[farstar]

Hello, I am thinking in buying a 308/328 (although I could consider a Testarossa too) in the short/mid term. I see that when some people ask about info for acquiring a new Ferrari, you suggest downloading the Buyer's Guide. And I see it is necessary to be a Member to be able to download them.

I also see that most people here are Americans, with only some Europeans. I am based in Spain, so I would like to know if the Buyer's Guide would be useful for me. The US market is efficient for everything, but the Spanish market (more than the European market) is very idionsyncratic, very "special". I do not know if the remarks for the US market would apply for the Spanish market. Note: I would also consider buying in another European market, like Germany, where I lived for 4 years.

 

[Boxer]

Hello, I am thinking in buying a 308/328 (although I could consider a Testarossa too) in the short/mid term. I see that when some people ask about info for acquiring a new Ferrari, you suggest downloading the Buyer's Guide. And I see it is necessary to be a Member to be able to download them.

I also see that most people here are Americans, with only some Europeans. I am based in Spain, so I would like to know if the Buyer's Guide would be useful for me. The US market is efficient for everything, but the Spanish market (more than the European market) is very idionsyncratic, very "special". I do not know if the remarks for the US market would apply for the Spanish market. Note: I would also consider buying in another European market, like Germany, where I lived for 4 years.

I think the gentleman who wrote the 308 and 328 Buyers Guides is based in the UK so it would cover the general European market.

I also live in Europe and have bought my Ferraris in 3 different countries over the last 5 years.

 

[farstar]

I think the gentleman who wrote the 308 and 328 Buyers Guides is based in the UK so it would cover the general European market.

I also live in Europe and have bought my Ferraris in 3 different countries over the last 5 years.

OK, thank you. I will download the Buyer's Guide, then.

May I ask which is in your opinion the best market to buy a Ferrari (both for breadth of products and for price)?

For what I have read in this forum, and apart from the US, Germany and (surprisingly for me) Switzerland. Do you agree?

 

[gsjohnson]

I just joined and paid my membership. I received the Testarossa and 512tr buyers guide and I thought they were very informative. The buyers guides do not really give you information on the current values and where they think they are trending. The information tells us more about production numbers, model changes, performance, the good and bad qualities of the car. I found it very informative and useful. I, like you, are in the market for my first Ferrari.

 

[JazzyO]

As mentioned here, the Buyers Guides are really to get a feel for the type of car, and what to look out for when buying that model, rather than the actual market prices.

I don't think there is such a difference buying a Ferrari in the States or in Europe. Just make sure you do your homework. Unless you know what you're doing or you know the car and owner in question, I would advice against buying from a private owner for your first Ferrari. Stick with a reputable dealership or well-known specialist. You will pay a bit more but you'll have more peace of mind. Even so, you still need to use your brain. A 550 last year was advertised on the offical ferrari.com website at an official F dealer in Germany but was not as advertised and they declined to disclose that the mileage counter had been replaced!

I advise you to get to a point where you feel you really know the model you want, even if you have never driven it. This will take a couple of months of research but it'll be worth it.

Ask around on the forum about a particular car and particular seller. The guys here know a lot! Also ask about ownership costs, markets, if someone knows a nice one for sale, etc., etc. Ask until you can't think of anything to ask anymore!!

Here are a couple of guidelines.

In general, Germany is a good market to shop in because in Europe they have the largest number of Ferraris, and this is combined with fairly low taxes on cars. Switzerland's supply has dwindled a bit and quality isn't as high as it used to be. Please note that you will need to pay VAT when importing into Spain as CH is not an EU country. In Holland you also need a EUR-1 document that proves that the car was constructed in Holland. If you don't have the document, you will need to pay 10% import duty. I think this is an EU regulation, so would also apply to Spain.

For Germany, you can check "www.mobile.de" - this has a very large database and official cars are also advertised there.

Switzerland, you might want to check Niki Hasler.

Other countries to buy from in Europe: sometimes you can find an LHD example in the UK, and those tend to be a bit cheaper. In Belgium there are a fair number of Ferrari's but they tend to have high mileage. Try Belgoexports.

Holland has a couple of very good Ferrari specialists but taxes are a bit higher so you might have to pay more. A decent one is just under 50,000 Euro. There is a stunning 328 for sale at the moment at www.wiggersmastercars.nl, not sure what the price is.

Italy has of course a decent selection of Ferrari's but prices are higher than Germany. France is more expensive again, usually.

Austria, Spain, Portugal have limited supply in my experience.

Hope this helps a bit! Good luck with the search.


Onno



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[archiegibbs]

farstar, welcome to the forum. I am another European.
Your English is very good, so from that I am assuming that you could be British or Irish? (forgive me if I'm wrong).
Have you considered buying a LHD car in the UK or Eire, as they are probably 15-20% cheaper than their RHD equivalents. I don't know how UK LHD cars compare for price with the rest of Europe, but I would guess you might get more for your money with the Euro being so strong vs sterling.
BTW, the 328 and TR Buyers Guides on here are excellent.

 

[williamtaylor]

Regarding pricing, we decided not to include anything on values as:

- the information would be dated before it was even published
- values vary greatly from market to market
- and the market has a logic all its own

Suggest you take a look at articles in:

http://www.ferrarilife.com/library/download_pdf.php?type=flq&id=87

http://www.ferrarilife.com/library/download_pdf.php?type=flq&id=89

which provide insights on investment values and different buying options.

 

[farstar]

Thank you for all your comments. I will try to keep an open mind, and I will consider all European markets. I hope to do well my homework!

BTW, I am from Barcelona, but I work constantly with Americans, I like Anglo-Saxon countries a lot.

 

[archiegibbs]

Hola, buenas dias, me no habla espaniol.

Your English is far better than my Spanish.

Good luck with your search

Hasta la vista
Adios

 

[stile - alpine]

Barcelona, now that is a hell of a city! And then there are the spanish girls... hehehehehehe

 

[JJS612]

Farstar,

I am currently awaiting delivery of mine, a LHD bought from the UK for exactly the reasons listed by others here. It was 15k cheaper than UK RHD, and works out 40k Euros cheaper than buying one here in Spain. Not saying its the same for all models, but the cost of transport and local taxes is far less doing it this way, and it gave me a wider choice of car than trying local sources only

 

[archiegibbs]

I am currently awaiting delivery of mine, a LHD bought from the UK for exactly the reasons listed by others here. It was 15k cheaper than UK RHD, and works out 40k Euros cheaper than buying one here in Spain. Not saying its the same for all models, but the cost of transport and local taxes is far less doing it this way, and it gave me a wider choice of car than trying local sources only

JJS612, sounds like you got a great deal, the UK is a cheap source for LHD sportscars. Have you considered selling your 612 locally, making a 40K euro profit, going back to Blightey to buy another LHD car, repeat the process several more times and end up paying for your Ferrari from the profit on several cars

 

[Boxer]

JJS612, sounds like you got a great deal, the UK is a cheap source for LHD sportscars. Have you considered selling your 612 locally, making a 40K euro profit, going back to Blightey to buy another LHD car, repeat the process several more times and end up paying for your Ferrari from the profit on several cars

It is not quite that easy. In Spain you still have to pay a 10% import tax on the car and then have to go through the nightmare of getting it registered locally. Portugal is even worse. It is fine to do once for your own private purchase, but unless you are going to make a full time business out of it, you would go mad managing all the paperwork, inspection, etc. In addition, depending on where you are, the process can move quickly or not so quickly. I know of 2 instances where it has taken 6-12 months to get it completed, and 3-4 is not unusual. All of which adds up to a lot of frozen capital and risk on a still depreciating model.

 

[JJS612]

I agree with Boxer, if it was that easy we would all be doing it. For me , as a private purchase it is worthwhile, and I have found the car I really wanted. But I started looking in October last year, so it took five months just to find the right car. As for the registration changes etc, I have a local high end dealer who I have bought a couple of other cars from helping me out. Makes it alot easier - as Boxer has already implied, the red tape here is really bad, and as I am still new to the language, I wouldn't even try myself.