Please...help me choose a California to buy

I love the blue over crema interior! Somewhat biased, I suppose, because I have a 2013 Cali and love it! The N/A engine sounds great. Does the 2014 Cali have HS? It makes the ride smoother.

 

I've also heard that HS can be added. You need to check on that. There are some threads on F-chat that cover HS. The original option cost about $7000.

 

I have owned both and while I actually appreciate the look of the California over the t, the t is a more refined car all around with the exception of sound. If you are keep and using, I would vote T. Of course...imho

 

I had a 911 and traded it in for a Portofino. The porto (similar to the Cali) is much more of a GT: comfortable for long distances but with enough oomph when you want it. The blue and cream combo look wonderful but the electronics are woefully out of date

 

I would stay away from the car with the accident declaration. Period.

 

For reference, I purchased a 2017 California T (10k miles) with the following options for around 150k.

Internal colors
External colors
Carpets colors
APPLE CARPLAY
CARBON FIBRE DRIVER ZONE+LEDS
HORSE STITCHED ON HEADREST
SPECIAL HANDLING PACKAGE
'SCUDERIA FERRARI' SHIELDS
PARKING CAMERA
20" FORGED DARK PAINTED RIMS
WHITE REV COUNTER
COLOURED SPECIAL STITCHING
TYRES PRESSURE MEASUREMENT
VEHICLE PERSONALIZATION PLATE
MERCATO

 

^^^^^ this all day long. You may be an understanding buyer but we are a rarity. You’ll find out the hard way when you go to sell it...which you will, because never ‘upgrading’ is a fallacy.


Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat

 

Exactly. Everyone on F-chat will decry garage queens, and those who dare not use their F-cars "the way Enzo intended." But, when push comes to shove, at purchase time, we all want unsullied virgins with no "stories." I'd only buy the first car after a very thorough PPI, and if it were a forever car. Car # 2 is my pref, largely because the color combo you have the 997TT for sportiness & track, and appear to want the Cali for GT duties and to occasionally be naughty on the backroads. Also, it's already in your avatar, so I think - assuming you have driven it already - you know what's in your heart. Finally, there is no reason to rush this, it's likely winter in Canada already, prices may soften a bit over winter, and this is a purchase you want to have no buyer's remorse. Regardless, you need to drive - if you have not done so already - a 30 and a T. Your heart will tell you which you prefer, and then you can go from there. Good luck.
T
p.s. I think that's your Porsche half talking, there is no sapphire blue that I know of. Looks to be TdF Blue.

 

Walman, if you've posted the 2014 Cali as your avatar, it's clearly the front runner!

 

I would side with the T, but you need to do a couple of things to mitigate your risk:

Accident pictures
Obtain the repair report and make sure it is clear where the $5k in labor was spent
Have it thoroughly inspected by a Ferrari body expert to make sure no frame damage

I will and have bought cars with “stories” as long as I can verify everything to my satisfaction

 

If you are getting a nice $10-15k discount for the minor accident on the Carfax I wouldn't worry too much about it if you plan to keep it and put a bunch of miles on the car, because once they have a lot of miles on them, it's more of a negligible difference as it will hit bottom due to the mileage anyway -- the guys who really want the low mileage pristine examples wouldn't touch a car with that much mileage. This assumes it was a minor accident ... no airbags, no frame or component damage, etc.

If you are going to do the 1-2k miles a year thing and look to trade out of it in a year or two, then you are probably better off with a no-stories car.

 

everyone’s going to have an opinion, but since you asked, I’d go with the California to start!

Not just because the asking price on the California T seems high, but why not start out with naturally aspirated and work your way up? You can always go faster, but I think it may be difficult to go from TwinTurbo down to naturally aspirated again!


Good luck in your search

A

 

You will get opinions from both camps on this. Bottom line is, which one will make your heart melt each time you open the garage!

 

My bad on not reading this carefully. I didn’t catch the damage history. It will be a pain to sell but the prices on these will continue to drop so if you are selling in 5 years for south of 100 I am not sure how big of a deal it will be. Service history and condition will be more important...at least to me. Of this was was a Tdf or even f12 I would feel differently and accident damage would be a bigger factor.

 

Cali T all day long. It's the superior car in every way and will be as fast as your 997TT with added civility. At $112K US, seller has taken about a US $25K haircut for the damage. I would try and get a little more off the ask because 3/4 of prospective Ferrari buyers won't touch that car. I am in the minority I guess, but I like the blue/black better than the blue/tan. Personally I'm not a fan of the quilted seats in such a light color, those belong in something more foo foo like a Bentley IMHO. If you go from the 997 to the 2014 Cali you will feel like you lost a turbo or two, and you will have.

 

Cali T. Much better car in every single possible way. Yes you have a 911 Turbo, but those two cars are nothing alike.
Of course it is an individual thing, but I cannot for the life of me see why the Cali instead of a T. While speed is not everything, compared to most modern sports GT's an exotics, it does feel rather slow and heavy. Get the T, much better and sorted car.

Sent from my SM-G930F using FerrariChat.com mobile app

 

Awesome and congrats!! No matter which one you go with, you are going to love it!!

One thing to look at if you want a retro grill is the GTO style grill (https://store.millermotorcars.com/products/ferrari-california-gto-grille). I have never seen one on a car in person, but it sure looks cool in the photos!

Again, enjoy the hell out of this car and welcome to the family!!

 

Congrats. Just an extra observation. What tyres are on it and how old are they? If they are the PZero or older than two years, you should consider getting the Porto spec MPS4S tyres. A massive upgrade compared to what the car originally came with.

 

Congratulations!
Enjoy the ride!

 

Porsche and Ferrari. The perfect combo. Enjoy and congratulations...T

 

+1

I'd also ask the same question about the battery. If it's not been replaced, I'd do it and upgrade the battery tender...T