Miller Motorcars

Miller is a highly respected dealership in CT. It was founded by Luigi Chinetti I believe, who was a good friend of Enzo's & founder of NART. I think Miller was the first Ferrari dealership in the USA.

ASk for Werner Pfister. He is very cool & knowledgable. I have not bought a car from them but Ive known Werner over 10 years

 

Great group of people there.

 

Werner is a great guy. Good dealership too. I would not hesitate from buying from them.

 

I'll second that

 

Ditto Werner. Knowledgable and Honest.

 

Dealt with them by telephone entirely. Car was EXACTLY what they said. Courteous, honest and up-front. Maybe a little high on asking $. Would do business with them again.

 

Wow. I'm a dinosaur.

I thought that this post would actually be about Miller Motor Cars.
You know, the same Harry Miller that actually influenced Ettore Bugatti?

Never mind...

 

By the way, first Ferrari dealership in the USA was Ron Tonkin Gran Turismo out in Oregon, strangely enough. Well, it's the oldest Ferrari dealership, so I would assume it was the first...

 

Never bought a car from them, so I can't say anything about their sales practices. I have only heard good things about Werner Pfister.
As for service, I tried them once back in '00 on my 308. Unfriendly, and uneager to satisfy a customer combined with poor attitude has turned me off to their service facility.
I belive that VINNYCAR (F-Chat name) uses them for service on his 348 spider. He should chime in...

 

I did too....
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Dave, Dave, Dave...........

You need a History Book to go with your 348! The first US Ferrari dealership was Luigi Chinetti in New York.........

Ron Tonkin's is the oldest SURVIVING dealership, although Miller may be the second as they are quite old, as well..

Luigi Chinetti's car stalled and quit as he was travelling thru Europe the moment Enzo Ferrari passed away......they were pretty tight. Chinetti

*cue Twilight Zone music here*

Harry Miller on the other hand, is a whole 'nother topic......nice cars writerguy. That would be an OT Thread though.....

 

There's not a Modern Ferrari Dealership in the US that cares about a 308 Owner....they follow the MONEY, bro......LOL!


Signed,
On his back, in the gravel driveway........oil dripping in my eye.

 

Although a more intersting one!

 

Oh, yea.....Miller Dynasty, Last 4WD Miller, Griff Borgeson, Ettore Bugatti.....that's some meat for discussion there.........now back to these little Italian cars........LOL!

 

Bubba,

Staying OT for a minute, you know there's a new book out on "The Designs of Harry A. Miller"? Soft cover, $30 or so, and well worth it. Also, there have been some great original Miller drawings and papers for sale on eBay over the past few months.

We now return to our thread, already in progress....

 

ORIGINAL DRAWINGS????????

You're kidding.......that stuff should be in the Smithsonian with the restored car.......

I'm not an ebayer AT ALL so I have missed this, not that I'm a player at that level, I suppose ....more interested in the '21 and '22 Leach Miller Special's I noticed in Borgeson's book...

Reading the Dynasty I learned that the Leach Motorcar was put out of business when ALL, as in EVERY ONE of the engines Miller provided blew up......end of story....I think one Leach motorcar survives in one of the CA collections. A non running example I suppose! LOL!

I suppose he took his eye off the ball.........WHACK!

Writerguy knows those Dallas high rollers, hence he's found a few surviving Miller's up there........

 

And the factory building lies abandoned....we lose so much history in this country it's unreal.........

"Back that bulldozer off the trailer and scrape it flat, boys.......need another Jack in the Box on this corner"....oh, look a box of trash......Offy drawings....


*into a 30 yard container of debris*

 

Thanks, OG.......I'll see if Borders can find it.........

They can't even put Johnny Winter in the right section.......sigh.

 

Bought two cars from Miller's over the past 10-years just as Werner was coming in....first was a slightly used Porsche 968 Cab, a pretty rare car that was actully purchased new by one of the silent underwriters of the dealership and the purchase and subsequent servicing were first rate experiences (sold that car to a friend in Houston, wish I had not, the car is a rare bird and I think the best of the 924/944/968 family..it seems to now have a cult following in the UK). Last April I purchased a pristine one owner low mileage 1994 348 Spider from Miller, again dealing with Werner, and the car's history was honestly represented ( I later met some people who knew the first owner, now deceased). I was given a complete service record. In addition I was given a very fair offer on my Porsche 2002 996 Cab 4 (again a car I missed so I just purchased a 996 C4 as a daily driver). No services on the 348 yet though I did get the Powertrain Plus warranty for this last year eligible.

All deals at Miller's will go through President Richard Kopplemen before they are finalized and I have sat down to bargain with this gentlemen twice and feel I was given a fair shake both times.


My bottom line is that it is fine dealership to establish a relationship with. They are located in one of the most affluent areas of the globe so they have no shortage of "gentlemen" and celebrity Ferrari repeat customers (you know who I mean...they own the dozens of garage queens here in southwest CT that rarely see the light of day much less post on this chat group or participate in its runs and social gatherings. I have no idea how many purchases will be necessary to get on a 430 list at Miller's but I suspect their list is long already.

By the way the historic facility has just undegone a major face-lift and in a recent run in the fall we checked it out while it was still underway. We should do a proper tour again in the Spring or maybe even during the "January thaw".

 

Haven't bought a car through them and don't own an FCar, but believe Miller is a first class establishment and echo everyone in saying "ASK FOR WERNER!"- he's put up with me for the last 10 years as a gawker- and will have me as a customer as soon as it's economically viable, regardless of the markup..

 

I purchased my 550 from Miller almost 3 years ago and I continue to have my car serviced there as well as stop in from time to time to chat with Werner. I have always found them easy and pleasant to deal with. They were willing to hold the car for me while I made my decision without a deposit and accepted my personel check for the purchase price without requiring certified funds. The service department has been very accomodating and has always been willing to take a quick look at my vehicle if I happen to be in the area and have a question. I find the used cars to be fairly priced on the most part and consistent with other dealer prices. I would highly recommend them.

 

Big Tex,

Your PM space is full, and I tried but couldn't send the following to you as a PM. Perhaps one or two others will find it useful.

"The Marvelous Mechanical Designs of Harry A. Miller" is ISBN 1-58388-123-9. I just got another copy from Motorbooks. It has a limited amount of information on the Leach, including an ad for the car, and information on the mistake Miller made in the design and why all the engines failed. As you mentioned, that caused the company to go under. The book is $32.95 list, and well worth it for the photos (it's in the Iconografix series, devoted to "preserving history through the publication of notable photographic archives").

Also, check this closed eBay auction. If I'd only had $2601....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=2280196621&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT

 

Wow! Could sure have used this stuff 15 years ago when a friend was restoring a Gulf Miller 4wd Indy Car........

james