Hey everyone, I am thinking about purchasing my first Ferrari. It is a local 1986 European Testarossa, but I have a few questions about the car and its pricing. About the car: The VIN number shows the following- A- 308 2-valve invected (USA Model) A- 3-point inertia belts for front 17- Testarossa B- Left-Hand drive vehicle for the European Market G- 1986 Last 5 Digits- 89266 The car has 55,000Km (about 33,000 Miles) on it. It was imported into the US in 1991 from Belgium. It is a very dark gray or charcoal with red/maroon interior. The car is in great shape both inside and out. If I feel like this is a good deal, I will have it professionally appraised. I have read that maintance is a major factor in determining the value of a Ferrari, so here are the major services that the car has received to date (in the US). Entered US and inspected: 7/04/91 30,000 mile service (at 49,523km): $3,211 Major Tune-up (at 50,699km): $2,409 The Carfax shows the car to be clean with the exception of a possible odometer rollback which was caused by one owner regestering it in Km rather than Miles. If you do the conversion, it checks out. Now my questions ... 1) What is the difference between the US and Euro versions of the Testarossa? Will I have trouble registering or insurring this car in NJ? 2) What is the value of this car? I know that this is a tough question, but I am looking for an average rate. The owner is pretty firm around $50k USD, which is no small chunk of change... at least for me!! 3) Is this a good first Ferrari or should I look at a 308, 328, or 348? I love cars and presently enjoy my Corvette and BMW 850i (V12). So, basically should I continue looking into this car or move on? Thanks for any help you can provide. -JRW
Here are my brief thoughts, as I am looking also... 1) If those are all of the bills you have, it hasn't had its major yet (10k$), clutch (3k$), tires, fluids, etc, etc. 2) If somehow it HAS had its major, thats a good price - assuming all import papers available with a legit conversion. 3) I'm not sure what to deduct for the fact its a euro car - but figure 5-10k at least. Most of the early testarossa's I have looked at are priced 60-65k$, assuming recent major and 15k miles or less...most folks will knock of 5k$ if you ask... 60k$ will get you a nice pre 88.5 testarossa, with good mostly complete records, in pristine shape, major within the last year. 50-55k$ will get you the same car, in an off color. Folks here always tell you not to buy a garage queen, but on the flip side, a car with 50k miles is pretty much not sellable. So if you buy one with 30-40k miles and actually drive it, figure your going to have it for the rest of its life-- From what I gather, dealers are offering 40k as a trade in value on these cars --- Just some thoughts, good luck!
Step 1 -- Do a search here on "Dick Merritt" -- read threads Step 2 -- call Dick Merritt -- confirm EPA/DOT status of car If you get past Step 2: There is no "euro" version TR, and any TR brought into the US should have been modified (cats, etc.) so you really need to confirm what configuration the car is actually in now. TR's came stock in three injection flavors: 1. K-Jet without Lambda (early "standard" version) 2. KE-Jet with Lambda (US and late CH version) 3. KE-Jet without Lambda (later "standard" version) I'd discount a K-Jet without Lambda TR very slightly vs a KE-Jet without Lambda TR (they're both horribly complex, but the K-Jet system has even more open-loop thermo-mechanical gizmos). The jpeg in this post is a KE-Jet system (no warm-up regulators under intake plenums) Also, I'd put a $5K deduction if it didn't have cats and the warning light system, or a $1-2K deduction if it had cats, but no warning light.
Regarding the VIN: The first "A" you mentioned decodes as "Testarossa - Euro version, type F113B". I'm assuming the car also still has the original metric spline-drive rims with TRX tires (?). Also, would agree with "bpu699" regarding the price of the "major service" - sounds a bit suspect, as a major engine out service can easily run $6k plus. Not to mention the condition of the clutch, which you'd probably want to have done while engine is out. Be interesting to know the time interval between the 30k major and major @ 50k km. Additionally, you'd want to be sure that the car comes with all DOT / Import paperwork for insurance purposes. And be sure to inquire about having a PPI done to see what you might be getting into, especially if the car comes with very limited repair history. The color combo might have some affect on price -- personally, I like the Grigio. Mileage is fairly low for the year. Metric wheels / tires might also be a bargaining factor (?). The TRX tires are easily $300 plus per tire from Coker for these metric rims, so you'd probably want to take that into consideration. Otherwise, you're looking at purchasing a set of US rims/tires or aftermarket rims/tire for $2k plus. Budget-wise, keep in mind that TR's are not inexpensive cars to own and operate/maintain. Parts can be pricey compared to 308's, etc. And make sure it has all tools/pouch, jack bag/contents, and owners manual/pouch as these are pricey to replace as well. All in all, $50k sounds fairly reasonable. Many of the items listed above, together with a PPI, can probably give you a little "dealing room". Just some thoughts from recent experience with my '85 Euro TR. They are worth every penny, IMHO! Hope this helps...
IIRC, the F113B engine is KE-Jet without Lambda (but check that). Good point about the (probable) metric wheels Eric -- wouldn't be a plus...
if 50k is a big investment to you, please consider the fact that the cost of acquisition is the small/easy part. if the 30k was done in 91...it will need it again. and it will cost 6-10k and there could be a clutch kit too...another 3-4k. a 512 is a fantastic car and for 50-75k, you cannot find a more exotic machine. they were the super cars of the day. if you do follow on this path, contact bill pollard @sport auto...he is the very best w/ these 512's period!! he is in ct. and can be reached @860-350-1515. hiring bill to do the ppi now may save you los of heartache later!
Well, I just wanted to thank everyone on here for their help. I think I am going to pass on this car unless the owner really wants to get rid of it... lower the price 10%-20%. Thanks again, -JRW
Regarding the VIN of the Testarossa: The first 'A' is correct for a late European version Testarossa. The 'A' is also used on US-version 308 GTBi, 308 GTSi and Mondial 8, which explains the confusion. So, some digits were used on multiple Ferrari types. The 'G' doesn't make any sense, as that Testarossa certainly won't have a 'G' in the VIN. The serialnumber you mentioned (89266) would make it a Testarossa built in 1991, not in 1986. This would also make a large difference regarding the price, as a late version TR will often be more expensive than an early TR (regarding technical updates and so on). For more stuff about VINs and Testarossa, check my own website: www.red-headed.com.
Walk away from it RIGHT NOW!!! There are USA models that you can find in the 50,000s. This cars are extremly expensive to fix or get in top shape, I sold my '88 in top shape with its $12,000 30,000 major done a year earlier this also included new tires and later on a new clutch over $4,000 in parts and labor, the car had 37,000 miles when I turned down a $61,000 for it and sold it last year with 40,000 for $56,000. My advise is first to find out if you can afford to drive it at least 10,000 miles a year and then to look for other than the one you are taling about here because if you are buying at $50,000 and you find it expensive then know that a major possible major is needed and I am not the only one passing the $10,000 for one and thats without any real problems. The Testarossas are very reliable and I did a lot of long distance travels with no concerns but sometimes they ask for $$$ and it isn't cheap.
