Potential 599 purchase

[kbf1981]

Can someone either talk me into or out of buying a 599?

I won't have any real time to drive it - it'll get used once a week probably on a Saturday morning, but I really like them. I've 2 kids so that makes it less likely I use it, but... I really have always liked them. Cost wise, they seem good value, I don't think they'll depreciate anymore, I'll lose £15k in buying and selling but that's not vastly different from the cost of a family holiday tbh.

I'm open to the F12 argument - but tbh I'd really like an 812 next year and there's no point moving to an 812 from an F12, but moving from a 599 to an 812 would be mega. 812 is not an option presently, but might be next year.

Would you buy one? upsides are you'd really like it, downsides are you're basically spending £100k for something you'll drive 3 hours on a saturday morning

Edited by kbf1981 on Tuesday 14th June 19:39

[kbf1981]

ANOpax said:

If you think you’ll use a Ferrari more with 2 kids in the back, get an FF. The FF is close to the 599 in price and close to the F12 in sound and performance with the bonus that you get to take the kids along for the ride. You can’t put a price on that!

Have you driven both the FF and Lusso? I'm guessing Lusso V8 is no where near as dramatic as a V12, the V12 though is a lot of car for the money at 180 for a 2 Yr old v12?

[kbf1981]

There's no approved FF's which puts me off as I really don't want any issues with the car for time reasons as much as anything else lol! Already enough projects

Edit i tell a lie there's this one https://preowned.ferrari.com/en-GB/a/europe/used-f...

This is nice but a lot more depreciation to come? Probably bottoms out at 110k?

https://preowned.ferrari.com/en-GB/a/europe/used-f...

Edited by kbf1981 on Tuesday 14th June 21:11

[kbf1981]

I had a 430 and preference that to the 458 at the time, as it felt more mechanical. This is from someone who dailyed a Defender for 5 yes though and sold his Taycan for a pick up truck lol.... based on that im guessing I'd prefer the 599?

[kbf1981]

Is it worth test driving an F12? Or even a Cali T?

599 feels like it gets a bad rap but to my eyes they're so imposing and I loved the gearbox in my 430 as it felt more raw than the PDK set up in my porsches. Just look like a bargain for the last of the analogue V12s with an Enzo engine

[kbf1981]

DeejRC said:

The 599 is interesting, “cheap” but fragile. If you think otherwise…see Cake’s thread.

An F12 is arguably the best overall car Ferrari has made in a very long time. It has a depth of ability that is borderline staggering. Nothing else is playing on its level, an 812 certainly isn’t because it’s lardy and fk ugly.

I got out of mine for 170ish and it retailed at 180. My instinct is the market will soften in the current climate, but I’m not sure how much.

I've seen this which looks interesting. I do think there's some space to fall though. This must have retailed for 250?

550 = 100k nice one
575 = up to 130k
599 = 100k nice one
F12 = 180k nice one
812 = 250k+

https://preowned.ferrari.com/en-GB/a/europe/used-f...

[kbf1981]

Thank you - ..... in terms of values (I know I know), where do you think the F12 will settle?

I'm not madly in love with the look of the F12, I prefer the look of the 812, but I definitely don't want to spend 812 money. I've never been upclose with an F12 though.

Silly questions:
- Does the F12 have cupholders?
- I can't see apple carplay / android auto on the spec sheet - can you "upgrade the infotainment" in an F12 like you can a 599?

Can you turn off the airbag in both? I'd like to be able to take my son / daughter out in them on father son / daughter trips every so often which would definitely mean I get more use.

Use wise, it'd be kept on trickle charge but only used once a week due to being busy. There'd obviously be gaps as sometimes we go away for a few weeks in the summer / winter. I'm sure it can't be that bad?

[kbf1981]

willy wombat said:

For what it’s worth, I bought a 6 month old 599 in 2008. Didn’t put astronomical mileage on it (the name’s not Cake) but I did tour a few times to Italy, did quite a bit of mountain driving and a few track days. Car was serviced every year at a main dealer. Unsurprisingly I had to put new brake pads (not discs) on, new tyres and a pair of new front shocks, and that was it. Sold it last year to the main dealer who serviced it and thus knew the cat and got about £10k more than I expected. They’re not all money pits, and they are phenomenal cars.

Ref the costs - I think depreciation wise the 599 has bottomed, so I recon you'd probably trade in a 599 in a year for £85k say if it was beautiful as personally, I think inflation will move stuff up a bit. So even if you have a 5k bill here or there, that's still less than say if the F12 loses 25k in a year plus dealer margin - which is very possible, say the 812 goes to £220k, I could see a nice F12 at £150k, and now you're having to spend £170-200k for a nice F12 so there's £25k depreciation in there potentially.

I remember my 430 was pretty fragile and think the ball joints got replaced under warranty. Every Ferrari before the 458 was imo pretty fragile.

[kbf1981]

lambo666 said:

https://collectingcars.com/for-sale/2009-ferrari-5...

I really wanted to bid on this, so much car for the money!

There's 6k buyers premium on that site isn't there, so effectively that sold for £83k private? If that same car was at a Ferrari dealer it'd probably be £100k I'd guess with warranty and margin. Does feel like they've bottomed.

[kbf1981]

Does anyone know if it's possible to turn the airbag off in an F12 so you can take an 8 year old in the front?

Or to fit a child seat in the passenger seat?

[kbf1981]

Ah, I think this is possible in a 599 - I think there's a deactivation switch on the passenger side.

[kbf1981]

575MF1 said:

Neither response on airbag deactivation switch is quite fright. A switch is available as an option, not many cars have it. The switch is a simple on/off activated by a key. The Ferrari solution is mega-expensive but I think a second hand switch from an everyday car would do the trick, look almost identical, cost very little, and be straightforward to install.

Thanks, if I couldn't at least pick up my son from school that'd be a killer.

Started looking at California T's and Lusso's now - not many FF's about. Even looked at a few Lamborghini's as they have isofix on the front seat but they just don't appeal as much. I had an LP550-2 Manual for a bit which was great but not as fun as my 430.

[kbf1981]

I just measured my 8 year old - so... he's 135cm tall! Getting big now, I believe that this is the minimum hieght for sitting in the front of a car safely with an airbag, so I guess F12's are back on the radar?

[kbf1981]

So I drove the 80 miles to Graypaul Solihull today, however when I arrived the 599 I'd been looking at had already been sold that morning - it looked a beautiful car and tbh I think it was pretty good value. 2 owners, looked lovely.

https://www.pistonheads.com/buy/listing/12780899

Whoever bought the car, congrats, it looks lovely!

I drove their other HGTE car which also looked beautiful, might make a bid on that but not sure the HGTE package is worth 20k to me - I'm not going to use the car on track, so being extra sharp doesn't add any value. I'm only looking for the experience, the sound, the way the car looks.

They had a few other nice looking cars in there - F8 looked really nice, that was my girlfriends favourite after the HGTE 599. She wasn't that into the F12, my favourite was probably the 812 they had which looked super imposing, but obviously they've got a ways to go depreciation wise. Sat in a GTC4 but it didn't feel as exotic (just to me), nor did the California's. Wasn't really into the Roma. The F8, 812's, 599's... they tbh probably appealed the most. No rush though as we've got other cars so I'll wait till the right deal comes up.

[kbf1981]

That is true, I guess the first bite is with the eyes and I want something that to me, makes me go "wow".

Presently watching F8 videos on YouTube so we'll see where I end up!

[kbf1981]

cake eater said:

kbf1981 said:

Can someone either talk me into or out of buying a 599?

I won't have any real time to drive it - it'll get used once a week probably on a Saturday morning, but I really like them. I've 2 kids so that makes it less likely I use it, but... I really have always liked them. Cost wise, they seem good value, I don't think they'll depreciate anymore, I'll lose £15k in buying and selling but that's not vastly different from the cost of a family holiday tbh.

I'm open to the F12 argument - but tbh I'd really like an 812 next year and there's no point moving to an 812 from an F12, but moving from a 599 to an 812 would be mega. 812 is not an option presently, but might be next year.

Would you buy one? upsides are you'd really like it, downsides are you're basically spending £100k for something you'll drive 3 hours on a saturday morning

Edited by kbf1981 on Tuesday 14th June 19:39

I know that I am very late to this thread. Work has taken me away and I have not had access to internet. I have an ownership thread in this forum "Every day tips for living with a 599" if you are interested in my experiences.

First would I recommend one. Whole heartedly.

Is the F12 better. Yes. It is however approximately twice the price. It is twice the car. Hmmm. I don't think so but there is no denying it is the better car.

Need to carry the family then the FF but I don't think it is that pretty and they have their own issues particularly with the 4WD system.

If you get the right car, I think you could run it for very little money (except for fuel costs, that is going to hurt every time). I would recommend buying privately as you will save a significant amount over the dealer price. If you want a little assurance a warranty is 4.5k and the dealer doesn't care if you bought private. If you plan to sell privately note that these cars can take a significant amount of time to turn over. The car I bought was for sale for almost 9 months and the price was dropped twice before I bought it and I had some extras thrown in to top.

I have now done 12K miles in 7 months of ownership at a cost of 20k in maintenance and repairs plus 50p per mile fuel bills. My front brakes will need replaced before next spring at an estimated cost of 10k. Clutch is currently okay but I think in a year if I do more track work it will also need replacing also 10k.

That's the head part.

Now the heart. You could buy a Porsche instead but who's to say that isn't going to cost you money with a big engine failure? You could buy it and leave it in the garage and just take it out once in a while but where is the joy in that?

If you buy one, drive it. I fell in love with mine because of the way she goes. 60-160 and it doesn't feel like she's out of breath. Cruise on the motorway and the 599 is a lovely place to be, the huge tank means you don't need to stop too often despite the 15mpg. In town she doesn't attract too much attention but when someone realises what it is you get a really positive response. I feel good just looking at the car in my garage, I feel even better when I am in it, driving it.

I think the 599 is a pretty car. It isn't aero dominated, there are curves though from some angles I think the 599 can look a little awkward.
The gearbox takes some learning but with experience you can get the car to shift smoothly and run quietly. The 599 does GT very well.

But the best bit is when you want do the things you don't want recorded on camera. The part where the road is wide, open, well sighted and empty. Then OMG is she fast and WOW she can stop and turn and wasn't there a Porsche trying to keep up? The 599 is not the easiest car to drive fast, she is big and heavy and it takes some learning to drive her fast, safely. But this is part of the enjoyment, the challenge. The sweaty palms. The daren't look at the speedo. The 599 is a handful; a wonderful, thrilling, big, beautiful, curvy, handful.

I'm never selling even though I initially thought I would upgrade to F12.

Wish you all the best in your search and I hope you find a good one.

Cake

Bought this in the end!