Here is an ebay item# 320352853664 of a348 spyder,i took the good advice of one of you guys and did an auto check and the car was a lease or rental car of some sort and was involved with another auto in a collision in sept of 06 not problems with title in anyway never frame damage etc.only problem is the lease idea a and an accident i believe of no major concern non the less still was in an accident car is serviced with modena wheels and ready to do with a few minow flaws he has agreed to sell me the car for 35K is it a safe step into the ferrari world or should i keep looking thanks for all your input on my previous threads Dave
You get what you paid for, and even at $35K I wouldn't call this a good buy. I personally would never consider a Ferrari with such history, but that's me. I would think most savy buyers would wait to spend a little more and get a much better car, specially when it comes to 348's, they can have serious costly issues. I spent 18K in service costs just under 2 years on my first 348, not fun at all.
I agree. I lease some of my daily drivers, and I drive them hard, service them the minimum and take them to the corner car wash, knowing that they're not my problem after 3 years. Also, the 348 has no frame, IIRC -- it's a unit-body car. So if it was hit, that can be a bigger deal than it might be in the older cars with panels bolted onto a tubular frame. For $35K, get a good 308.
I doubt anyone leases a Ferrari so that they can abuse it & not maintain it. In contrast, I paid cash for my $60,000 Infiniti and beat the hell out of it. I feel sorry for whoever bought it off the used car lot.
I don't think being a leased vehicle, or having been in some sort of accident, necessarily takes the car out of contention, but I do think if you are considering it you should have a very careful mechanical and body/paint PPI done on it, first. I've known people who have owned cars and treated them like trashed, and others who have leased them and treated them like queens. The accident could have been a minor scratch, or a major frame bending wreck. So, the car could be a great deal, or a horrible deal. The only way to find out for sure is with a careful, competent inspection. What matters, at the end of the day, is the condition of the car. And then, of course, the price.
If 35k is near the top of your budget, then you should probably pass on the car, as you won't have any funds left over to have the timing belt and incidentals replaced. Two years ago I began my Ferrari search with a 35k budget. (I was looking for a 348tb.) I found several within my budget, but all needed an immediate service. The more that I researched regarding the costs of maintaining the cars, the more I realized that, although I could afford to buy a 348, I couldn't afford to own a 348. That is a great price for a 348 Spyder, however. I've been watching 348 prices for two years and I've never seen one cheaper. (Even ones with salvage titles.)
"although I could afford to buy a 348, I couldn't afford to own a 348" + 1, I would like to be in a position where I could move up the Ferrari ladder - Starting with my 308QV, sell it for a bit more than I paid, move up to a 348, then a 355, maybe ultimately get to 12 cylinders. I've done that with other brands but it won't work for me with an F-car. I just don't have the disposable income. I'm sticking with my 308 because the engine does'nt need to come out of the car for service. It's pretty saleproof anyhow with 100,000+ miles (still in decent driver condition though)
