Considering a move from my California T to a Roma

Before you buy the Roma go drive a Portofino as it doesn’t have the dreaded GPF. And it’s a hardtop convertible. Just saying…..

 

You can look in the model-specific thread on California/Portofino/Roma for lots of threads addressing various maintenance and driving experience issues. Reported problems in the threads may be reported at higher than typical rates since people are seeking solutions rather than expressing lack of a problem. You can speak with a Ferrari dealer service center to learn about their overall maintenance issues experiences.

A '17 Cali T differs from the Roma (and Roma Spider) in several ways, including age of vehicle, exhaust note, center console height (Roma feels more confined, like the new Vettes), electronics and safety features, top (if Spider), and rear boot/trunk.

A '17 Cali T is valued at one third to one half of Roma (or Roma Spider) which means depreciation will be less cost per year, registration and insurance will be lower. At the same, the maintenance costs of the '17 Cali T can be expected to rise as parts age out. The Getrag tranny used by Cali T has fewer issues than for the Cali but still is aging and the tranny has similar issues in other cars, like Mercedes, albeit not seen in large percentages of cars yet. I've not heard of roof hydraulic issues in cars local to me. I have heard of some shock absorber changes, and sometimes people get rougher running engines from doing only ten mile trips (a problem for many collector cars driven short distances only).

On personal side, I like the overall styling of the Roma and Roma Spider better than the Cali T, although I like the Cali T front end styling much better than the Roma. I like the more spacious interior feel of the Cali T, and my wife vastly prefers the less-confined feel of the Cali T compared to the Roma Spider. The rear seats are equally useless for my people carrying purposes in either car.

 

I've never driven a Roma, though I have sat inside the demo unit. I own a 2016 Cali T.

In my opinion, the Cali T already offers much more performance than can be used on public streets. The Roma has more power and is technically quicker, but it's really academic unless you're a nutcase. As far as looks, I think the T and the Porto both look better than the Roma. I don't like the grill on the Roma. Interior wise, I really dislike the massive screen in the Roma. Call me old fashioned, but I like buttons and switches and tactile response.

So for me, I'd stay with the T. That's my plan.

 

If you haven't already, you are likely to have to rebuild the Getrag box when a sensor or seal fails on it ... been there, done that (internal seal failed at 31k miles). $16-18k range for full rebuild if no issues with clutches, gears, etc. If done correctly (with new sensors and improved bearings and seals), it should be good for many more years and miles. (Dealer estimate locally was $25-30k, I used an independent.)

Other than that, my 2015 Cali T had been trouble free for the last 6 years and 21k miles, as in nothing but tires, a battery and scheduled maintenance and a $50 repair for a broken paddle actuator (that the dealer would charge $5k to replace the entire paddle assembly for, I had one cast instead and replaced it myself). A light touch when using the paddles can help avoid that particular issue as it's just a tiny piece of plastic between the paddle and a microswitch, which, naturally, Ferrari does not make available separately.

The Portofino is a great car but I didn't see enough of a visual or interior change to want to move from the Cali T to it. Debated ordering a Roma Spider when it was first announced but it's such a huge delta in price I elected not to, even though I really liked the test drives I did in a Roma coupe.

 

To learn if tranny rebuild is covered under Power15 Warranty, ask the dealer who would handle the repair about what elements would be covered and which not and ask how often they are seeing this problem arise.

If you are concerned about residual value reduction associated with higher mileage vehicles, you can study Autotrader to see correlation of asking prices versus year and mileage. It is harder to learn actual selling prices with enough cars in sample to be meaningful. Presumably dealers have a good database of selling prices but I have never been privy to that data path.

Choice of path for selling depends on several factors, including with whom you would like to deal, how much you are willing to pay for others to assist in sale, and how quickly you want to sell.

If financial considerations are of interest, one may make estimates over time for future depreciation, current running costs, a range of maintenance costs, purchase (and loan costs over time if incurred), and lost investment opportunity costs (capital which would have been allocated elsewhere to earn return on investment) to compare between the models. Such modeling may also help understanding where car joy, budget, and stress points are found. Enjoy the drive!

 

The DCT should be covered under the Ferrari extended warranty. However, the warranty is expensive annually and I came out slightly ahead forgoing it for 4 years and just paying for the rebuild. If I had the warranty and the gearbox went south and was covered, I would probably no longer pay for the warranty going forward. It's the single biggest thing that can go wrong. The top seems robust enough if it's used regularly and I have mine inspected and lubricated annually.

I think your mileage is already high for a Ferrari, as silly as it sounds. Once you get up to 30k miles on the car it should more or less hit bottom on depreciation, it will appeal to people looking for a driver's car without paying for a garage queen. A good service history will be important.

Expect to get seriously lowballed if you try to trade it or engage a broker. Most high line dealers won't want to touch a Ferrari with actual miles on it unless they can get it for a lot less than they think they can sell it for, or considerably less than they can just wholesale it for. I would also wait till spring when the market awakens in most of the country.

 

I agree with Vic on how to sell and the fact you're already in high mile territory from the buyer's view. Keep in mind he's selling a T asking in the very low 6 figures, and I bought mine last spring in the high 5 figures. (There were exetenuating circumstances, don't view that as a real market indicator.)

My advice? Drive the thing and consider any current $$$ as sunk costs.

 

I’ve owned my Cali T for 9 years from new and have 46000km. Every year I’m tempted to upgrade but this car is so good I can’t justify the extra cost even though I can afford it. Yes the Roma is a fabulous car to drive, despite the ugly nose, but it is more cramped for driver lateral leg room. The screen would take some getting used to after a Cali T. Remember the Cali T is the last Ferrari model you start with a key versus a fob. As an aside, recently several professional race car drivers offered hot laps at a local track in the new mid engine Corvette and boasted of getting close to 230kph top speed. I drove my Cali T on the same track last year hitting 235kph and I’ve hardly driven on a track. No one needs more power for a road vehicle. Lastly I’ll see little price depreciation now and the reliability is so good it’s a great Ferrari to own. However maybe an 812 GTS might change my mind!

 

That was my choice, Grigio T. I use it as my daily driver for the last 2.5 years with no problems other than a passenger display replacement and a small ac issue both covered by my warranty. Absolutely love the car.



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Certainly a purely subjective assessment, but for me the Roma is far better than a Portofino. I thought the Portofino was too "lazy", so much so that the Roma - of which I did not expect much - really impressed me (all things being relative, this is not a sports car, but it's really competent). This is based on only relatively short experiences (Ferrari events to discover the cars) though.

 

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I think a Portofino M is the best car in the series. The Roma may perform better, but isn't as nice to look at and it has all the garbage electronics that new cars have.

 

I have a friend with a Roma. He said the haptic was a learning curve but, now that he has figured it out, it is a nonissue.

To my eye, the aftermarket egg crate grille for the Roma looks great, but my friend prefers the factory one. To each his own.

Ferrari Corp is hyping the new 12Cilindri as the most beautiful car in the last million years. Personally, I think the Roma is so much better proportioned and is the “most beautiful”.

As for performance, I own 3 sports cars all over thirty years, including my track car. Modern power, to me, is absurd. I am happy with my “slow”, manual-shift cars.