You guys are funny......serious I went to Ferrari Ft Lauderdale and the salesman was a very nice guy, the sales manager..not so much. Tried that ...we have someone coming to look at it or buy , so I better act quick. I thought ...are we still using that tactic? He sent me paperwork..I returned and he claimed it was not received , the car was sold because of my delay ( ???) they shipped it to the store in Long Island and buyer could not get approved. I found a 458 at Ferrari Newport Beach , 2014 with 540 miles. Did paperwork. They handled transportation to NJ. Only phone conversations and a seamless deal. When I purchased from Ray Catena Mercedes the salesman said it was like the Edison car show with all the tire kickers, so I understand their position.. also at Porsche Naples Florida the salesman there was very polite and told me " you never know who is coming thru the door and that most of his customers could afford to buy the dealership" I guess it goes both ways...some salesman are good , some bad....some smart. Mike
Ray, we are old schools, when it comes to building human relationships, but with car salesman, I guess I just don't trust them overall.
Oh, come on Ray. You make buying a Ferrari sound like a mystical experience. It is a car. Yes, a really cool fun car, but a car nevertheless. And the sales guy is a used car salesman as is the general manager. Looking at these posts many of the best salespeople have already moved on. The guy who sold you your Ferrari is probably back to selling gently used Cadillacs this week. Enzo Ferrari, RIP, was the ultimate car salesman, extracting maximum profits from his princely customers to fund the racing efforts. I think FNA and the dealers should be a little careful with keeping too many people behind the velvet rope. I guess it begs the question if you are not interested in getting in the queue for a new car, why buy a used Ferrari from a dealer as opposed to a private party/broker or Bring a Trailer?
So true. I remember when I was in my early 20s I walked into a F dealership and was treated like crap. Never went back and, for Ferrari, it put me off the brand until a friend of min joined a, different, F dealership and sold me my first Ferrari nearly a decade later. I get that there are many tyre kickers but a little civility goes a long way, however jaded you are.
Virtually anyone who wishes to purchase a new regular production Ferrari will be able to secure one. The only variable will be time of delivery. There is no need to offer gifts, invite sales staff to have use of your summer home or take them out for lavish meals. Ferrari, with the introduction of the F8, has mandated that regular production models will be offered to first time purchasers. Be forewarned, that new buyers who purchase subsequent regular production vehicles will nonetheless NOT be offered limited production cars in the future. Those cars will still be reserved to those with steep buying history. So when LB is introduced, if you have never owned a Ferrari, fear not, you will be offered one.
I would rather have a sister that was a whore than a friend that was a carsalesman... That's just me. I have never cared for any car salesman I have dealt with. I tried to be as straight forward as possible when I bought my F12 from a rather large Ferrari dealer and it was still such a painful process. Buying cars sucks!
I've had pretty decent luck dealing with most of the Ferrari dealerships I've been to. So far I've only run into one GM which was sort of a ****** bag. As far as my mention of gifts, dinners, etc. I think you guys are getting it flipped around. In my particular case, all our business had already been transacted and the pen was just as a thank you, not an enticement. Same for dinners and hanging out - all that stuff is just because the person who helped me with buying and selling turned out to be a nice guy and we hit it off and became friends. Sure, there was that moment when I wanted the Pista and couldn't get one, but it's also just a reality that I'm not a great Ferrari customer either and some cars require certain things, I wouldn't be able to swing an Enzo when they first came out either. Anyway, not all car salesmen are the devil - only about 80% Ray
Maybe you should have sent your sister to buy it What made buying the F12 difficult? Also, what do you think of the F12? That's a car I've been considering recently myself, since selling the 458 and 488. Ray
I'm not one to throw anyone under the bus on the internet but stuff showed up not as advertised. The car is actually currently torn apart at a body shop. I'm working through it and the dealer is trying to make things right. I bought the car site unseen but it was CPO under warranty. I just don't want the raw raw and the sales guy kept trying to blow smoke. I am now dealing with the GM and he seems fair. As for the 458 compared to the F12, someone posted it best over in the F12 forum. In the 458 you feel like the star running back and the F12 you feel like the owner of the team. The raw power of the F12 is exhilarating and scary to drive compared to the 458. But the 458 just feels like a go kart that you can smash on and never feel out of control. I am really happy I kept my 458 because the 2 cars are nothing alike when it comes to driving experience. Every man should have a front engine V12 to compliment his mid engine V8
My buying experiences with Lamborghini, Ferrari and Mclaren have all been very enjoyable and satisfying. Well treated by all- respectful, attentive and highly accommodating. No complaints on any level. Would rate the process close to a 10.
Generally, you get treated how you present yourself to others. If you present yourself as professional with a modicum of appropriate formality, it is typically reciprocated.*
In a sick way I keep coming back to this thread hoping the OP has responded... Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
I’m going to have to agree with the OP, on this one. I understand they had an incident which might make these rules reasonable, but let me tell you about my experience in mid September. I visit Vegas once a month, and a current 2020 Lamborghini huracan evo owner. We have no Ferrari or Lamborghini dealers in our city. The closest ones are 500+ miles away. I’ve been looking to add a f8 to my garage. I have plenty of money to pay cash, my normal attire is a T-shirt and workout shorts. I don’t own a suit, never needed one. I had my casino transportation department take me to the Las Vegas dealer, after I called first to make sure it was ok. Upon arriving the salesman immediately judge me, and was very rude and condescending. At no point did I ever ask to or assume I could test drive their “demo”. The salesman immediately said when opening the car this is a demo, and it’s not to be test driven. If you want to test drive go rent one on the strip. We don’t do test drives, people who buy these cars know what they are getting and what a Ferrari is capable of. Total lie, when I bought my Lambo from Lambo of Houston in April, I had the complete opposite buying experience. I was welcome no matter what I was wearing. In fact the first thing the sales person said was hey you know you want to test drive it. I would never step foot in the dealership again. I hope the OP takes his money somewhere else.
Something is missing from the story. I currently have two cars (488GTB and Portofino) and had two previous ones. In my travels, I have stopped at numerous Ferrari dealerships and always been treated with respect. In conversations with several dealers, they know that a lot of people just like to look and they accept this. It doesn't make sense banning photos of the cars and I have never had this or heard of this before. Likewise needing an appointment although I will often call ahead when going to the local dealer just to make sure they know I am coming. As is, while I was waiting for my 488, I stopped in the dealership in Las Vegas (this was in 2016) and told them that I had one in production but had some questions to ask. They were very polite, gave me business cards and asked if they could put me on their email list.
This is a very good dealership, always get treated well even though I end up buying private party usually (just circumstances) and have never bought a car from them. The local Ferrari dealer OTOH is on my banned list for poor past treatment...would have to drive to Dallas, who I hear good things about.