Gallardo running costs please
Discussion
Ok guys,
Am after some genuine facts and figures. Am a total petrol head and curious as to the running costs of the Gallardo. I know the saying is 'if you have to ask, then you can't afford' but bear with me.
Putting aside that nasty word 'depreciation' what are the actual day to day running costs of keeping a car like this?
I'm 27 years old and in the enviable position of having paid off my mortgage. I'm a car nut and having sold my own motor a few months ago the family is down to just the 5 door family car. Now is the time to choose something for me. I've driven most cars, except the real super exotics (although I have driven a Gallardo once, but sadly not on roads which allowed me to do anything with it).
From a financial point of view I could afford to buy one tomorrow. But as much as I love these cars I don't like the idea of just burning money. So if the running costs are 'reasonable' then I'd more than happily consider it. But if we're talking services costing tens of thousands then I'd rather have my money elsewhere.
So, any Gallardo owners out there care to give me a glimps of the monthly/yearly costs associated with owning (in my opinion) the nicest car on earth?
Matt
Am after some genuine facts and figures. Am a total petrol head and curious as to the running costs of the Gallardo. I know the saying is 'if you have to ask, then you can't afford' but bear with me.
Putting aside that nasty word 'depreciation' what are the actual day to day running costs of keeping a car like this?
I'm 27 years old and in the enviable position of having paid off my mortgage. I'm a car nut and having sold my own motor a few months ago the family is down to just the 5 door family car. Now is the time to choose something for me. I've driven most cars, except the real super exotics (although I have driven a Gallardo once, but sadly not on roads which allowed me to do anything with it).
From a financial point of view I could afford to buy one tomorrow. But as much as I love these cars I don't like the idea of just burning money. So if the running costs are 'reasonable' then I'd more than happily consider it. But if we're talking services costing tens of thousands then I'd rather have my money elsewhere.
So, any Gallardo owners out there care to give me a glimps of the monthly/yearly costs associated with owning (in my opinion) the nicest car on earth?
Matt
Sorry, Matt, but that old saying is true - if you have to ask etc.
Having said that, the Gallardo is pretty much as you would expect. Main cost with any expensive car is depreciation - easily higher than all the other costs put together. The car likes a drink so figure on about 10mpg for town use and a little better if you are cruising. Servicing is every 12,000km (7500miles) and isn't much more than a big BMW or Benz. I think I paid about $Aust2,000 ( 800-900 pounds) for my 24,000km service. Insurance is expensive so get a quote on that before you buy - my quote and your will be different, but insurers won't be keen unless the car is locked in a garage at night. Insurance is much more than servicing costs. Tyres are fairly pricey (figure on twice the service cost I quoted) and are needed every 8 - 10,000miles or so depending on your driving style.
A final tip. If you aren't paying cash, don't do it. There's nothing like a monthly payment to kill the fun of an exotic.
If all stacks up, do it. It is a great car (I've done 27,000km in mine).
>> Edited by mhh on Sunday 24th July 02:30
>> Edited by mhh on Sunday 24th July 10:13
Having said that, the Gallardo is pretty much as you would expect. Main cost with any expensive car is depreciation - easily higher than all the other costs put together. The car likes a drink so figure on about 10mpg for town use and a little better if you are cruising. Servicing is every 12,000km (7500miles) and isn't much more than a big BMW or Benz. I think I paid about $Aust2,000 ( 800-900 pounds) for my 24,000km service. Insurance is expensive so get a quote on that before you buy - my quote and your will be different, but insurers won't be keen unless the car is locked in a garage at night. Insurance is much more than servicing costs. Tyres are fairly pricey (figure on twice the service cost I quoted) and are needed every 8 - 10,000miles or so depending on your driving style.
A final tip. If you aren't paying cash, don't do it. There's nothing like a monthly payment to kill the fun of an exotic.
If all stacks up, do it. It is a great car (I've done 27,000km in mine).
>> Edited by mhh on Sunday 24th July 02:30
>> Edited by mhh on Sunday 24th July 10:13
I'm your age, living in London. So I can give u an idea.
Service costs are negligible. Pretty much as mhh described.
Tyres will set you back ~2k (haven't needed them yet, but thats an educated guess). The dealer told me he's seen some people do them in as little as 3-4k miles. But ~10-12k is closer to the norm.
Fuel economy is, well what u'd expect from a 5.0l 500bhp car. You'll get 10-12mpg arnd town. Motorway cruising u can get upto 20 though, but whose gonna cruise lol.
Insurance will probably be your second biggest cost. If the company your with, will provide cover you may be lucky. Unfortunatley mine wouldn't. And most other companies won't cover u as new business. Which leaves you with the specialist brokers. Prices fluctuate alot with them.
Depending on no claims bonus, driving experience (esp with powerfull cars), where it will be parked you could be looking at anything up to 8-9k. I think you should budget atleast 5-6k though to be realistic. Unless you can get an older driver to take the policy (dad perhaps), with you as entitled. Still looking at 3k min tho IMO.
And then there's depreciation. Difficult to judge. Depends when you buy, when you sell, what kind of deal you negotiate. You could get lucky, some1 may want your spec. But since your trying to decide if you can afford the car, I suggest you look at a realistic worst case. That would be ~20-25k in a year.
Now given all this, you have to be prepared for bad luck. Accidents = excess on your policy, higher premiums next year, lower resale. Punctures = 400/500 a tyre. etc, etc.
All in all, the saying is generally true. If you have to ask, you cant afford it. But then again, your only young once
I think a good test is, can you afford to pay for the car cash? If not, perhaps you should think again.
Service costs are negligible. Pretty much as mhh described.
Tyres will set you back ~2k (haven't needed them yet, but thats an educated guess). The dealer told me he's seen some people do them in as little as 3-4k miles. But ~10-12k is closer to the norm.
Fuel economy is, well what u'd expect from a 5.0l 500bhp car. You'll get 10-12mpg arnd town. Motorway cruising u can get upto 20 though, but whose gonna cruise lol.
Insurance will probably be your second biggest cost. If the company your with, will provide cover you may be lucky. Unfortunatley mine wouldn't. And most other companies won't cover u as new business. Which leaves you with the specialist brokers. Prices fluctuate alot with them.
Depending on no claims bonus, driving experience (esp with powerfull cars), where it will be parked you could be looking at anything up to 8-9k. I think you should budget atleast 5-6k though to be realistic. Unless you can get an older driver to take the policy (dad perhaps), with you as entitled. Still looking at 3k min tho IMO.
And then there's depreciation. Difficult to judge. Depends when you buy, when you sell, what kind of deal you negotiate. You could get lucky, some1 may want your spec. But since your trying to decide if you can afford the car, I suggest you look at a realistic worst case. That would be ~20-25k in a year.
Now given all this, you have to be prepared for bad luck. Accidents = excess on your policy, higher premiums next year, lower resale. Punctures = 400/500 a tyre. etc, etc.
All in all, the saying is generally true. If you have to ask, you cant afford it. But then again, your only young once
I think a good test is, can you afford to pay for the car cash? If not, perhaps you should think again.
thanks for your help guys - very insightful. I guess the reason I ask about running costs is not that I can't necessarily afford them, more that if we were talking £30k a year just to keep it ticking over then sorry, there are better ways to spend my cash. I'd rather have two 911's - one for day to day and one to rag the arse off at track days.
But I'm amazed how cheap you guys quote the basic servicing costs. No more than I have paid with the prestige, but ultimately mainstream, cars I've owned. I guess it's when stuff goes wrong that things start ticking up (I heard £5k for a clutch ????).
Depreciation sounds like the biggy then really. To be expected, and something I wouldn't feel so bad about - if I buy this car it'll be to keep forever (I say that now...) and I don't honestly believe it will leave me wanting for anything else. I guess we shall see...
Anyway, thanks a lot!
But I'm amazed how cheap you guys quote the basic servicing costs. No more than I have paid with the prestige, but ultimately mainstream, cars I've owned. I guess it's when stuff goes wrong that things start ticking up (I heard £5k for a clutch ????).
Depreciation sounds like the biggy then really. To be expected, and something I wouldn't feel so bad about - if I buy this car it'll be to keep forever (I say that now...) and I don't honestly believe it will leave me wanting for anything else. I guess we shall see...
Anyway, thanks a lot!
I'm not a Gallardo owner but bought my first Ferrari at 25 (355 Spider) and I'm now 27 and have got a 360. The reason for highlighting the above is that my insurance quotes were alot better than I expected.
I know the Gallardo is a more expensive car bur i've noted down my quotes below if that helps.
25 on a 95(M) LHD 355 Spider with 3yrs NCB was £1250 on a 3k limited mileage policy and £2000 with 9k mileage limit. Renewal came in at £1000.
27 on a 01(Y) LHD 360M F1 with 4 Yrs NCB is £1650 with 3k mileage limit or £3900 unlimited mileage.
Hope this helps but shows that insurance can be reasonabel for the younger chaps.
I know the Gallardo is a more expensive car bur i've noted down my quotes below if that helps.
25 on a 95(M) LHD 355 Spider with 3yrs NCB was £1250 on a 3k limited mileage policy and £2000 with 9k mileage limit. Renewal came in at £1000.
27 on a 01(Y) LHD 360M F1 with 4 Yrs NCB is £1650 with 3k mileage limit or £3900 unlimited mileage.
Hope this helps but shows that insurance can be reasonabel for the younger chaps.
Yep I agree with comment so far, insurance - the biggy at our age if you live in a big city.
Im same age and the Murci quote ive had start at 5K+ per year for keeping it in London (6 yr NCB, no points). Guess G quotes will be similar.
Budget for 15K depreciation per year, just so u dont get too dissappointed.
Watch for when the warranty runs out, the G is pretty much an unknown quantity still, its possible to get unlucky with other costs.
Im same age and the Murci quote ive had start at 5K+ per year for keeping it in London (6 yr NCB, no points). Guess G quotes will be similar.
Budget for 15K depreciation per year, just so u dont get too dissappointed.
Watch for when the warranty runs out, the G is pretty much an unknown quantity still, its possible to get unlucky with other costs.
Thanks Guys.
Ade - yes, live in North London.
With regard to depreciation - it hits hard but I can see it coming and so can stomach it.
With regard to insurance - it's bound to be silly (the first year I had my TT I paid £1200) but unless I am hugely restricted on mileage I feel I can stomach it.
Maintenance - this is my only worry. Again, it's not so much down to being able to afford it - more whether I want to. I'm not filthy rich so enormous service costs would impact other aspects of my life I am only prepared to move on slighty.
It's a good point that the Gallardo is so new, and with so few there could be hideous problems not yet detected. I don't like the idea as much but I may just give a 360 a try to see if I can like it enough to go for one of those instead - they are at least much more plentiful and old enough for the vast majority of pitfalls to have been detected.
Ade - yes, live in North London.
With regard to depreciation - it hits hard but I can see it coming and so can stomach it.
With regard to insurance - it's bound to be silly (the first year I had my TT I paid £1200) but unless I am hugely restricted on mileage I feel I can stomach it.
Maintenance - this is my only worry. Again, it's not so much down to being able to afford it - more whether I want to. I'm not filthy rich so enormous service costs would impact other aspects of my life I am only prepared to move on slighty.
It's a good point that the Gallardo is so new, and with so few there could be hideous problems not yet detected. I don't like the idea as much but I may just give a 360 a try to see if I can like it enough to go for one of those instead - they are at least much more plentiful and old enough for the vast majority of pitfalls to have been detected.
Just a small point but what if you garaged the car 3rd party fire & theft and only insured it on the days you want to take it out?
My colleague has just bought a 997 S with the GT3 body kit and sports gismo's etc.. insurance was looking to be a pain until he looked at how often he was going to be driving the car..... weekend use and track only. He has the car garaged in an alarmed garage and has the usual Tracker system fitted. We figure 3rd party F&T is cheapest and he can call the insurance company at a moments notice and arrange full comp/ trackday insurance over the phone as and when.
Does anybody else do this?
My colleague has just bought a 997 S with the GT3 body kit and sports gismo's etc.. insurance was looking to be a pain until he looked at how often he was going to be driving the car..... weekend use and track only. He has the car garaged in an alarmed garage and has the usual Tracker system fitted. We figure 3rd party F&T is cheapest and he can call the insurance company at a moments notice and arrange full comp/ trackday insurance over the phone as and when.
Does anybody else do this?
Hi,
I bought a 53 reg gallardo and have had it 2 months. All i can say is what an awesome car. yes it has its niggles. I've had Porsches for over 10 years and there is no comparison in build quality etc, but your talking about differing levels of cars (sports v super cars). My car is still in Lambo Manchester as i'm overseas on business till next week but i've had the annual service done, tubi exhaust fitted and clutch replaced under warranty for £980, which i though was quite resonable. As for the other comments on this thread about 25k per year depreciation, if It dropped that much I'd be severley pissed! i think 8-10k per year based on mileage and condition is more realistic. the dealer I bought from gave a good indication of future values... he said if you wan't an approximate value of your car in 3 years look at a 5 year old 360 (approx 70K). I guess the main 'worry' with the Gallardo is the clutch, but if you get an 05 car that should not be a worry.
As for insurance I'm 36, had a couple of prevous 'incidents' and 1 SP30 and i get my Lambo, 944 turbo track car and my Focus diesel for £2,400 fully comp with AON. They were the cheapest by miles. if you want any further info e-mail me offline @ cummingsa@fanucrobotics.co.uk
Andy.
I bought a 53 reg gallardo and have had it 2 months. All i can say is what an awesome car. yes it has its niggles. I've had Porsches for over 10 years and there is no comparison in build quality etc, but your talking about differing levels of cars (sports v super cars). My car is still in Lambo Manchester as i'm overseas on business till next week but i've had the annual service done, tubi exhaust fitted and clutch replaced under warranty for £980, which i though was quite resonable. As for the other comments on this thread about 25k per year depreciation, if It dropped that much I'd be severley pissed! i think 8-10k per year based on mileage and condition is more realistic. the dealer I bought from gave a good indication of future values... he said if you wan't an approximate value of your car in 3 years look at a 5 year old 360 (approx 70K). I guess the main 'worry' with the Gallardo is the clutch, but if you get an 05 car that should not be a worry.
As for insurance I'm 36, had a couple of prevous 'incidents' and 1 SP30 and i get my Lambo, 944 turbo track car and my Focus diesel for £2,400 fully comp with AON. They were the cheapest by miles. if you want any further info e-mail me offline @ cummingsa@fanucrobotics.co.uk
Andy.
25k is what I would suggest anyone factor in for first year depreciation, when buying a 120k car. And getting 50-60% back after 3 years.
There's a very realistic posibility it will perform alot better. But its a car, and you have to go into the purchase eyes open.
If you buy expecting/needing solid residuals aside from the financial risk, you will also never enjoy the experience. The constant worry of how much each mile is affecting the cars value, and checking prices to make sure it isnt time to sell will ruin it for you.
There's a very realistic posibility it will perform alot better. But its a car, and you have to go into the purchase eyes open.
If you buy expecting/needing solid residuals aside from the financial risk, you will also never enjoy the experience. The constant worry of how much each mile is affecting the cars value, and checking prices to make sure it isnt time to sell will ruin it for you.
Sorry to say £8K-£10K deprciation isnt realistic in my view either........most dealers I know have that as a margin of profit to start with, so thats lost as soon as you take delivery.........dont think they deprciate more than most £100K + cars, thats just the way of it.
Just enjoy it lol its only money
I applaud any Gallardo owner but £8000 to £10,000 a year is bollox.
I have no axe to grind but I promise you that the figure of £25,000 a year ain't far off - unfortunatly.
Bear in mind most dealers at this end of the market will want to net at least £10,000 on the car and service / tyres / blah blah will take you to near the magic, or not, £20,000 level.
Don't dwell on it and you'll be fine, and remember, it could be worse, you could have a 996 TT Cab which will releive you of close £40,000 in it's first year.
Jim
I have no axe to grind but I promise you that the figure of £25,000 a year ain't far off - unfortunatly.
Bear in mind most dealers at this end of the market will want to net at least £10,000 on the car and service / tyres / blah blah will take you to near the magic, or not, £20,000 level.
Don't dwell on it and you'll be fine, and remember, it could be worse, you could have a 996 TT Cab which will releive you of close £40,000 in it's first year.
Jim
I'm not a Gallardo owner, but do have some knowledge of the cars. Servicing is as outlined, factor on £1000 per year, but remember 7500 mile intervals mean this could be twice a year depending on how much you use it. Clutches are a known bug bear, its a big job but depends on how you drive - it is four wheel drive so traffic light grand prix destroy clutches. You don't mention whether you want manual or e-gear - the e-gear car tends to get through cluthes more slowly as the gearbox factors out some of the excess power before it reaches the clutch. Clutches last 800 miles or 20,000 miles depending on how you drive.
A good contact for insurance is First Point, 01604 499799. Regarding depreciation, the RHD UK car market is not that bad at the moment, but factor on 360 modena-type depreciation, or perhaps a little less, but remeber if you buy from trade and sell to trade you're paying two sets of profits, and thats before the actual depreciation of the car iteself!
Hope this helps, PM me for me info.
William
A good contact for insurance is First Point, 01604 499799. Regarding depreciation, the RHD UK car market is not that bad at the moment, but factor on 360 modena-type depreciation, or perhaps a little less, but remeber if you buy from trade and sell to trade you're paying two sets of profits, and thats before the actual depreciation of the car iteself!
Hope this helps, PM me for me info.
William
If 8-10k per year depreciation is bollox, I think your smokin something! yes i agree the first year you'll lose 25k or so, but 25K per year after that I don't think so. If thats the case people will be buying 4 year old gallardos for 25K? don't think it'll happen. You only have to look at what 10 yr+ Old diablo's are still fetching today (60K +).
At the end of the day, owning a car like this isn't about the money anyway its the buzz it gives you.
ENJOY!!!!
At the end of the day, owning a car like this isn't about the money anyway its the buzz it gives you.
ENJOY!!!!
In eyes, regardless of the high depreciation value which is mentioned here, let’s say for argument sakes its £20,000 a year. Divide that by 12 which is £1,666 per month, £416 p/w.....£59 p/d...not a bad sum of money to get a very high level of adrenaline rush in your system every day, it is probably cheaper, safer, longer lasting and more enjoyable then doing drugs to get the same buzzzz!. My car gives me that factor and that alone outweighs the depreciation value. 
Running cost, caught my passenger wing mirror coming out of my garage after owing the car for 1 week...didn’t damage the door....cost for replacing and painting the whole mirror set up @ £1,000. (that was with a discount too)
Insurance. 32 with 2 previous bans and have 10 points (sp's) @ £2,000 per year with Knowl Richards 01785 255 514
Thanks and hope that helps you
Ralph
Running cost, caught my passenger wing mirror coming out of my garage after owing the car for 1 week...didn’t damage the door....cost for replacing and painting the whole mirror set up @ £1,000. (that was with a discount too)
Insurance. 32 with 2 previous bans and have 10 points (sp's) @ £2,000 per year with Knowl Richards 01785 255 514
Thanks and hope that helps you
Ralph
I'm working on the following assumption.
53 Reg Gallardo, prob paid £100 - £105k
Year 1 - 20k dep
Year 2 - £10k dep
Year 3 - £5-£10k dep
Guys, don't get me wrong - the car is worth every penny but you have to go in with your eyes open and I'd say £65 - £70k for a 5 year old Gallardo is about right.
53 Reg Gallardo, prob paid £100 - £105k
Year 1 - 20k dep
Year 2 - £10k dep
Year 3 - £5-£10k dep
Guys, don't get me wrong - the car is worth every penny but you have to go in with your eyes open and I'd say £65 - £70k for a 5 year old Gallardo is about right.
Timely thread with some good viewpoints as I'm going to look at a few Gallardo's next week, to replace my RS6 saloon as not needing the space so much. I'm expecting to pay £85-£95k on 53/04 Gallardo and hoping depreciation will slow down now to a more reasonable level.
Any options you consider a must-have for resale? Don't think I'm too worried about whether it has SatNav, heated mirrors, etc and the option list is minimal, unlike the LONG list (sore head time) for the Carrera S, which I'm also considering and Noble M400. They each have their plus and minus points for me.
Any options you consider a must-have for resale? Don't think I'm too worried about whether it has SatNav, heated mirrors, etc and the option list is minimal, unlike the LONG list (sore head time) for the Carrera S, which I'm also considering and Noble M400. They each have their plus and minus points for me.
If depreciation is a worry don't buy low spec, yellow cars. Next no, no would be low spec black cars.
Most of the early ones we're black/yellow with low spec/manual. And there are more of these floating around.
This is not a dig at anyone, don't take it personally. I'm not saying they're bad cars. Just that all the speculators went this route. And so you'll have alot more competition when you come to sell.
>> Edited by 5to1 on Wednesday 27th July 16:45
Most of the early ones we're black/yellow with low spec/manual. And there are more of these floating around.
This is not a dig at anyone, don't take it personally. I'm not saying they're bad cars. Just that all the speculators went this route. And so you'll have alot more competition when you come to sell.
>> Edited by 5to1 on Wednesday 27th July 16:45
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