Cost of ownership?

If you can afford a 996, you can afford a Ferrari. I traded a 02 996 for a 328 in March ( smartest trade I ever made ). I`ve been tracking the value of my traded Porsche, and it has lost $5k in value since then. The Ferrari has lost nothing. The Porsche is a much faster car, but the Ferrari is a hell of a lot more fun to drive. Ferraris are expensive when they break, but so are Porsches. I vote buy the Ferrari.

 

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Ask Big Tex about the cost of ownership


Mine only cost me my dogs and all the furniture -- she left me the house because it's upside down...


Pull up a lawnchair and we'll talk

 

Read this: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=70064

 

The cost kind of depends on how good a car you get to start. But the 996 is another depreciating mass-produced modern car, while the 328 is a hand-finished exotic. So, much higher parts costs for the Ferrari, much higher depreciation in the Porsche.

My last major service ran $4K on a 328 (308 would be the same). My car has been stone reliable, but some of the little bits that need replacing due to age can be pricey -- e.g, coolant expansion tank was $415, fuel accumulator was $250 or so (Bosch part), rear bonnet release handle looks to be $130. These are all just 'old car' things.

The 328 is a significantly better car than the 308 from an electrical and mechanical perspective - Ferrari had 10 years to sorts things out on the 308, and the 328 corrected a lot of the minor gaffes on the original. Aesthetics are up to you - some people like the pointy nose on the 308, and the black rubber bumpers. Others like the colored fibreglass bumpers on the 328 more. Both cars are basically very good Ferraris.

You do need to drive one of these cars, though. Most people think of Ferrari as being simply the next rung up the sports car food chain, but in fact the 308/328 are vastly different than any Porsche. They are body-on-tubular-frame cars, very 1960s in their design/construction, and not all that luxurious despite their nice finishing. For example, the 996 has a lot of power goodies, auto climate control (that actually works), cruise control, power steering, premium sound system, and so on.

The 308/328 have power windows, and that's about it. The a/c is a joke (better in the 328, but still pretty mediocre), the seats are quite firm and narrow. The pedals are off center to your right due to the wheel well intruding. Sound deadening wasn't a priority at Ferrari - you hear every movement in the engine and gearbox. If you have a radio, the speakers are down by your feet and it's hardly worth turning the thing on. It's a very 'raw' car. A 328 doesn't feel anything like a Porsche.

That said, I sold a 993 before I got my 328 and the Ferrari is far and away the car that I've bonded with. The engine wail, the gated shifter, the fender curves up front, the Momo wheel, the perfectly balanced manual steering, the road feel -- plus all the adoring stares the car gets wherever I drive her.

I would say go for a 328, plan for $55K-$60K for a good one and have $10K in the bank earmarked for Ferrari repairs. I spend about $300-$500 for an annual fluid change, then budget for the major ($4K or so) every 3 years. People will tell you you can go longer, and it's a big debate, but I do the timing belts every 3 and usually there are oil leaks, etc., that are convenient to do while the car is apart.

Given the gut-wrenching costs of the 348/355 and Testarossa, the 328 is the best deal in sports cars today, IMO.
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