How much do accidents and mileage affect the value?

Hello everyone, I've been a long time lurker and Ferrari noob/virgin who finally decided to make an account and mingle with the wealth of knowledgable people on this forum. I live in socal and am looking to buy a 430 or 458 but with the plethora of options available in socal, I'm not sure what's a great deal and what is not.

Couple questions I had were:
1) Would you buy a Ferrari that has been in an accident? Let's assume no frame damage and still clean title. If so how much does an accident affect the value? Would 20% cheaper then a similar car with no accident history be fair?
2) What is considered "high mileage" for a Ferrari and how much does that affect the value? I.e. how much of a difference in price for a car with 10k miles vs 30k miles?

The prices have such a wide range I don't know if I'm getting a good deal or overpaying. I also know how well the car is spec'd will affect the value but I don't know what are the major options to look for. Any advice would be helpful for a first time buyer and greatly appreciated. Thanks everyone!

 

If you go to sites like cars.com and cargurus.com they will give you an approximate (they don't know options, condition) idea of how well a particular car is priced, but do your own comparisons.

The major options to look for are the ones you want. For example, a lot of carbon fiber can raise the price of a car, but if it's not important to you why pay extra for it.

 

Hemmings.com and Autotrader.com have lots of Ferraris lists for sale, and its always good to read through all of the ads regularly to get a sense of how mileage affects value. You can also subscribe to The Ferrari Market Letter, which comes in the mail bi-weekly for lots more market info and classified ads.

 

Good point, I forgot the Ferrari Market Letter.

 

Available ONLINE and instantly and highly recommended. Not just printed.

Marcel Massini

 

Great advice thanks fellas... ill check out Ferrari market letter. I've been looking at the many different used car sites but prices are all over the place. Some cars appear to be exactly the same year, mileage & condition but the price difference is like $30-40k. Also the only comparison I can do for cars that have been in accidents are against salvage title cars. I'm assuming a clean title car that's been in a minor accident is worth more then a salvage title car, but less then a no-accident car. It's really hard to gauge how much less I should be paying for a car that's been in an accident but still has a clean title.

 

If this is your first Ferrari, I would say just stay away from any car with an accident.

As far as wide price disparities on what appear to be the same cars, the general rule of thumb that says you get what you pay for, generally applies here.

 

Conventional wisdom I to buy the best one you can find. This precludes damaged cars.

 

Welcome to Ferrari world. I strongly suggest the following:

1) clean title does not mean much at all. PPI and history/paperworks are the most important aspect.

2) try to buy from the dealer. Any extended warranty is great if you can get that into the deal.

3) Regardless of where you buy it from, PPI is still a must.

4) Cheapest ferrari is often the most expensive.

5) Wait for your perfect specs takes patience, and a lot of time patience is worth it.

6) Mileage with 458 is not too big of a concern. Cars that are barely driven may be more problematic because the problems could not reveal itself when the warranty already expired. I think 4-6K miles for a 2014-15 458 is reasonable.

7) prior accident to ferrari of course will drop its value. It just may drop more in Ferrari world.

Did I miss anything major, guys?

 

Great info thanks bro. I've made up my mind to buy a 2010-2011 458. I'll start the long process of finding the perfect spec car. Hope someone on the forum has one for sale near southern california at a good price.

 

I will suggest to buy post 2012.

 

From what I've been reading, the exhaust sound is louder on the 2010-2011. I test drove a 2010 today and love the pops and crackles. Also my max budget is $160k so don't think I can afford a 2012+

 

It's the DCT issues that is supposedly more common pre 2012.

 

Exhausts are the easiest things to add, but I would strongly suggest going with a 2012+ car. I looked into buying a 458, and that is what I would buy. If you cannot afford to buy a newer one, either wat for the prices to drop (new models coming) or wait till you can afford to spend more. Like the post in this thread says the least expensive car can not always be the best deal, in fact it may turn out to be far more expensive in the long run. If a car does not have service history, I'd run, not walk away from it.

 

If you are a "car guy" and you know cars, don't overthink it. Treat this purchase like you would a used Land Rover or VW if you were buying it for the wife. It's a modern car. It's not some mythical creature that you need to be afraid of. Get a PPI if you can and that will tell you the overall condition of the car. Miles shouldn't matter for reliability only for resale, as with any other car it's condition.
I repeat.. it's a modern car. Modern Ferrari's are made with the same components you find in other European cars the days of old crappy hand build Italian **** are over.
We don't know if you're handy with a wrench. If you are.. you have more room to move with no service history or lower priced cars (for a reason). If you're using a mechanic for all repairs, get the highest quality car you can afford. I bought my beaten 360 with 50k miles, no service history whatsoever from a really, really questionable south florida lot. Everyone said run.
It's been more reliable than the low mileage garage queens on here for the last 8 years. Start, drive, put away on sunday. Never a CEL. 458's with 40k miles are no different than Porsches with 40k miles.

 

Thanks for the advice. I'm not really too knowledgeable about cars and definitely not handy with a wrench. If anything goes wrong I head straight to a mechanic haha not gonna lie, straight up car noob here. I have a 2007 porsche carrera that hasnt given me any problems and approaching 70k miles so great analogy. Gives me more peace of mind in buying a higher mileage 458.

 

Thanks iloveferrari and carnut I'll try to find a 2012+ do you guys know how common the dct problems are with the 2010-2011 models? Limited to a few cars or pretty wide spread?

 

If the accident was minor and correctly repaired it wouldn’t bother me to get it. But of course at a discount.


Major damage it would have to be pretty cheap AND fixed correctly but I’d you wanted to drive the heck out of it and not worry about depreciation, why not?

 

A lot of those earlier gearboxes were fixed under warranty so I would not automatically rule them out. Californias had the same problem.

The dealer would know if a gearbox has been replaced with a better upgraded version.

 

I think you've got some good advice. Buying a used Ferrari should be no different than buying any other used car, do diligence, read and as much about the car as possible, especially weak points, ie exhaust manifold on the 430, dct vs F1 vs 6speed manual etc... reading your post I get the feeling that you are worried about value and not wanting to loose money in the long run, well these are not appreciating assets, although I think the market is soft. If you are concerned you should look at 430 scuds or 430 6peed manual. I think the 458 still have room fall. But regardless get a PPI! Very important. Also as far as options get the options that you want only you can say how much more you are wullwil to pay for that. Also the reason Ferrari prices vary is because of different variables; low miles <10k mid 10-20k high miles>20k and prices should reflect this but to me <10 isn't necessarily better than >20k. Look at clutch wear, if it is needing clutch that's a $5000 negotiation point. Everything is negotiable. If you want peace of mind buy at dealership and get extended warranty, but be prepared to pay top $$$$. Good luck and hope you can soon be a owner. The grin on your face is well worth it.

 

I'm not worried about resale value because I intend on keeping the car forever. Higher mileage isn't too big a deal for me because I'm going to be driving and enjoying the car, not just letting it sit in my garage. I just wanted to be able to recognize and negotiate a good deal so I don't get owned by a dealer and overpay.