Found another 550, need advice on the deal

I don't know the market too well on 550's but judging by your comments it's a great car but price is high. Just be patient and wait it out. If you can do this then you'll be pleasantly surprised with the deal that will come your way. Personally I'd rather have a black interior. Sounds like the dealer needs to get softened up a bit.

Try to establish what wholesale numbers are on a car like that and use that as a bench mark. I'll bet wholesale is $30 - 35K off that number. Just a guess but if you do your homework you'll know.

 

The Maranello market has firmed up, but not that much. A good 2000 550 should be in the $125k to $130k range. The 30k service, warranty, and a known history as a good car (Ferrari does build some cars that are never right) could add another $10k, but not another $20k.

That said, dealers everywhere have a problem. They don't have any cars to sell, and it is still Spring time. If you really liked this car, I'd offer them $130k and maybe bump to $140k, but that's it. You might wait till Fall and see if the car is still there. Of course, it might not be!

Dale

 

miller is difficult, ime.

i tried to buy a 355 they had a few years back. it was like pulling teeth. their asking price was high and they had been sitting on it for something like two years.

people speak highly of them, and maybe they're super folks, but their pricing has consistently struck me as a bit out of whack.

perhaps someone with more real experience with them can comment - perhaps they don't negotiate until you're sitting at the table with a briefcase full of money. i dunno.

doody.

 

I second Doody's observation. They're a quality place but their prices reflect their view of the market and are often out of sync with the rest of the world. I don't think they're going to budge-they certainly didn't with me- and I flew in just to see a car so they knew that I was serious.

I would walk away from this one. There are lots of very fine 550's out there for sale and there's no getting around the fact that this one is overpriced for the market. For a pristine car with the major done I'm sure that you could save at least another 25K (if that matters to you).

 

For comparison

http://algarferrari.com/more_info.php?cr=41MMUT

$159,500. 2000 550 Maranello 3200 miles one owner car.
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

That is way too much for that car. I also agree with Doody on the topic of Miller. They will sit on cars for years and not sell them unless they get their price. I looked at the 360's they had a few years ago and they were at least $20K over the market.

I recently passed on a 2001 550 that had 3000 miles and had just been serviced. The asking price was $134,000. It did not have the warranty but the one year warranty will not cost you $5K. I think its about half that and most dealers sell it at cost.

Keep looking because 550's don't move that quickly. You should also check with Sean Harris at Harris Imports in Salt Lake City. He usually has a few 550's and Sean always sells his cars with a recent service completed. Also touch base with Jim Lyons in California. He is a wholesaler of exotic cars and gets many 550's from the dealers.

 

agree w/ scott and others' pricing inputs.
btw, sean harris is a very principle person.

 

vic - you might consider lossening up your color requirements. remember, when you're IN the car, you really won't give much of a care what color the outside is painted. it's a stellar stellar car in ANY color

if you already owned that car and you walked into Miller to sell it to them, they'd give you 120 max for it. absolute max. a 30K+ spread is irrational.

there are plenty of dark-interior / dark-exterior 550s with up-to-date service on the market at reasonable prices.

also, don't let yourself get too worked up over 3000 miles -vs- whatever miles. low mileage cars aren't always all they're cracked up to be. the miller car is looking at 59 miles per month on average since its in-service date. that's not a lot. it probably sat still 3-6 months each year and still didnt' get driven enough.

my first f-car was a "one owner low mileage" car and that "privilege" was really a waste of money. as aehaas likes to say - smart people learn from their mistakes and very smart people learn from other people's mistakes .

all that said, i wouldn't consider the other car with no service records. the majority of cars (at much lower prices) have their service records, and they're worth having.

doody.

 

VicG, You have a PM

 

max is the operative word....i wouldn't be suprise if their offer is closer to 100k (esp. since their favorite holding period of cars is...forever).

like doody's experience, a few months ago, i inquired about a certain nice, clean, all serviced yellow 00 360modena they had...if my recollection is correct, they were asking somewhere north of 160k....however, the saleman assured me he'd consider taking off a few "hundreds" as a concession gesture...

 

vic: like everyone else, I've found the same with miller (there was a Ti 550 I was looking at some time back...).

I say pass on them.

Check with the service managers at a few dealerships - they will know what cars are perhaps available from owners and who might be inclined to sell (before the salesmen, generally).

The look is frustrating. For my 2nd, I scoured the country and found a car in a collection 6 miles away from home! Not as good as Darf, though, who found a car through a broker belonging to his next door neighbor!

--Dan

 

we're hear to serve, babe!

all we ask in return is that you post pics when you get it!



g/l

doody.

 

VicG I bought my 360 spider from an Fchatter just a couple of months ago. Put an ad on FerrariAds.com under the wanted section. Also put this thread in the general section. Somebody that doesn't look here, but may have a friend. Although I am not up on the 550 market, the other car you were looking at seemed sky high. Don't forget eBay. I bought a great 355 spider there two years ago. Make lots of "reasonable" offers (dealers will consider it low) and somebody will bite. Good luck!!
Al

 

Miller inflates prices, that goes without saying.

 

YOu might check WWoC's in Spring Valley as well. They do some real volume as an authorized dealer, and i've found them willing to work; likewise, Motorcars Int'l- but they aren't an authorized dealer as far as I know, so i'm not sure whether they could deliver a used car that they have the service history on; watch FML and hound the various dealers- if they know you are willing to buy the right one at a good price, you might be the first guy they call. Remember, there are alot of dealers out there, including Lambo dealers who take these things in trade ; the key is obviously to get a right car, without expensive problems, at a reasonable price.
Since you are already shopping "out of town" rather than through a local dealer with whom you already have a relationship, a little patience coupled with aggressive research will yield rewards- these cars are not that rare. (BTW- i like 'em, don't get me wrong- owned two of 'em, the first one (used) had a series of issues, all got fixed at no charge by the dealer, Algar, who should have fettled the car before i bought it- i paid top of the market for it at the time, circa 2000; the second one, new, was virtually flawless).
I also think the shop at WW is better than the one at Miller fwiw, and i live near enough to both to have had experience with both in the past.

 

You might want to consider a higher mileage car with the 15k recently done. You get big money off ($20k-$30k+) for the mileage perception, and get a car with the bugs worked out. I did that for my recent '99 550 daily driver and it worked out great! - Tim

 

Yea Doody...

But:

The right car and color combo...only is it is 100% what you want...may be worth it.

I think it is high too. Remember the 550 that Wayne Skiles was selling? Could not give it away.

Buuuuuut. This is a purchase that you buy concourse and perfact to your taste if you can afford it. But don't get buyers remorse.

 

Blue interior w/G Titanio is just as much the "Kiss of resale death" as Bordeaux!

 

My advice would be not to buy without a dealer warranty. Even if 550's have a relatively good reputation, they are not problem-free, and silly things can end up costing a lot. I'm 18m into my shark ownership and still resolving things I am "happy" to have a dealer to hold accountable for.

The 550 US market, as seen through the fchat keyhole, looks bizarre from the shores of Old Europe: it seems that Maranellos with super low mileage abound. Sampling the 47 550's from 1997 to 2001 I found in the classified adds in Heidiland, the average yearly mileage is 4.6kkm i.e. 2.9kmi.
At current US$/CHF FX, prices seem in the same ballpark. However, back in 2000, the exchange rate was ... 1.68 !

 

I too have looked at 550s as of late and if I were to get one, I would get one with more miles than the one you are looking at (around double) and spend around $25k less. If value & resale is a major concern, such as if you're going to flip it in 12-18 months, I would opt for one that's substantially cheaper and has taken most of it'***** on value.

I went through the same with thing my 996TT. I was looking at a few, such as an '02 with 3k miles. The one I eventually chose was an '01 with 6k+ miles. I got it for $17k less than the '02. I looked at it like this... I'm gonna keep the car for 12-18 months and put 6-8k miles on it. I'm not gonna get anywhere near that $17k back on that '02 when I go to sell it in a year or so.

 

I wouldn't be so concerned with mileage. First one I bought had barely been driven, 2nd one was a driver (19.1k) - i looked forever before finding the 2nd one and frankly, with the major done, i feel much better about the mileage car than I do some of the other lower mileage cars (esp. since i had the major done on both cars immediately). mileage cars generally get things worked out, and cars that have been driven actually DO run harder and better.

Miller - don't get me started. Bunch of crooks.

WWoC seems very reasonable - service manager is Justin Stewart, who is a killer guy - very straight forward. Also check with Nick Scelsi (GM) over at FoNE - a STAND UP guy.

Other than just keep beating the service manager bushes.

--Dan