Just like sheep, most of the society follows a set of rules and standards what they should own and buy to be somewhat socially acceptable. Odyssey or sienna if you have family, sporty cars for singles, sedans for couples (more or less). How about exotics?

I honestly would not have the balls to own one even though I could afford to buy it(it would be a stretch though), but for example you could own these $45k F355s (my fav ferraris) instead of the measly E92 M3, 911, amg, z06 whatever.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/97-355-BERLINETTA-6SPD-EURO-US-DOT-RECENT-MAJOR-SERVICE-/250754125105?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item3a621c4d31#ht_9015wt_1166

(take a look at the repair receipts list on the yellow one)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1995-Ferrari-F355-Spider-6-spd-All-Maintance-Completed-/150552842825?pt=US_Cars_Trucks&hash=item230da61249#ht_4417wt_1166

I am always toying with an idea of owning a $1000 POS for a daily driver and have something like this as really the ultimate second car. Would it be that difficult to learn how to work on these cars? I know parts are expensive, but if you could at least do labor by yourself they might be doable?

What cars you have on your list that you might be able to afford, but are afraid to own?

[Edited on January 28, 2011 at 11:03 PM. Reason : f]

1/28/2011 10:59:44 PM

M3, 911s..

1/28/2011 11:19:28 PM

afraid?

1/28/2011 11:53:04 PM

Lol... Afraid?

Are you guys a bunch of faggots?

Damn. This Place is sad.

1/29/2011 12:01:52 AM

financially afraid. god damn you kids

1/29/2011 12:09:48 AM

Mazda RX8























lol, but no seriously...

Quote :

"Would it be that difficult to learn how to work on these cars? I know parts are expensive, but if you could at least do labor by yourself they might be doable?"

A car is a car. They are all mechanical and there are appropriate forums with knowledgeable gear heads to help you out. You shouldn't let the fact that it has a Ferrari or Porsche badge scare you from working on it any less than any disposable beater. That is where the majority of the repair cost is with higher end vehicles; labor.

[Edited on January 29, 2011 at 12:22 AM. Reason : .]

[Edited on January 29, 2011 at 12:24 AM. Reason : .]

1/29/2011 12:18:23 AM

try buying a Haynes manual for a 355 at Autozone. It wasn't meant to be wrenched on in your garage on jackstands.

1/29/2011 1:59:01 AM

i heard there is a store called the internet that has service manuals and owners forums available

1/29/2011 6:54:21 AM

well for starters. Any thing off fucking ebay

1/29/2011 9:08:28 AM

that ferrari goes 10mph sitting still.

17k miles and its had the heads removed a few times? wtf???

1/29/2011 9:43:49 AM

Quote :

"i heard there is a store called the internet that has service manuals and owners forums available"

Ok. Find a complete service manual for an F355 for free online. Post a link to it or PM me and I will give you my email address.

1/29/2011 9:53:08 AM

Ferraris, GT3/2s.

Down to earth though, e39 M5, B5 S4.

1/29/2011 10:48:34 AM

What's scary about a gt3?

1/29/2011 10:50:40 AM

You do mean besides having $60k in a car? Well, they don't have an IMS issue to keep me up at night

Depreciation, running costs the way I drive (tires/brakes/insurance) and how much they're worth if I had an incident on track or otherwise.

1/29/2011 11:01:57 AM

Quote :

"that ferrari goes 10mph sitting still. 17k miles and its had the heads removed a few times? wtf???"

Haha, I noticed that too. If you add up all the bills the damn thing costs like $1 a mile to run...and that's before you pay for the gas.

1/29/2011 12:28:32 PM

Quote :

"Find a complete service manual for an F355 for free online."

i didn't know that haynes gave away free manuals in autozone now :shrug:

1/29/2011 3:08:57 PM

Oh, well yeah, I thought you meant something specific about those cars aside from the price.

Yeah, the lack of issues lime IMS is a nice perk and part of why I kinda want one.

I wouldn't track anything more expensive than a 1st gen miata without insurance that would cover me balling it up on track.

1/29/2011 4:39:36 PM

Did you have insurance on the Z06?

I consider myself self-insured, as such $20-30k is pushing it for a car I will put on track. I'm not rich like a lot of TWW folk are.

1/29/2011 4:54:17 PM

Every 240sx I've ever had

1/29/2011 6:19:44 PM

Quote :

"Find a complete service manual for an F355 for free online"

If you are dropping tens of thousands of dollars, I don't think one should complain about the upkeep for said vehicle. No one said the information would neccessarily free. For a couple hundred bucks, I'm sure you can d/l or purchase a tech manual... Granted, other forum users/enthusiats may be willing to share their experience/knowledge for free, if not for a few beers


I can't believe you people go goo goo over a Ferrari or (name_your_expensive_automobile) and complain about $15-$300for some manuals...

[Edited on January 29, 2011 at 7:54 PM. Reason : .]

1/29/2011 7:45:32 PM

That's because some of us (me) could afford to buy some of these cars (e39 m5), but are... scared to, due to upkeep costs... There is no free lunch, I mean it's not like you could just go buy an e36 M3 Sedan, that's both exhilarating to drive AND dead reliable. That would be in fantasy land.

1/29/2011 8:01:59 PM

at the same time they probably have no problem paying $100 for the bentley manual to their bmw

1/29/2011 8:02:15 PM

Not up in that price range or really exotic, but I have passed on a '98 Jag XJR and a beautiful '88 BMW 635csi as I was worried the repair bills would eat me alive. This was back about 5 years ago so, at the time, they were in the ~10K range. Plus I felt it would be almost wrong to use a beautiful old 6-series like that one as a DD (the guy selling it claimed to have kept it garaged all winter and still had the original TRX metric wheels/tires...)

[Edited on January 29, 2011 at 9:15 PM. Reason : xs]

1/29/2011 9:14:57 PM

^yeah Jaguar xkr/xjr series are also there. these cars are insanely cheap used, but too many problems and not too man DIYs for them.

1/30/2011 2:03:30 AM

I wouldn't mind having an older Ferrari or something similar as a semi-project car or a weekend cruiser in a decade or so. Once the current vehicle is paid for and I buy the 911 I want I could maybe see owning a Ferrari F430 or something similar when some of those start dropping under 75k. It would certainly be very, very cool to have.

1/30/2011 1:00:44 PM

Have any of you ever driven a car with a gated shifter like the F355? I can't imagine it being that fun, even with lots of practice.

1/30/2011 2:45:15 PM

On the contrary, I have always thought that a gated shifter would be fun, and I have always wanted to try one.

1/30/2011 4:08:21 PM

It's great. The shnick shnick sound as it clicks into place is great too.

1/30/2011 8:42:43 PM

BMW 850

1/30/2011 8:49:38 PM

^ PFFT its like 2 m20's joined at the crank.

grow some sack that car isn't thaaaaat bad.

1/30/2011 9:49:30 PM

non GT3/Turbo Porsche 996/pre-2009 997

Ferrari 308/328/355/360

Viper (partially because I question the ownership costs, and partially because they seem fucking scary). I won't count these out, though...I could possibly change my mind.

3rd-gen RX7 (I'd get one with an LSx swap, but not with a 13b unless it was so cheap that I could pop the engine and still have a decent deal after rebuilding it or swapping in the LSx)

RX8 without the extended warranty that Mazda offered

Lotus Esprit V8 (or turbo-4, for that matter)


older Land Rover Disco Is and IIs seem like screaming deals, but I'm a little wary of getting one. It wouldn't be the kind of thing that could cause financial ruin, but it could turn into a not-nearly-as-attractive deal, I fear.

1/30/2011 10:23:36 PM

man, dammit, I'm not big on dropping huge money on cars, but I would spend the money for a Ferrari 355 or 360 if they weren't so damned expensive to maintain.

[Edited on January 30, 2011 at 11:43 PM. Reason : although, re: orig post, I wouldn't call those cars "measly". Those are all fantastic machines.]

[Edited on January 30, 2011 at 11:44 PM. Reason : a C6 Z06 would rape the wheels off those Ferraris (though I'd obviously prefer the prancing horse!)]

1/30/2011 11:41:20 PM

Man those 996s are so scary expensive to own. I've had 3 over the years, Tyler on here has had one, I have several other friends w/them, and between all of us I think somebody had to pay for a window regulator out of pocket!

1/30/2011 11:43:52 PM

well, yeah, I mean 90+% of the time, I think it would be an exceptionally dependable, practical near-exotic.


IMS is kinda like herpes. Odds are very good that you won't get it...but the consequences are bad enough that it's still scary.

1/30/2011 11:46:55 PM

Quote :

"Lotus Esprit V8"

Good call. Arguably one of the best looking cars ever made. Those also follow cheap to buy but scary to own.

1/30/2011 11:53:31 PM

you can get service manuals for the 355 free, but the kicker is that its in Italian.

The only ferrari guys I know who work on their cars are the 308/328 guys, everyone else seems to pay for labor. The lambo shop in greensboro will work on older exotics for 75/hour I believe. Its pretty frightening to hear some of the guys talking how every 2k miles, the cars are down for repair.

If I wanted to get a Ferrari, I'd better be financially stable to keep it, but personally, 40k would be spent on a ducati bike instead.

2/1/2011 11:20:25 PM

My buddy works on his own 348 and I believe he knows a few others that work on their own 348...

[Edited on February 2, 2011 at 12:24 AM. Reason : .]

2/2/2011 12:19:17 AM

Ferraris, BMW M5s, FD RX-7

2/2/2011 12:59:15 PM

I think the general consensus is (or at least was a few years back) that the 355 was really the last Ferrari you could effectively maintain and service yourself. Things may have changed as the newer cars have aged and begun to fall into the hands of people who would actually consider doing so.

2/2/2011 8:33:18 PM

^That is also what I've heard. Thing is, every Ferrari made after the F355 costs too much for me to afford (probably the case for the 355 as well).

2/2/2011 8:38:17 PM

1992 prelude

2/2/2011 8:53:47 PM

Can't 360s be had for not heinously more than 355s?

2/2/2011 9:11:52 PM

360s are more expensive and justifiably so since they much more reliable than F355s, but with less personality. similar to the whole e30 M3 vs e36 m3, with prices being vice versa.

2/2/2011 9:22:05 PM

how about the old ZR1 Corvettes from about 20 years ago? aren't those expensive to keep running?

2/3/2011 9:58:56 AM

1995 RX7 R2 with the 1999 body kit

2/3/2011 11:06:09 AM