't ever sell and don't ever let dealer accidentally perform ECU update else the pops/crackles will be gone forever!!

 

none of us will see and drive it, only you

if it makes you turn and stare at it when walking away, buy it

 

True wisdom