Hi all, any thoughts or previous knowledge on this F355: 1995 Ferrari 355 Spider- | eBay looked around here and searched for the VIN online but couldn't find anything relevant. Think the car is gorgeous and well priced. makes me think if any stories Thank you
That is a very pretty color combo. I would think at that price it is due for a major. My car (96 355 spider) has a few less miles and runs just fine. I am of the opinion that cars need to be driven, not started up every month or two.
I would probably ask the seller for a copy of the Carfax, how he responds to that might be interesting. If he just sends it that would be a plus. If he tells you to buy it yourself, my eyebrows would go up.
Pull your own carfax imho. Get an unlimited 60 day if you are looking to really buy a car. If that goes well, ask for the service records which it probably doesn't have any. If you have anyone that can look at results from the dealer auctions it might have gone through there. It doesn't "seem" like it has hit any public auctions recently. Figure in a major and do a full PPI and mechanical compression and leak down. Make sure to use those words. Don't just say "compression test. Ferrari of Palm beach will want $1600 for the PPI and mechanical compression and leak down. Ferrari of Fort Lauderdale will want $1250 but they will get confused and do a Pico meter compression test (which takes about 45 minutes and you will be charged differntly) A pico test is a "relative" compression test using electrical resistance. Just go find a an independent shop that you trust. It really should be around $700. If you can have someone look at it and drive it. This dealer is not a Ferrari factory dealer or otherwise even specializes in them. They won't know that a broken switch is $180 to fix or stickies, or dash shrinkage and they certainly are not going to say anything as they will rate this based on it being 20 years old as they do with a buick. If clean carfax, nothing more than a few thousand in parts to fix/replace, and compression then it's probably worth 55-60 retail. They probably paid $48-50 for it. Also, you probably know what to look for when buying, (manifolds, major, stickies, dash, tools/covers/manuals, etc.). If not, search this site for buying suggestions.
The mileage is not a problem. Lack of seeming lack of service history is a big question. In my personal opinion, the need to do an engine out service shortly after purchase is a plus, (if the selling price reflects that need). There are a million 'little' things that should be included in an 'engine out' that a seller will skip. Don't skimp on the PPI!