2008 Audi R8 (6-speed, 5k miles) or 2004 Ferrari 575M (F1, 11k miles)

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The 575M is Italian. Passion, timeless style, hand made. There is no substitute for a 12 cylinder front engined GT.

Neither of these cars is an investment. They are expenses. In terms of what the general public prefer, for most people here that is not important. It's what we as drivers prefer.

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I think the 575's are really presently down to earthly priced and available at quite affordable rates.

The R8 is costly to buy and the value will go down the hill with every year.

Whereas since the 575m is so lowly priced, in the next 5 years I believe it will actually appreciate.

Regarding the "wow" factor, well the 575m externally is for the matured drivers and for people who are mature enough to vehicle. My heart skips a beat everytime i see a Maranello on the street & mind you there are not many around ...

Don't this is coming from a guy who has driven & appreciated Porsche GT3, TT, R8, Nissan GT and a 575m and even on a circuit the vibes of a front engine GT is non-comparible ... May be I am not neutral cause I presently own a 575 but even if you discount 30% of my comments ... even the guys on the circuit accepted the handling of the 575m on the curves as extra ordinary (& mind you I was all worried about not burning the engine and never went full throttle !)

 

it may use a number of gallardo components but the first R8 came in 2007-8 (?). give it two years of development time so we're looking at 2006ish.

the 575 is a glorified 550. first car came out in 1997. plus it's made by italians.

i own a 575. no doubt in my mind the R8 is faster, better made car.

 

Having owned both at the same time they are so different in handling, build and performance and serve different markets.
My favorite early Sunday road in Santa Fe, 18 miles to the Summit at least 35 seconds faster in the R8, but the fun was pushing that big brute of a 575 hard. It was a far more intense experience and I regret selling it. The V12's are really special and uniquely Ferrari.

The R8 went 2 months earlier and I never gave it another thought. However I jumped in one morning and drove from NM to FL without a moment's hesitation, drove it hard and put it away wet. That is really how we should approach F cars also.
Can't wait to see how the 458 perfoms to the Summit this summer !

 

Sounds like you should get a R8, no hassle car, as another said, if u have to ask then get an R8. I just test drove one and its great, exciting and sexy. having said that , if i had 100k to burn through I would get a 575 and drive the doors off it as a daily driver.
but again i think your question was answered by you, its transparent that u love the romantic idea of a 575 but your head says R8. so?

 

Domenic and Allan +1....Completely agree.. Sure, the R8 is a great vehicle. But, has anyone EVER opened there garage and said.." Wow, look at my Audi"!

 

First off, which R8? 10 cyl, or the 8?
Having looked at both, the 430 is probably a better comparison because: 1)They are both rear engined; and 2)Age and engine size is more comparable.
Having owned 4 911s (C4S, TT X-50, GT3, and currently a 993 C4S to go with my 575) in the past 6 years, from my experience, you will be at first more at home with the Audi. However if you are getting too bored with Porsche, going Italian will be good change of pace. Have fun in your search, and good luck!
By the way, where are you located?

 

Yep, happened tonight. A couple of my sons high school friends who came by to watch the national championship game looked int the garage.
The first one said " Is that the new Ferrari?", until he saw the circles on the hood.

 

Having owned both a 1999 550 and and 2009 R8 6-spd until last month, a few comments:

1. The build and technology in the R8 is light-years ahead of the Maranello. No offense to the Maranello, they are just from different eras. In particular, the advances in the space-frame and quattro system cannot be compared;

2. The interior of the R8 is also leagues above in terms of quality and materials (Not much VW there, Audi is now the leader in German interiors and nothing melts/ everything works.) Turn the a/c and MP3 up, and ignore the heat gauge;

3. The R8 stops traffic wherever it goes, i.e. "I've never seen one of those"; "Is that a Bugatti?" "Is that a Lamborghini" "It's the Iron-man car?" etc. etc. The Ferrari got allot of attention and a ton of respect from people in the know (and allot of girls who were not), but probaby 1/2 of the R8;

4. As far as depreciation, they have both taken their major hits by now, so I would expect another $20k max over your ownership either way. The Gallardo's seemed to have settled around $90k and the 550s at $80k, so probably not much further to drop for the R8 or the 575 which are both around $100-110k.

5. That all being said, their is nothing like the passion and the sound of a Ferrari and a sterile German car will never duplicate that. But like another poster said, if you have to ask, go with the R8, b/c the Ferrari will make you work for it. However, coming from a Porsche, it will be a major event driving either car.

 

What he said.

 

This would make a great signature, though changed slightly

 

pretty one sided logic... the 575 is a rehash of the 550... the 550 debuted in 1996 (i believe) it is based on some very very very very old school tech. Hell I think it could still be considered a columbo V-12... Also, its Italian, which means... much of it especially the electronics are WAY out of date...

Id still go 575. But I bleed red. I love that car and think its one of the best all around Ferraris ever made.

HOWEVER...

If you are not a die hard Ferrari guy... and can't ignore and accept the idiosyncrasies of the Ferrari and you are really just looking for fun reliable transportation that has some exotic factor... then go with the R8. You will love it!

The R8 is like the girl you bring home to mom...A long lasting relationship. The 575... its the temperamental girl that you will NEVER forget... for the good times... and the bad.

 

Concur with Taz - completely different cars and driving experiences, so if you're asking the question, that probably means you should buy the Audi. Coming from a 911, the R8 would be a more logical/natural "next step" on the ownership chain. Also German, reliable, easy to own, but a bit more "exotic" and will turn more heads than the 911. Go for the Ferrari if/when you get bored of the R8 a few years down the road and hopefully finances permit the purchase of a new or nearly new Ferrari 458 with warranty coverage.

Another upside of the R8 is that you are unlikely to need to spend hours on a online forum digging up answers to why the bloody hell your shock actuators are spinning, or how to order a Corvette part to make that annoying red LED on the dash go away. Or how to refinish sticky HVAC panels, fix shrinking leather on the dashboard, get rid of that annoying brake squeal, and while so doing discover that you need to replace the engine mounts and certain hoses ASAP. The R8 won't make you jump through those hurdles.

Me, I enjoy the satisfaction/masochism that goes along with ownership of Ferraris....which is why I have never been a stress-free Porsche or R8 owner!

 

There is some 456 (circa 1993/4) in there somewhere also

 

I dont understand why people ask these question. Its more understand if the comparison was between two exotics.

R8, GTR is a nice car but not exotic

 

Thanks for the comprehensive summarization ...

 

realistically most questions would be answered if people would test drive a ferrari

 

i'm looking at banging jennifer aniston or angelina jolie. need help choosing --- which one ?

 

again not a choice anorexic with lips or a real woman ...can you guys make better choices

 

Justin- The injection ignition system on the 575M is a whole generation newer than the 550. The DMEs are Motronic 7.1.1 and the engine has individual coils for each spark plug, as opposed to a coil per bank on the 550. State of the art and still used on the 430s through the 16M. Both the 550 and 575M use variable length intake ducting for both good torque and high rpm power and have hydraulic valve lifters to cut down on maintenance.

Also the 48 valve, 65 degree V12s on the 456-612 engines cannot be considered Colombo engines, all of which were 60 deg V12s. The 65 deg V12s were used in the F1 cars to give more room for intake ducting and were adopted by the street V12s with the introduction of the F50 and the 456 for regular production cars. 65 deg V engines originated with the Dino F1 V6 engines.

What is missing on the 550-612 engines is variable valve timing, which was introduced with the Enzo/599 in the V12s, but the 575M in no way uses old school tech. One thing Ferrari did not scrimp on was engines.

Taz
Terry Phillips

 

Isn't it great when Taz comes up with such detailed technical info.
I learn something from one of Taz's posts at least once per week.
Great stuff.

 

No one ever even thinks of asking "why did you buy a Ferrari?" It's the automotive world's last word.

But when you show up in a Lambo, Audi R8, Aston, etc., there is the often unspoken thought "Nice car, but since you could obviously afford it, why didn't you buy a Ferrari?"

 

My usual answer would be " I got one of those also, I just did not feel like risking being stranded tonight."

 

John- You know, that is funny because since I bought my first Ferrari in 1975, I have never had one strand me. The closest was a Dino 246 GT where the throttle cable broke. Jammed the carb linkage to 2000 rpm, though, and it got me home fine. All my Ferraris have been more or less DDs.

Taz
Terry Phillips

 

Me too for the most part. I had a F 1 tranny problem strand me once on the 360 but not that big a deal. I think the reliability and belt issues are definitely but the occasional story concern us.
Now don't get me talking about Range Rovers...