Nothing like rolling the dice...

... on a car and coming up sevens. Snapped up a car from all the way across the county based on photos, service records, an engine bay so clean you could eat off of it, and some requested video. No PPI.

Just took her in to Maranello Autosports to have Bruce give her a once over. His verdict: “You got a *really* good car here. Only issues are very minor.”

Relieved. Very relieved.

Also, this place is like I’ve died and gone to whatever they call Valhalla in Italian.

 

Ah, 95 348 Spider, black/black/black. Sorry, when I posted I was googly-eyed at all the Ferraris under one roof With a few Italian cars of those other, lesser manufacturers.

 

I think you're looking for "dumber" but are too polite to say it, friend!

I freely admit that it was a pretty dumb move on the surface. But at the price I paid there was several thousand in the budget to spare for repairs, to judge by recent sale prices. Cosmetics were 100% so I knew there was nothing needed for paint & interior at least (even the mice still scurry back and forth!). And the fact that they kept it on carpet in the showroom was promising, though of course not complete reassurance of nothing leaking. The fact that the previous owner had redone the seats in the correct material and tossed in up-to-date service records spoke to his good stewardship. So add it all up and it was a better play than it looks like from outside the deal.

Can't deny that I beat the odds, though, and got a very well sorted car according to a highly regarded Ferrari tech.

Almost pulled the trigger on a Mondial 3.2 on BaT, but glad I fell asleep in my recliner and missed the end of the auction. The eventual buyer got in touch with me, and the car had big issues that the seller didn't disclose. I actually saw it in the shop when I took my car in for a P(ost)PI, as the buyer and I are in the same town and he'd dropped it off to see how bad he was in trouble. I could easily have gotten First Ferrari Fever and been paying for it now. Dodged that bullet through sheer accident of a big lunch that triggered a nap.

The really sad part is that the buyer is a true stand up guy. He disclosed in the auction comments that he might well get into trouble with the CFO (meaning his wife) for buying a Ferrari immediately after buying a Porsche. That's why I slipped him my contact info, in case he had to beat a hasty retreat and wanted to sell it on to me for his bid price. He could have tried to dump it off on me like the seller did to him, but let me know the issues he'd found so far and that there might be more.

Decided then and there to avoid looking at any more Mondials, as they have a tendency to fall into less-than-assiduous hands, with respect to maintenance. Glad I did. Over the moon in love with my first Ferrari.