Speciale test drive

Speciale test drive

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DG27

Original Poster:

153 posts

169 months

Thursday 4th September 2014
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I was out yesterday in the new car on the Silverstone GP circuit and on road. I arrived in my 458 spider so an instant and immediate contrast.

First on track, it was a FOC day too so only one brand on track, so very quiet with traffic. We went out and speed built quickly, the car handled really well.....I race at the circuit and was so impressed by the car, we were quickly getting to c150mph before the end of the hangar straight, I only used the brakes gently really but they were immense. The power band is strong up to the limiter and the whole car felt sharp, on it and strangely a significant level on from the standard car. Looks are deceiving, it looks v similar to the base model but engine, gearbox and transmission are all different and the front and rear active aero can be felt on track.....you should never feel that on UK roads though.

On the road it was strangely a softer ride than my spider in bumpy road mode on the suspension so emphasising the wobble you always get when you saw off the roof......again it wasn't too much of a race car on the road for me, and if that was in the garage everyday I wouldn't be loathing to use it after the honeymoon period.

The Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres has great feel and grip and I came away thinking this really is Speciale! Hence brochure reading moments, car configurator and video clips...we have all done it.

My one year old car suddenly felt and even looked old....the power of great marketing of course. Luckily a few hours later at a nearby hotel, I was reminded by a guest what an amazing car the spider is. The photos and constant video clips taken of the car on the M1 are another way passers by emphasise that.

Now whether its best to try and grab a Speciale spider due out soon is another question.....all these will be the last non turbo models so inevitably have future collectors value, judging by the 16M. There seem to be a lot of Speciale around though.....8 Ferrari owned ones there yesterday plus two private ones......might this be like my old Turbo S....once rare then every model in run out year suddenly became an S.

Either way, the car is the most impressive I have been in this year....P1 aside but that is five times the price.

Don't buy one though as they will be too common!

D

GRBF430F1

4,843 posts

170 months

Thursday 4th September 2014
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Great car, far better than a standard 458 and for that reason alone I can't see many Italia's or spiders being sold new when a decent spec speciale isn't much more.
That said the stripped out racer is not to everybody's cup of tea and a lot of new buyers at £200k + are no overly concerned about depreciation.

Yes its a regular production car and yes I'm sure some buyers will convert to the Speciale but I don't think it will be too common and nothing like a turbo S.

I don't want to put people off buying one as I would like to pick up a used one in a couple of years time but what I would say is expect to lose some money ( like any new car to be fair ) not make some in the short < 5 year term

Rocco1

3,081 posts

183 months

Thursday 4th September 2014
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I went to Ferrari Manchester(Wilmslow) today to place an order on a Speciale only to be told that there is no gurantee i would get one,however if i was to leave a £20k deposit i would be placed on a list of possibles
I asked about the build numbers for UK cars and the answer was
There are 11 UK Official Ferrari agents each have sold approx 15 cars with 5 more cars promised

DG27

Original Poster:

153 posts

169 months

Thursday 4th September 2014
quotequote all
Uuum not what my dealer is telling me....maybe I have a Speciale relationship


TREMAiNE

3,918 posts

149 months

Thursday 4th September 2014
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DG27 said:
maybe I have a Speciale relationship
hehe

GRBF430F1

4,843 posts

170 months

Thursday 4th September 2014
quotequote all
Rocco1 said:
I went to Ferrari Manchester(Wilmslow) today to place an order on a Speciale only to be told that there is no gurantee i would get one,however if i was to leave a £20k deposit i would be placed on a list of possibles
I asked about the build numbers for UK cars and the answer was
There are 11 UK Official Ferrari agents each have sold approx 15 cars with 5 more cars promised
My man maths makes that 220 UK cars then and not a million miles away from the 250 I was suspecting IF they didn't extend production a little further.

I think Ferrari would be quite happy with that supply and demand equation and the residual would follow historic new car patterns with maybe a little upside as being the last N/a V8. Still means as with any new car you are going to lose a fair bit for at least the first 3 - 5 years. At a very strong 75% 3 yr residual that's going to be at least £60k dropping to circa £175k

I don't know about a straight swap for a Scuderia in 3 years, I think I might be looking for cashback. Kerrrrrrrching

martisracing

211 posts

189 months

Monday 15th September 2014
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I have been told the same thing by the dealer I have my Speciale on order with. Production stops in March/April 15 and unless you already have a confirmed order in you will be unlikely to get one. I had to spec mine up that I ordered in January in early August even though it is not due until March 15 to guarantee that I will definetly get one and not be pushed off the list by anothr customer. Some dealers are still accepting orders hoping for cancellations (a bit naughty!). I think there are going to be some disappointed customers out there.
Yesterday at the Ferrari day the figure of less than 1800 cars world wide was the total volume being mentioned by various Ferrari representatives when pushed.

GRBF430F1

4,843 posts

170 months

Monday 15th September 2014
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martisracing said:
I have been told the same thing by the dealer I have my Speciale on order with. Production stops in March/April 15 and unless you already have a confirmed order in you will be unlikely to get one. I had to spec mine up that I ordered in January in early August even though it is not due until March 15 to guarantee that I will definetly get one and not be pushed off the list by anothr customer. Some dealers are still accepting orders hoping for cancellations (a bit naughty!). I think there are going to be some disappointed customers out there.
Yesterday at the Ferrari day the figure of less than 1800 cars world wide was the total volume being mentioned by various Ferrari representatives when pushed.
Its a regular production model and they will build as many as they have orders for IMHO. That may mean ramping up production shifts or extending the close off. They are not going to walk away from 500 signed orders and that's why no one can give you a straight answer and dealers are still taking deposits

Carl_Docklands

12,196 posts

262 months

Tuesday 16th September 2014
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If the recently updated uk registration numbers are anything to go by ferrari will/could ship up to 60 speciales per quarter until the end of the 458s life, possibly 200 cars? I would assume they will run out of takers before that.

LukeyLikey

855 posts

147 months

Tuesday 16th September 2014
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April is the last production month, order book must be very close to being closed. I don't think they can extend it because the spider is planned for production afterwards and then they need to clear the lines to retool for 458 replacement, which will no doubt have pilot production runs in advance of launch.

200 is probably a decent estimate I reckon.

martisracing

211 posts

189 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
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As any one will tell you who works in the industry will tell you the total production numbers have to be decided at the start of a vehicle program. This decides the type of tooling that will be used to produce parts. You do not use tooling that can produce tens of thousands of parts if you are going to only produce a few thousand or a couple of hundred. There is a massive difference in tooling costs dependent on required tooling life. There will be tooling and fixtures required for many parts from new engine components, to the new exhaust and to the new body panels. So Ferrari are fully aware of the total volume they can build. If the figure of 1800 cars is being suggested then the actual build range is probably between 1500 minimum to 2000 as an absolute maximum to either cover tooling costs or the limit for tooling life. So although they are not defining actual total numbers the actual maximum total volume is limited hence why dealers are not accepted orders any more if this figure has been reached.

F355spider

1,395 posts

231 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
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Did the same test drive at Silverstone then had one for the weekend.

On track great, on road nothing better than italia.

Am i buying one .. Yes.


ravi355

641 posts

230 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
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F355spider said:
Did the same test drive at Silverstone then had one for the weekend.

On track great, on road nothing better than italia.

Am i buying one .. Yes.
If that's you verdict then why? A special won't make the noise test for all tracks so you won't get to track it and if it's no better than an Italia on the road why not save the £100K difference in price and buy an Italia and something else interesting?

F355spider

1,395 posts

231 months

Wednesday 17th September 2014
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ravi355 said:
F355spider said:
Did the same test drive at Silverstone then had one for the weekend.

On track great, on road nothing better than italia.

Am i buying one .. Yes.
If that's you verdict then why? A special won't make the noise test for all tracks so you won't get to track it and if it's no better than an Italia on the road why not save the £100K difference in price and buy an Italia and something else interesting?
Because that would be common sense. Just sold my italia, i want another low production run ferrari. Divorce claimed my last.

Anjum

1,605 posts

284 months

Thursday 30th October 2014
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F355 Spyder - i sympathize with you - having recently come out of the most acrimonious divorce (are they always like that???) - time to do whatever the f*!& I want!

I have just placed a deposit of a Speciale - I'll spec it when I'm back in the UK next week. All of the reviews that I have read are pretty awesome and all owners that I know are saying it's a keeper. I'm going through the options list as we speak - and will go to the atelier in Berkley Square to specify next week.

I'm sure this has been asked several times before, but any must have options out there?

so far:

Legal Roll Cage
Ferarri Telemetry
Track Cameras

Rosso Scuderia paint
NART livery
Scuderia Ferarri shields

CF wheel caps
CF front spoiler and aerodynamic fins
CF sill fins
CF sill cover
CF rear aerodynamic fins (does this mean the fins at the side, and does this mean it will all be black - or is it painted in body colour?)
CF rear diffuser wings
CF engine compartment

Titanium Sports Exhaust
Rosso Scuderia brake calipers
Yellow rev counter
Alcantara Upper Zone
Alcantara Lower Zone
Alcantara Inner Wheel Arches
Embroidered Prancing Horse on Headrests
Coloured (Red) Safety Belts
Embroidered Floor Mats
Silver dedication plate

Outer and Inner chromatic mirrors
Integrated Audio System
SatNav
AFS Front lighting system
Front Lifting System
Front and Rear Parking Sensors
Rear Camera
Leather Trolleys and Soft bag for trunk
Leather Bags for rear bench
Anti-stone chipping film
Front Bumper protection film





Hollowpockets

5,908 posts

216 months

Thursday 30th October 2014
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My Speciale is getting delivered tomorrow smile cant wait! spec is

Rosso Corsa
Racing livery (Nero Stellato twin stripes)
Scuderia shields
Forged wheels in Black
CF wheel caps
CF front spoiler and aero fins
CF sill fins
CF rear aero flaps
CF rear diffuser
CF engine covers
Titanium Sports Exhaust
Yellow brake calipers
Yellow rev counter
Interior 3D fabric colour
Alcantara Nera Upper Zone
Alcantara Nera lower Zone
Alcantara Inner Wheel Arches
Embroidered coloured floor Mats
Carbon fibre racing seats
driver seat adjustment
Cruise control
Exterior and Interior electro chromic mirrors
RadioNavi system and Bluetooth
Integrated audio system
AFS lighting system
Front Lift System
Front and Rear Parking Sensors
Rear Parking Camera
NavTrak system
Car Cover/Charger etc


outofstepuk

1,242 posts

152 months

Thursday 30th October 2014
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I drove one earlier in the week when I stumbled into Carrs. You lucky lucky things. What a car.

Had to fight the temptation to try to get in before the cut off. Just a bit rich for me right now.

Slickhillsy

1,772 posts

143 months

Thursday 30th October 2014
quotequote all
Hollowpockets said:
My Speciale is getting delivered tomorrow smile cant wait! spec is

Racing livery (Nero Stellato twin stripes)
I think the twin stripes look much better than NART...

These things are truly stunning in the flesh.. People can bang on about other comparable cars currently in the market but OMG when you see this thing you really do need to crack open a cold one and spend some considerable time soaking up all the detail, you don’t even need to turn the key. There is so much going on and the lines are perfect. For me the very front of the 458 never really say easy with me, all a bit of a wide mouth and featureless (other than that spot on), but the revised shape just finishes it perfectly with real F1 references.

I was in Paris a few weeks ago collecting my Scuderia and the Speciale just looks leaps on from that in every way. They had red grey and black there and I'd take any colour (black just looked 'lock your kids up' menacing).

Lucky lucky people and what WILL be very collectable as it's the last of the last... Just don’t drive it too hard ready for when I buy it in a few years time! ;-)


GRBF430F1

4,843 posts

170 months

Thursday 30th October 2014
quotequote all
Surprised how many of these have already appeared on the used car market and being mainly high spec vehicles they don't seem to be carrying a big premium if at all.
Maybe a few speculators will end up getting their fingers burned at £250k

Hollowpockets

5,908 posts

216 months

Thursday 30th October 2014
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A few up for sale but everyone's circumstances are different, I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that the bottom will fall out of them. This one was being sold as the guy works in Hong Kong and already has a few other Ferrari's with next to no mileage on them. I intend to use this beast a lot!