F430 Spider Purchase Analysis and Thoughts

If you want to minimize your loss, don't buy one. End of story

 

Well, you asked.

This should be the LEAST concern about what you decide to buy. Just one major mechanical issue or accident in any of them will blow whatever you were thinking out of the water.

You want to know what drives down resale? Mileage. So, do you want to worry about every mile you put on it too? What fun is that?

Just buy the car that you want and can afford. You're going to lose money. You'll either lose a little or you'll lose a lot. Either way, your pocket book is about to get slammed.

Both the F430 and 360 have been hit with the Great Recession sticker shock drop. Will it get worse? Who knows. Frankly, who cares if you can afford it.

That's the price you pay for owning and driving a dream. Stop playing "tax accountant" and start playing "10 year old boy" again.

You don't buy a Ferrari everyday, do you? Well just get the one you want, start it up, drive it as often as you can, and enjoy it.

Soon enough you'll be 6 feet under like everyone else -- most of whom never got the chance to push that big red START button.

 

+1 You hit the nail on the Head

 

Blunt, but oh so true!

 

If you factor the cost of a belt service from a good independant (not a high priced dealer) and do the belts every 3-4 years, how many years before you break even on the higher price of the 430....30 years? 40 years? Time value of money- there is time value of money for the extra coin you lay out for the 430 vs. 360...hey you called the thread purchase "analysis" How about higher dollar depreciation on the 430?

There is a performance gain with the 430 offset by the better looks of the 360 (my opinion) and the degree that a 360 has plenty of performance for you.

Someday I may step up to a 430, but not at this price delta, and in fact might do a 360 spider first.

You can't really rationalize these purchases too much money wise as it's more of an emotional thing, but if you want to have some dollar value, the 360 is it, especially with a stick vs. F1.

 

Percentage wise, the 360 and 430 will both probably continue to depreciate at the same rate for a while. Obviously this will translate to less $$ lost on the 360 as they have a cheaper cost of entry. Only way to avoid depreciation on a Ferrari is to buy one that has hopefully bottomed out, like my 348.

Sent from my DROIDX

 

Pull the trigger.

I had a lot of cars and agonized over the decision for years of weather or not to buy a Ferrari.

3 years later my only regret was not buying it sooner.

Driving a Ferrari is like having a filet mignon when all you've ever had before your entire life was hamburger.

Pull

The

Trigger.

 

There're many other issues to consider, but rest assured it's perfectly normal to have your concerns for us first time buyers.

Anyway, since we're buying a car out of warranty (never thought doing that, especially with a $150K freaking car), I decided to avoid the first year, which is 2005, for obvious reasons (the majority of problems are usually resolved by the 2nd model year). The other issue is MILEAGE. And contrary to what I wanted (ultra-low mileage), by far the best recommendation was to buy a car with about 2K miles per year, and that's what I did (8,800, to be exact), but if you're anal like me, you'll have to deal with some wear on the seat bolsters, brakes, clutch, and other areas. My car was supposed to be perfect, but it has a bit of wear on the bolsters; otherwise it's immaculate, including no rash under front bumper, or on any of the wheels (dealer rashed one, but fixed it). The CCBs (which I didn't really want) were rated a 10 out of 10 on the PPI, which were a big concern due to pads alone costing $4K, but I shouldn't have to ever deal with replacing them the way I drive. Will have to scrutinize the car when I get it later this week, but I don't recommend to buy a car with any more mileage than mine, since you'd have to potentially deal with a new clutch, tires, new brake pads/rotors, and who knows what else. You also don't want too many cycles on the roof mechanism either. So don't just go by price, because the apparent 5 grand (or whatever) you're supposedly saving, can turn into double that to fix the car.

I paid $139,500 for mine, with every single option (except F1, which I didn't want), in red/beige (with red stitching) and 8,800 miles, Fabspeed pipes and tips (plus stock ones too), all manuals, VIP build pictures, both keys, car cover, an extra set of floor mats, etc. Ferrari dealer doing the PPI told me they have never heard of a fully-loaded spider selling nearly that low, so want to think that I made a good purchase. There was another almost identical but without CCB, HiFi, bluetooth, or CF vent surrounds, and only 1,500 miles, but the guy wanted $150K. I wanted that one, but everybody said it could have serious potential issues that never surfaced during warranty, and it was a big risk, especially with closest dealer 400 miles away. So I reluctantly decided to save the 10 grand and buy the better optioned car and hope for the best. With no more timing belts, if car was well taken care of (all services were done on time, and by Ferrari dealers, and ALL fluids were replaced in October, with 10 miles less than car has right now, so I can use it for a year without spending a penny), mileage on the drivetrain is not a huge issue anymore, but WEAR in both interior and mechanical components was my main concern, and that's why I was a bit reluctant on this 'high-mileage' car. I also hope the clutch lasts longer than what I read, and that the engine is not that fragile, in case it was 'exercised'. Will ask Stef what kins of cylinder liners it has. Anyway, good luck with your quest for the perfect car for you, and hope I helped you a bit. Take care.

 

Enjoy. Buy the car. Worry less. Drive more.

If you can swing the financial side of things, then enjoy the car of your dreams.

 

+1 You could perform many belt changes before the price differential even comes close. Its not like we are talking about engine rebuilds every 10k miles. The belts should be closer to the bottom of things to worry about when considering the 360/430 comparison, IMO. Its not a big deal and if it has been done recently, you might get rid of the car before you change it again.

As far as the 2005 model year goes, don't worry about it, as long as the factory recalls have been performed. You may find a car with extremely low miles that has had the top used less than a newer year. The comments about not having a warranty should also be a major concern. If you have a big problem you may hate the car and that specific ownership aspect of it, but when its going you wont care at all.
Like all the others said, buy the car and drive it.

 

Absolutely. I never get tired of hitting the big red button.

 

As most will tell you, trying to finacially rationalize the purchase of a Ferrari is a waste of time. You will most certainly end up on the losing end of things no matter what you buy. With a thought towards minimizing the loss, I do believe Spiders are more desirable. Red is also as well as is the F1 trans, regardless of what the "purists" say.

If you're seriously ready, I'd make a move now. Once the spring fever hits (and it does, each year, without fail), cars will bump up and/or sell quickly. Just last year, they took a $10k bump from where they were at this time last year - and that was on both 360's AND 430's - and they were selling. Although there appears to be a lot of 430's on the market right now, I believe as we get into the warmer months, those cars will thin out.

FYI - I sent you a PM.

 

Just try to get the best deal on the best car you can find. If you really want to analyze things, graph prices of say the 355, 360 and now the 430 over their perspective life spans, superimpose the depreciation curves and that might give you an idea of where things will wind up?

 

Right on the money!

 

A higher mile car isn't a bad choice if the car was properly looked after. There are cars with only 2K miles and could have been driven hard the whole time and abused, but yet it will look brand spanking new. Look at the number of previous owners and check how many times it was driven hard, that can be done during a PPI.

If anyone is concern of buying a car with higher miles then I suspect that he/she wont drive it much either, as the person will be concern with resale value and then what's the point...

 

Best advice ever.

 

My thoughts exactly. That's why I bought a 360 Spider. Belt changes run from 1300 low to $2000 high at a dealer. With the current price difference between a 360 Spider and a 430 that's at least 20 belt changes or 60 years. There will still be service costs with a 430, especially if you get one with CC brakes.

 

+1

I knew I was ready to buy a Ferrari when the above statements were true for me and my finances. I could have bought one many years ago but I could not really afford it. I am very grateful that I can now and that the cars value will not matter to me, nor the maintenance costs. This allows me to drive it any time, any where and as much as I like........Steve

 

+ 1,000,000,000,000

 

I agree with all the comments. I would add that this is simply my opinion but I think a good 8-12 months after the 458 spider comes out you will see the market adjust values on the 360 and 430 spiders and it won't be in the positive direction. However, that event is like 2 years off. If you find the right car today, and heres the important part, and if you can afford it, go for it. Who knows what tomorrow brings. Life is short- eat dessert first. Oh, and a stick shift 430 spider is one of the tastiest treats you can ever have and the last I checked its zero calories.

 

Ferrari ownership isn't cheap, regardless of what you buy. If you really want to enjoy it, decide how much money you are willing to throw away and buy accordingly. It's hard to enjoy the car if you are fretting about depreciation and other costs.

Couple of quick hits: I've had an 05 since new and it's been great in terms of reliability. Now has 19K miles. It's had a number of technical service bulletins where the dealer replaces things for free, but no recalls. Any dealer can run the VIN to confirm these are up to date.

458 spiders will be so expensive that I don't think they will have much impact on 430 prices, at least for a few years. Only a very small portion of 430 owners will be trading in. Most 430 spiders are already with 2nd (or more) owners.

Dave

 

Couldn't agree more.

Especially about that 6 feet under stuff.

 

WOW!!! So well said!!! But we all tend to fall into the trap of trying to be logical while at the same time trying to buy an emotional, illogical object- a Ferrari....

 

hell yeah. well said