Four solid hours of Ferrari stuff

Today was a lot of fun. One great part of owning a Ferrari is talking about them with enthusiasts, even better if the enthusiast is an owner. Kevin, the 360 owner I went on the wine country drive with brought his car over today. The original purpose of the visit was to get Kevin’s opinion of the benefit of refreshing my seats with Leatherique. Kevin had treated the seats on his 360 and the results were remarkable. After looking at his seats I think I will take the time to remove mine and treat them.

The seats in my car are in pretty good shape but the leather is not as soft as I feel it should be. The leather on the seats in Kevin’s car are very soft, buttery. If I can achieve that same result I will be happy. I think I may try it after our Walla Walla trip.

Kevin has been giving me a bad time about how dingy the shift knob on my 355 is and brought some polish so we fixed the dingy shift knob, it looks much better polished. I now have the Dansk micro fiber polishing cloth that came with the exhaust for my C2 in the glove box for the 355.

I must say, there are few cars more classically beautiful than a red Ferrari 360 with a tan interior. Kevin’s car had me thinking about my next Ferrari before he had it parked in the driveway. I have not had a chance to drive a 360 since I have owned the 355 and Kevin had not driven a 355 so a trade was in order. I enjoy sharing the car with friends. It gives me a new perspective on the car and allow a friend to have some fun. Listening to Kevin compare the 355 to his 360 was fun and informative.

A 360 can absolutely be my next Ferrari. The car is beautiful to drive. You can feel the ethic that created the 355 in the 360. It’s refined, it’s bigger, more comfortable, but the ethic is the same. The steering in the 360 is a bit heavier but more direct and positive. I must admit I like the throttle response in my 355 better but the seating position in the 360 is far more comfortable for someone my size.

Finally, how do you beat driving a red Ferrari on a sunny afternoon? I am sure there are ways but they may be illegal.

What will 70K get you these days?

Are Ferrari prices in the US experiencing a weak point, coordinating with the rest of our economy? I am not sure but it seems the asking pricing for marginal cars has sunk. For me this is a mixed blessing. If it turns out my car has suffered significant depreciation I will hold on to it. I am not saying my car is marginal. I think it is fantastic an excellent example of a 355 with a great color combo, but it’s not red, black, or yellow.

I could trade it on another Ferrari which has suffered similar depreciation or greater depreciation and hope to recoup the value when/if prices rise in the future. I don’t think I would opt for this route. I think the car I have is about as good as inexpensive, modern Ferraris get. I wouldn’t mind a late 60s 330 but even rough cars are a big trade up.

This got me to thinking. What does $70K buy today? Here are some options. Prices represented are asking price.

Here is option #1 2004 Porsche 911 Turbo 996 x50 Cabriolet 36K Miles. It was fully loaded from the factory ordered in Basalt Black with the natural leather interior. Factory options were the $18,000 X50 horsepower upgrade, full light burl wood interior, full and supple leather, dual power seats with dual lumbar, heated seats, navigation, 6 disc cd changer, Bose premium sound, park distance and the burl wood shift knob and brake lever. 69,900

Here is option #2 2002 Bentley Arnage with 35,556 miles. 69,888

I think I will keep the 355.

June is Ferrari Month

June will be a good month for Ferrari stuff. I have two track days planned and the road trip to Walla Walla with the Ferrari Club. I might add a trip to the Portland Historic Races. The Ferrari Club, as do most car clubs, has an opportunity to get in for all three days of the event and do parade laps. I think my daughters would enjoy going around the track and a parade lap seems the best (safest) way to accomplish it.

I went to RTGT on Tuesday night to watch the Monaco Gran Prix. Fantastic race. Watching F1 cars navigate a circuit like Monaco in the wet with no traction control really showcases the skill and finesse of the drivers. While I was there Steve (a RTGT guy) told me their track day was coming up and asked if I wanted to reserve a spot. I dithered then told him to count me in. Why dither? Well I already had a track day planed on June plus the road trip and possible Historic Race. A potential overload of Ferrari stuff. Why not go? I bounce back and forth between keeping the car and selling it. The opportunity to attend the Ferrari of Portland track day is a great one. Sounds like they put on an excellent event and provide driving coaches to each attendant, I know I can use some more driver training. Having two sessions of coaching before my solo drive at the GPI track day can only be good.

I plan to film this track day and compare my speed, line, and composure to my first track session.

While at RTGT I noticed this car. I had seen it there before. In my eyes this is one of the most beautiful Ferrari’s. Subtle and sophisticated. I love the color, both interior and exterior. My Porsche has a blue interior. At first I did not like it so much. Now I think it is fantastic.

Do Ferrari Owners Wave?

Do Ferrari drivers wave to other Ferrari drivers when they pass on the road? When I bought my Porsche I realized that other Porsche owners waved. Not all of them, only 911 owners and only the air cooled 911s at that. Sure a 997 owner or Cayman owner will wave every now and then but if an air cooled car goes by a wave is almost guaranteed.

I was running an errand on Saturday and crossed paths with a 430 Spyder on Humphrey. I waved he did not. Now he may not have seen me or noticed the 355. He was doing his best Schumacher impression and had that I am in the zone look. Maybe Ferrari owners only wave at similarly numbered cars and the owner of the 430 did not want to be reminded of the humbler DNA in the Ferrari family.

My Car's Spanish Twin

Found this picture online. The 348 is for sale in Spain. The 355 in the background is the first I have seen with the same color combo as my car.

No more SLOW DOWN light

The Ferrari was finished on Thursday but I did not have a chance to pick it up until Friday. When I dropped the car off and described the “SLOW DOWN” light activity I was having the service manager recommended replacing all the ECUs that monitor the temperature in the catalytic converters. He was unsure of the price, thought they were around $600 each. I said to go ahead and fix it. They were going to look through the codes on the computer and see if they shed any light on the problem and said they would call when they had three hours of labor into trying to fix the short.

I received a call Thursday around lunch time. They were unable to get the fuse to blow! No matter what they did the fuse was fine. We discussed the diagnosis I had done and the short I had experienced, and tested with my multimeter, and they decided to spend a bit more time tinkering with the car. The cat ECUs were the source of the “SLOW DOWN” light and they were replaced. Good news, they were only $305 a piece. About $20 cheaper than I could find online.
The car was finished that afternoon. They had found the cause of the short, a corroded connection, and fixed it. Unfortunately, I didn’t have an easy way to pick it up so they kept if for me overnight. Friday Barb gave me a ride down to pick the car up just after lunch time. It was raining gently, perfect Oregon spring day.

Total bill, 1372.23. They charged me for ½ hours time to diagnose and fix the short. Amazing. I probably spent 4 or 5 hours taking the car apart looking for the problem. I am glad I took the car to Tonkin for service. They took care of one service campaign which and not been done and checked the car for any other problems. Not only did they do a fantastic job but now the car is beginning its history with the local Ferrari dealer which I think will be a benefit when I go to sell it.

Please let me brag for just a moment. When I picked the car up one of the service managers commented that several people had remarked on the color and condition of the car and I should have no problem when I was ready to sell it.

I had no choice but to drive the car for the rest of the day. I could have taken it home but why? Tonkin had done a fantastic job cleaning the car. It looked better than when I bought it. Unfortunately, it was raining but the inside still looks great. Traffic was stop and go on the freeway back to the office. Steam coming off the engine caused the rear window to steam up on the outside. What a great car. I don’t want to sell it.

No longer a tourist

Until today I felt like a tourist in Ferraristan. I did not feel like an owner, a citizen. When I took the car to the dealership for service those feelings vanished. I am now a citizen of Ferraristan. I have voted, I’m committed, I drank the Kool-aid. Buying the car, taking it to the track, washing it, putting a new floor in my garage for it, none of these things made me feel like a Ferrari owner. Taking the car in for service, discussing it’s problems, being surrounded by other broken Ferraris, now I feel like an owner, now I feel like a worthy steward of my car. Silly, sure, but I am happy the car went in for service now it’s my car. With the next Ferrari, its going in for service within the first month weather it needs it or not.

A Perfect Road

Less than half a mile from my house is a magical road. Humphrey Boulevard hugs a wooded hillside as it twists and turns through the southwest hills of Portland. Several things conspire to make Humphrey what it is. Humphrey invites a brisk pace, one where you appreciate the elevation changes, turns, and bends. It’s not a road for driving fast. Go too fast and you risk missing the rhythm of the road. The pacing of the turns is brilliant, dictated by the land; some come quickly back to back others linked by gentle curves along the hillside. The pacing of the turns and changes of elevation have symphonic grace. Too fast and you miss it, wrapped up in going fast.

On Humphrey you can seldom see more than a few hundred feet down the road. Around some corners visibility is even less, down to twenty feet maybe less, your view blocked by the hillside. Short lines of sight conspire to make you feel like you are going fast. Glance at the speedometer and you realize 50 is really 30, adding to the magic.

At 1.6 miles long Humphrey casts a fleeting spell. But 1.6 miles is enough. It is an amount of road you can know. Each bit of uneven pavement, each dip, each hole. Greater length would not improve Humphrey. Mile after mile of perfect road decreases the potency, reducing its value, letting you take sections for granted knowing more will come.

To drive Humphrey in a topless sports car on a warm summer afternoon is as close to motoring bliss as I can imagine. Everything matters and everything is vivid. The exhaust echoes off the hillside, trees shade the road. Stone walls, lawns, driveways, then a hillside and steep drop off, a wooded section, an unexpected big house, more woods and steep drop off, two great back to back turns, then it’s over. I go out of my way to drive on this road. There are certain turns where I swear I can feel an infinitesimal amount of rubber shearing off my front tires, others when driven just right the weight shift from one side to the other plants the car perfectly for the exit. All this in second gear, under 30. Magic.

What is "Better"? Part 2

What makes one thing better than another? Are there attributes that are universally recognized as better? I have a car angle here, trust me. When I started my year with the car I wanted to understand and to the extent I could, catalog the things that combine to make a Ferrari a Ferrari. I want to take this a step forward I want to know how these things affect the goodness of the Ferrari.

This will sound strange. The car is in the shop today. As near as I can tell I did curse myself by writing “I don’t expect anything major to be wrong with the car and I hope I do not have to eat those words in two days” but only mildly. Here is the strange part. The expense of maintaining a Ferrari contributes to its Ferrariness. Expensive and relatively frequent, when compared to say a Porsche, repairs help make a Ferrari a Ferrari.

I understand why the car needs frequent service. It is not because it is poorly made. It is because it is a highly strung, tightly engineered wonder. Race cars need frequent service. A Ferrari is a slightly detuned race car with comfy seats and a leather dash. Why expect the engine to run for 100000 miles without a hitch?

Oddly enough I am totally happy to replace parts that have worn out after 27,000 miles of driving. Why, because Ferrari’s consistent and single minded focus on making an absolutely brilliant car requires it. While I am sure the engineers cut corners to keep costs down and reliability up I am happy with the balance they achieved.

Oddly enough high maintenance bills are part of what makes Ferraris better.

Is there a "right time" to buy a Ferrari?

Is there a “right time” to buy a Ferrari? I doubt this is universal but I think some times are more right than other. For instance, if I could have had the Ferrari I have now at age 18 or 20 that would have been pretty great. I was less practical, more interested in attracting attention, and more limber. Also, when I was 18 I was always driving somewhere and it was usually somewhere interesting. Now, drive to work, drop the kids off at school. Prius work. I bet the next “right” time for me to own a Ferrari is right after my youngest goes to college, a scant 10 years from now. Max will probably still be living with us but Barb and I will be able to get rid of at least one of our normal cars and I (or she or both) can have a Ferrari as an everyday driver. I am looking forward to that time.

Not that now is bad but I would really like to drive the car every day. Unfortunately, it is too impractical for my sensibilities to drive the girls to school in one car, drive home get the Ferrari, drive it to work, then drive home if I have to go visit a client.

I have been thinking about the next Ferrari. The one in between the daily driver and the 355. I am thinking about a 575 or a 612. The 612 will need to depreciate a bit more before I am comfortable spending that amount on a car but the 575s are getting into what if you squint you can call an acceptable price for a car.

Ferrari gets a spa day

The Ferrari goes in for service on Wednesday. Honestly, I had expected to make it through the year without having to take the car in. I am going to take the car to the dealership. I felt their response to being able to find the short better then GPIs. Might just be being sold, who knows. While the car is in they are going to look at the sensor on the catalytic converter, I think it is the one on the right side, to see if it is causing my intermittent “SLOW DOWN” light warnings. I don’t expect anything major to be wrong with the car and I hope I do not have to eat those words in two day.

I did not drive the car much over the weekend, only one trip to the store with my youngest. She kept saying “Dad, I think you are going too fast.” So if you were driving around Portland on Sunday afternoon and saw a Ferrari going below the speed limit, probably me.

The picture is of a car I saw parking in the lot in front of our office last week.

Not really in the club

Do you really join the club if you know you are going to sell your Ferrari after one year? Sadly, the answer is no. Sure, it looks like you are in the club. You have the car, the shoes, maybe a shirt and hat. You have a sticker for you Toyota that tells anyone who looks closely you are not an average commuter. But you are not in the club. You have only sipped the Kool-Aid.

That’s how I feel. I am getting the Ferrari experience, sure, but I am not a local. I have not burned the ship. With the next Ferrari I am going to burn the ship. While I might not keep if forever I want my next Ferrari to be a long term relationship, not a fling I know is going to end. Committing to selling the car in a year is a double edged sword. On one had the limited time helped convince Barb it was a good idea and made the car much easier to afford. The short time frame has motivated me to compress many fun activities into a short amount of time. On the other had it has kept me from becoming too attached to it and to the whole Ferrari lifestyle. I won’t buy a signed portrait of Enzo for the garage because he would not like to gaze upon our minivan.

Upgrading the Mistress's Lodging

A few months ago I wrote that a Ferrari was like a mistress you could keep in the garage. Well I was unhappy with the mistress’s accommodations. To tell the truth I had been unhappy with our garage even before the Ferrari brightened it up. Since I have had the car I have been reducing the amount of clutter and moving unused stuff to that attic or Goodwill. Still, too dark and dingy. I spend a good amount of time in the garage, tinkering with stuff, working out, or messing with the cars. Barb had been asking me what I wanted for my birthday. Honestly, I did not really want anything. I am pretty well taken care of but a new garage floor would be nice so there we go. About 480 commercial flooring tiles later and the garage is significantly less dingy.

Make beleive Ferrari worries

I am not ready to commit to a track only car. There, I said it. I think I will in the future but right now I don’t have the space for the car and trailer. Sure, I could put a lift in the garage and find a space for the trailer but I want some time and breathing room to focus on writing the book and getting the Ferrari sold. I also want a short motorsports break. Not a long one mind you, a short one. I would like to spend more time on my bike and if I had the track car I would feel obligated to take it to different events. While I am going to put it off for a few years I do believe a track car will be my next serious car.

While I would have denied it earlier I am now comfortable with admitting that recognition I have entered the middle of my life is at least partially responsible for my purchase of the Ferrari. I can say without equivocation that I will own another Ferrari and that purchase will not be motivated by my mortality. Also, the next Ferrari I buy I plan on keeping for more than one year. Sure, I will have to figure out how to pay for it and where to park it but I know I will have another.

Now, as I get close to parting with the car I am worrying, obsessively, about every odd noise, vibration, or weird smell. Real or imagined. Yesterday was my birthday and despite dodgy weather decided to drive the car to work. On the way home I imagined I smelled burning oil. Never mind that the engine is behind you in the Ferrari I was sure I was burning oil. No the car has never shed so much as a drip on my garage floor. No it has never smelled like oil before but I was already imagining how much it would cost to fix. I admit to having dual motivations here. One, getting a good price for the car. Two, keeping the car longer, who would buy a Ferrari with an oil leak? Sorry, hun have to keep it until I can get it fixed.

Got home, looked over the engine, sniffed it, looked under the car. No trace of oil.

I fit in the Radical

I sat in the Radical. My hips are too wide for the seat in the car but seats can be changed. It was exciting to sit in. To get in the car you remove the steering wheel, step over the sill and onto the seat. From there I suspended myself from the roll bar and slid my feet in. A tight fit to be sure but I fit.

The car seemed a bit rough. It is a race car after all but I have no feeling for how things should be priced. RTGT wants 26 and change for the car. Don’t know. I will think about this for a bit.

Track Car Plan as of 5/10//08

How about this as a plan, I sell the Ferrari, sell the Porsche and buy a track car. I am going to try that on for size. I have been thinking about what I really like to do with cars. Drive them. To really drive the Ferrari and to do it safely I will want to be on the track. But, it is a pretty expensive track car. Further, and I checked with my insurance provider just to be sure, I am uninsured when on the track. I spoke with my agent at length my policy has a clause that, and I will paraphrase, if your car is on a race track you are uninsured. If the car where parked on the track for a car show and someone backed into it I am not covered. Before you ask, no I am not covered if I am doing a driver’s education class if it is on the track.

I did not expect to be covered when driving on the track. But if I want to drive there 10 or more times per year I think it would be best to have a car which will not become a $70,000 Italian paper weight if I crash it. This is an unexpected, for me anyway, twist in my one year with a Ferrari experiment. Get a Ferrari, drive it around, drive it on the track, really like driving on the track, sell Ferrari and Porsche to get track car.

I am going to run down to Ron Tonkin today to see if I fit in the Radical R3 they have for sale. Not sure if this is the right choice. Curiously, I am not worried about selling the Ferrari. I am bothered by the idea of selling the Porsche. When you get right down to it the Porsche is the first real sports car I have owned. My search for the 911 lasted over one year and I bought the car as a birthday gift for myself. I imagined giving it to one of my daughters as a gift, not selling it.

Ferrari Road Tip - Step 1

I decided to go on the Walla Walla trip sponsored by the Ferrari Club. I have several reasons for deciding to go. First, my year is half over and if I spend the summer driving around Portland it will be the same thing over and over. Second, Barb and I have wanted to visit the Walla Walla wine country. Third, I think a road trip like this, over 600 miles, will give me some good stuff to write about. Fourth, there will be lots of other Ferraris there.

I thought the only hitch would be arranging babysitting for the weekend but Barb and I have over a month to get sitters in order. So, last night I called the host hotel.

“Hi I’d like to make a reservation for the 27th and 28th for the Ferrari Club event.”

“Let’s see. Their block of rooms are sold out and there are no other rooms available. Sorry, good bye.”

Ouch, the other hotel is the Holiday Inn Express. I have nothing against Holiday Inn Expresses. When I traveled for business I used to stay in them but it seems an inappropriate place to stay for a Ferrari Club weekend. I know that’s a bit snobby but there it is.

I decided to look for a bed and breakfast. All of them were sold out. With my tail between my legs I checked with the Holiday Inn. Sold out. What is going on in Walla Walla that makes it so popular?

I found one place with rooms. A yoga spa about seven miles outside of town. I hesitated a moment and when the screen refreshed one of the rooms had been booked. I grabbed my credit card and booked a room. When I told Barb thought it was perfect. I even agreed to try a yoga class with her. If anything the extra flexibility will help with getting in and out of the car.

So, my summer road trip is planned.

Rough Draft First 975 Words

This is my rough draft of the first 975 words of my book. I felt it was time to start taking my experiences from the loose format in this blog to a more organized format for the book.

Is it possible to buy a Ferrari, drive it for a year, and then sell it without spending a bucket of cash? When I asked folks in the know I got different answers. “The maintenance costs will eat you alive” some said. “If you can handle the purchase price, the price of admission, you will be fine” said others. I think it is possible and set out to try just such an experiment. I decided to buy a Ferrari.

That sounds simple enough but what if you are not wealthy? What if you have house payments, school tuition, and all the other expenses that go along with raising a family? What if I am wrong? What if buying and driving a Ferrari really does require copious amounts of money? Will I end up with a car needing an enormously expensive service to be worth a few thousand less than I bought it for? What if a grocery cart hits it? What if one of my kids crashes their scooter into it? I can think of a thousand reasons why buying a Ferrari could be a financially poor decision but I am going to do it anyway.

Why? That’s a great question. It turns out “Why did you buy this car?” is the best question people will ask. You get several “How fast will it go?” and “How much did it cost?” but “Why?” is the best question. The answer is complicated and will take a bit of explaining. Let me start with this. Although I am what most people would call a pretty serious auto enthusiast I have never driven a Ferrari. I have only owned one mildly interesting car. I did ride in a Ferrari when I was nine or ten, sat in a few as an adult but have never driven one.

At first I would swear this was not a mid life crisis, now I am not so sure. When a nearly forty father of three decides simultaneously to buy a Ferrari and write a book mid life crisis is a good bet. I am not sure which was first but about the same time I was deciding to buy a Ferrari Alex, my oldest daughter had realized Barb and I were going to die. I remember going through this phase as a child. I spent many evenings talking about my death with my then ten year old daughter. So a further coming to grips with my own mortality played a part in my decision. I bought a Ferrari because someday I will be dead and probably unable to buy and enjoy the car then.

I have wanted a Ferrari since I understood there were Ferraris. I vaguely remember going through a stage when I wanted a Lamborghini, when the Countach was introduced. I calculated how long it would take me to save the money to buy one. Since my dad paid me three dollars an hour and I only worked a few hours a week I would be almost 100 before I could afford the car. If I buy a car now I am well ahead of schedule.

I can clearly remember when I fellow brought a rosso corso, red at that time, 308 GT4 to our house offering to trade the car for one of the lots dad had for sale. The car sounded great. I have yet to hear a Ferrari that does not sound great but to a ten year old it was absolutely stirring. Dad let me come along on the test drive. GT4s have tiny back seats. Thirty years later I still remember the roads we went and where we made a u turn. I think I remember how the car smelled, a combination of gas and leather. Dad chose not to trade the lot for the car. He’s a car guy too. A good financial decision certainly but I am guessing we would have had a lot more fun with the Ferrari than the land.

I thought about this experience often as I was going through the process of purchasing a Ferrari. So, growing up with a parent who likes cars and being introduced to Ferraris at an early age is part of why.

Those are the easily understood reasons. When folks ask I usually give them a combination of the first two. I bought the car because you only live once and I was brought up appreciating them. The other reasons require too much time and effort to explain. I am buying a Ferrari to expand my horizons. To broaden the realm of what I believe I can do. It feels a bit strange to say I am buying a car to broaden what I think I can do but there it is. When I was younger I took for granted the idea that I was able to do whatever I wanted which included buying a Ferrari someday. Years later I looked around, I have bills, kids in school, a house payment, all that stuff and I had a much narrower idea of what was possible for me. So the Ferrari is prop in an effort to expand my horizons. Like climbing Everest or visiting a foreign country.

I am buying a Ferrari so I can write a book. When I tell other Ferrari owners this I get a weird look, you’re not really in the club, look. Understandably so, they might be right. I have wanted to write a book for several years. I have started twice but always ran out of story after twenty or so pages. Buying a Ferrari gives me something to write about. Why write a book? Probably mid life crisis and desire to expand my horizons. So buying a Ferrari allows me to cure two middle age crisis itches and two self improvement itches for the price of one.

Ferraris belong on tracks - last track day post

Ferraris belong on tracks.

The car was perfectly at home being wound up and thrown into corners. It felt right to have the car on the track where it feels out of place to drive around downtown or on the freeway. I would venture to say the car ran better when kept between 4 and 8 thousand RMPs during each session. I have talked to other Ferrari owners and mechanics and they echo this sentiment. The cars work better when run hard. Not abused but run hard.

I will take this a step further. I can understand people buying Ferraris as mobile works of art or status symbols but please, please, drive them on the track. It’s what they were made for. You bought the car you owe it to yourself to drive it on the track.

The “SLOW DOWN” light did come on once during my last session. It had been raining hard, the track was wet and it rained during the session. Not once during the dry sessions did the light come on. One reported cause of the “SLOW DOWN” light is moisture affecting the sensor read out. I am pretty sure this is the case with my car. Temperature gauges never went beyond normal. The light only came on when it was wet. None the less, when the car goes in to fix the short I am going to have them reseat the sensors.

I have been thinking more and more about the cost of owning the car. Might be because I am roughly half way through my one year. I had not estimated the amount of discretionary expense I would have. I did not have to buy any of the stuff I did or sign up for the track day but what would a Ferrari ownership experience be like without a track day or Ferrari driving shoes? Make a note, if you are thinking about getting one of these cars be prepared for some additional expenses. Helmets, track days, shoes, trinkets, club dues, etc.

Blown off the track by a Subaru

When I did my track day I was blow off the track by a Subaru. I could not keep up through the turns or one the straight. The guy in the Subie was a better driver and his car was faster than mine. The guy was flying. It was fun watching him go by. I was the slow half of the slowest car/driver combo on the track. I did not expect this. I expected to pass somebody. In the end everyone in my group passed me. I could make excuses, first time on the track, didn’t want to hurt the car. Truth is I am just not, yet, a good enough driver to get quickly around the track. Another truth, one which was driven home after driving the 911TT, the 355 is not super fast. Peace gentle reader. It is a super car. It is faster than any human deserves. Its way more car than I can handle. But there are plenty of faster cars available, many of which cost less than an engine out service for the Ferrari. What is funny is that it is harder to admit that there are faster cars than the 355 than there are better drivers than I.

In the experienced group there was a spec Miata. The car was flying through the turns. It was absolutely fantastic to watch the driver pick a perfect line and carry far more speed than I could through turns. I know I want a track car but I am no longer considering a 355 Challenge. Too much car for me. I think a Miata, old 911, 914/6, Subaru, or Evo would be great and more than enough car for what I want to do.

I forgot to factor the write off of the monthly payment into my analysis a few posts ago. As you know I used a line of credit against my house to pay for the car so I can write off the interest. It reduces my cost of money by about 40%. So my real cost for the car minus my discretionary stuff is $1930 or about $4000 for the year. I have another financial trick up my sleeve but I am not quite ready/willing to describe it.

By the way I am now able to take the Ferrari to any gas station that is convenient to fill it up. I have broken my dependence upon the station by my house. This is a good thing as I hope, pending spousal approval, to take the car on the Ferrari clubs Walla Walla wine country tour, and doubt I could make it on one tank.

Here is my ending thought. Why does my insurance not cover me when driving on the track, a controlled environment where I am 100% focused on driving but will cover me if I happen to wrap the car around a tree on the way home from work when I am distracted by talking on the phone while sending a text message? I wouldn’t do that but you get the point.

Ferrari - six month expense review

So part of my original thesis was I could buy a Ferrari and drive it for about a year without spending too much money. I was thinking about what I have spent so far. Cost of money has been about $1800, insurance about $600, gas $250. I have spent over $2100 on discretionary items. So only $2650 to have and operate the car for six months. Not bad. If I can end the year around $7,500 I think that’s ok. Sure, I have to worry about selling the car but I don’t expect to have trouble there. Currently, two people want to buy the car. Unfortunately, one is my dad another is a friend.

That said I bet I will make it through the year without spending too much on the car. Free, probably not, but close to it.

You cant just drive a Ferrari around

With summer almost here I am looking forward to having more frequent fun with the Ferrari. While I am no longer quite so squeamish about driving it in the rain I would rather drive it in the sun. More importantly, the kids are out of school. I won’t have the pleasure of dropping them off each morning. I will be able to drive the Ferrari. I plan on using the car as a daily driver for several weeks.

When I drive the car mundane places people say, “You can’t just drive a Ferrari around.” Why not? I know I complained about taking it to the grocery store but I am past that now. Why not just drive it around? Sure you risk scratching it or having some overzealous teenager rear end you but one year with a Ferrari you do not drive is not so interesting. It would be a lot cheaper to buy a big poster.

Anyway, this weekend I let a friend drive the car. This is an experience any Ferrari owner, or person who really likes their car, should have. Share the car with someone else. I know what I think about the car. It was interesting and gratifying to hear someone else, whose opinion I value, say the same. More importantly, if you like driving, driving a Ferrari is a wonderful experience, an experience which is almost as fun to share as it is to have.

Ferrari's are unique

If I were shorter I would be unable to sell this car. Driving it is a beautiful experience, like drinking a great wine.

The 911 turbo was not beautiful to drive. It was dead. Sure, its faster than the 355 and probably handles better but does faster matter? Does better handling matter? At this level of car faster and better handling are paper specifications. What matters is the driving experience. The Ferrari does if for me. The 911 did not. I will still own a 911TT but after the Ferrari it will be a distant second place. I think it is these same feelings which have kept me from being too excited about the Lambo. Great car, really fast, but not a Ferrari. It did not have the same ballet dancer, first growth, absolutely refined, designed by genius, not compromise, feeling the Ferrari does.

How about this. Instead of one year with a Ferrari I do a Ferrari a year?

More lessons

During the driving course I knew it was going to take more than one day for me to become as proficient a driver as I imagined I was. I am the kind of person who will obsess over the thousands of small elements which combine to make a lap around the track. I will analyze my performance, identify errors and find ways to correct them. I don’t want to become more proficient to take up racing. I don’t want to think about racing, for the next few years I have enough on my plate.

I do want to become more proficient in getting around the track. I was not as smooth or as fast as I had imagined. With one track day under my belt I now have an idea of where I am weak. Braking, turning, balancing the car, shifting, all need work. I am pretty good at picking the right line and going down the straights. Further, I now know the limits of my car are far higher than I imagined. I don’t know where they are just they are not where I thought.

So, more instruction. More focus on getting through transitions smoothly, more focus on getting around the corners quickly. I am going to promise myself to listen to Tony. When he says “get on the gas” I am going to get on the gas.

Change in subject. I have been thinking about some of my original reasons for buying the car. Specifically, my goal of stretching my horizons. I am not. I have grown too comfortable with the car. I did not expect the car to change who I am or what I felt was possible but to help push me out of my comfort zone. In a way the car is a physical manifestation of a desire to expand my horizons.

Keeping with an automotive theme. How has my reality changed if at the end of my year I sell my car and go back to driving the truck? I am having a hard time explaining what I mean. Think about weight lifting. For the past 10 years you have been bench pressing 200 pounds. One day you say, “I am tired of bench pressing 200 pounds, I want to bench press 300 pounds“ and you do it. Every day there after you bench press 300 pounds. What is lost when you return to 200? Shouldn’t you go to 400 or 500? Why go backwards. The car was part of effecting a change in my life. A change, a tiny component of, which was me, being able to drive whatever I wanted. I have not achieved this yet.

I am a timid driver

I know I am a conservative driver. I did not know how timid a driver I am. When explaining my experience of driving on the track and getting instruction from Tony many folks say, “You were worried about wrecking the car.” No, I was not worried about wrecking the car. On the track it never entered my mind that I might crash, go off the track, or hurt the car or myself in anyway. Other say, “You were out of your element, what did you expect?” Probably closer to the truth, but at heart I am a very timid, cautious driver.

I cheated and got away with it.

I cheated on the Ferrari today. I drove a 911(996) twin turbo. I think I will be able to get away with it since I drove our 911 cab to work today. All 911s smell the same.

If you like cars you must drive/own a Ferrari, a 911 TT, and a Lamborghini. I am sure there are others I will need to add to this list but as it stands now the big three are must haves.

I have been pondering the “what next” question and decided to take a look at a 911 turbo after watching one fly around the track. This is truly an impressive car. The acceleration made me seasick. It felt like my insides were all fighting, trying to see who could be first to get to the back seat. The car seemed to pull harder and harder as it accelerated and the turbos spooled up.
Certainly this 911 was faster than the Ferrari but it did not feel as refined and was not as engaging to drive. Brutish where the Ferrari is subtle and graceful. What I found interesting is when you are not on the gas the car was docile, quite and comfortable. I could drive it easily every day. Take the kids to school, pick of groceries. It masquerades as a Lexus.

While at Gran Prix I sat in a Lotus Exige. It took some considerable contortions but I was able to get into the car. The word car is wrong. Go cart with a sexy shell is probably more exact. Once you get in the thing there is plenty of room. I was worried I would be unable to get out without injuring myself or the car. I imagined they might have to melt several pounds of butter and shake me out.

I think I got away with it. When I got home I parked our Porsche in the garage and walked breezily by the Ferrari. Acting like nothing was up. Before I drive it next I will change clothes and shower.