Best advice I can give after owning a F355 for a while is - Verify everything works, especially things like hydraulics and electrics. Fixing these can be expensive, very expensive. if something rare breaks. - Check the service & repair history, it needs to be well documented - Does the look of the car match the history. If a car looks beat up but has low mileage, this should be a concern. Do not be concerned with cars with average mileage, they are 25 years old now and cars that have sat can often have issues. - Check if the valve guides or headers have ever been replaced/repaired as they often give problems. In my experience the f355's were the most expensive to own in their first 10 years of life. Don't be scared if you see one that has a history of expensive repairs, it just means everything has been sorted and you won't need to worry. A lot of repairs in the cars history can be a good thing, not a bad thing especially if they were repaired well and have never been an issue since. It means the last owner cared for the car and wanted to make sure it was always kept in top shape. The ones with no major repairs can easily be hiding a bunch of stuff that's often known to fail (or is just waiting to). I've got a complete documented history of my car all the way back to the day it was delivered and the repair list is quite scary until you realise this has covered over 25 years and the car has not had a single problem (at all, other than a dodgy relay) in the last 10. Don't buy a cheap one. You know the saying, there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Ferrari. After you get one, keep on top of all the maintenance - and I'm not just talking about services - I'm talking about truly looking after these cars because they react well to being cared for. Engine out services aren't cheap but they don't come around that often (1 every 5 years is the norm). If you get one with a good engine, the engine won't be what kills you - it'll be things like fixing electrics, replacing clutches and so forth. You will go through alternators and water pumps on these far more often than other cars, but again no big deal, just plan for it. There's a huge bunch of better-than-OEM after market parts for these (Hill Engineering for example). The 5.2's are arguably somewhat better mechanically in some areas but the 2.7's are the ones to get if you can. There's a few things about the 2.7's that can catch you out (Teves ABS and dual engine ECU), so check those. They are otherwise very solid and reliable cars and in my opinion are likely to be great future investments if you get a good one that's got a sought after spec. Newer cars certainly are more capable and have more power etc, but there's nothing like driving a classic screaming V8.
Thank you for the replies. Great info. I have taken the opportunity to read, view and research the 355 a lot in the last few weeks. I have read about all the issues. I have come to the conclusion an engine out service would be quite doable for me. I love working on cars. I am fascinated by the engineering of the Ferrari. I have a car addiction! I can't seem to sell any of them. I still have the 1995 Blazer s10 I bought new off the showroom. It is in fabulous condition. Clean as a whistle and everything operates perfect. I still have my 1977 Oldsmobile I bought in 1979 from my dad who bought it new in 1977. Again it's in perfect condition. I have my 1990 corvette convertible I bought in 1992. Pristine with 30K miles on it. My 1932 Ford roadster Hot Rod Dad built in 1952. I bring it to shows regularly. I do ALL the work myself. Except stuff that needs specialty equipment , like engine machining, paint booths, wheel alignments, etc. Every one has immaculate chassis, engine, paint and interior. After reading and continue to research all I can about the beautiful Ferrari F355 I am now confident I can repair most every problem one could throw at me. I will be adding one to my humble collection as soon as I find the right one. I actually am looking forward to pulling the engine and going through it. As well as all the other components. Make it showroom like my other cars. My wife thinks I am nuts! It might be an excuse to finally get the 4 post lift I have been wanting. It will also help me with the "I need more room" problem". If you have a lead on a F355 let me know Regards Mike
