When new Ferraris get old

I would be pretty confident in a regularly driven and well maintained California ... my 2015 is approaching 30k miles and is almost 9 years from delivery, I've done nothing beyond the suggested maintenance and had nothing go wrong other than replacing the battery and a small plastic piece of the paddle shifter actuator breaking. That's with running 20k miles in four years. Engines are engines, the electronics are largely Bosch, the Getrag gearboxes are running around in Mercedes with far more mileage, Webasto makes the top assembly for other cars and aside from some wonkiness with some of the Hall sensors going bad in the Ferrari design I don't think there are inherent failures baked in.

Since it's a Ferrari there could always be the unexpected 5-figure repair bill but that's just part of the deal with owning one. You pay for the annual warranty or you cross your fingers. I'm almost done with year two of crossing my fingers on it and I figure I am about $13k ahead in not buying the warranty that I would not have used anyway.

Not having to do the very expensive belt services periodically would help offset the running cost compared to a more vintage Ferrari. And the modern car is much safer in the event of an accident, of course.

Now, buying a 10-year-old garage queen with low mileage and very limited use, seems like a recipe for problems based on my past experiences.

 

Dealer will want $4k to fix the paddle shifters as the official Ferrari "fix" is to replace the entire unit instead of the inexpensive switch which is causing the problem.

Same problem applies to the transmission, top,etc. A small failed part requires replacement of a larger, expensive component

Sent from my SM-G781V using FerrariChat.com mobile app

 

Been a topic for a very long time. Long before your California or F12 was built. Ferrari is terrible at long term support, always has been. Outside vendors and subcontractors fill the void eventually. Lots of electronics are being repaired or replicated. 2 caveats. Its expensive so the car needs to be worth it and the owner needs to be willing. The other is the difference between the 90s and now is the amount of those types of components and systems are being used in the latest of cars. It will be expensive.

As far as DSG transmissions several companies are using them, companies with a far greater commitment to long term customer care than Ferrari has ever understood so parts should not be an issue. There are already people outside of the dealer network offering repairs and rebuilds of those transmissions but again with so few doing it, its going to be expensive.

I have said for a long time. The last Ferrari running will be a 275 and not a La Ferrari.

 

Exactly ... I removed the small broken plastic actuator as well as the other good one, had a few extras made from a casting of the good one and it works fine now. I guess I'm another $3750 ahead in that department as I suspect it would not have been covered under the extended warranty either

 

As others have already said for first gen Calis, the DCT and retractable hard top are the most common "reliability" issues... everything else is no different than any other car, random parts fail and need to be replaced. Just do a little due diligence finding one that was well maintained and serviced.

If you take good care of the paint and interior, along with routine maintenance, I would expect that you will be able to enjoy a Cali for many many years to come....2009 calis are 14 years old and still on the road/for sale...

I say, go for it!

 

That was my thought, just add the California for a GT.

My Giulia experience was that most of the issues were sensors (I had to replace 3-4 of them under warranty), battery or fuel pump. All under warranty. The two dead batteries in 4 years were the only times it wouldn't drive though. So... will it have annoying glitches? Yes, but covered under warranty. Will it be amazing to drive? Also yes.

 

If you like the Cali, go for it. The Cali and Cali 30 can’t fall that much further (they are already pretty cheap). The Cali T may fall a little further given their current value.

I sold my 488 spider during the early days of the pandemic and bought a Cali 30 last year while I waited for an allocation for another new Ferrari. I was going to get the 296 GTS but like the Cali so much I decided to go with a Portofino M instead.

 

I'm not so sure about that, at least not to any extreme amount. I'm 38 and I love a 328 I think it's a stunning car but to be honest with you most people my age just think it's old, slow and unusable. Let me stop right there and say that I personally DO NOT, so this isn't my view and I'm not ragging on a 328 which I plan to own one day, or a 308, but most my age don't feel this way. Young idiots don't want an old garage queen anymore, they want something they can show off in as much as they can.

So with that being said and also a Cali being the last era of n/a Ferrari V8 I'm not so sure that a 328 is going to rise that much further percentage wise than a Cali will. I do think a 328 will appreciate more than a Cali but it's not going to be to any kind of extreme in comparison where you're going to regret letting go of the 328, simply because the people becoming old enough to have that kind of money don't have it on their radar so much whereas the explosion in "vintage" Ferraris happened because the generation who grew up seeing them in magazines wanted them, it already happened. Of course there will always be outliers with the ultra rare stuff, age and generation gap doesn't matter for those. I also think the Cali's aren't going to get cheaper than they are now.

Just my opinion

Also the Cali is extremely usable if that's what you're after, I put a lot of miles on mine last summer and it handled our horrendous roads here in Michigan with no issues.

 

I'm with you on all of that and I'm sure as heck not going to dispute that a 458 or a 430 is a better "investment" but those don't have any comparison to a 328 really. As I said I'm not even saying a Cali is a better investment than a 328, but I don't think it is as far off as one may think especially considering how well depreciated the Cali is at the moment. My point is not in any way as to which is a better vehicle either or which is more desirable to a Ferrari enthusiast.

I am speaking solely in regards to the demographic of the future marketplace. The generation that fantasized over the 328 is aging and dwindling while the new demographic coming to the market is not interested so much in what that demographic was interested in.

You think any of them care or even know who Enzo Ferrari is or what Pinanfarina is? Or it means anything to them that the Cali is a front engine V8? They prefer the nanny packages (haha great term by the way).

Again just my opinion that investment wise it's not a huge factor, it's not really about Ferraris and which is better or worse it's just about the demographic coming up which evens it out a little. I honestly don't even plan to keep my Cali for too much longer, it's my first exotic and I was a bit intimidated and making it more than what it was. Should have just got a 458 like I wanted....going to fix that!

 

I'm in the same boat as you my brother but the opposite scenario, I wish there was some decent road here and quite frankly it's tiring every time I'm out here in Michigan where a dozen chargers, challengers, mustangs and camaros are almost running me off the road trying to get next to me and rev their terribly sounding unhooked exhaust stop light to stop light. The corvette guys are funny though, most of them just slink away like someone took their thunder away from them it's actually pretty comical and happens without fail....

I actually had no intentions whatsoever of a Cali when I first went Ferrari shopping, like you I thought lesser of it. But it was local, it was immaculate and once I actually drove it that was that....I took it home.

 

Haha love it, my go to is a little different i need to develop that look. They all give me a dirty aggressive look and I follow up with a wave or thumbs up and they go from "I'm gonna show this Ferrari jerk what's up" to "oh hey the Ferrari guy likes me", their expression completely turns around every time.

The funny part is that 99% of the time it's a car that there is no point in racing and the 1% of the time that perhaps there is a point the guy isn't interested...it's odd. People definitely do odd things when they see that yellow shield, I haven't been a Ferrari owner long and I have some stories already.

Someone on here once posted a story and I always think back to it, no idea who it was. The short of it was that someone asked him to race and they asked "what do I get out of it" and the guy asked what he meant and he replied "well if you win you get to say you beat a Ferrari, what do I get?".

 

I have my personal blend Tennessee sour mash whisky right here beside me. Had a blast in Nashville with my team and we all blended our own. Solid stuff.

As for new for old, part of the reason I didn't bother with the warranty on my 812 is that the car is a keeper. I will need to take responsibility for maintenance either way, so I might as well do it now. Knock on wood but I have avoid any real serious issues so far.

The Porto M is more of a mystery. I have no idea how much we will use it or whether we will swap it for something else or whatever. Mostly will be wife driven anyway and she spec'd it.