What would you do?

Great questions. I am in exactly that same position with 50k to spend. I have not had much luck finding the car, had several that I thought were the ones but each time something scared me off. I will say that I am enjoying the search and am learning a great deal about the brand.

 

Buy the best 355 you can afford. I've owned 3 Ferraris, a 365GT 2+2, 308 and 95 355 spider.
Be sure and spend the ~$1,000 for a comprehensive PPI (pre purchase inspection) and insist on a car with service records. Remember anybody can buy a Ferrari, but few can afford to keep them.

 

The 355 is a great looking Ferrari. Great looks, great sound. Be careful about trying to save a few bucks on a "fixer upper". Because the fixer upper WILL DEFINITELY cost you much more than one that is in good shape. You might want to search around for the expected maintenance costs for a 355 because they are apparently expensive to maintain.

I had a nice 348 spider and it was pretty worry free compared to the 355

Happy hunting!

 

Here is what I would do . . .
Take $35K and go buy this 348, http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=300271

Take $10k and go buy the wife a diamond bracelet/necklace.

I would then still have $5k for beer! Not bad.

 

You are aware of the hit on "Periodic Service"?
It can be a $10K hit

That's the only problem with the $50K buy in number....

There's a duality to Ferraris based on the engines.
So the TR being a 12 puts in into "big car GT" class......not really comparable to the smaller 355s or 348s.

As Jason points out a real clean 348 is a nice car, the 355 is a far better (ducking shoes) sophisticated design, BUT you pay the price on those five valve heads.
Again do all you can to get a "good one"..

And she'll probably fry your azz when she finds out about the repair costs......Ferraris are to BMWs what the Space Shuttle is to a Cessna.

 

Good suggestion, and don't forget the dark glasses and hoodie!

 

+348

The best recipe for a new-to-Ferrari (happy) family!!!

I could offer some opinions on the 355, but your budget will not support it at $50k.
This 348 is your car.

 

I was in the same boat a couple of years ago. I ended up with the best 348 I could find. All records, history, etc. The 348 is a pure sports car with none of the modern driver assists like F1 transmission or power steering.

It came down to whether I wanted the best 348 or the worst 355. There are a ton of poorly maintained examples out there and with every little part costing substantial amounts of coin, I elected to go with the best maintained and most complete car I could find.

I was also concerned about the maintenance issues on the 355 vs 348. Making the 355 more uncertain and thus more expensive in the long run.

 

Do you like working on cars?

 

The most expensive car you will ever own is a cheap (sub $60k) 355.

Do your homework and buy the best car you can afford, but be sure to save $10k-15k for a rainy day.

OR, you could raise your budget and buy a nice, sorted 355 and have the
"best car in the world, ever!!" -Jeremy Clarkson.

(shameless plug for Robbie's car here)

 

Buy a Ferrari and bring it to www.SuperCarSunday.com
You will love it! If you want to drive one, we can probably have that arranged at the show.

 

A wife that lets you spend $50K on a car is ir-replaceable. Don't get rid of her.

If you like older car, 328.
If you like car with some problems, 348.
If you like car with a lot of problems, 355.

 

Just because I went through this exact same thing recently....here are my quick hit notes on the F355 car "issues" that have real meaning (read $$$) to me anyway.

I am certain there are others, but this was the list that would scare me away from just about every car I looked at because of the maintenance history or lack of documentation about it. The acquistion price is NOT the issue. It is getting it sorted out that could be problematic.

$7,000 - $10,000 Major engine service - new cam belts (life = 30k or 5 years)
$4,000 - exhaust header failure - get an aftermarket version - Fabspeed perhaps?
$8,000 - $10,000 - Valve guides - get the newer alloy version installed
$12,000 - F1 shift actuator pump - make sure it is good or buy a 6 speed
$1,000 - exhaust bypass valve issue
$2,500 - catalytic converters - having aftermarket is best

Sticky parts, dash warp, paint, tires, wheels, radio, top actuator, windows, etc depending how picky you are.

If you can get a car for $50k with all that stuff documented & done recently, then you are good to go IMHO.

It is the $40,000 car that needs all that stuff done that can land a guy upside down in a hurry.

Let me very quickly add, I am pretty new to this whole thing, so take my list with a grain of salt. Others on here know the details far better than me. That list was a guide for me to make sure I hit the high points and accessed the car's status as it related to necessary repairs so I could drive it with out concern.

This post and a dollar will get you a cup of coffee

Best of luck.

 

I am familiar with the 99 Spyder in Tucson. It is a great car for the money though I think he has decided to keep it.

Since I am mechanically inclined the above list does not scare me away.

That said CopterJohns 348 is a great car for you. You can keep the extra cash for maintenance/mods.


Rob

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=170554193863&viewitem=&sspagename=STRK%3AMESELX%3AIT

She is calling your name!!!

 

This is probably fairly typical. I bought a no issues car, 11,000 miles and all service records.
It needed the major and various "updating". Small bits add up. with new tires, battery, etc. I'm into this $16,000 including the major. Granted I used the dealer, so my costs were 20% higher than a good independent.
This is for a clean car, with minor differed maintenance.

A neglected car which costs say $45k could very easily cost $20k+ to get sorted.

 

Great thread for those of us looking for the right car. Does anyone know of any nice 6 speed 355's that would be available. I Do so love the Yellow Beauty, if only I was not so set on a gated shifter.

 

"A neglected car which costs say $45k could very easily cost $20k+ to get sorted."

Very true.

But.........

I bought mine "91 348" with all bent valves.... and paid 20 grand for it not running but had a clean title. Did the work myself and got it all sorted for about 5 grand including major.

If you have a big enough pry bar you can move the world.

 

I bought my 355 without having ever driven any Ferrari.

 

+1, best advice so far. The M5 will have gobs more torque, heck my 540 has more torque....but after 5000rpm, it is all over, the F355 simply screams right up to 8500rpm!

 

I went through the same thing about a year ago - almost to the letter of what you describe. Let me boil down my experience for you:

- Patience will be rewarded. You can find well sorted F355s for under $50k. I did.

- Don't let 'high' mileage (e.g., 25k+) scare you. Those are the cars that have had all the problem areas sorted.

- Sold the M5. Don't miss it all and stopped wishing I had the M6 convertible.

- Stick to Berlinetta or GTS - and 3 pedal cars only - if you want to reduce your maintenance exposure.

- It's intimidating at first but with a little support, you can do some/most of the maintenance stuff yourself over time.

- Wife will get over the 'flashy' thing but probably will complain that the car is too loud and won't want to go on long trips in it with you (maybe a 'plus'?!).

 

Only if they don't find anything wrong with it!

 

If you're looking at a very late 355 like a 99 you most likely will not encounter many of the chronic problems associated with earlier 355s.

I looked at many, many 348s before deciding to focus solely on a 355- to me there's a really big difference- The 355 is a "modern" car- everything works and works well- A well sorted 355 is a HORSE- very robust and just feels strong and unbreakable. A poorly maintained 355 is a PIG, with every trip uncovering some other noise, rattle, shudder or misfire that will cost far too much to get sorted.

Your budget is just fine- Get a good car, get a god PPI and NEVER look back. Heck- just seeing the damned thing in your garage is worth the price of admission.

I've owned a 308 and 328 prior to the 355- and there's just no comparison. Interior room- modern amenities like working windows, HVAC and really well tuned power steering... and enough power and torque to get into some real trouble...Oh yeah- the SOUND!!

 

My only comment is to your wifes flashy point. Red or Yellow get noticed more than a Black or Silver or... IMO. Mine is about the least flashy F-car built and it's black. I don't get many looks in traffic, or I'm having so much fun looking at the little horse on the steering wheel I don't notice. I have to put in the shameless plug for the Mondial as required by the Mondial union. A Mondial T has the same drivetrain as the 348. Fun scooter and seats for little ones should they come along. I sure do like a 348 ragtop though, that is a pretty car.