360 buying advice

If you must have a full on manual, go for it. It is an early 360 though.

 

Since you asked about options, it’s missing some commonly desired options such as Daytona seats and shields.

 

Look at it for what it is and what you can enjoy

If a decent vehicle don't worry about what it does not have

Enjoy it first and then gradually do upgrades

 

Did you read yet the extensive buyers guide at the top of this section ?

 

Hi, have a read of this on pre-buying advice... A very good website for all things 360 and 430 too.

https://aldousvoice.com/ferrari-360-f430-buying-guide/

 

Decide what you are planning for your ownership. Are you keeping the car for the "long haul" or going to flip it after a couple of years?

More options of course help with resale. But for me I bought the car I wanted as I intended to drive and enjoy it. I didn't really get too hung up on options. Rather, I was more interested in overall condition and maintenance records as well as color combinations (interior/paint). Interior "fixes" can be expensive so I looked for a car with a good dash pad (no curling at the defrost vents or other defects). A dash replacement can be upwards of $4K. Seats can also be quite costly if you have to have them recovered-- even with replacement covers available.

If you are considering an F1 car then I would consider a 2003 or 2004 ( and there may also be some 2005s out there) as they will have the latest (and best) TCU. Shifts are notably improved over the earlier cars.

Good luck on your search and you will realize that any 360 is a joy to drive.

 

1999 can be a finicky year. Early ones may have issues with frame cracking around the motor mounts. The TCU in the 99's can't be reflashed to the later software, it must be replaced but that only applies to the "top of the line" F1 system. Early 99's had some cosmetic differences such as no rain gutters on the engine side panels and headlight changes. Good thing is there are no precats or secondary air system to deal with. Mine is a Dec 99 production and has been (knock, knock) pretty much trouble free since I have owned it. I've added several "factory" options and I've found out that there are some things that are not a direct add because of the year.

 

I agree with the earlier comments.

Options on the 360 aren't really that important. Sure, there are some nice to have's (upgraded seats, shields and challenge grill). But, I'd put a higher priority on the car's maintenance history and cosmetic condition and color...

When were the belts changed last? (I didn't bother to read the service details but you should!)

They are including shields but are they factory? Would be stick on?

I think the Tubi exhaust is a plus. It's has a nice tone vs. the factory exhaust.

That car looks fine. It has enough options and looks clean enough. Do you want a red car? If so my biggest concern would be the mileage. The mileage isn't too high, but it's on the high side of the typical 360 in the market.

Can you show us more pictures of the interior? Does the dash leather look good? Stickies addressed?

Have you driven the car? Tell us about shifts into second gear.

I would do a pre-purchase inspection.

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Like @FatMike, I'm more of a condition and maintenance over frills and options. Having 40k+ miles can be good, especially if the car shows well. That means twice the average miles were driven on the car and it still is running nicely. The car is likely to be sorted mechanically speaking.

As for the shields? If the car wasn't born with them, they are going to be fake. There's a shop somewhere in CA that will mount real shields. It requires taking off the fenders and putting them in a special press for the indentation that the shield fits into. Otherwise, the shield sits proud to the surface and that would cause drag. Very anti-Ferrari. Stick on shields are fake and anyone who knows even the slightest thing about Ferrari's will spot that a mile away. No big deal not having shields either.

When I was looking for a car, I wanted Rossa Corso, shields, daytona seats and the multi-part wheels. They were a must. That is until I saw the car I bought. It has no shields. It has standard electric seats. It has standard starfish wheels. It's not red. I had a choice between two very close spec cars, the other having the full load, and Rossa Corso to boot.

This is the one I bought:

2001 gated 360 Spider in Azzurro California / Crema
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The following were available on the 360 at some point:
CS grills (front & rear)
CS/Race exhaust
HiFi /subwoofer option (guts by SA)
Engine carbon dress up kit

The head unit was also changed out to a 430 Nav unit. Everything else I did was in the spirit of upgrading Ferrari's original plan. Be it items stolen from the 360CS or 430C or made

There are many other things that I did but they were not "factory options" but rather things that were never meant to be on the car but they worked anyway, be it bought or built.

 

LOL. No.

Look, I don't know what you mean by a "daily driver" (please elaborate), but these cars are really more of an event.

The overhang is a bit too long, so you need to be careful about lips, dips, etc to avoid scraping. There is a front trunk, but it's not so useful that you'd just casually put your groceries in it. You really can't just go park it anywhere. And, when you drive it you'll get a fair bit more attention than you want.

I do an analysis before I reach for the Ferrari key to weight every mile against whether it was "worth it".

I drive the Ferrari when I know where I'm going in advance. I also need to know where I'm going to park in advance. I need to know it's not going to rain.

I have 4 cars, and the Ferrari is the 4th best daily driver. By comparison, I can take the air-cooled Porsche anywhere at anytime with much fewer constraints.

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