The Mondial--I am not crazy.

Ferrari is a unique marque. The people who buy them seem to be torn between treating them like a commodity, or actually enjoying them. It seems the investment question permeates all levels from the mighty F40 to the "entry level Ferraris". Unfortunately, with the decreasing value of the proclaimed "entry level cars"---especially the Mondial, it is hard to envision that typical Ferrari owners will do more than they absolutely must to maintain these cars. Inevitably, this has lead me to the sad realization that the Mondial's days may be numbered. It won't be long before most people can no longer justify the maintenance and repair costs on such a low value car. Even my mechanic, who could make quite a nice living off my OCD if he wasn't so damn honest, is counseling me to consider a newer Ferrari rather than investing so heavily in restoring my Mondial. Similarly, all of my Ferrari owning buddies think I should pretty much just drive the wheels off of her and stop looking for things to update or restore. Again, the refrain is that, for the time/energy/money I could have a 550. All of my friends are honest people who genuinely have the best of intentions. However, I have driven almost every modern Ferrari and those that I haven't driven, I have been driven in. At the end of the day, it always comes back to my little Mondial. The Mondial was always the Ferrari I wanted. It would have been the poster on my wall (along with a TR) if they made Mondial posters. I've always thought the car was beautiful in a subtle and sophisticated way, and the fact that I could take four people in a true mid-engined italian convertible was by far its biggest draw.

I say all this to say, even among this board, I don't see a lot of people who are real devotees of the Mondial and looking to preserve and enjoy them. Most people are just psyched that they got in a Ferrari for cheaper than a new BMW, and are now looking for ways to stretch out the driving experience without damaging their wallet. When I see a beautifully maintained Mondial, I get the same feeling others do when they see a nice Scuderia or F40.

I am an unapologetic Mondial owner. I don't believe the car needs any qualifiers or explanations. Unfortunately, after reading a billion threads on this forum, I am beginning to realize I am about as common as a Dodo bird and, apparently, no more intelligent.

 

Don't worry people will buy them anyway and then trash the hell out of them...(see: 308's) and not complete any of the required maint. --- so if you do, yours will be worth something again someday...

 

The Mondial works for you and you know exactly why. Sounds pretty intelligent to me. Enjoy it to the end (hopefully many years in the future) and ignore the naysayers.

 

I only met you for about an hour, and I have never met a more devoted Mondial owner. I think we have the same year and color. Mine is in far worse shape than yours and I'm low on budget, but I did do the belts, fuel lines, coolant lines, and reset the valves. I buttoned it up and am enjoying it. Mine will never be a show car but I will do what I can to keep the mechanicals in good running order. I don't mind changing out the belts every 3 years, and I spent a bunch of money all all new CV's for my axles. There was minor pitting and the shop asked me how many miles I was going to put on the car. If only a couple thousand a year not worth it. I spent the money for new ones as I want to drive it as much as I can. I have come to the realization that my car will get some bumps and bruises. I'd like to think that in 10 years it will get torn down and repainted and a new interior installed. For now I have a quote for $600.00 to rebuild my bolster, replace about 6 leather panels and sand and refinish some of the other bits from our local recommended guy. OCD does suck. A freshly painted car will have a rock chip on the very first long drive, you can't avoid it. Worrying about my car detracts from the pleasure. I've practiced parking it at the grocery store and walking away from it without looking back. I even let children and good looking women touch the paint. I don't know what I just said here other than I like my car too. I'm just hoping to love it by driving it to the west coast next summer. And as soon as my wife starts working again I can do the interior, replace the injectors and get the a/c working. In the meantime I'll drive it every chance I get.

 

Joe - FWIW, I understand and I appreciate what you do with your Mondial. The fact is that the Mondi is a great car and is terribly underestimated by most folks. You appreciate the car for exactly what it is AND if you got rid of it and moved into a 550 I am pretty sure that your mechanic would still make a living off the things you would have him do to it, except your bills would be considerably higher.


PDG

 

I'm working on turning a corner from being embarrased of my rock chips to being proud of them. I'll get at it with touchup paint before too long, but I'm almost hoping it is really pecked up at the end of next summer. I'll wear the chips as a badge of honor, just please not to the windshield!

 

I never gave them a second look, then kids and wife show up and 2 seats don't work so well. Just bought one a week ago and currently fixing all the stuff the PO owner did not as well as major service ect.

If it makes you feel any better, I just finished 10 min ago repainting the Upper intake manifold. I guess you could call it the cherry on top.

87 3.2 Coupe, completely love the car count me as a Mondi lover.

Joe Frazar

 

I recently bought a 348 Spider thinking I was going to replace my 3.2 Mondi Cab. As much as I love the 348, I don't want to part with the Mondial. Beautiful car. Does not photo very well at all.....but looks great in person. I've owned it over 12 years and it's been the most reliable car I've ever owned. Way cheaper than my Jeep Cherokee!! May just keep it forever!!!

 

who doesn't love them some Mondial?
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Not to mention insurance and fuel. Then there would be depreciation over the years, which would be orders of magnitude higher.

 

You'll not hear a negative word about the Mondial from me. I very well could end up with a 430 Spider before the end of the year. The potential for that is 85% or greater...but don't think for a second I don't admire the Mondial for it's unique characteristics that make it such an outstanding car.

I had one for a very brief time and enjoyed it very much. The idea of having the trunk and the backseat to put some bags in there and take the dogs with me and the lady is a very admirable quality.

These are all the dream cars of most everyone. Many dream and few live out their dream. Be proud to be a part of something so grand!

 

The Mondial is fully a Ferrari, just as much as a 308 or 328 on which it is mechanically based. The drivetrain, brakes, steering, etc. are all the same. It's body is by Pininfarina, it's fully a part of the Ferrari history and heritage.

There's nothing to apologize for. I wouldn't put too much weight on things that are said on boards like this. It's not the real world.

 

It's the cost of your enjoyment, I have friends who buy new bicycles which costs 5K-6K every few years, and friends who spent 10K-20K-30K on a rock crawler and beat them up badly on the trails then go home spent even more money repairing and them...

As you long as you are happy I think it's OK, maybe it's the fact is most people out there don't know you are driving a Ferrari or even care if you do.

 

Maybe you should buy one as a spare ... one good thing about them getting cheaper?

Pete

 

I don't worry too much about the running/maintenance cost of my Mondial. My business bought a Ford van in 2008 and it's lost £9,000 (about $13,000) in depreciation in 18 months.
I've looked after the van and it still looks new.
I know I can claim tax back etc on it, but that's still some loss. After that the Mondial looks like a good prospect.

 

Joe, you picked the wrong bird to describe yourself. You and the Mondial are more like the American Bald Eagle. Beautiful, intelligent, rare, and highly refined with impressive abilities and grace. Remember that it wasn't until our national bird was almost extinct that people finally realized how truly incredible and important it really was.

By the way, I love my Mondial too....
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

As a 308 owner, I understand the cost of maintenance vs. value argument. To me the question is, do you still have the love and affection for the car that you did when you first got it? Trying to justify the costs of upkeep on what is considered an entry level exotic may have its downside, but the joys of ownership outweigh these costs.

 

enjoy your car Joe. other people have the passion for the strange slow cars we love, the whole 308 series is a dinosaur by car standards. Look at the guys Top Gear poke fun at... Morris owners, the cliche British Sports cars guys with cars that refuse to start, all of us love our strange cars for our own reasons.

I stopped caring about what other people thought about me or my cars years ago.

I may be self centered, but i only have "me" to keep happy.

 

how can you refuse
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

from another angle, in action
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

My Baby
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

There was a quite a premium over sticker paid for the mondial t, when it came on the scene in 1989. The $100K car was fetching premiums of another $50K, or $150K. So, it would seem some were quite enamored at the time.
I am wondering whether anyone thinks the mondial has the potential to rise again in popularity, as it ages.
Rob

 

Sorry, if history repeats itself, the four seater will never be as popular as the two seater. The real question is whether one would pick a 348 over a mondial t and which will be more valuable in the end.

Ace

 

I love the Mondial. This would be the perfect one. (not mine, but a Ky FCer)
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

This may well be true; 330 GT 2+2s and 365 GT 2+2s were looked down on quite a lot by certain segments of the Ferrari owners. It's a fact that like anywhere else in the world, there are a certain number of jerks, snobs, etc. who make up the Ferrari owning population. To each their own. But I think the question you were responding to was not the question you answered. The question was, will the Mondial rise in popularity? In absolute terms, probably. The 330 GTs and 365 GTs certainly became a lot more desirable than they had been. That may end up being the case for the 365 GT4 and 400 & 412s, too. Will they ever outstrip the two seaters for desirability? History suggests no. That's a market question. But will the Mondial rise in value or die out? Joe's first post contemplated a scenario in which Mondials will become neglected, because their market values have dropped, and that neglect will end up being terminal for some cars. This looks to me like it has already happened somewhat. But if it does continue, then the Mondial will become scarce, and as it becomes older, that will probably drive its value up somewhat. I am referring, of course, to the well-kept cars like Joe's and some others, particularly that belong to posters on this site.

Other than me, of course. I'm going to have to step up my game if I'm going to mention myself in the company of Joe, Birdman, Scaledetails, etc.