Prices on 400i?

Depends. These are expensive cars to maintain and so the cost of catching up on deferred maintenance can easily eat up any purchase discount that you receive. 400i Autos seem to have asking prices in low-mid 20's with some records. I know of several with selling prices in the $18K area that needed some work.

A thorough PPI is essential to figure out what condition the car is in. Areas to look for include electrical system, rear suspension, cosmetics such as dash leather shrinkage near the windshield.

What do you know about the car? Do you have the s/n? I've tracked 400is for sale for the last several years. Maybe this is one that is contiually changing hands.

John

edit: Yes, all 12 cylinders, all gray market. Should have EPA/DOT papers to be licensed in the U.S.

 

It sounds like the one Gullwing Motor Cars has for sale. If it is they've had it for a while. I always wondered about those guys - they always seem to have cars listed with very low prices but I have never dealt with them or know of anyone who has.

 

If you do a quick search for 400's it'll turn up loads of advice and tips from those of us on the board who have owned and driven them.

Typical things to look for are Rust, Rust, Rust & more Rust, the condition of the exhaust is also key as it costs around $6k for a full system + fitting (the injection and parts of the front suspension need to be taken off to do it), electrical bits and peices are the usual 70's/80's Italian quality, the rear suspension is a self levelling hydraulic affair and is notoriously expensive to put right if there's something wrong

In short search, read up all you can and get a decent ppi from somebody who knows 400's

 

Heeeeeey, what's wrong with being a DIY Ferrari mechanic. And it's a Chevy "automatic" tranny Ferrari.

 

A 365/400/400i/412 will eat you alive if you try and bring one back from the dead.

Problem areas, as was mentioned, rust, expensive as hell exhaust to replace, shocks that need sorting. Some trim is unobtainium.

They aren't complicated cars, yes, there is two of everything on the later cars, but it is still pretty straightforward for a competent mechanic. Repair prices will solely be a factor of what work is needed.

These were the top of the line Ferraris when new and are rather expensive beasts to keep on the road, parts prices haven't matched the "entry level" purchase price. As a result, plenty of people have said "oh look, a Ferrari under $20k, I can afford that". But that is just the cover charge to ownership. When they realize it, they get passed on to someone with even less resources as the price goes down.

A well sorted example is a hell of a GT car, if you are interested in one, don't shop on price, shop on condition. Any body parts that have rusted to hell will need to be remade from scratch, there are very few spares out there.