I know I am crazy but I genuinely thought it would go for more. The only real negative for me is that its a '96. If it were a '95 I bet it would have gone crazy more.
Supposedly a few potential bidders didn’t bid thinking the reserve was set too high to bother. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Under 30k miles seems to be the 'low mileage' magic number for older Ferraris. So this was low mileage, most desireable color, manual gtb (most desireable) with sport seats (rare = desireable in this case, at least). Not sure there could be a better spec in terms of resale value. Maybe red on tan with FHP, that would be absolute top dollar imo, but this one is close.
Few things going on there. FHP was not offered in U.S outside of Serie Fioranos. So if it’s a GTB/S, it wouldn’t be a U.S spec car. Most FHP cars are F1 cars as it is a 98-99 MY option only. My estimate is there is only 15-25 in manual in the world. I’ve found roughly 10-15 of them. None of them are Red/Tan and certainly none are Red/Tan w/carbon seats. A few of those in RHD. I can confidently say a Red/Tan manual GTB/S w/tan carbon sports seats equipped w/ FHP does not exist. Perhaps any exterior color w/tan carbon seats. Hope to be proven wrong, but I doubt it .
Right, so if there were a Red or Cabon seat (as you said, probably not both, let alone red/tan carbon seat) FHP manual car, GTB or GTS probably wouldn't matter, that'd be the 355 value wise. '98 and '99 also had all the updates, so it'd have the reinforced shock towers, metallic cats, fixed valve guides and all that good stuff. With one exception: A '95 converted to challenge car as it'd be the very last road legal (in all 50 states/countries) Ferrari race car. That'd be the one I'd want, money no object. There are probably a few out there, and if one had a good race history, it'd dwarf all the rest. Last one I saw for sale was probably 10-12 years ago iirc, and even then when street cars were $40-$70k it was well over $100k. Don't remember any details in terms of race history or condition. At todays prices, probably $350k. If one won the world finale, figure $500k. I'd rather that than almost any other series (and I include the CS/speciale etc.) v8's.
Before too many fall in love with the sports seats I'd go drive one for a couple of hours. They look great but I find them totally devoid of lumbar support and very uncomfortable.
Yeah, I think this is rarity and the 'ooh race car' factor driving it, not anything to do with them being any good. Same with low miles, this is for someone to sit and look at, not drive (unfortunately).
Right. A manual GTB/S w/ FHP is Ultra rare. Perhaps just as rare as manual Serie Fioranos. A manual GTB/S w/FHP and carbon seats is a unicorn of unicorns. Maybe 2-5 in the world at best. In LHD? @tres55 has in his possession a LHD manual GTB w/ carbon seats and FHP. Japan spec car. Black on black w/ red contrast stitching. It is for sale. Personally, I think his ask is waaaaay too less considering the rarity. Ask is less because it’s a higher mileage car, but still … A car can always be restored to feel newer. Specs…significantly more unobtainium.
I disagree 100%. I know a lot of collectors and a few who specialize in low mile cars and know of no one who considers 17k miles as low miles. I have a 330 here right now with fewer miles on it. This car is a driver. I have bought very low miles cars to drive. Its a chance to have a new car many years later. Its kind of like going to a hotel. I really prefer them with fresh sheets and a clean bath room.
That's incorrect, although my heart is 100% with you where the 355 Challenge prices should be. They just haven't been able to completely break free from the stigma of being beat up $60k race cars a few years ago. There have been several lately sell for below $100k. I would say my former #104504 as a 1995 street car fully restored to its glory as winning championships with Steve Earle could set a record Challenge price now, but I would still put it less than $250k. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Only one way to find out The ones sold recently weren’t streetable. The streetability factor adds a huge premium, but car must also be in presentable shape. This one went for north of $200k and is a euro spec car. https://wearecurated.com/1995-ferrari-f355-challenge/amp/
That's the problem, does it have a roll cage? If yes then you shouldn't be driving it on the street. If no it is just a GTB with a wing. I guess if it had Challenge race history and you removed the cage, that would be respectable as you could put the cage back.
The cage and the OMP bucket seats were removed from the car for streetability. It’s sitting somewhere in storage in Italy . The original carbon seats and carpet have been put back on. It still has challenge brakes, challenge suspension and challenge damper ECU (reflashed only by Ferrari), challenge steering rack among other misc challenge bits. It also has the light-weight challenge front and rear bumpers. Personally, the ultra stiff dampers, springs, and bushings is what kills it for me for a pleasant street car. I much prefer the upgraded street setup - fiorano handling package, which has the same quick steering rack, same uprated anti roll bars, but more streetable spring specs and optimized Bilstein damper ECU mapping to go with it. Image Unavailable, Please Login
The cage is bolt in so I don't see that as too much of a limitation unless it's subsequently been welded in - but yeah, the street car part is the key. They are very rarely for sale and for it to be legal everywhere it'd have to be a '95 only, otherwise it eliminates CA as a possibility which is one of the biggest markets for high end cars. I'd be really surprised if 104504 went under $300k tbh, but yeah, we won't know unless it actually comes up for sale. That's probably the 355 to own (imo). Street legal (in CA), race and championship winning and the last car Ferrari made that could be so.
Oh, I agree with you on the allure (for me) of them, but unfortunately the large majority of those driving the value of these low mile cars up view them as 'investments' and subsequently then refuse to drive them for fear of ruining their investment. 30k seems to be where the value starts to really drop, but sub 5k miles are where they command a real premium. So a sub 5k mile FHP gated GTB/GTS, if it exists, would probably be the most valuable street car. Then if one of the enthusiasts that buys it to drive gets it, it will no longer exist Personally, I always view cars as a sunk cost so I buy them with full intention of getting my money's worth out of them in terms of experience, and not getting any return, other than enjoyment, out of them. Cars as investments ruin the whole hobby imo, but I know I'm in the minority.
I’ve only seen 3 sub 5k mi 355’s in the last 20 years. 2 red, 1 blue. @carnutdallas has one with 5,771 mi. His ask price is north of $400k. Collectors should reach out to him . It’s also Resale red. Here is the most valuable 355 ever .
Yeah, and I guess if you plan to drive the car, will you shell out $400k for 5k miles or $200k for 17k miles? What's that extra $200k getting you if you want to drive the car? You can pocket that, drive the 17k car for 20k miles, then have it restored and drive it another 30k miles and still probably be ahead money wise, but that only works if you are buying it for the experience and not the collector value. And if you're buying it for the collector value, you're not going to drive it and kill the value. That 5k mile car probably won't ever get to 10k miles unless it's wrecked and salvage titled somehow.
Maybe that's why I like them. Every car I get into that has lumbar pumped up I have to completely back it off to be comfortable
All of my above posts are attempting to provide (my) logic to an inherently emotional purchase, so can be completely disregarded. Watching an auction where two guys compete and completely irrationally overbid to win prove it out all the time. If people bought these cars logically, they'd never actually have been built or sold. So we're all speculating on the emotions that drove the guys in the BaT thread to buy this car for $205k....Meaning some combination of a beautiful car, relative rarity, and competition.
I think of that thing every time a new mustang drives up next to the 348 and revs... it's really NOT about anything having a better performance spec... I was originally going to fix it up and sell...but here I am 6 years later, and I'm likely selling everything else to chase another Ferrari.
I agree, Brian. I needed lumbar support with the omp VID-Carbon seats in my 1995 F355 Challenge. Those vintage seats expired 23 years ago and went into storage, replaced by omp ARS-R racing seats... Image Unavailable, Please Login They needed lumbar support pads too for me to get through two and three-day track events comfortably... Image Unavailable, Please Login
Both Dinos you have posted are the earlier 206 GT models, of which only 152 were ever built. They technically should command the highest price out of the nearly 4k that were produced (206, 246 GT/GTS) over 5 years. There was just a $967,500 sale of a restored 246 GTS, so eventually collectors won't care if F355s have been in accidents or repainted. Stradale Cars in Europe restores F355s and has sold some for over $200k recently. At some point, the terminology of classic cars changes from a repaint to a restoration and that's where the prices shoot up.
