Looking at a 355

[tuscan s]

Hi all, i am looking at a 355 at westover sports cars at the weekend and to be honest i have not got a clue what i am looking at. I have owned a few tvr tuscans in the passed and at present own a tuscan,s convert,only 3 months old. The thing is with all these stories going around about tvr it is starting to worry me how much they are going to be worth.Anyway i love ferraris and have always wanted a 355 spider, the one i am looking at is a 355F1 (1999) 8300 miles from new, ffsh 2 owners, in giallo mondena with scuro hide.
What shall i be looking for when i test drive it, as i said i have never even sat in a ferrari let alone drove one, any help well be greatly recived as i dont want to get my pants pulled down. Oh the price is around £54,000 is this about right or a little high, it comes with there own 1 year warranty, by the way, what does the F1 stand for. Thanks in advance. Gordon.

[Jonny5]

F1 is the Semi-automatic box. Love hate relationship with this box, personally (and the majority view) is hate

Whatever you do, get a PPI (pre purchase inspection) from the likes of Verdi's , QVs etc to ensure the car is what it says it is

If it's a yellow spider you are after , there is one that has been knocking about on ebay for a while - I think the seller would take an offer

http://tinyurl.com/m5n5r

[panterasteve]

go on here fella ,you get all the info you need
www.fcars.co.uk/

[mindgam3]

£54k seems high for any 355 now

F1 means it has a flappy paddle gearbox - ok, but was one of the first versions ever developed for a road car and thus isnt up to most modern sports cars - does the job though. No doubt more people will help with what to look for.

I guess the main one is make sure when/where/who its been serviced by and make sure it really has a FULL service history. Get an independant inspector to have a look at it if you like it

[luciano]

tuscan s said:

Hi all, i am looking at a 355 at westover sports cars at the weekend and to be honest i have not got a clue what i am looking at.

Do not buy the first car you go to see.

[Pat H]

luciano said:

tuscan s said: Hi all, i am looking at a 355 at westover sports cars at the weekend and to be honest i have not got a clue what i am looking at. Do not buy the first car you go to see.

Yep.

I looked at a few low mileage 328s and the difference in the quality of the cars completely eclipsed the variations in price.

I saw a couple of truly dreadful cars, a few good examples and one absolute peach....

The worrying thing is that even the worst dog of a car looks stunning from 20 paces.

It's only when you get under them on a ramp and see the accident damage, the overspray, the rot in the sills and the big gash in the undertray from incorrect jacking....

The worst car I looked at was also had the highest asking price.

[tuscan s]

Thanks for your answers, i will have a look at it and try and see as many as i can over the weekend, this one caught my eye as it has only done 8500 miles with full history, not sure about the paddle shift though, i will let you know how i get on. Cheers, Gordon.

[kippax]

Jonny5 said:

F1 is the Semi-automatic box. Love hate relationship with this box, personally (and the majority view) is hate Whatever you do, get a PPI (pre purchase inspection) from the likes of Verdi's , QVs etc to ensure the car is what it says it is If it's a yellow spider you are after , there is one that has been knocking about on ebay for a while - I think the seller would take an offer http://tinyurl.com/m5n5r

Now that car is seriously tempting!! Have wanted to own a 355 for many years but must admit never thought about a yellow one always wanted Rosso or preferably Blue

H


H

[355f]

tuscan s said:

Hi all, i am looking at a 355 at westover sports cars at the weekend and to be honest i have not got a clue what i am looking at. I have owned a few tvr tuscans in the passed and at present own a tuscan,s convert,only 3 months old. The thing is with all these stories going around about tvr it is starting to worry me how much they are going to be worth.Anyway i love ferraris and have always wanted a 355 spider, the one i am looking at is a 355F1 (1999) 8300 miles from new, ffsh 2 owners, in giallo mondena with scuro hide. What shall i be looking for when i test drive it, as i said i have never even sat in a ferrari let alone drove one, any help well be greatly recived as i dont want to get my pants pulled down. Oh the price is around £54,000 is this about right or a little high, it comes with there own 1 year warranty, by the way, what does the F1 stand for. Thanks in advance. Gordon.

I sold my 99 355F1 with 18K to a dealer last year for £47K so trade price now is about 40k

its far to expensive

and that kind of mileage??? do you beleive it?? thats 1000miles a year??

Make sure the warranty covers the F1 pump mine packed up and it cost £8K for a new one

>> Edited by 355f on Wednesday 26th April 16:24