Testarossa's... amazing value for money!?
Discussion
Hi to all, I have been looking for a testarossa for a few months now, seen a fair few cars, both privately and at dealerships, and i have to say everytime i go to see a car it astounds me just what amazing value these cars represent. Is there something about owning one these cars which i have failed to realise? They are a serious ammount of car for the money, my budget is 30-35k. Any advise/experience on ownership would be much appreciated, thankyou...
GT2man-2 said:
Alot of trouble for your money !!
Are you guys speaking from experience? surely if you buy a good one, that has low milage and has been looked after it can't be too bad!? i realise these cars are 20 years old, and there's always things to do to cars like this, but isn't that part of the fun?
You will find that even the servicing is expensive for this as very labour intensive.
All parts are very expensive for Ferrari but for the 12 cylinder cars are even more expensive for some reason.
The car is very wide for our roads and difficult to drive briskly for that reason why not spend a little more and buy a F355?
All parts are very expensive for Ferrari but for the 12 cylinder cars are even more expensive for some reason.
The car is very wide for our roads and difficult to drive briskly for that reason why not spend a little more and buy a F355?
neil360 said:
You will find that even the servicing is expensive for this as very labour intensive.
All parts are very expensive for Ferrari but for the 12 cylinder cars are even more expensive for some reason.
The car is very wide for our roads and difficult to drive briskly for that reason why not spend a little more and buy a F355?
All parts are very expensive for Ferrari but for the 12 cylinder cars are even more expensive for some reason.
The car is very wide for our roads and difficult to drive briskly for that reason why not spend a little more and buy a F355?
i realise what your saying, i know no Ferrari is gonna be cheap to run, and whilst i love the v8 cars, 355, 308 and 328's etc... the testarossa is such an icon, a good car can surely not depreciate anymore, the good ones are coming few and far between...
rjr said:
surely if you buy a good one, that has low milage and has been looked after it can't be too bad!?
Don't buy one with mileage that's too low or it'll need a complete overhaul before it works properly. There are various parts which perish, corrode, etc. if the car isn't used. A regularly excercised Ferrari is a happy Ferrari. Concourse queens may look perfect but they're sometimes disintegrating from the inside due to lack of use. I'm sure an expert will be along soon to elaborate in more detail than I can.
Edited by MitchT on Tuesday 6th February 13:12
Any top-end supercar of any age is going to require 10k per year put aside for service, wear and tear plus some for work required every few years (paint remedial, rust work, suspension stuff etc etc).
Plus you need to put aside another 10k that you might have to drop onto the car at a moments notice.
If you are lucky, you only have to do that once every 2-3 years.
You cannot run these things on a shoestring and cut corners. The only money saver is doing the service work yourself, but that requires
a) space and equipment
b) specialist tools, manuals etc
c) a lot of experience
d) a lot of time
Plus you need to put aside another 10k that you might have to drop onto the car at a moments notice.
If you are lucky, you only have to do that once every 2-3 years.
You cannot run these things on a shoestring and cut corners. The only money saver is doing the service work yourself, but that requires
a) space and equipment
b) specialist tools, manuals etc
c) a lot of experience
d) a lot of time
rjr said:
neil360 said:
You will find that even the servicing is expensive for this as very labour intensive.
All parts are very expensive for Ferrari but for the 12 cylinder cars are even more expensive for some reason.
The car is very wide for our roads and difficult to drive briskly for that reason why not spend a little more and buy a F355?
All parts are very expensive for Ferrari but for the 12 cylinder cars are even more expensive for some reason.
The car is very wide for our roads and difficult to drive briskly for that reason why not spend a little more and buy a F355?
i realise what your saying, i know no Ferrari is gonna be cheap to run, and whilst i love the v8 cars, 355, 308 and 328's etc... the testarossa is such an icon, a good car can surely not depreciate anymore, the good ones are coming few and far between...
At this price it's not the depreciation it's the running costs that will or could be more than the value of the car!
Eight cylinder cars such as the 348/355 cost around £3k a year to run and the Testarossa/512s cost more than that to run/repair/service.
That for me would the only sticking point about going for a 512TR. As I do about 10k a year weekend miles it may simply be too expensive for me to run.
That for me would the only sticking point about going for a 512TR. As I do about 10k a year weekend miles it may simply be too expensive for me to run.
Okay-I actually own one so I can talk from experience. There is a lot of misconception on Testarossa's and normally it’s from people who don't own one or even owned a Ferrari-no offence to anyone on this thread by the way.
A Ferrari is always going to be slightly more expensive to run, to a degree than a modern car (having said that a Fiat main dealer wanted £75 an hour to service my sisters ex-Punto!! I don't pay anywhere near that for the TR!) whether it is a Mondial or an Enzo. A Testarossa is no different. Check www.eurospares.co.uk and check prices for any Ferrari spares and you will see that some are reasonable and some are just silly-thats Ferrari price's for you I am afraid. I have had mine now for 4yrs and in total I have spent (and that is including it’s forcoming belt change) about £4500 in that time. Annual routine service is varies from £450 - £800, depends where you go. Belts change is between £1300 - £1800. I use Mike Pullen at Carrera Sport as he is located ideally for me, known him for years, friends use him, makes decent cup of tea and Dennis looks after my car too
TR's need an engine out for a belt change, unlike a 360, 430 (and 355-depends on the servicing agent) where it can be done in situ. But 355, 360's are more expensive to buy and teh technology is newer, so its horses for courses really.
TR's are now old cars-scarily the first ones are now 22yrs old. Like any old car, they need very careful looking at before committing. I would personally be very cautious of a total garage queen and massive gaps in service history, however you have to remember cars like the TR, 911 Turbo and Countach were icons of the 80'/90's boom and many spent years away in storage after speculators bought them and then got stung. TR's I would say more than anything else need to be used-they can throw a complete hissy fit if they have been laid up for a while-squeaky brakes, binding brakes, running on 6 now and again if they have been sitting for a long time. However when they are on fine form, they are a dream and the Flat 12 is a wonderful engine and is very useable. They do take a while to get used to the size, but I happily commute in London when I can in her.
Prices seem to vary from mid 20's - late 30's. LHD (which mine is) also fit into this price range too. I got mine from Switzerland and it has been well looked after and I love her to bits. Look around at the cars that are available-there is a lot to choose from at the moment. Speak to Elms on here as he has a very good reputation with people on here and from www.fcars.co.uk
People bang on about the "dreaded £40000" brand new engine-what a load of tosh! Never heard ANY Ferrari needing that-besides get a quote for a brand new engine on ANY 1yr car and see how much it would be! Clutches are a piece of piss to fit on a TR-I can do it myself it’s that easy. At the end of the day, it’s still a car and anyone half decent with some spanners can do regular stuff like brake pads and the bits like that.
I love "J-Lo" to bits and wouldn't change her for the world. I have not regretted any minute of her.
Here she is
Edited for spelling
A Ferrari is always going to be slightly more expensive to run, to a degree than a modern car (having said that a Fiat main dealer wanted £75 an hour to service my sisters ex-Punto!! I don't pay anywhere near that for the TR!) whether it is a Mondial or an Enzo. A Testarossa is no different. Check www.eurospares.co.uk and check prices for any Ferrari spares and you will see that some are reasonable and some are just silly-thats Ferrari price's for you I am afraid. I have had mine now for 4yrs and in total I have spent (and that is including it’s forcoming belt change) about £4500 in that time. Annual routine service is varies from £450 - £800, depends where you go. Belts change is between £1300 - £1800. I use Mike Pullen at Carrera Sport as he is located ideally for me, known him for years, friends use him, makes decent cup of tea and Dennis looks after my car too
TR's need an engine out for a belt change, unlike a 360, 430 (and 355-depends on the servicing agent) where it can be done in situ. But 355, 360's are more expensive to buy and teh technology is newer, so its horses for courses really. TR's are now old cars-scarily the first ones are now 22yrs old. Like any old car, they need very careful looking at before committing. I would personally be very cautious of a total garage queen and massive gaps in service history, however you have to remember cars like the TR, 911 Turbo and Countach were icons of the 80'/90's boom and many spent years away in storage after speculators bought them and then got stung. TR's I would say more than anything else need to be used-they can throw a complete hissy fit if they have been laid up for a while-squeaky brakes, binding brakes, running on 6 now and again if they have been sitting for a long time. However when they are on fine form, they are a dream and the Flat 12 is a wonderful engine and is very useable. They do take a while to get used to the size, but I happily commute in London when I can in her.
Prices seem to vary from mid 20's - late 30's. LHD (which mine is) also fit into this price range too. I got mine from Switzerland and it has been well looked after and I love her to bits. Look around at the cars that are available-there is a lot to choose from at the moment. Speak to Elms on here as he has a very good reputation with people on here and from www.fcars.co.uk
People bang on about the "dreaded £40000" brand new engine-what a load of tosh! Never heard ANY Ferrari needing that-besides get a quote for a brand new engine on ANY 1yr car and see how much it would be! Clutches are a piece of piss to fit on a TR-I can do it myself it’s that easy. At the end of the day, it’s still a car and anyone half decent with some spanners can do regular stuff like brake pads and the bits like that.
I love "J-Lo" to bits and wouldn't change her for the world. I have not regretted any minute of her.
Here she is
Edited for spelling
Edited by yellowtr on Tuesday 6th February 11:49
Thanks yellowtr, i think that was just what i needed to hear! i was getting a little concerned with all the negative replys. My search started by looking for a 308 328 or 348, i looked at about half a dozen then gave up...all be it they are lovely cars, but im fussy, and they all seem to have been painted, done a lot of miles and/or had questionable history, so on the off chance i went to look at a TR, maybe im wrong, but on the whole they all seem to be much more honest cars, the build quality, ie panel fit etc... is amazing on these cars, under the hood a couple i have seen are just like the day they left the factory, all this for a fraction more than a 308/328. im not gonna be doing loads of miles, 2-4k a year tops, so i guess its just down to buying the right car.
I agree that complete engine replacement is unlikely but alot of people on this forum seem to take the engine replacemnet cost into consideration when buying why? As you say the cost of even an every day car engine is expensive.
Yes if you buy a new car and you get an engine problem within the warranty period you could expect to get a complete new engine this also then allows the manufacturer to do checks on the old lump.
On a used car the best route will more than likely be repair.
Yes if you buy a new car and you get an engine problem within the warranty period you could expect to get a complete new engine this also then allows the manufacturer to do checks on the old lump.
On a used car the best route will more than likely be repair.
I would say that the general build quality on a TR is very very good, however when I got the top of my dashboard replaced recently (very common on a TR to see a warped dashboard-the top part anyway) and it was shockingly put together-a total lash up. A very well known bodyshop company quoted 2 days labour to remove it and repair it at a cost of £1200 + vat!! My friend got the dashboard out in 2hrs, made a new top in leather and replaced it all in another 2hrs! Also inside the door panels, some of the components are very very poor-hey besides Enzo says you are paying for the engine anyway
Have a very good look around. Talk to as many independants such as Verdi, KHPC and Dion (Elms) before commiting. Check out tyres on an early RHD TR's as they have metric wheels. If it has and the tyres look quesionable, knock down the price as the tyres can only come from Vintage Tyres and are Michelin TRX's and they are only produced sparcely by them. Having said that "normal" tyres on Testarossa's are tricky to find-I spent a year trying to source mine!! 512TR's and 512M's are slightly easier to get.
Have a very good look around. Talk to as many independants such as Verdi, KHPC and Dion (Elms) before commiting. Check out tyres on an early RHD TR's as they have metric wheels. If it has and the tyres look quesionable, knock down the price as the tyres can only come from Vintage Tyres and are Michelin TRX's and they are only produced sparcely by them. Having said that "normal" tyres on Testarossa's are tricky to find-I spent a year trying to source mine!! 512TR's and 512M's are slightly easier to get.
neil360 said:
I agree that complete engine replacement is unlikely but alot of people on this forum seem to take the engine replacemnet cost into consideration when buying why? As you say the cost of even an every day car engine is expensive.
Neil,
I don't know why people have that logic, it doesn't cross my mind at all. If I did, I don't think I would drive any car, let alone a Ferrari.
Cheers
Peter
yellowtr said:
neil360 said:
I agree that complete engine replacement is unlikely but alot of people on this forum seem to take the engine replacemnet cost into consideration when buying why? As you say the cost of even an every day car engine is expensive.
Neil,
I don't know why people have that logic, it doesn't cross my mind at all. If I did, I don't think I would drive any car, let alone a Ferrari.
Cheers
Peter
Peter
Agree totally.
Cheers
Neil
Edited by neil360 on Tuesday 6th February 12:24
My old one is for sale at Westovers in Dorest, it's had all the expensive jobs done and the all the covers covers where refinished at the last main service when the engine was out.
Except for routine servicing the car never gave any issues and still felt as tight as a new car.
If you want one, as long as the car has been properly maintained you shouldn't have an issue and I think you'd get my old car off the dealer within your budget and get a service and warranty thrown in for piece of mind.
I only sold it as I'd run out of space!
Except for routine servicing the car never gave any issues and still felt as tight as a new car.
If you want one, as long as the car has been properly maintained you shouldn't have an issue and I think you'd get my old car off the dealer within your budget and get a service and warranty thrown in for piece of mind.
I only sold it as I'd run out of space!
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