My first Ferrari, a 360 and it's story | FerrariChat

My first Ferrari, a 360 and it's story

Discussion in '360/430' started by king_kenny, Apr 10, 2014.

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  1. king_kenny

    king_kenny Rookie

    Feb 17, 2014
    14
    I have just bought my first Ferrari 3weeks ago, and wondered at the time whether it was the craziest thing i'd ever done. We have just moved into a project house in Sept and I have other things I could have/should have spent the money on, like a new kitchen or bathroom and windows. Using Man Maths principles, I worked out that over a two year period I should break even, so with all things considered, it was a no brainer financially as long as there were no catastrophic failures. I was even factoring in a little appreciation due to it being a Manual car and rarer as a result. (would be interested in views on what it's worth).

    She's a 1999 Grigio Alloy, Scuro Blue leather, Modena, Manual car with 37k on the clock and refurbed alloys in Grigio Silverstone. I have every servicing receipt, MOT, 2 keys and fobs(no red), all manuals and tools. She has extended leather, titanium silver brake calipers, and an upgraded Alpine radio, but is standard apart from that. She has now had 5 owners, though she was sold 3 times between 2012 and 2013 with the previous owner to me only keeping her for 3 months after an impulsive purchase, as he then switched to a 4 seat Maserati!

    I already have a polar silver 993 turbo i've had for 7 years that's a keeper, but there's something about the Ferrari mid engined 2 seater cars that has always appealed to me at a visceral level. The 355 is such a pretty car, and would match the 993 from an era perspective, but researching the ownership proposition led me to the 360 modena as it seemed to be a landmark in terms of engineering and offers lower ownership costs with a chance of slight appreciation.

    I really wanted a manual car, but they are very rare so I widened the search and subsequently missed out on an Argento F1 car a month ago at Hamilton Grays. I was gutted and gave up looking, thinking i'd focus on the house, to my wife's relief! Then a couple of weeks later I received a call from Andrew Hamilton @ Hamilton Grays, who said that a car had come up, but the deal had to be done in 3 days. I hacked over to Wimbledon and dealt direct with seller who was switching to a Maserati. It was the right car at the right price(thanks Aldous Voice) and sometimes in life you just have to jump in with both feet so I snapped it up and was a little in shock as I drove home in what was now my Ferrari 360.

    Needless to say, the missus was even more "shocked" than me.

    Over the next couple of weeks, she will head over to Shiltech for new belts, a service and a front balljoint or two (a known weakness due to a poor design). The rear bumper could also do with a repaint at some point due to stonechip rash.


    What I love:-
    How she looks side on, utterly utterly beautiful and I can just stand and stare appreciating the Pininfarina lines and curves
    The sounds and sensation of accelerating through the gears, redlining in each with a screaming V8 behind your ears, I can see why Vicki Butler-Henderson gets so "excited"
    For a big wide car she feels well balanced and very responsive
    Looking at that V8 through the rear glass cover
    The classic aluminium shifter and gate
    The way the engine barks on first start-up
    The standard daytona manual seats are excellent, and the cabin leather absolutely top quality.
    The cabin is a very very nice place to be and well put together with no rattles, or squeeks from the interior (once i'd removed the coins that had fallen behind the aluminium door trims).

    What's not so good:-
    Ball joints are made of butter, or more accurately mild steel with a chrome plate... guess what happens when you get a little salt and water in them. (hill engineering make a good living from correcting Ferrari's engineering mistakes)
    Due to relatively low volumes I think, Ferrari parts prices are horrendous for wear and tear items like wheel bearings(new hub!), clutches, anything really
    Stone chips are the enemy with some parts of the car subject to alarming attack unless protected
    Its not possible to switch the AC compressor off independantly with out losing all heating!!!
    Rear visibility not great


    So all in all, its been absolutely fantastic so far, and you only live once!

    Pictures are here.

    2000 V FERRARI F360 MODENA MANUAL SOLD - Ferrari, Maserati and Porsche Sales Specialists ? Used Ferrari, Used Maserati, Used Porsche

    king_kenny
    (yes i'm a liverpool fc fan)
     
  2. Cyt

    Cyt F1 Rookie

    Feb 1, 2014
    3,755
    Sydney
    Full Name:
    Cyt- Chin
  3. English Rebel

    English Rebel Formula 3

    Aug 13, 2013
    2,158
    Piedmont Area of NC
    Full Name:
    Alan
    #3 English Rebel, Apr 10, 2014
    Last edited: Apr 10, 2014
    Very nice indeed. Interesting that the service book is filled out. Maybe that's the norm for the UK as over here I don't think any dealer fills them out.
    Alan
     
  4. vrsurgeon

    vrsurgeon F1 World Champ
    Silver Subscribed

    Dec 13, 2009
    16,528
    Charleston, SC
    Full Name:
    Curt
    Nice car. Though I wouldn't count on "breaking even" in either the house or the car over any time period. Could be a wash financially for both.

    Enjoy in good health.
     
  5. Cooper

    Cooper Karting
    Owner

    Feb 25, 2013
    227
    London, Ontario
    Full Name:
    Chris Cooper
    I could have just copied your post and used it as mine as that is exactly how I felt when I got my 360, you are going to enjoy her lots. Cheers!
     
  6. Rnye

    Rnye Karting

    Mar 17, 2014
    177
    Las Vegas, NV
    Enjoy it good health!

    I love the color combination and the wheels look good. Just needs a Challenge grill to set it off.
     
  7. ar4me

    ar4me F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Apr 4, 2010
    3,114
    Southern California
    Full Name:
    Jes
    Congrats - nice. Yeah, I wouldn't count on appreciation on the car - just assign a value of zero to it in your head and you will be alright. The house will like fare better IMO :)
     
  8. Kevin Rev'n

    Kevin Rev'n Two Time F1 World Champ
    Owner Silver Subscribed

    Nov 29, 2009
    24,506
    Honolulu
    Full Name:
    Kevin
    Great story and beautiful car! Good to have Aldous on your side. I had help getting my first car from an F-Chatter too!
     
  9. mikeyr

    mikeyr Formula 3

    Jun 17, 2004
    2,154
    Santa Barbara, CA.
    Full Name:
    Mike Rambour
    Great choice of car !!! great year, superb exterior color, awesome interior color, but I am biased, you have my car's twin, just the steering on the wrong side and that silly stick shift :)

    Keep driving, I have 60k miles on mine.
     
  10. king_kenny

    king_kenny Rookie

    Feb 17, 2014
    14
    Thanks for the kind words!
    For what it's worth, I love that funny stick thing. When the gearbox is cold, you can really feel the difference, in the shift, and then it warms up and gets smoother and smoother, until its slick and all you can hear is the "snick snick" of the gate.

    It's a real part of the experience for me.
     
  11. KILOCHARLIE

    KILOCHARLIE Formula Junior

    Oct 14, 2012
    321
    Cardiff, UK
    Full Name:
    KC
    Your car is exactly the same as mine apart from the mileage (60k) and the wheels. You got a good one for sure as a fully stamped service book was a must for me also and the same with the manual gearbox. Wouldn't worry too much about the ball joints as even if the rubber splits the car still remains tight on the road and not much noise either. I kept my standard rear grill as I don't think the challenge one suits the colour as much as others but its all personal preference.

    Saw your car advertised on autotrader a good few months ago. Don't know how much you paid but even it you paid top whack it'll still have been a bargain for what it brings. I drive mine as my main car and have done for the last 2years since purchase. Cars have actually increased slightly in price over that period but as a guide I wouldn't think you would lose money on it even if sticking decent mileage on it. Appreciation of any significant value is probably a bit optimistic but what other car can be so much fun on a daily basis and cost so little. I love mine to bits and even now than when I first purchased. Tips I would give is disconnect your exhaust valves (do a search), extend your alarm antenna (another search) and learn how to heel and toe if you don't know how to already as it makes driving even more fun and is better for the clutch. This website is great too and has loads of info. Congrats!!
     

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