Have been about to send a 1997 355 spider with 10k miles to Algar for a PPI. Have been sent photos of significant dash shrinkage. They added leather to the speedometer hood and there is noticeable shrinkage in the glovebox area. How much would it cost to replace all of this to get it perfect? Best, Rob ps the price on the car is $95k. It needs the 30k service. Otherwise in very good condition. Some driver's bolster wear Best, Rob
IMHO, $95K is way too much for that 355. its mileage, no 30K done, major leather shrinkage. that car must have been a)sitting outside a lot during ownership, or b) the owner didnt bother conditioning the leather inside the car. you should negiotiate the hell out of the car if you really have your heart set on it. in terms of fixing it, the damage sounds major, so replacing the entire dash work may be required, i think i read somewhere $5500-$8500? may be off. anyway good luck with the ppi and the deal. jc
5500??? if memory serves, i was once quoted 2000-2500 to pull the dash and replace the leather on it. doody.
A 1997 Spider with 10k miles at $95k is too expensive? Is the market that bad? Miller Motorcars is selling a '99 with 14k miles, 30k done, 1 year warranty for $117k is that a better deal? Doesn't sound like it too me. Is dash shrinkage that common or does it usually only happen when people are not caring for their cars? Best, Rob www.bridgemc.com
well, if you don't treat your car right and don't care for it, the 355 dash leather will almost certainly eventually shrink. that said, some folks have treated their cars well and still had the 355 dash leather shrink. and many manufacturers do leather dashes that never shrink no matter how much abuse or disregard you can throw at them. so, yes it's "common" but i wouldn't rush to conclude that all incidences of 355 dash shrinkage are the result of owner misbehavior. probably most are, but some of the fault clearly lies with how they were manufactured, the excess leather (not) used in the key spots, and the type of leather used. two rules of thumb: first, don't let it bake in the sun. ever. i've heard told that one good solid day of sun exposure will get the process well on its way. i always (ALWAYS) slapped the cover on my car if it was going to sit outside for the day (eg: at the office) second, treat it regularly. rejuvenator oil or whatever your favorite treatment is (but be careful of the old stuff (connolly hide food?) that apparently isn't appropriate for today's leather). note that other subsequent model f-cars with all-leather dashes have fewer problems in this regard. they eventually, apparently, "figured it out" to some degree. doody.
I would love to find someone to actually do the leather work. Is this something a dealer "should" be able to do? Or are they likely to farm it out themselves? What about those Sport Auto folks in N.C everybody keeps talking about. anybody know if they do that sort of thing? Stan
Rob, when there is a major shrinkage that means that the car has been out in the sun for a long long time and not taken car of. my old TR had the same problem and to my surprise the car was nothing but headaches,
Unfortunately, I am looking for a pozzi, tdf, or titanium 6-speed with low miles. Let me know if you hear of any. Thanks Rob
Call Richard at Beverly Hills Classic Cars....they have a Titanium and Tan, 12K with service asking around $105K....Just spoke with him and he's looking to move it. As far as the pricing goes, I just bought a 97 from them with 20K, shipped from the east cost and in route, had the 30K and valve job done. Asking price was 96K and I got them to include the 30K/Valve job which totalled about $15K from FoA. FYI....I don't think the price is out of line if you can work in the 30K. My 2 cents and good luck with the car!
has something to do with the application of the glue by Ferrari at time of build. Even with mininal sun exposure there is apparently a seperation problem between the leather and the dash itself. I don't think that this is indicative in most cases of mistreatment of the vehicle (though it may be) but a manufacturing flaw. The shrinkage issue is more on the cowl the covers the instrument cluster. It should be apparent that this is a common problem just from the amount of people that haved chimed in here on this thread. Doesn't seem to be such an issue on other models.
Several years ago when I bought my 355 from the dealer asking was $125k. I got the car for $115 and had them complete a full 30K service and issue a factory extended warranty. If you are working with a dealer you have room to negotiate. Re: Dash - The key is to find someone in your area that has done it before. In my area $1500 will do it - once you re-do it you're good for life. Mine is at the point where it is close to needing a change. Typically, the corners at the airbag are the first to go. I bagged 6 concourse trophys in the last 18 months or so and found that putting on Leatherique and letting it sit overnight will "relax" the leather enough to let it go back to it's original shape. So if you can't talk the dealer into a new dash, the problem may not be as bad as you were thinking. Try the leatherique or budget about $1500 down the road. If the car has no other issues on the PPI (include a leakdown for valves) I would not be to concerned about it....I know how difficult it is to find the "right" car. Like you, it took me close to a year of searching.
