Buying advice: Audi R8 V10 vs Ferrari 360
Discussion
I know this has come up before, I've read through every page of the other threads comparing the two cars and still very undecided.
I am in NZ so I will never get to test drive these cars before buying (manual examples just don't come up here). I am hoping someone can give some real world comparisons if they have driven or owned both and what they would go with.
Audi R8 V10 - Manual only: 50-60k
Ferrari 360 - Manual only: 65-75k
65k will be the absolute limit of what I can stretch to. Here is the info I have so far:
Audi is obviously cheaper, but having driven a TT RS I know it feels a bit hitman-like. Just point and shoot and everything is all too easy and clinical. No real sensation of feedback and speed. You can look down at the speedo and be genuinely surprised. The V10 with gated manual looks like amazing value for money, I'm not sure if the sound is as good as the Ferrari but it does sound pretty good. Like the TT RS, I do worry it will lack personality or feedback though. I also hate the look of that side blade but wouldnt get the convertible due to lack of storage behind the seats. In terms of ownership, its obviously a much newer car and would likely be more reliable and will almost certainly resell here better here than the Ferrari.
With the Ferrari, its difficult to justify the price. It wouldn't be as fast as the Audi but that doesnt matter to me, after owning a bunch of Lotus cars I prefer usable power and feedback to 600+hp straight line monsters. The sound seems to be either obnoxiously loud with a Capristo exhaust or very muted on factory? But I just absolutely adore the sound of a Ferrari V8, that is one of the main reasons it's in my top 2. I wouldnt want to be disappointed to find out its quite muted in the cabin though. I expect the car would have far more character and feedback to the Audi, and be pretty reliable as long as its treated with some care. Either way I only plan to drive whatever I get 2-3k KMs per year. One of the other concerns is obviously people judging you everywhere you go or potentially even damaging the car if you stopped somewhere on a road trip. But people seem to absolutely love this car and you see reports of them keeping one for 5+ years all the time. There must be something someone can elaborate on there.
It's a difficult decision to make, I feel like the V10 is just a better car in almost every way, and also costs less and likely more reliable. But the look, sound (and probably) feel of the Ferrari makes me want to make a silly decision (on paper).
On paper this works out to be something like this. 30k is quite a big difference and you could some decent cars with that, M3/Vette/RX7/370Z/Elise. I run a 135i as a daily so not interested in a third car.
Audi: 120-130k NZD
Ferrari: 160k+ NZD
Would love to hear some thoughts and feedback. Cheers!
I am in NZ so I will never get to test drive these cars before buying (manual examples just don't come up here). I am hoping someone can give some real world comparisons if they have driven or owned both and what they would go with.
Audi R8 V10 - Manual only: 50-60k
Ferrari 360 - Manual only: 65-75k
65k will be the absolute limit of what I can stretch to. Here is the info I have so far:
Audi is obviously cheaper, but having driven a TT RS I know it feels a bit hitman-like. Just point and shoot and everything is all too easy and clinical. No real sensation of feedback and speed. You can look down at the speedo and be genuinely surprised. The V10 with gated manual looks like amazing value for money, I'm not sure if the sound is as good as the Ferrari but it does sound pretty good. Like the TT RS, I do worry it will lack personality or feedback though. I also hate the look of that side blade but wouldnt get the convertible due to lack of storage behind the seats. In terms of ownership, its obviously a much newer car and would likely be more reliable and will almost certainly resell here better here than the Ferrari.
With the Ferrari, its difficult to justify the price. It wouldn't be as fast as the Audi but that doesnt matter to me, after owning a bunch of Lotus cars I prefer usable power and feedback to 600+hp straight line monsters. The sound seems to be either obnoxiously loud with a Capristo exhaust or very muted on factory? But I just absolutely adore the sound of a Ferrari V8, that is one of the main reasons it's in my top 2. I wouldnt want to be disappointed to find out its quite muted in the cabin though. I expect the car would have far more character and feedback to the Audi, and be pretty reliable as long as its treated with some care. Either way I only plan to drive whatever I get 2-3k KMs per year. One of the other concerns is obviously people judging you everywhere you go or potentially even damaging the car if you stopped somewhere on a road trip. But people seem to absolutely love this car and you see reports of them keeping one for 5+ years all the time. There must be something someone can elaborate on there.
It's a difficult decision to make, I feel like the V10 is just a better car in almost every way, and also costs less and likely more reliable. But the look, sound (and probably) feel of the Ferrari makes me want to make a silly decision (on paper).
On paper this works out to be something like this. 30k is quite a big difference and you could some decent cars with that, M3/Vette/RX7/370Z/Elise. I run a 135i as a daily so not interested in a third car.
Audi: 120-130k NZD
Ferrari: 160k+ NZD
Would love to hear some thoughts and feedback. Cheers!
Edited by BespokeNZ on Wednesday 5th August 11:00
Been some really helpful responses here. Im picking up some key bits of information. Sounds like it's smarter to go for the R8 as it's a better allrounder and less likely to smash holes in the wallet especially during a bit of an unknown time for the economy. Really suprised that there is a comment from a 360 owner saying they wouldn't go back to one after going to the R8. Perhaps the R8 provides about 80% of the theatre or thereabouts?
I currently have an Exige V6 S so obviously interiors are not too high on my priority list, the only reason to move on is that it is just stupidly impractical, you can't go anywhere with a passenger for any real amount of time and you really aren't taking anything with you besides a small backpack stuffed into the 'boot'. The driving experience is about as pure as it gets though, I'd like something that can maybe come close but sounds better with a little bit more grunt. R8 V10 and 360 seem to be the only ones around the >160k (65GBP) mark. I'm not really into Porsche's and the Gallardos ive seen with a manual are closer to 70 or 80k GBP.
How would people compare the stock soundtrack of the V10 and the V8? I think the V8 has an amazing F1 soundtrack and from what people said is plenty loud enough with the valves open. The V10 from what I've heard on Youtube clips seems to be pretty up there as well, but sounds like it's missing about 2k revs.
How are the pedal placements and the shift feel when comparing both cars? From the feedback so far it seems that maybe the R8 isn't that far off in terms of a pure driving experience to justify the extra 30k (NZD)
I currently have an Exige V6 S so obviously interiors are not too high on my priority list, the only reason to move on is that it is just stupidly impractical, you can't go anywhere with a passenger for any real amount of time and you really aren't taking anything with you besides a small backpack stuffed into the 'boot'. The driving experience is about as pure as it gets though, I'd like something that can maybe come close but sounds better with a little bit more grunt. R8 V10 and 360 seem to be the only ones around the >160k (65GBP) mark. I'm not really into Porsche's and the Gallardos ive seen with a manual are closer to 70 or 80k GBP.
How would people compare the stock soundtrack of the V10 and the V8? I think the V8 has an amazing F1 soundtrack and from what people said is plenty loud enough with the valves open. The V10 from what I've heard on Youtube clips seems to be pretty up there as well, but sounds like it's missing about 2k revs.
How are the pedal placements and the shift feel when comparing both cars? From the feedback so far it seems that maybe the R8 isn't that far off in terms of a pure driving experience to justify the extra 30k (NZD)
davek_964 said:
Some people do use the 360 as a daily - and having used mine on some long trips, I guess it is capable of that. I used mine to drive down to Italy for a couple of weeks, and it was great - even sitting on French motorways at 80mph for hours on the way back.
However - I did feel the car was a bit single purpose and you really had to be in the right mood. Less so than your Lotus I'm sure, but even so - it was a "fun" car, and I didn't always want that kind of drive.
When I test drove my McLaren, I initially intended to part ex my 360 - however, I didn't think the McLaren had quite the same raw uncompromising feel of the 360 and so I didn't think it was a suitable replacement. So I kept the 360.
But 10 months later, the 360 just wasn't getting used (it wasn't getting used much for a year or two before that, but it had really dropped in the last year). The McLaren was very good at trundling around and could be a lot of fun / very fast too. I think I still enjoyed the 360 on a twisty road more - but I just couldn't be bothered to get it out the garage when the McLaren was parked on the drive. Plus - and this will be relevant to you - despite 6 years of mostly trouble free ownership - the big bill I had last year always made me think another might be around the corner. Which I didn't want for an occasional car.
Given your most recent post - and that you've already had a very single purpose car - it sounds to me like the R8 would probably suit better than the 360. (Although I'm making assumptions having never driven an R8).
Yeah I think this applies to me the most, I have the same situation with my Exige, I have three cars at the moment with the 135i and a C6 Corvette, while the Exige is amazing to take out for a b-road challenge, most of the time I just cant be bothered getting it out of the garage. I would take the Vette for a road trip or the BMW for errands. I want something that I can just get in and go whenever I want without having to convince the mrs to get in with me or worrying about where I'm taking it or for what purpose. I picked all three of those cars as they have an analogue driving feel, manual transmissions, fun to drive and have a bit of character. If im going to double down and get rid of both the Vette and Exige I want to make sure what Im getting is quite special and I dont feel like I cant be bothered getting it out, or that it's a bit clinical to drive. However - I did feel the car was a bit single purpose and you really had to be in the right mood. Less so than your Lotus I'm sure, but even so - it was a "fun" car, and I didn't always want that kind of drive.
When I test drove my McLaren, I initially intended to part ex my 360 - however, I didn't think the McLaren had quite the same raw uncompromising feel of the 360 and so I didn't think it was a suitable replacement. So I kept the 360.
But 10 months later, the 360 just wasn't getting used (it wasn't getting used much for a year or two before that, but it had really dropped in the last year). The McLaren was very good at trundling around and could be a lot of fun / very fast too. I think I still enjoyed the 360 on a twisty road more - but I just couldn't be bothered to get it out the garage when the McLaren was parked on the drive. Plus - and this will be relevant to you - despite 6 years of mostly trouble free ownership - the big bill I had last year always made me think another might be around the corner. Which I didn't want for an occasional car.
Given your most recent post - and that you've already had a very single purpose car - it sounds to me like the R8 would probably suit better than the 360. (Although I'm making assumptions having never driven an R8).
I should really go for an R8 as I can't afford to be constantly worrying about an upcoming badge-tax when it's due for a service. Maybe if it gets stale then I will go for the 360 later on. This theory is based on the assumption the 360's wont keep going up in price, which they easily could. Same thing with the Gallardo and its also out of my range. But I prefer the sound of the 360 anyway. There is also the matter of resale where any car over the 150k mark here leaves the seller vulnerable of taking a huge bath if some rich guy or ignorant dealer comes out of the woodwork and lists the exact same car for stuff all. This has happened to me several times but I've been somewhat lucky enough to be able to ride out the waves.
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