So, will testarossa’s EVER go up in value?

early Diablo instrument pod is hilarious.

https://www.topgear-cars.co.uk/sites/default/files/DSC_2009_0.JPG
https://www.alainclass.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/15-Diablo-782.jpg

 

Testarossa values will take off. Because I firmly believe that, and because I always loved them, I just bought one. Already it's a panic. People ask about my 328, but they go crazy over the Testarossa. Just registering the car at the DMV caused a scene... as bureaucrats came running over to the service window I was at just to see the document that said “Make: FERRARI, Model: TESTAROSSA, Cylinders: 12”

These cars are still widely known and wildly loved. More importantly, there is almost nothing like them. They are the end of the line, and the pinnacle of the handmade analogue sports cars made by legendary brands before the companies became listed on the NYSE.

The 80s were a wild decade, but there weren’t too many iconic/exotic cars to choose from. Think about it: jumping over the quotidian Corvettes and past the baby Porsches and little BMWs…. to the first level of elite exotic sports cars there were only a few. There was the Porsche Carrera, the Ferrari 328, the Lotus Esprit, and the Lamborghini Jalpa- a car that nobody ever saw other than in Rocky III. Hovering around this group was also the Porsche 930...

The next level up was occupied only by the Countach and the Testarossa- two 12-cylinder iconic beasts. Two of the most iconic sports cars ever made- two wild and rare exotic cars that defined a decade. In the clouds, at the very top of the mountain, were the 288, the 959 and the F40, but these were special edition limited production cars which were ogled over mostly by car nuts. Only the F40 jumped into popular culture.

So in an era of excess and flamboyance… a decade where cars managed to escape the brutal emissions choking regulations that obliterated power at its outset… a decade where people loved cars…. The era of the last of the analogue cars - cars that make the driver do all of the driving- have only a few elite ones to choose from.

In the 90s there started to be more and more exotic sports cars made by more and more car companies. Today the field of elite and super elite cars is quite crowded, and everyone is using the same wind tunnels to shape their cars. There will never be another time like the 80s where all of the very few iconic cars were hand made by a very small few legendary car companies. At that time, the two kings of the world in the mind of every 16 year old kid were the Testarossa and the Countach. As the 90s wound down, both the Testarossa and the Countach suffered as people became self-conscious about the styling excesses of the prior decade. These cars were considered borderline ridiculous and sort of sheepishly put away. But about 12 years ago they started to become “ironic” cool. Now they are just really f-ing cool. Put a Capristo and a straight pipe on a Testarossa (save the original parts!) and the car is just downright nasty. Fast, but not so fast that you can’t push the car on the street without going to jail. And they are again absolutely wild. Today, the Testarossa is a star no matter where it goes.

I was at the Factory in Maranello earlier this year for a private 3 hour tour – yes, it’s amazing. But one thing became crystal clear- while the factory that made the Testarossa does not really exist anymore, the cars from the prior era, when Enzo lorded over the place, are revered and they are legendary. There is nothing like them and there were precious few made. In my opinion, and I just put my money where my mouth is by buying one, there is no chance that the iconic Testarossa: a naturally aspirated, mid-engine, 12 cylinder, gated, 5 speed Ferrari… the last of the truly analogue Ferraris, will sit around at prices more or less equivalent to that of the base price of a new 911 (with all of its plastic and its computers). Testarossa values will go up.

With 288s, 959s and F40s selling in the millions (the 288s in the multi-millions)…. and with the Countach values having rightfully left the building, the Testarossa is the last remaining member of that preciously small and incredibly prestigious group of 80s super cars. It’s also the easiest of the bunch to maintain… and it’s the only one that could beautifully handle a 750-mile spur of the moment weekend road trip through the mountains.

Mark my words: Testarossa values will go up, up, up.

 

I just sat in an early Diablo last week and couldn’t see over the instrument cluster. There’s like six inches of usable windshield above it. It was wild. I doubt I could drive that car like I drive my testarossa.

 

Bat refrain: They'll double in 6 months

When I bought my first F, the guy was enthusiastically explaining how it was more than a car, it was a part of his family, there for decades, all the important milestones.
His price of course reflected not only the value of the car, but the value of his memories with the car ... feelings, the original NFT.

He declined to sell just the car and didn't think me paying in "NFT's" for his memories with the car was a good idea.

There are a slew of 512M's under 400k, so in the short term things are kinda going south.

 

Yes, I’ve owned various Ferraris for and over many years. I don’t think they are good investments. Although, if you buy them right, maintain them properly , they are easy to afford. Some do jump in value. I think the Testarossa willl jump in value… not because I bought one. Rather, I bought one, in part, because I think the opportunity may not last.

 

I agree that the valuation on the entire BB/TR family doesn't make too much sense.

The Testarossa's are at a disadvantage in that, the 512TR and 512M are considered improvements, so those models were pumped in the past couple of years.
See how many Euro 512TR's and later M's were flipped on Bat. That inflated the prices in Europe. Now deflating.

Ultimately, the more significant indicator is where the TR is in the Ferrari hierarchy. These cars don't exist in a vacuum.
Its value pegged to the Ferrari ecosystem is more meaningful than a fiat currency that is continually devalued.

Undoubtedly, at about $100-120k the TR is one of the best buys in the Ferrari ecosystem.

 

Agreed, there was a few under designed elements on the early cars, these were all fixed eventually….which is why the later Diablos carry much more value.

 

IMHO, it's as simple as that-

 

But the early ones are lighter and RWD right?

 

Lighter only because they are RWD, but converting a VT to RWD is easy and inexpensive (I have a kit laying around if I ever want to do the conversion). The later cars also have a VVT engine (adding 40 hp for the 5.7 liter and 60+ for the 6.0 liter) plus MUCH better brakes and ABS.....plus alot of other improvements.

 

Testarossas did go up in value! The value of mine probably tripled, maybe quadrupled. Ok, I did pay $22k for it.

I also have an early Diablo. Instrument pod aside, it is a completely different experience to the TR, which is remains a nice highway car. In comparison the Diablo is an animal (albeit a fun animal). I can understand the relative prices of each. I still don’t get BB prices however.

 

Maybe there is another angle to this if you look at the personas of owners and aspiring owners.

Current owners of TRs are born in the 1960s or before and often have several more valuable cars in their stable.

Aspiring owners are born in the 70s, 80s and 90s. They are still busy with their careers and have to think about the impact of a car in their not so affluent neighborhood.

My guess is that we'll have to wait until a new generation of aspiring owners retire for demand to pick up and thus drive prices higher. Probably 10 years from now. Maybe a bit earlier.

It will happen though and one of the key reasons is the positive aura the TR has. Almost everyone regardless of financial or social profile likes it.

This is similar to the market for classic F in the 80s.

 

well said

 

Doubtful

 

I can relate to all the points in this message. I was born in the 70s and after owning the car for 8 years I am still reticent about telling friends and acquaintances about it because it may stereotype me. However, when out for a drive (and I did a big drive out today) almost everybody loves it. Many positive complements whenever it's parked and regular thumbs-up from passing bikers and others driving anything vaguely sporting.

 

Has anyone seen or heard of a body off TR restoration..to pebble beach standards?
I believe there are still too many low mileage original A class cars still available.
Hence an original 10 car is more coveted than a restored 10.
When these original A class cars are no longer....and only A class restored cars are around...Then the car will increase in value.
The value of an A class restored car will be the cost of an A class restoration..Most likely $250,000 to $300,000 to restore.
Until this happens..They ain't going nowhere!

If I were to guess...another 25 years!

 

I was just at Bradan in Long Island to get an update on the Miles Davis TR, and while Dan did remove body panels to chemical strip before repaint, I’m not sure that’s a “body off” as you call it. But she is looking phenomenal. Home stretch! Hoping to make car week out West in August.
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And then you have the fact that there are over 7000 produced...

 

Citing the jaguar XKE as an example...there were over 30,000 series 1's made.
There are .001% left original as new.
The cost of a pebble beach rest can be $250,000.
The best cars sell a little above that..
higher production # cars become the value of a top resto!

Ask me how I know!

 

I think it's the other way around.

Those restorations won't happen unless the value of the car justifies it.

Just because someone pours x amount in a restoration doesn't mean the car is worth x.

 

Be happy they remain cheap, which means they can be used like cars. Not museum exhibits.

 

I just sold a factory blue on cream 1991 TR USA spec car with 49k miles for 150k tax in CND funds. So about 135k BEFORE tax.

Currently in the process of putting together another 1991 car that was bought 12 or 13 years ago for 35k USD.

They have defiantly increased in value over the years.

 

Logistics says that the final retail value of a car that needs a complete restoration is equal to the cost of resto plus the selling price of the orig car..
That makes such cars worth 25 g to purchase and 250 to restore...havent seen many utterly ragged testa's though.
Voila, you have a $275g car
Would a 1987 testa ...ralph lauren resto ... sell for $275.... I think so

 

Can you define "logistics"

And it would cost how much to restore?

 

A full restoration on a normal TR would be a pretty sure way to lose money, as things stand.
One of the more expensive F's to restore.


Fun reading

https://ferraris-online.com/save-on-restored-cars/

https://ferraris-online.com/restoration-escalation/

https://ferraris-online.com/dont-let-restorers-go-to-school-on-your-car/

https://ferraris-online.com/death-by-storage/

https://ferraris-online.com/the-ever-increasing-sum-of-its-parts/