1990 348 Straman Spider (348 TS)

Here's a weird one. The seller makes a big deal about how much this car cost new...yet that is irreleveant since the factory wound up making plenty of spiders a few years later. As good as most Straman conversions seem to be, I'm sure the factory spider is superior designed and built by Ferrari, and personally I would much rather have a stock 348 spider (and with the stock wheels as well!)

If Ferrari never came out with a spider version of the 348 maybe I'd find this more interesting...for example, there was a 456 Straman spider for sale a while back and I thought that car was stunning- Ferrari should have built it! I guess Straman got a big start doing top quality spider conversions of daytonas and 275s- and later some testarossas- I can see how someone with money in 1990 would want to commission this car (I'm not sure if Ferrari even mentioned they were considering a full convertible version in the future at that point, and even if so the original owner may have been impatient and wanted his/her convertible 348 spider "right now" )

It's tough to value a car like this- to me I'd take a similar condition 348 spider and subtract a meaningful %. Maybe not 50%, but not 5% either (but closer to 50%)... First off it's an aftermarket conversion, and second it's based off an early TS- the 348 was more developed by the time the spider came out. What do you guys think?

Ferrari 348 348 TS | eBay

 

IMO... With due appreciation to the history of Straman intertwined with Ferrari, the dynamic of sports cars for the well heeled and volume production and coachbuilding had changed by 1990 models. I could see value in the car from a collector standpoint, but only as a complementary pairing to earlier Straman work. For the car itself, and within the realm of 80s/90s Ferraris, I see the value as less than the factory-standard 348s, for a couple of reasons. 1st, and the most obvious, is that Ferrari made Spiders themselves as a factory model. 2nd, as far as Spiders are concerned, this car misses all of the factory improvements in build, design, and performance that the factory cars have. 3rd, the aesthetic execution of the Straman does not have quite the finished form and elegance of the factory soft top. It has harder edges and angles that, in my opinion, betray the top for exactly what it is... an aftermarket modification. Simply put, the factory did it better, making the factory Spider the more desirable option on a number of levels. See comparison photos below.

So, I suppose the value is set by what your focus is as an enthusiast/collector. For the seller to get a high price, he will need to pair the car to someone deeply invested into earlier work, as a way to complete or complement an existing collection. That, I imagine, is an incredibly small pool of potential buyers. I don't believe it stands well on its own, compared to the standard and other 'special' factory 348 variants. If a prime example of a factory Spider is averaging $45-50k, I couldn't see paying more than $35k, and IMO, the exceedingly low mileage does not overcome the previous points.

Are you considering the car?
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Too bad Straman did not know Ferrari was going to build a Spider... In fact, since there is an original Spider, this should be worth much less than the newer and better reformed spiders. Not to mention how funky it looks compared to an original.

 

Wow- you guys are spot on my thoughts- even itsablurr's $35K range. Non-OEM car, earlier 348, and low mileage meaning lots of pricey deferred maint- just doesn't add up for me to more than mid $30s. Someone may pay more, but I would think not much more.

No I'm not considering the car for myself- just surfing fleabay on a slower work day and I found it interesting

The 348 spider is the first Ferrari I ever drove (rented for a day on our honeymoon- first Ferrari I rode in was a brand new 550 maranello when they first came out) and if anything, the looks have grown more on me over the years. I still prefer the 355 that I currently own for both the looks and the improvement in sound/power/handling (and the 360 I had before that), but I do like the 348 spiders even if not on my list of prior or future cars to own.

 

I think this is the 456 I was thinking of. I know values have generally moved (although not much on 456s), but to me this Straman was more worth the asking price ($75K) and one I liked. I didn't remember the 430 rims (which I don't like on this car)

http://ferraris-online.com/pages/cardetail.php?reqcardir=FE-456CAB-101250


One of Three Ferrari 456 GT Convertibles by Straman on Sale for $74,950

 

I agree with everything you said. The value though can be tricky. Everything you mentioned is what an educated buyer would research and know. Unfortunately many don't. I looked at this cat at in person in scottsdale when it went up at Barrett jackson. It sold for $66,000! Thats nearly twice what we all feel it might be worth.

1990 FERRARI 348 TS SPIDER - 190294

Heres why. (IMO)

Now I'm by no means a Ferrari expert but the car actually fooled me for about the first 5 min of walking around it for a couple reasons. 1) it's in great shape 2) with out a factory spider next it, its very hard to immediately notice the top shape is different and 3) until this car I didn't even know Straman bothered making a 348 spider. The idea that the car was a conversion never even crossed my mind when I first saw it.

It can be a scary thing for someone looking to get a red Ferrari convertible with low miles that has no idea what they actually bought. To be fair to BJ and the seller they did disclose it was a conversion but again someone folks just see the car on the block and go for it.

I wouldn't be surprised if you see this car up at an Auction again..

 

Great post Mike!

The other pictures in the Barrett Jackson link confirm to me- these wheels have to go. I don't care if they cost x thousand dollars- the cost is of no relevance to how they look (in my humble opinion of course )

 

Reminds me of the old Toyota Sunchaser conversion that drove us nuts with issues. We stopped selling then fast.

That was an era of experimenting with cars and drugs. Combine both and thats what you got


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"The Sunchaser"- what a great 70's sounding marketing name!! That's classic...