How do you store your ferrari | FerrariChat

How do you store your ferrari

Discussion in 'Ferrari Discussion (not model specific)' started by tanktom, Dec 29, 2020.

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  1. tanktom

    tanktom Rookie

    Dec 26, 2020
    36
    London
    Full Name:
    Henry Tucker
    Hi guys,

    Newbie here so apologies for the silly question. I live in the UK and am looking to buy a Cali.

    Is it imperative that the car is stored in a garage (I don't currently have one)? And if so, why? I understand the security reasons for doing so, but will the car suffer from being left outside open to the elements? How much does the car cover you get help protect the car from the elements?

    Thanks in advance
     
  2. artsd

    artsd Formula Junior
    Owner

    May 6, 2009
    280
    Full Name:
    Art
    You are going to get different answers from different people with most trending toward needing a proper garage, and even climate control preferred. But then you have other people like Scott Chivers (Ratarossa) who keeps some Ferraris outside due to necessity. Ratarossa appears to drive his cars every day and has a blast. Is it more fun to drive your car every day or wipe it down with a diaper in its climate controlled garage? No judgement from me. Both are fine.

    I wouldn't let not having a proper garage deter me from having a Ferrari. Yes the paint and interior will take a beating compared to a proper garage but so what? These are just cars after all. An outdoor car cover will help a lot, just try to keep the paint clean and waxed so sliding the cover on and off doesn't cause scratches.

    I think Cali is a great first Ferrari but the reality is it isn't going to be a collectable car any time soon (if ever) so just get it and drive the heck out of it!
     
  3. Nigel glen

    Nigel glen Rookie

    Oct 16, 2020
    36
    UK
    Full Name:
    Nigel glen
    A great car. But you will need to plug in the battery conditioner if you are leaving it for more than a few weeks (or go down the lithium battery with built in reserve). The other problem I have always faced is foxes - they love to run up and down the bonnet and sleep on the warm parts


    Sent from my iPad using FerrariChat.com mobile app
     
  4. tanktom

    tanktom Rookie

    Dec 26, 2020
    36
    London
    Full Name:
    Henry Tucker
    Thanks so much - I'm definitely buying it to drive it but also don't want to ruin the paintwork etc by leaving it out in UK weather! How much of a ball ache is it to put a cover on it every night? Thanks again, much appreciated
     
  5. tanktom

    tanktom Rookie

    Dec 26, 2020
    36
    London
    Full Name:
    Henry Tucker
    Thanks Nigel, so you leave yours outside rather than in a garage?
     
  6. artsd

    artsd Formula Junior
    Owner

    May 6, 2009
    280
    Full Name:
    Art
    Cover is very easy and fast to put on and take off. Only issue is needing to wait for certain car parts to be cooled enough (exhaust tips for example).
     
  7. tanktom

    tanktom Rookie

    Dec 26, 2020
    36
    London
    Full Name:
    Henry Tucker
    thanks. I’m guessing that if the car has the cover on it when left unused (Max a few days), the car shouldn’t be any different than if it was stored in a garage? Or maybe I’m being naive?
     
  8. Drl22

    Drl22 Rookie

    Dec 27, 2020
    3
    Your paint may well end up in worse condition using an outdoor cover than just leaving it exposed. The process of putting on and removing the cover each time you drive it will cause abrasion and over time damage the paint. The car, ideally, should be cleaned before putting the cover on each time. Realistically, you’re not going to do that, I’d just leave it exposed personally.
     
    020147 likes this.
  9. Redneck Slim

    Redneck Slim Formula 3
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 10, 2011
    1,440
    Palo Alto,CA,USA
    Full Name:
    Walt Kimball
    The car has to be clean and dry before putting on a cover.
     
  10. Redneck Slim

    Redneck Slim Formula 3
    Silver Subscribed

    Mar 10, 2011
    1,440
    Palo Alto,CA,USA
    Full Name:
    Walt Kimball
  11. lkstaack

    lkstaack Formula Junior

    Dec 9, 2020
    252
    San Diego
    Full Name:
    Lars
    I was stationed within the Mohave Desert at one point of my Army career. I kept a cover over my Datsun 240Z. Until one time a sand storm swept through the area while I was on a training exercise. When I returned, my car looked like it had been sanded with 150 grit from top to bottom. That was the last time I used a car cover.

    Sent from my SM-G960U using FerrariChat.com mobile app
     
  12. 020147

    020147 F1 Rookie
    Rossa Subscribed

    Jun 12, 2006
    3,647
    Midwest
    My car is sitting in a heated garage, on a battery tender, on storage ramps for the tires with the tire pressures increased. I wander in every now and then to look at it. Currently I’ve found one rock chip that went through my PPF and a small scratch by the drivers door, both driving me nuts. Nonetheless, I drove it like crazy all summer and had a blast and can’t wait for next year! I do not live in a temperate climate, sub zero temperatures, snow and lots of road salt are the norm during winter here. I like my storage strategy for the environment I live in.
     
    kes7u and tomc like this.
  13. EnzoItaly

    EnzoItaly Formula Junior

    Sep 29, 2016
    263
    + the car has to be dry... otherwise it’s better not to put a cover on it. A good wax/ paint protection is a must on any car imho.
     
    artsd likes this.
  14. EnzoItaly

    EnzoItaly Formula Junior

    Sep 29, 2016
    263
    A proper garage has several important advantages:
    - battery trickle charger can be connected
    - control humidity (ideally between 50 and 60%)
    - control temperature
    - security (weather, animals, vandalism, thieves)
    - your insurance will be cheaper
     
  15. Solid State

    Solid State F1 Veteran
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    Feb 4, 2014
    9,582
    Full Name:
    Maximus Decimus Meridius
    Don't like the idea of outside storage for a special car. Elements are not kind. The bright sun can do a lot of damage to everything including leather, paint and tires. Any kind of structure around it is better than none. Car cover is a PITA and you need to run the tender every day.
     
  16. Nigel glen

    Nigel glen Rookie

    Oct 16, 2020
    36
    UK
    Full Name:
    Nigel glen
    Sorry just saw your question. Mine is stored in an open sided underground car park. It’s really dirty and dusty and due to the fox I put a heavy duty cover on it (the little rusty fellow chewed through and ripped the Ferrari cover).

    One word of caution about putting a cover on outside, from personal experience with a TR6 (which to. be fair is more angular). I found the wind would shift the cover to and fro and eventually rubbed through the top cost at the corners. Ferraris are rounder so it may nit be such a problem.
     
  17. Ak Jim

    Ak Jim F1 Veteran
    Owner Rossa Subscribed

    Dec 23, 2007
    8,450
    North Pole AK
    Can you financially afford the much greater depreciation due to the below average condition the car will be in from sitting outside in the elements?
     
  18. Themaven

    Themaven F1 Rookie

    Nov 2, 2014
    4,252
    Eastdown
    Full Name:
    Darius
    Henry, I live in London also and good to hear you are thinking of a Cali.

    A Cali or any Ferrari is no different to any other car, really. If you will drive it most days of most weeks, the battery should be fine. But if you will leave it for weeks at a time it won’t. So the only difference between parked on the street vs in a garage will be:

    vandalism - depending also on where you are in London. Not a problem where I live as so many more exotic cars on the street
    idiots crashing into you. A real problem with our narrow roads, delivery vans and so on. No different to having any other car
    Kerbing wheels. An occupational hazard of nice wheels if you drive and park every day
    Paint deterioration. Like any parked car, your paint won’t be as nice as if you were undercover and unused in a garage most of the year. But you can correct that quite easily. Wouldn’t worry about that

    anyone worried about interior deterioration in the sun is not acquainted with the climate here.

    I really wouldn’t put a cover on a car on the street in London. Apart from what others have pointed out, idiots will pull it off and scrape your paint.

    one question for Cali owners is if there are any leaks or water related issues with this model. That would be my final consideration.

    enjoy! If it were a LaF Spider I would question the security in London, but you should be fine in a Cali. There is a 458 Spider, a Cali and a GTC4 Lusso parked on my square and they have never been touched.
     
  19. gilly6993

    gilly6993 Formula 3

    Aug 20, 2009
    2,475
    Longmeadow, MA
    Full Name:
    Eric
    In a garage, or outside sometimes....It's just a car....
     

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