Ferrari Storage

I live in Southlake outside Dallas and have the same issue most people do wit family more cars than space. I wondered if anyone in the area had ever considered a storage work area secure A/C etc where the car could be worked on displayed or just stored in a specific area but in a shared building. Any thoughts?

Martin

 

A local FCA member has the ultimate solution in my opinion. He has a 4th garage space (actually about 1 + 1/2 spaces) extending off the back of his main garage. It can be closed off, has A/C and a restroom. It really adds to the mystique of his car. It shows how much he cares about his car...which is spot on perfect by the way...and he drives it often.

 

Thats a great idea... I store many cars for people in warehouses I own, it would be great to make it into a storage place with maybe a lift, and work area, a detail area etc. The only problem I could see it securing a car from other renters. Hmmmm something to think about..

 

I once looked into making this a little business in Florida where you picked the clients car up washed and waxed put in storage started and kept battery in shape then pre cleaned ready for their requsted arrival or need date. There is a lot more demand for that in an area where many are part time residents but for easy access it may be a gathering point for Ferrari people to work on their cars and store for use, anyway we will see if anyone else has any thoughts.
Thanks again
Martin

 

I have had some time to think about this and would like some opinions.

How about a warehouse location that offers individual garages within the warehouse for self storage of cars.

For less expensive cars a parking area within the warehouse.

There would be one entrance and exit with keypad security.
The whole place with be climate controlled.

Of course surveillance cameras everywhere.

Included in the monthly rental there is an area designated for car washing and detailing, and area for working on cars mechanically with hydraulic lifts. A mini bar, lounge area, etc

A service could be delivery and pick up and prep of you vehicle.

The only issues I can see are the cost! Warehouse space in the mid cities, Irving, Grapevine are at a premium. Everyone on F-chat seems to live in the Dallas area and would hate to drive to Fort Worth just to play around with there car.

I have a 30K square foot brick warehouse that would be neat for this but it’s in a questionable neighborhood and who would trust their Enzo to a questionable neighborhood?

So here we are back to square one, cool idea….. any opinions.?

 

A few of us have discussed this concept repeatedly over the last few years. Greg seems to always be part of the discussion as he seems to need the most space! I think Jasons thoughts pretty closely mirror those that the rest of us have had, with security and access the two biggest concerns. There might even be fire code regulations if people were actually going to work on their cars.

My dad used to store his truck in a big warehouse that was staffed, but you had to leave your keys and they'd move it around as needed. I'm not sure that concept would work with exotic cars, but it worked well for him.

 

I'm game for anything at this point. I'm leaving my office space in July where I have been storing 6-7 muscle cars in the parking garage full-time. I currently lease three 10'x20' enclosed cubby holes for $130/month each, but that landlord covers his eyes when I visit as Richardson city ordinance supposedly says you cannot stores cars in enclosed areas with gasoline in the gas tank.

As I see it, safety and key control are the most important. Very few of us personally service/work on our Horses. So things like a lift and repair space seem secondary. If I need to work on a muscle car, I take it home. So I can perform the repairs on an easy pace and leave my tools out at night. Something you could never do if sharing space.

The less people who know about the storage space, the better. Visitors should be kept to a minimum...unless they are 21, have big boobs and blonde hair. That type of storage attracts alot of attention, all of it bad. I cannot tell you how many times I have walked up to the top floor of my parking garage only to find a total stranger idiot lifting the hoods of my muscle cars to see what underneath! Once, the security guard at my building got a call at the front desk from a guy at the front gate who said: "I'm here to change some flat tires for 'Scott Greg', can you let me in?" When the guard tried to contact me to verify, the guy took off. I swear there's gonna be a killing in my parking garage some day.

Over & out. Starsky

 

Sounds like that Security Guard deserves a great Christmas bonus, Greg. You're lucky to have him.

 

Actually, I took him to Happy Hour!

 

Greg are you going to contact me this week so look at some space? I will be swamped tomorrow and gone Friday so maybe wed or thur if your available.. How was the trip to Ill to get the new car?

 

Jason: Looks like I'll be out of the office Tuesday-Thursday. I'll meet you next week unless something cancels on my schedule

 

Hi Starsky -

I have your storage problem solved! Brittney just got that new house in Malibu and I'm sure she'd move her SLR to make space for your cars in her garage. I think that would classify as a pretty secure parking area.

Carol

 

The house won't be done until August, but when its completed I am going to be renting out 3 or 4 spots in the garage. There is still one spot, and maybe two, available. Garage will be equipped with 2 lifts, a bathroom/shower, internet access, satellite TV, etc. View out the back door overlooks Big Bend.

 

Carol, I spoke to Britney after seeing your post. She said it would be a cold day in Hell before she'd let me park my engineless '41 Willys coupe in her garage. She told he I had "issues" and hung up on me! The nerve. What "issues"? Starsky

 

sounds like a great idea. A buddy and I were going to do this exact thing down in Austin 3 years ago, but were not able to due to insurance costs. Things might have changed now, but it is a great idea. Our first client was going to be one of my old professors at UT and his 3 ferraris.

 

This seams to be the age old car guy problem.

A buddy of mine solved his car / garage ratio problem by getting an airplane hanger. He has 8 cars in it with room for a beer fridge and nice work area. I contemplated getting the hanger across from him but I decided mckinney was to far.

We looked at building a warehouse for car storage and renting spaces. Our idea was that each 500 sf space would be walled off with its own garage door entrance and alarm, we had also planned a living room / bar type area at the front accessable to all tenantes, maybe with some brass poles. We had this thing all priced out but location ended up the big problem, the centrally located area where people wanted it was to expensive for it too make sense.

 

Ever thought about installing a lift into your garage? (assuming the roof has enough clearance)

 

As of June 16th, I'll have an extra garage. But it's 73 miles away from home.

 

Lake house, Right.

 

That sounds pretty ideal. There's already a certain level of security because it's not easily accessible to the public. Probably cameras at the security gates too.

I think the only way this would work is as a partnership among people renting the garage... If someone wanted to try to do this and market it toward the public, general liability insurance with bailee's coverage (which would cover the cars if something happened) wouldn't be cheap. My gut tells me in the mid-four-digits, but I haven't explored it at all, so that could be off-base.

As long as you disclose to your auto insurance company where it's being stored, whether it be a classic auto insurance policy or a stardard use policy, they should cover your car if you were to split rent with friends in an airplane hanger. Of course, don't take my word for it, please talk to your insurance agent/broker/company to verify this before signing leases.

 

This is a situation a friend of mine and I have been looking at for some time. We have found a couple of buildings with about 25,000 sq ft. Our original idea was to lease/purchase the facility and then rent out the spaces based on the number of cars you wished to store. The original building that we viewed was not very far from my office--635 and I35, it had great outside fenced storage areas-a necessity and a huge interior space that was climate controlled. Unfortunately this facility sold. We are currently looking at two other candidates. There are several immediate problems that come to the surface: The per square foot prices for secure buildings are pretty high which makes the rent appropriately high. There may be some problem with renting the space as far as insurance is concerned. Some of the "classic" insurance companies are not comfortable with the car being stored at a facility other than your house. The third problem that we have encountered is that there would have to be a 24 hour, staffed security guard in place and this also raises the price of admission.
If anyone has any ideas I am a player in this game. Maybe we could all get together as a buyer consortium, purchase a facility and then staff it and manage it, similiar to a country club arrangement. If someone wanted to get out they could sell their share and if someone wanted to get in and there was room--same deal. Let's hear some additional ideas- Greg, Jason, the rest of you.
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The F512M-How fast is fast?

 

When I looked at this in Florida there were several developers that would build the building and lease it back on a min. of a 5 year lease. I had put together a Financial plan that said with storage charge, detailing and delivery fees you could make a profit including two full time employees. The comments on insurance are spot on it was the largest piece of the cost picture. The other approach would be a consortium that was aimed at covering whatever level of cost they wanted and not a profit therefor the cost per person would be more reasonable. The concept of a personal storage area with a detailing area and common sitting area where you coild have say the FCA meet or presentations by suppliers ( or watch F1) is the most appealing to me we should think about getting a list of those really interested that will determine size of building etc.

 

What do you guys think is reasonable rents for the spots described here? With the lift, security, common bar/hangout/whatever space? I know that warehouse space rents are anywhere from $2 to $6 a foot in most areas of Tarrant county. I cannot say about Dallas or other counties.

I would think that approaching it as storage for the cars could put this in the "great ideas that don't make financial sense" category. As a more elaborate service, like a club or an Enthusiast's Bar, it might work. Offsetting some of the costs of the building with a business that runs with the building. The club could offer magazines, car models, memorabilia, a lounge, drinks, tool rental or anything car related. Have everything available for the general public and have discounts for the "members" (guys and gals storing their cars).

In most military bases they have a garage where people can rent all kinds of tools and work on anything they want on their cars. There could be "public bays" available to rent by the hour or the day to people that just need a place or special tool to get the job done.

I'm just throwing my idea there. If someone would like to form a consortium or something like Don was talking about, I'm game.

Let's here your opinions