F430 daily driving

I would say that the very nature of driving an f-car will get heads turning no matter what kind you drive. It's an element of rareness. I'm a recent 430 owner and I can say that I love it and too am a car nut but I don't advertise to anyone in my company that I own one. I don't want people to have the wrong idea as it's hard enough to keep people from knowing I'm their boss and not a close friend.

I've found that work relationships are much different from your true friends that you've grown up with and I'm sure they'd know you are a car nut and not think anything of it. Your employees or business partners may think something else...

 

I am also a car nut and a surgeon. I have always wanted to drive my car to the office but didn't want to offend the staff and especially the surrounding physicians. You'd be surprised how fast people find out who's car it is and what they will say. The words "show off" will be whispered as you walk by. To me, it's not worth it. That's why I drive a Range Rover to work. Still a nice car, but not very flashy. No one knows I own a Ferrari other than a few of my close friends. The partners in my office don't even know.

 

It's nice to have the luxury of being who you want
to be without caring out what others think

 

I suppose it would depend on what type of physician that you are. If you are a Hollywood Plastic Surgeon or successful Pathologist who deals with primarily dead people and other physicians, perhaps a Ferrari might not be "too flashy." You living in a small town probably would make having a Ferrari as a daily as a major distraction. With any other specialty then those mentioned above, a Ferrari daily driver would likely bring you a lot of baggage that most Physicians would rather avoid. Do you have the same parking lot as your patients? If you have a separate enclosed parking, perhaps you could be more discrete. I am a also a physician, relatively new in practice, and I daily drive a Camry, that gets me little attention and allows me not to worry about where I park the car. In my specialty, if my patients knew I drove an F-car, it may cause a real problem. I have driven the Ferrari to work a couple of times on 1/4 or 1/2 days of work, so only my staff knows that I have it. I do notice that the Ferrari seems to change how some of my staff treat me. Before they knew I had a Ferrari, I was considered a pretty modest guy. Just note that the Ferrari will change many people's opinions of you. This is something important to consider. My senior partner, a successful surgeon daily drives a 997 Turbo and on occasional Fridays a Bentley. He works heavily as a Med Legal physician who deals with Lawyers in his practice, so high-end cars are likely "when in Rome" acceptible for him to drive. However, even he has his limits. He likes Ferraris and Astons but thinks they are much too flashy for a daily driver. When he was trying to decide between a 997 Turbo and a 997 GT3 as a daily, I was urging him to get the GT3, but he picked the Turbo. Actually, the Turbo, is probably the best daily driver I can think of that most physicians can pull off in the practice parking lot without offending anyone or giving anyone any psedolitigation ideas. I'm a car nut, as well, and when I upgrade my daily, I'll likely be looking at a neutral colored M, AMG, or 911 variant as a daily. If any modern Ferrari can be more subtle as a daily, perhaps a neutral metallic 550/575/612 would cause less of an issue than daily driving a Rosso Corsa scuderia,430 spider , 599, or 458. Just my opinion.

 

I'm a physician as well, and never drive my red 430 to work for the reasons described above. BMWs, Porsches and Benzes are fine but a Ferrari will attract comments and may even be detrimental to business.

 

I too am a physician, and just made the transition from a turbo 996 to a rosso corsa 430. I drove the turbo to the doctors parking lot every day that it wasn't raining for 7 years without any problems! It blended in with other 911's, boxters, AMG mercs, etc. However I wont be driving the Ferrrari to the hospital as it creates a commotion wherever it goes! My colleagues have known i'm a car nut and are happy for me! No problems at work! However a car like that just doesn't do anyone any good to sit waiting for a door ding for 10 hours straight!!!! You cant live your life in fear of what others think! Get the car and hopefully you will be as happy as I am with the decision. Good luck!

 

Im an ER doc and a confirmed car nut! I drive Bella where ever I want because she is hot and deserves the attention! Drive the car, forget the haters. I mean really, if you buy an exotic super car that only 0.1% of people can afford, what do you expect. BTW, try being a youthful looking black male driving a black F430 in medium size southern town! Welcome to my world!

 

And, here she is...
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I'm a urologist planning on a 430 purchase in the next few months. I will probably let my wife putter around town with it on weekdays. Will most likely drive it to the hospital or office on off hours and flog it around on the weekends. Have had three Porsches, a C63 and an M3 but Ferraris are just different. It's not really just a car you know ? Can't wait to get one though.

 

haters will be haters.

don't let them spoil your enjoyment.

buy your Ferrari and enjoy driving it.

I drive my 360 spider to work all the time. (the office/clinic, not the hospital -- since I'm in ophthalmology I have no inpatients!!!)

well, unless it's raining, then I'll drive the M3 'spider'
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I am a Plastic surgeon in Socal and I usually don't care what others think, but still I have never taken my red 430 to the hospital or surgery center and I take it rarely to the office. My daily is a 997TT and it fits very well everywhere and is well accepted by the patients.
The red 430 is just too much, it only goes on weekend mountain or desert runs.
The 997TT is the best compromise of daily driver and performance, a great car.

 

Man I should have followed my old man's foot steps and become a surgeon! I guess his F-car was all of his kids tuition to college!

I don't think it's about haters... it's about people wondering why you may have to bill them what you do, or pay them what you do, or let them go because of simple economics. I just rather not rock the boat and draw attention to all the hard work I've done at my business. I've own(ed) an H1, E55, M6, M5, etc. and the F-Car is in a league of it's own. I try to be subtle when people ask what I drive. I never use the brand always the model to ease my way out of the conversation. Most people, unless they are car nuts, associate the brand to flaunting and not the shear performance under the hood that you are really after.

 

I never show off my garage but I had the same beer celebration with one of my close friends... he said you SOB! You've been talking about Ferraris since I grade school! he shook my hand and took a picture with his iPhone

 

I drive my 430 to work whenever the weather permits....

For me though, I am not a doctor, and it is very rare if any of our customers or clients ever see or hear about my car. If and when the issue does ever come up, I simply tell them that I had a good year in the stock market and treated myself well.... and that actually is the truth.

As far as the attention. I do think the car catches a lot of eyes, BUT after riding around with some friends, I think that a lambo gets about 10000x more attention, and the Ferrari isn't nearly as bad as I might have expected.

I managed to keep it quiet for a while, but one day, turning out of our office I hit a wet spot and spun the tires... that obviously led to the exhaust revving up and hitting the 6k RPM spot where the valves open.

Next thing I knew, all the girls in my office were calling me on my cell phone asking what type of car that was that they HEARD me drive off in.


I say get what you want and drive what you want... there will be haters and there will be those that are proud of you. I lost some longtime friends due to jealousy within the FIRST WEEK of owning my Ferrari. It's really sad. I'm still the same person, the car didn't change me, but it obviously changes them.

 

looks like a doctor is the way to be here! lol
they all seem to drive F430's

 

I'm on my second 430 and would not consider it a daily driver. It also attracts too much attention all the time, and sometimes you may not be in the mood for it. I also feel it does not need to be associated with your place of work or business, unless it is automotive in nature. My daily driver is a Cayenne Turbo, still an expensive car, but it flies under the radar.

 

If it makes you uncomfortable or may risk your business, why do it? I am a software and other businesses owner so I could care less what people think, say or whisper. Screw 'em, if you have money, the moneyless is always going to dislike you.

 

Here's a picture of my 430 and my friends' cars. We all drive our cars everyday. I have to store mine in the winter but they drive all year long.

Cheers!
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I am an optometrist and no one at any of my offices knows that I have a Ferrari. Actually only my close friends know it. I drive a 20 year old BMW to work.

 

I'm a dentist and I am currently looking for my first F-car. I too am worried that if my patients see my future car they will resent paying their bill. Haven't we all heard patients grumble how they "paid" for our last vacation, kid's education, etc. I have learned to laugh it off but I know that each of us have worked our rear ends off for years to be where we are.

Because I always arrive long before my first patients arrive and because I have my own "extra wide" parking spot behind the building from where most patients park, my plan is to get a non-decript beige car cover and cover the car when I get to work. Anybody out there doing the car cover thing at work?

 

I'd say get what you want and drive it where you want. I'm not the type to get jealous over someone else's good luck or hard work. As an example, the orthopedic surgeon I visit for my back makes a ton of money, has a very nice house in West Lake Hills and is one of the senior partners in his practice. He's worked for years to get to where he is and I respect that. He's just now becoming interested in getting a sports car and has asked me a few times for advice on what to buy since I am a certifiable car nut.

I'm just now starting the initial research on the 360s as its one of 3 cars I'm considering when I get ready to add another to keep my CLK55 AMG company in the garage.

Best of luck on your decision and enjoy life, you only get one go around!