I am considering purchasing the 348 ts. I have looked at several. I would like F-chatter opinions on the following questions: 1. Do yellow 348's typically bring less $$ than the red ones? (I know the old bit about "if it's right for you, buy it"), my question is more an overall market question. 2. Are the 1989's and 90's typically worth less $$ than the 91 and 92's? If so, how much of a discount should there be? 3. How much does mileage "count" on these cars. In other words, how much more should a 20K miles car be worth than a 40K miles car, all other things being equal? I know these are all questions that are subjective, but I would appreciate your opinions.
1) The yellow cars are worth MORE, than Red or Black 348 cars, in my opinion...more rare. 2) Go with the latest model you can afford....so yes, 89/90 cars are cheaper than 93/94 Spiders 3) mileage is not a big issue for the 348 cars....maintenance history is more important...There is very little difference between a 20K and a 40K car, if the higher mileage car was maintained properly and has the 30K service done. Get a PPI before you buy...and good luck VK
1) Any Ferrari, especially entry level, is probably easier to sell in "resale red" 2) Forza's 348 Buyers guide listed a build number during 1990 after which the cars had several improvements: charging system, alternator, ignition...maybe clutch? But I don't know how accurate that info really was, there were lots of changes made midstream throughout the series: interior trim, battery location, suspenstion alignment, rear wheel offset... One nice thing about '89's is that they don't have the idiotic wild mouse seat belts. 3) I would be more trusting of a 10-15 year old 348 that showed regular use than I would of an ultra-low mileage car that had been just sitting in a garage. Mine definitely becomes more reliable with regular use.
** Q # 1: Red / Tan is the most popular combination. Red / Black was next and so forth. Yellow in the old days wasn't as popular as today <i.e. 360's> so if you can located a yellow 348 just make sure it has been taken good care of ... check service records from day 1. Look for rust in the rocker panels. If the records are not available, or not complete ... walk. Be patient and find a car that is in the 90% rating. Otherwise you will be paying serious bucks for a " lemon " no pun intended. ** Q # 2: I was told back in the early '90s when I purchased a '92 348ts, that the '89 and '90 cars were not mechanically sound as they should be. My 1992 model was a "LEMON" ... did some serious damage to my wallet and there were up to date service records. Mine had ECU / SMOG control problems. It was in the shop a minumum of four times a month for this and the dealer could not or <would not ???> repair it. In my opinion, it was a hit and miss until 1994 and 1995 models. I had a 1994 Spider that was in the shop only twice a month. One thing I liked about the 1989 models were the seatbelts. Ferrari musta woke up on the wrong side of the bed when they designed those two piece seatbelts ... one was a lap belt and the other a flimsy thingie on a runner. They regained their senses with the 355. ** Q # 3: One THOUSAND dollars per mile. It is insane ... if a Ferrari is driven it looses it's value in a big way. A Ferrari is a car ... 4 tires and a motor ... it is <supposed> to be driven. If it weren't in my opinion, they wouldn't need a motor ... buy it and use as a conversation piece in the home. Makes sense, yeah ??? So if you want an inexpensive Ferrari look for high miles. A garage queen with low miles and spend a lot of $$$ for the same thing. Just make sure the service records are up to date. The 348 was a great car. Sources say the 328 was more reliable and of course less expensive to buy ... not to maintain. The motor was mounted side ways making it a bear to service. It's your call. My 1992 model is out there somewhere ... s/n 97112 ('92 red/tan 348 TS) it had 59,640 miles when I traded it in for another Ferrari. If you find it I would like to know what shape it is in today. Haven't seen it since Dec of 1997. Good luck.
Just a question for you....Are you sure your '92 348TS was serial # 97112??? I though only '94 348 cars (mostly Spiders) had serial #97xxx... 1992 cars typically had serial # ending with 90xxx, 91xxx, 93xxx VK
1. Yellow is a rare color, but upon resale red/tan is the most sought after color combo based on the average. This combo will appeal to a larger segment of the purchasing population. 2. 89/90 aren't typically worth less than a 91/92 except for the given value difference that one car is older than the other. Maintenance records will affect the value more than the years noted above. The last year spyders will be command the highest values. 3. 20 - 40 range in mileage shouldn't reflect a vast difference in price, look for service. I would expect the price affected after 50K. People seem to not be willing to pay the same for a car with 50K vs. 30K.
