Need your advice

Hey folks,

I am looking to purchase my first Ferrari and I have a question to ask. Would you recommend a 360 with low km's, like 22k km's or a done up 430 with 117k km's?

I know the resale potential on the 430 will be extremely hard, but I don't see my self selling the 430.
The 430 has a ton of upgrades. The 360 has no upgrades, all service records, seems like its in great shape. It belongs in a museum. It seems too flawless to drive. The 430 I would definitely drive it and not really worry about trying to keep km's down.

I intend to drive the car a lot. Buying a 430 with low km's on it isn't really in the budget. Maybe a 430 with 60k km's but not less for the amount of money I am willing to pay. I don't know if I would be satisfied in a 360 knowing I could have gotten a 430 that had all the bells and whistles. Of course either car would be inspected by a professional before purchase. What do you guys think?

 

What years ?

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I see this is your first post. Have you been lurking for a while and reading the posts about the differences of the 360 and 430?

My buddy has a 2001 360 and I have a 2009 430. Are you aware of the timing belt vs timing chain differences and requirements? Also are you a DIY’r?


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Buy the one you want.
Forget resale!

 

Food for thought, a very low mileage 360 may cost you much more in sorting out than just buying a driven 430.

 

I think when I bought my 360 we all went through this same thought process. The timing belt service is not that big of an issue to me. The exhaust note on a 360 and overall experience is way better in the sense of hardcore feeling. Some talk about interiors acting like the 430 is better but to me, they both suck. I would give the edge of exterior beauty to the F430 but to me not worth the price premium. To me the 430 is the consumer who could not afford a 458. The 360/430 price gap isn’t that big of a factor. I wanted to feel the analog raw experience of one of the best sounding Ferrari’s made next to the F355. My next Ferrari will not be a 430 that I can assure now at this point. Owning a museum quality 360 is literally impossible to come by these days but that will take away your ownership experience due to wanting to keep it in that condition. To me, that means you need to buy the 430 which should satisfy your needs for quite sometime.

 

I was in the same spot you are in when I was considering my first (and only) Ferrari purchase. I would recommend driving both if you can, that will be a huge deciding factor.

Do your best to make sure there are no major issues that you are unable to handle.

Makes a huge difference as mentioned if you are a DIY'er or you will need to bring it to the shop for everything. The latter will cost you a lot of money and may turn you off to the ownership experience as it will throw the balance below outta whack.

I have found that owning it (vs buying it) consists of a balance of:

1) Pride of ownership
2) Enjoyment from working on it
3) Just looking at it and enjoying having it in your garage
4) A reasonable balance of amount of money you spend on it during ownership for: mods, maintenance and repair.​

I selected an F430 that had some miles and needed some TLC. What drew me to the F430 was the introduction of the new engine, the higher power, the modernized design styling, the engine bay which is imo one of the most beautiful ever, the interior which is imo one of, if not the best in the mid engine 8 cyl lineage.

Being a DIY'er is essential if you're getting a non-perfect car. You would not want to have to pay for everything that you want renovated.

For example, you can refinish all the interior parts yourself practically for the cost paint, if you sent it out would be 100x the cost, dozens of dollars vs thousands of dollars. Replacing the stereo was the cost of parts, having someone do it would cost significantly more, again, hundreds vs thousands of dollars, etc.

Know what your limitations are, if you're going to want or need expensive mods that you can't do. For example, my car had an issue with the shocks, shop estimate was $12-15k to replace them, but by doing the research and the work, I was able to get them rebuilt, did the installation myself, better than a shop, for 1/4 of that price. I upgraded my exhaust for the cost of the unit, vs having to pay additional for the installation.

The other benefit to doing things yourself is they will be done to your expectations. I have found just about everything that was done before had some issues, car was not done the way I would. Mismatched screws, things not correctly re-installed, etc.

So that all said, if I was not a DIY'er, I'm sure I would still love it the way it was when it rolled off the delivery truck as I was sold on it just pulling it out of the dealer's driveway. It just wouldn't have the improvements that it now has. Being able to work on it, I've been able to replace and refinish everything that I felt needed addressing, and now I've got an F430 which is in really nice shape, personalized to my taste, by investing some over the last 3 years and it just keeps getting better.

Hope this helps.

 

2001 Ferrari 360 22 km - no mods. All original. 1 owner.


2005 Ferrari F430 117km - super modded. Carbon fiber everything, exhaust, body kit, rims, backup and front cameras. Full body PPF. Only has service records for the last few years.

 

in that case the 360 all day long. Lol you lost me at body kit and rims.

 

If these are the only choices ..go with 360 and upgrade the TCU / and possible ECU software upgrade too

If you had a larger budget find an unmolested 2008 f430 up to 50 k miles .. just make sure clutch is newer

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Wow, thanks everyone who commented. Its very nice to see this is a helpful community. I wasn't sure what to expect from a Ferrari community.
I'm leaning towards the 430. It has all the mods already done to it. All I would have to do it maintain it and I can drive it as much as I want, not worry about the amount of clicks I put on it. I'm hoping its the pinnacle of my wants for a car. I don't ever see myself upgrading to something higher, I'm just not that guy (yet).

I had a C6 Corvette and now aC7. I was thinking about going to a C8, but we all know there is just something about owning a Ferrari. so for a little bit more , I am willing to go for a 360 or a a 430 with high clicks. Sounds like you guys are actually recommending the 430 which I'm a but surprised, but really happy about since thats the one I want.

here are the details of the 2 cars:

2001 Ferrari 360 22k km - no mods. All original. 1 owner. All service records from Ferrari from day 1.


2005 Ferrari F430 117k km - super modded. Carbon fiber everything, exhaust, body kit, rims, backup and front cameras. Full body PPF. Only has service records for the last few years.

Thanks guys for your help. Its really helping me make my decision.

 

You don't like the rims and body kit? I lkinda like it. Make the car look more aggressive.

Thanks

 

I didn't recommend the f430 that you are considering lol

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Do you know what 'body kit', it is?

Hamaan is tasteful, some others maybe not as much

 

That stuff just isn't for me, I'm an oem look kind of guy

I'm on my second 430, so I'm biased. Sold the first one to buy a 458, but ended up back in a 430. The 458 is amazing but the 430 is raw and angry.

FWIW, If you drive the 360 and 430 back to back, you'll notice the almost 100hp difference too.

 

Whatever direction you decide, the Ferrari community and experience is a lot of fun. BTW, @flash32 has a wealth of knowledge on these cars, so he's a great resource for questions!

 

If those were my choices I would pick the 360. But you have to buy what makes you happy. I chose a 430.

 

360. No comparison in my opinion. The 430 shows me no real improvement over the the 360. I know, I know, timing chains. There are enough to go wrong with a high mileage car that can push that worry to the far reaches of your mind.
An Original car, great records, and great mileage "point" beats the 430 in my mind-- all day long. A heavily modified car always begs the questions of who did the work and how reputable were they.

When I bought my 360 6 years ago I also looked at the 430. I could have afforded the small uptick in price for the 430. But apples to apples, the 360 is far and away a better car for me. Classic curves, analog, lack of the bells and whistles all the HP you can want in a street car. Resale? not happening for me. After 6 years of ownership, I can't see me selling my 360. When I can't drive anymore, my wife will have the benefit of the sale.

Good Luck and don't fret, enjoy the experience of buying a Ferrari-- which ever one you decide on it will be a joy.

 

Buy the one that pulls at your heart strings. Then buy on condition. 12k miles beaten is not the same as 112k miles Loved.

 

Your mind sounds like it was made up before the post. There will be a lot of logic people will give to buy the 360, but you will spend the entire time wishing you bought the 430. Buy the 430 because it's the one you want. They both have issues, and neither one will be any kind of collectible car in the future since they are base models...

Btw, I also have a C7 Z06 (used to have a C5Z). The C7 will be technologically light years ahead of a 360 or 430, C8 even more so, so if you are replacing the Vette, be prepared for a much more "raw" experience with the Ferrari. It's an old car with old car tendencies..

 

If you like the 430 more it’s a no brainer. Since it’s higher mileage and modified resale is going to be on the very low end, but as long as that is reflected in buy price, and if it’s a keeper, that’s not problem for you and u can actually enjoy it much more! If the 360 is pristine, it’s going to take a lot of restraint keeping the miles down to retain its value.

If I were in the position to put some serious miles on my fcar I would definitely go the well serviced, high mileage route. Because I only drive mine on the weekends, I bought a clean low mileage 430. FWIW, as to comment on 458, after test drives, I liked the 430 much better, and paid more than what the 458 was asking (gated).

maintenance wise, both cars will cost a pretty penny to maintain long-term, regardless of chain vs belt.

 

Yeah the "430 is for the person who can't afford a 458" is ridiculous. Not to get off topic, but the 458 is too perfect, if that makes sense. You drive the 430, the 458 drives you.

 

Buy the one with a manual gear box.

I'm team 360, so for me the 430 doesn't even exist.

Ray

 

We need pics, but if that choice was mine between those two specific cars, it would be the 360.

 

Where are you located? In Europe?