Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer "barn find"

[JumboBeef]

Hello all.

I have never owned a Ferrari, beyond my bank balance I'm afraid.

However, I do know of a Berlinetta Boxer (I don't know more than that) which is sitting, and I was wondering about it, how much it is worth, costs to get it back on the road etc.

I have never seen it as it is owned by a recluse but another family member has told me about it. It still belongs to the original owner, who bought it new in C.1975/76. About two years later, it was parked up (inside) and has never moved since. I know nothing about it's condition, other than it was perfect when it was taken off the road.

Can anyone give me any ideas of issues/problems which will have happened to it and possible costs to get it back on the road?

Edit to add: please don't ask me if it is for sale: it isn't!

Edited by JumboBeef on Tuesday 27th July 09:53

[Fume troll]

Depending how it was storted, it could be :

A. Immaculate.
B. Easily shifted with stiff brush and a dustpan.
C. Somewhere in between.

Cheers,

FT.

[JumboBeef]

I believe it is just 'parked' in a garage, and hasn't moved (or even been started) for more than 30 years!

[RDMcG]

Assuming that the garage is watertight and reasonably warm, you will still need a complete recommissioning. Its not a simple job of changing the oil and chargng the battery. you would also need to check for mice etc who chew through wiring etc.

[JumboBeef]

Thanks.

Any ideas of costs? What are these cars worth? I assume it will have a very small mileage, plus only one owner.

[Lambomartin]

There was a fully sorted one for sale a while ago in Oz for about £150k. They do have extremely high import costs there though so not sure what a UK one would be worth

[was8v]

1974 365 BB http://pistonheads.com/sales/1732490.htm - £80k

A 1976 could be a 512 - http://pistonheads.com/sales/1732493.htm also £80k

Edited by was8v on Tuesday 27th July 10:29

[wezo]

If it needs a full restoration by a known expert you would be looking at 2-3000 man hours at £50 per hour, plus parts, so you could easily be up to £150k minimum. On the flip side if it just needs a re-com you may get away with 30-50k, but the devil will be in the detail on what is required. For example an engine rebuild will be 12k for a start off, assuming nothing is fundamentally wrong in the first place, its a very deep pit restoring a Boxer,

I have toyed with the idea a few times and have walked away every time, economically it is cheaper to buy a good one than restore one, although I appreciate you may have other more personal reasons for wanting to do it.

[Murph7355]

IMO, no matter how well it's been stored, if you intend to use it you would have to get the car pretty much free for it to end up cheaper than buying a sorted car in the first place.

[VML]

Unfortunately it is a ‘how long is a piece of string’ type question, and as frustrating as it may be, it is impossible to answer these questions over the internet. The only way to ensure the pricing you are getting is realistic is to get it on a trailer, get it to a number of specialists and restorers and get quotes. The trick with restoration jobs is to get a fixed price. They will easily run over budget and you can leave the person who quoted you holding the bill.

Good luck!

[JumboBeef]

wezo said:

On the flip side if it just needs a re-com you may get away with 30-50k

So, on a good day, it might 'only' cost £30k to get it back on the road?

Thanks for the replies.

[paulqv]

if it hasnt started in 30 years then the engine will need out and pulled apart and rebuilt. could be water damage lots of rust etc. would need new suspension brakes and anything rubber is likely to be rotted

Main thing is the engine. If it has corroded inside may need binned and a new one supplied! Lots of old garage queen cars about where the owners 'always' care for them by polishing them and cleaning them and 'never drive them hard' mainly becasue they are terrified if they did they would blow up!! This sounds like one even of you could get it started without a rebuild but you would have to be insane to buy it that way as its bound to pop very very soon!!!

Best thing to do with any car is drive it. If you want to look at it buy a poster!

Paul

[RDMcG]

Best thing to do with any car is drive it. If you want to look at it buy a poster!

Absolutely. I understand the idea of a perfect car, but low mileage does not mean low wear. Some cars (Porsche 959 is an example) deterioriate horribly if left as museum pieces. I suppose you could have a regimen of starting and running the thing in situ for long periods, but it does seem a bit pointless to me.

[wintrader]

I own a 365 and a 512 carb. Just restored the 365. You can NOT rebuild a ferrari engine for 15 000 euro!!! Restoration can easily cost 100 000 euro if not more. Depends a bit.

365 are worth more then 512. Carb 512 worth more then injection.

Just few boxers made less then daytona's and i see no reason why they should not go up in value.

Edited by wintrader on Tuesday 27th July 18:06

[tomtom]

Ahh, it'll be fine.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tU0r99fyD0U

[rubystone]

Murph7355 said:

IMO, no matter how well it's been stored, if you intend to use it you would have to get the car pretty much free for it to end up cheaper than buying a sorted car in the first place.

Yes, I spent a year "restoring" a 308 that had been lightly used for 19 years of its life...."restored" insofar as every time I used it, I had to rebuild some element of it....I am fond of a story about a Porsche 356 that a friend bought...had been carefully dry stored for many years and seemed a good buy until he fired it up....after careful application of oil etc....shame the crankshaft had rusted to nothing....