1999 355 Coupe-Please Comment

That is almost a price for a spider.
That price is way to high. I think a coupe is 10 to 15 K less, but I am not sure on the coupe market.
Al

 

Should be in the low-to-mid 80s.

 

Mid to upper eighties..depends a lot on condition and service history.

I would agree with low to mid 80's for a "private owner" sale.

 

This is a dealer we're talking about. It is also a 6-speed which is rare for the MY99's. The mileage is the only consideration. Assuming the car is quality, anything south of $90 is a reasonable deal IMO.

Good luck with it.

 

I have been looking for the last month. I just bought a red/black GTS. Its a manual 6 speed also but a 1998, not 1999. About the same mileage. I paid $87K. Remember, 93K is the asking price. Depending on how long they've had it on the market, they may go lower. I've seen a wide variation in prices for cars which on the onset appear very similar. For instance, the Orange County dealer has (maybe it just sold) a 1997 Monza Red (darker red) that had 9K miles on it. This was also a GTS. It was listed as 89K, on initial inquiry, they went down to 85K. It didn't sell for a few months and they lowered it for me (via email) to 82.5K. But, it is darker red.

All in all, for the car you are interested in, I think the starting price is reasonable for a dealer. I'm guessing they expect to get 90K. Its a 99 and you are absolutely right - finding a manual, must less red, much less red/tan is going to be hard and they will get people to buy it quicker. I personally think if you really want it and don't want to wait, you should get it. Ask them to come down to their real asking price (likely 90K), then offer 88K and see what you can do with that.

Make absolutely certain to get a PPI. The Orange County dealer did a PPI for another customer but they did it with the engine cold. The compression test showed numbes around 155 to 160. They claimed this was good since all cylinders were in a narrow range. The stupid thing is - they did the test cold which is worthless. My sources tell me 185 and up is good. You also want a leakdown test. Less than 10% leakage is good.

The best thing for you, Jeff, is that the later 1998 cars (mine included) and all 1999s will not have the valve guide issue. Now, its possible that older cars might never have it BUT - you never know unless they've already been fixed. For piece of mind - a later 98 and 99 is the way to go. So, you spend a little more and get the newest car you can get but you know its in good shape and will not have the valve guide issue which could easily cost $10K according to my sources.

The other thing - I'd fly out and check out the car. Do not buy sight unseen. For the few hundred bucks - its worth it. I now feel much more confident in what I got - spoke to the shop that did the PPI and got lots of good advice. Shipping isn't too bad by the way.

I notice in your signature you already have a 360 - must be nice to have the ability to have 2 cars (or at least be considering a 430).

Scott

 

expensive fella

 

Jeff, way to much money

 

Anything approaching $90K is way, way too high. See Ferrari Market Letter - there is an interesting article there called "Reazione" this month. It discusses a "quicksand" analogy about 355 values of late. It also gives some good auction data, the most recent of which is a Barrett-Jackson sale in West Palm this month at $76 and change for a spider.

Prices are plummeting due to the expense of the valve guide issue (which I agree is not supposed to be present in '99s) and the fact that 355s burn out headers and cats (which is an issue with all 355s) - a very expensive fix also. You may also want to search "355" at ebaymotors and click on the "completed sales" box to see recent results. No B's are selling above mid-high 70's.

I'm looking myself. Hard to find a good car with correct leakdown/compression and a seller that will acknowledge where actual sales are taking place.

 

I'm not sure that is is way too high if it is a good car, and if I know Algar (which I do very well) they would not have it on their floor unless it was. I'm sure there is some room to play with unless it is a consignment car. If you let me know who you dealing with I might be able to help. I have to pick up my 575 sometime Saturday I'll be glad to do a shakedown drive for you.

 

I agree - the negotated price would be perfectly reasonable if the car checks out and is in good condition.

Well maintained, high-quality cars are difficult to find. Although I've never dealt with them personally, I've heard good things about Algar and consider them a better shop.

Find a car, get it checked out, but then be willing to pay a premium for it's condition. Don't follow the notion that many would-be buyers on this board do - they want the best, most pristine, "no issues" car out there, but then want to pay the price you'd receive for a beater car that has had the stuffing kicked out of it. -

There is a wide spectrum of quality within each Model Year. I would venture to say the difference between good and bad is as much as $10,000.