Do you think the guys that work on their cars are the true enthusiasts

I consider automotive enthusiasm 100% subjective. To some it's buying, enjoying for a few months or a year or two and moving on. Some like to collect and never drive them. Some like to wrench on them, and consider it therapeutic. Who are we to judge, right?

I'll say this, if I had the knowledge, equipment and expertise to work on a 458 or FF, I'd enjoy doing so, but the reality is a lot of the newer cars have SO much technology, it's just not practical to be DIY. Now, a 330GTC I can do bits and pieces, a lot easier for me to work with.

Again, "true enthusiasm" is a judgment...

 

It seems like you are saying that the guys lovingly restoring multiple turbo 208s are not true enthusiasts because a shop does the work ? What about the multiple new car owners with man-caves full of cars & memorabilia ? What about the owners who have more information than the factory about the model they own and share it with us but have a shop work on their car ?

I'm with Ken

 

All I ever read was about gated cars and how great they are...

 

Yes

 

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/308-328/501259-208-turbo-engine-overhaul-restore.html

 

When I see pictures of garages and there are only new cars I don't think that person to be an enthusiast.

 

Seems the definition of enthusiast is one who is enthusiastic about something. Someone who loves, talks about, messes with, has a bunch of friends who do the same is an enthusiast. Price, age, mechanical ability, warranty, etc. does not matter.

 

And I respect your opinion in that sense. I'm a hybrid, on one hand I love pre-war, big Bentley's, Maserati, Alfa, and one of my favorites, the Lancia Dilambda. But, do I want a 2016 Jaguar F-TYPE with a manual gearbox? Or a F12 Berlinetta? or maybe even a CGT? Hell ya I do. I perceive myself to be an enthusiast. My heart may always be driven by vintage, but overall I care about one thing and one thing only; the internal combustion engine.

 

I said ONLY new cars. So you are OK.

 

Lol thanks. I do have those types of thoughts too sometimes when I see new(er) owners out and about...Sometimes they just look uncomfortable, like it's forced to be "seen" in the newest 911 or Corvette, but like I said, I just focus on what I like haha

 

Hmmmmmm... Someone who doesn't drive one at all and who constantly posts negatively all over the forum (especially in for sale threads before the crackdown) has an opinion about which owners are enthusiasts and which are not...

 

Enthusiast.

Interesting term.

I have a friend who is one of the biggest collectors here. Has a collection that would make your head spin and cause uncontrollable drooling.

He's also one of the most generous guys I've ever met, and a huge supporter of the FCA PA/NJ.

I don't think he's ever turned a wrench on any of the cars he has now. I'm certain, despite my mechanical knowledge, I wouldn't either.

He has new, old and in between. He is in love with his cars and a total enthusiast.

I'd add, you don't need to own one to be one. Have another buddy who went with me for years to the regional FCA concours. Never owned a Ferrari, but knew them, loved them, and spoke knowledgeably of them with owners.

And I gotta say, if you call yourself an enthusiast, how could you not know what a Turbo 208 was? Dunno about that. Makes you look a little shaky among us enthusiasts.

D

 

Sour grapes. You'd be better off concentrating on getting into your own Ferrari rather than beating down cars for sale, belittling the passions of others, or labeling those more affluent than yourself as undeserving faux enthusiasts.

You come across as having a massive chip on your shoulder and there are many people on the forum who have brought it up. Food for thought...

All the best,
Andrew.

 

+1 - subjective for sure.

A more appropriate thread would have be How do we define "bottom feeder"

So what would you call them then ?

 

More bashing of those with money. How original.

I guess I'm not an enthusiast. Of course, I work 14 hours a day, usually 7 days a week, and I'm not a mechanic, but I guess I should be out in the garage screwing up my car in order to prove that I give a $#%& about it.

Always great to come here and be judged by people who don't know me.

 

Ever heard the joke "How big is a yacht? Your boat and everything bigger".

It is easy to redefine a term or word to include yourself in a group. It only serves to provide evidence of your insecurity.

I fix our cars and I consider your hypothesis absurd.

 

Using this example - and I'm guessing that you don't have a lot of money, since you keep re-using that phrase as though it's a bad thing... so is it safe to assume you have some type of reasonably-decent stereo system? If so, what if mine is/was more expensive than yours, by let's say ten percent? Does that automatically mean I'm not an audiophile? What about double, or triple the cost of yours? Again: Means I'm not an audiophile?

Oh, and do you work on your own stereo system? Do you fix it when it breaks? Give it a tune-up now & then? If not, then maybe you're not really an audiophile after all.


Same points go with regard to the cars.

The term: "Enthusiast" has nothing to do with cash - in fact there are some people here that are the biggest F-Car enthusiasts on the planet, and don't even own one.

If your head is exploding at that concept right now, just let us know.

 

I do my own work but I would definitely not say doing so makes you an enthusiast. Agreed with others that it's entirely subjective.

If I had unlimited funds would likely have several restorations going on at the same time. Couldn't do all that myself and I would have no problem at all with having them completed at a high end shop.

On the other hand there was a 355 owner here that jammed a fuel tank in the front trunk and cut the frame to do the "service". Hack yes, enthusiast no.

 

You're not the only person with an Ipod !

 

I suppose a couple ways to measure whether someone is an "enthusiast" about Ferrari or anything else is the gauge their "level of interest" and to determine"how much intrinsic pleasure / satisfaction do they net from ownership?"

But it seems to me that servicing your own car does not in and of itself warrant any kudos, unless they enjoy doing the work.

Perhaps there are owners who can barely keep themselves afloat and are over their heads financially, and therefore HAVE to service their cars themselves, begrudgingly, although they'd rather not because they find it a tedious chore from which they derive little pleasure.

An argument could be made that people who rarely drive their cars, let alone service them, are also "enthusiasts" as they derive quiet pleasure from the mere act of ownership.

I would opine that people who buy things, cars, paintings, whatever, solely for purpose of speculation / resale are probably not "enthusiasts," at least as the term would be commonly understood in the context of this message board, as their "joy" comes from making a profit, not from the object itself.

Otherwise I believe all Ferrari owners warrant being described as enthusiasts: just my two cents.

 

What a joke.



Mark