Chapter 11 - A Mistress You Keep in the Garage

A mistress you keep in the garage


Winter in Oregon is a cruel time to own a Ferrari. Before the car was mine I assumed I would drive it almost every day. Now the idea of driving it in bad weather has gone out the window. I know it won’t melt, I know nothing bad will happen but I have become uncomfortable with the idea of the car getting dirty.

I was not alone in not wanting to drive my Ferrari in the rain. Most of the folks I met who owned Ferraris, exotics, or other unique cars were loath to drive them in wet weather. Some keep their cars so clean that I understand their not wanting to drive in the rain due to the amount of effort necessary to return the car to such a state after a rainy drive. Most of them are like me, their cars are not that clean but they could not provide a good reason why they don’t want to drive in the rain. They just don’t. As a result the Ferrari sat in the garage for weeks at a stretch. On the few days when there was a chance of dry roads I always had errands at work which prohibited the use of the car.

There was another reason I did not drive the car. In hindsight it was a silly reason. I was scared I might damage it. That it would get a door ding or a paint chip. I rationalized my fear by saying “It’s a Ferrari. No one drives them in the winter.” If I could do it over I would drive the car all the time. What good is it to spend one year with a Ferrari in my garage?

Since I was not driving it I decided to spend time fixing small cosmetic flaws and buying the Ferrari trinkets. It is possible to spend the gross domestic product of Tokelau on a Ferrari. Not including the purchase price. If you include the purchase price and a track day or two you would have Tokelau’s Head of State, Queen Elizabeth, at the time this book was written, visiting the World Bank for a loan.

My spending on the Ferrari began innocently enough. I bought it some jewelry. I spent $41.00, plus $8.00 shipping, on four valve caps for a car I was afraid to drive. I knew it was absurd but I didn’t care. I knew $41.00 Ferrari valve caps will not make the car faster, handle better or look substantially different but I was developing a concrete vision of what the Ferrari needed to be and small details were important.

As valve caps go they were pretty nice. They were chrome with little yellow and black Ferrari logos. A small hex head bolt on the side locks them in place. They will not end up gracing a bike messenger’s fixie without putting up a fight. After I bought them they sat in my desk drawer for over one year. I thought I would only use them for special occasions. Special occasions? They are not cufflinks, they are valve caps.

There were a few other items on the Ferrari which were inconsistent with its overall condition. The first out of place bit I decided to tackle was the Ferrari badge on the engine cover. The badge is held in place by compression fittings on two pins which poke through the engine cover and had pulled up slightly on the right side. I thought one of the compression fittings had worn out or broken. It would be an easy task to replace the compression fitting if there were not a wire screen attached to the underside of the engine cover. I suppose the screen keeps leaves, birds, and small mammals from falling through the slats in the engine cover and into the engine. The screen is attached in several places and is about two inches below the engine cover. The screen made a simple repair significantly more complicated.

To replace the compression fitting I would have to remove the screen. Not hard but time consuming and risky since the screen looks like it would bend easily. Purchasing a new compression fitting would only set me back $1.95 but I don’t know how I can fit it in place without removing the screen. To replace the screen would cost $781.85 so I opted to leave it in place.

The engine cover is unlatched by pulling a handle between the driver’s seat and the door. The cover is amazing light for such a big piece of metal. It feels like it is made of balsa wood. With the cover open and my shop light blazing I could see that the compression fitting had not failed but had slipped down the pin about 1/6 of an inch. That should be easy to fix. I took a screwdriver and gently pushed the fitting back up the pin while holding the badge in place. It held. Total time to fix this problem, about three minutes.

I am a tinkerer. Like most tinkerers I am better at taking things apart than putting them back together. I am well aware of this but with the best of intentions I still take things apart. Buoyed by my success with the badge I decide to take on the trim around the ash tray. One of the nice things about mostly handmade cars is they are easy to take apart. By removing the part of the ash tray where one would put ashes a Phillips head screw was exposed. Remove the screw and the ashtray/lighter module came out. With ashtray module out of the way the electronic mirror remote and the climate control module can also be removed.

I placed a towel on the garage floor and soon had a small pile of Ferrari pieces arranged on it. It did not look good. What would Barb say if she walked into the garage? It would have been difficult to explain why, after nine days of ownership, I had taken the Ferrari apart. Luckily my tinkering went undetected.

The interior of the 355 is a combination of leather, aluminum, wool, and silly putty. I expect when the car was new the silly putty was plastic covered with a coating which gave it a matte finish. Now it is black silly putty.

The ashtray is covered with silly putty. When compared to the steering wheel column or the door handles the ash tray was in great shape, but it had cracked and a one inch long piece of the trim was missing. I noticed the crack when I test drove the car but at that time the piece of trim was just cracked not missing.

The missing piece was in the most likely place, between the passenger seat and the center console. Two drops of super glue fixed the trim but I discovered another crack in the frame of the lighter module that I was not sure how to fix. The crack was not visible but it caused the entire assembly to sit at a slight angle in the center console. I was going to have to replace the whole works if I wanted it to look perfect.

With the components of the center console out of the car I decided to remove the 10 years of dirt that had collected in various cracks and crevices. I took a cloth, dampened it with rain water, really, I did not have any Pelligrino handy and you don’t expect me to clean up a Ferrari with tap water.

After cleaning the interior I decided there were four trim pieces I wanted to replace. The ashtray/lighter module, the mirror control, the door handles, and the lower covering for the steering column. That sounds like a lot of components. Saying I want to replace all those parts makes it seem as if the car’s interior was in bad shape. It was not, the interior was in fine shape. However, it was not consistent with my vision of what the Ferrari should be.

A new ashtray for the Ferrari is $375, pretty steep, especially since I don’t smoke. Let’s say you wanted to replace the ashtray in your Toyota Matrix. $15.24. Your Lexus LS 430 $86.40. For $499 I can buy a complete motor for an Isuzu Pup.

I decided to buy the ashtray anyway.

On a lark I looked on eBay. Someone was selling a new ashtray for $149 with a “buy it now” price of $300. Worse case I save $75. I decided to risk it, live on the edge and not take the “buy it now” option. The auction closed on Friday morning at 6:05. I waited until 6:03 and put in a bid for $301. I won, spending $270 for the ashtray.

When the new ashtray arrived I decided to see if I could recoup some of the $270 by selling just the lid from the old ashtray. It sold to a guy in France. The new ashtray came in a nice yellow and black box that said “Ferrari Original Parts” all over it. To give the new owner a treat I put the lid in it. I took the box to the Post Office, filled out the customs sheet and went to pay.

“An ashtray?” asked the postman.

“Yes.”

“A $60 ashtray?”

“Yes, and what’s worse it is from a car and just the lid.”

“No kidding. And a guy in France wants it?”

“Yep.”

“What kind of car?”

“A Ferrari.”

“Don’t they have other Ferraris in France; did you sell it on line?”

“Yes.”

Then the postman gave me a high five.

“Way to go. $60 for an ashtray. Go figure.”

I noticed that the ashtray bins were being offered on ebay for $175. That is totally insane. It is about seven cents worth of plastic. Plastic that will turn to silly putty if you insult it or look at it wrong but I have an extra that no one has ever even said the word “smoke” around. It sold for $40.

While taking it apart was certainly fun there were things I wanted to do with the car which involved driving. Things I thought needed to be done to have a proper Ferrari owner’s experience. Before buying the car I made a list. Take the Ferrari on a road trip, take it to the track, and let my Father drive it.

In addition to the standard stuff I thought it would make interesting reading if I took the Ferrari on a fly fishing trip and used it for a ski day. Aside from the obvious issue of a Ferrari being the wrong tool for either excursion I clearly had not thought about the logistics. Where would I put my waders or skis? Using the Ferrari in this way appealed to me before I owned it because they seemed rebellious and anti typical Ferrari owner. With the car in my garage they seemed foolish.

Without a doubt the best part of my Ferrari experience, was driving the car on the track. Over the course of my year with the car I participated in three track days. I have had no driving instruction, other than self-inflicted learning opportunities, for over 25 years since Dad taught me to drive in a little yellow pickup. It was a Mazda or maybe a Datsun, I can’t remember which. We called it the Bumblebee. Any surface which was not already bondo was in the process of losing a battle with rust.

I was 13 and spending the summer with Dad in Hawaii, later that year my new found skills were put to a test when I drove my Grandmother’s farm truck 60 miles through the Missouri countryside. We were taking a rafting trip and needed a second car to ferry my uncle, cousin, and sister back up river to where we put in. At 13 I was the oldest of the kids and probably taller than my uncle so I drove the farm truck. Maryann and I drove behind my uncle so we would not get lost. The transmission on Grandma’s truck was not as forgiving as the Bumblebee’s. I ended up leaving the truck in second for the entire drive. This strategy got us home but irritated my uncle and most other drivers, especially when we were on the highway.

I miss cars like the Bumblebee. Cars where closing the door too hard will result in parts falling off. This truck had a garden hose in the engine bay. You could shift it with or without the clutch. There are not enough old junkers on the road these days.

Since that I learned most things the hard way, through experimentation. If you enter a corner too fast and hit brakes you usually exit the corner backwards and not in the line you would have chosen. If you are parked in tall dry grass, do not turn the car on and let it idle.

It took an incident, on Saturday February 16, 2008, to render with perfect clarity the fact that the Ferrari was more car than I was able to handle. Fortunately I did not hurt anyone learning this lesson. Unfortunately, I learned it leaving the Ferrari Club’s annual celebration of Enzo Ferrari’s birthday.

You read that right, no reason to review that last sentence.

All over the United States, possibly the world, Ferrari clubs gather to celebrate Enzo’s birthday. I joined the Ferrari Club of America during my search for the car. I wanted the opportunity to ask members questions about maintenance and gain insight into what to look for in a car. The Enzo dinner was the first local event of the year and as newbie member I thought it would be polite to attend and possibly provide some interesting people watching.

The Portland celebration took place at an Italian restaurant not far from our house. Before leaving Barb joked that she should wear tight white pants and a leopard print top. I did not know she had such an outfit and while I am sure she would have looked nice her comment shed some light on her expectations of Ferrari owners, or more specifically owner’s wives. I countered that it was the Ferrari club not the Camaro club then asked what her comment said about Ferrari owners and their wives.

“They like fast cars and fast women.”

“So… I own a Ferrari does that make you a fast woman?”

The dinner was fine, uneventful, but fine. It was exactly what one would expect of a dinner to celebrate the 16th anniversary of Ross Perot announcing he would run for president on the Larry King show except people were talking Ferraris not Perot.

No trophy wives, no outlandish outfits. No one danced on the tables. I was disappointed.

When dinner was over we dutifully sat in the parking lot letting the car warm up and then followed a black 430 out of the lot. The 430 took off with a significant amount of gusto. So that’s how you are supposed to leave Ferrari club events. I tried to follow his example. Before I knew what was happening we were facing back into the restaurant parking lot. Unfortunately, our path would have taken us over the curb, across some grass, through a low hedge and then into the lot. I over corrected and let off the gas, a combination which resulted in the Ferrari suddenly gaining traction and reorienting itself about 135 degrees to the left.

I had turned right out of the lot so I was now pointing across the street at the other curb, luckily the street was wide and there was no traffic. It is cliché to say time slowed down. Time was oblivious to my little stunt. What I do know was that while part of my brain was rapidly shouting commands to my hands and feet another part of my brain was considering how embarrassing it would be to re-enter a parking lot full of Ferraris through the shrubs and yet another part of my brain was calculating the cost of a new air dam, wheels, and alignment. Finally, a fourth part of my brain determining how to best explain all this to Bart, our insurance guy. For the parts of my brain not charged with coordinating hands and feet the incident seemed to take about five minutes not three or four seconds.

Smack dab in the middle of my pirouetting Barb calmly said, “I’m not looking.”

In those three or four seconds I learned something about the Ferrari. Make a mistake and it will kill me. Ferraris do not suffer fools lightly. The experience did more than convince me I needed some driving instruction prior to driving the car on a race track, it convinced me I needed some driving instruction right away.

Chapter 10 - A tourist in Ferristan

She asked Google “why men buy Ferraris”. It was Tuesday February 9 2009. I expect I was able to provide several different answers.


Tourist in Ferristan

In the nanosecond before I owned a Ferrari I was anticipating immortality. If not immortality at least better looks, a bigger brain, and a better tan. I was going to be a titan. I was sitting across from a smiling bald guy and had just lifted a pen from the last letter in my last name. I now owned a Ferrari. For an instant, just for an instant it was all there. Venezuelan expats who fix elections own Ferraris. Members of the Russian Duma crash Ferraris on the Promenade des Anglais with underwear models.

I was all of that.

For an instant. It did not last. No tan. No underwear models. Everything was the same.

There was a difference. I was now in debt and may have just acquired a beautiful rolling Italian liability. Guess what? No would know. It would be my secret. For almost everyone else I could have a suit case full of cash and be easing a member of the senate out of his seat.

It was Friday December 14th. I collected the car at 1:00. Picking up the car was not eventful. It was not anticlimactic. It was less than anticlimactic. I signed some papers and Joe handed me a set of keys. That was it. I walked over and sat in what was now my Ferrari. There was a splattering of oil on one of the rims from an old MG that had been parked perpendicular to it. As I turned the key I was nervous and excited but my overwhelming feeling was of disappointment. The search was over. This was my first Ferrari. This 355 was it. I was disappointed with the car. Disappointed I was not sitting in a 430 or Challenge Stradale. The 355 was a compromise. Nothing happened. The car did not start. I got out and asked one of the service guys. With the 355 and probably other Ferraris you have to use the remote to activate the starter. Two chirps and a turn of the key and the car came to life.

The disappointment did not last.

My first order of business had nothing to do with to do with fixing elections. I was going to pick Alex up from school. Alex climbed in, stuffed her giant parka in the passenger foot well and said, “Dad, this is a cool car.” Then, “Dad, that guy is taking our picture?”

I have only been to South Beach once and have never been to Monaco but I bet the experience of owning a Ferrari in Portland will be a substantially different from the experience had by owners in those hot beds of Ferraridom. I drove the car for about 45 minutes and stopped counting the number of times people took pictures. People honked, waved, and gave me thumbs up. I did not see another Ferrari on the drive home. I cannot remember the last time I saw a Ferrari driving around in Portland. If I were in South Beach I would see Ferraris every day. Portland, especially Portland in December is a fun place to drive Ferrari.

If the event of picking the car up lacked drama, the drive home made up for it. Less than five hours into Ferrari ownership I had my first maintenance scare. I had just left the freeway and was looking forward to my first drive on Humphrey when what appeared to be a warning light flickered briefly on the dash. It flashed on and off so quickly I was not sure it was a warning light at all, maybe it was the light from the car behind illuminating my dash. A few moments later and I was sure it was a warning light but it was so quick and infrequent I could not make out what it said.

My stomach sank. I was four and one half hours into Ferrari ownership and warning lights were flashing. When the light finally stayed on long enough for me to read it the words “SLOW DOWN” were illuminated in big letters. Slow down? I was going 35 miles per hour behind a minivan. Slow down? I can’t go much slower. What kind of a warning light says slow down? Was this some sort of joke?

Maybe the car was looking out for me. The temperature was hovering just above freezing and it was misting rain. Maybe the Ferrari had bonded with me and was worried I might get frisky on the wet pavement. All the other gauges look good – as far as I could tell I had only owned the thing for a few hours.

I followed the cars advice and slowed down. The “SLOW DOWN” light disappeared before I made it home. Perhaps I had gone slow enough to make it comfortable.

“SLOW DOWN” lights have nothing to do with bad weather or Ferraris’ care for their drivers. According to the owner’s manual the “SLOW DOWN” light illuminates when the exhaust temperature exceeds a certain threshold. If the light is blinking you drive slowly home and call a service center as soon as possible. If the light is solid you stop immediately and have the car towed to a service center. The warning is to keep you from ruining the engine by running it too hot.

That did not sound good.

I did not like that answer what so ever. Further research revealed the “SLOW DOWN” light can occur for a number of reasons, most caused by one of the many maintenance gremlins which haunt 355s. “SLOW DOWN” warnings are frequently caused by the connections between the sensor and the catalytic converter becoming corroded or if there is a bad connection at the ECU. Dampness may aggravate this problem. The car had performed flawlessly throughout the day and I doubt the drive from my office to my home warmed the engine beyond acceptable operating temperatures.

After considering all the possible causes I was no longer so worried. When I drove the car the following day the “SLOW DOWN” light did not reappear. Further I realized that the value of the experience was going too far exceed my estimated budget and if I do end up spending a bit on repairs fine. I had entered the honeymoon period. After every drive my appreciation for what a wonderful piece of machinery a Ferrari is grew. The chassis design, the engine, the aesthetics all wonderful, all with the exception of the climate control system. The climate control system was not wonderful. The Ferrari was fantastic but it was incredibly cold. Even with the heater turned all the way up I had to wear a jacket when driving it.

There was a reason. I discovered it while waiting in line at the DEQ to have the smog check done on the car. As I sat, idling in the Ferrari for a bit over one hour, during which time I used about 1/8th tank of gas and belched 84 pounds of green house gas into the atmosphere. There were a few hundred other cars doing the same. You can do the math. We were all waiting at the DEQ CLEAN AIR STATION. Waiting to have our vehicles emissions checked.

To keep Oregon’s air clean.

When it was finally my turn I pulled the car into the bay and climbed out. The DEQ guy plugged in the data cable. Nothing. No output. “Sorry” he said. “Take it back to the place you bought it. We can’t test it. Sorry about the wait.” Non parlo italiano. DEQ computers don’t speak Italian.

There was an upside. Sitting in line I learned how the heater works. Actually, (I strongly dislike starting sentences with “actually” but in this case feel it is the appropriate word) I learned how to turn the air conditioner off. To turn off the air conditioner in a Ferrari 355 simply push the button, located on the climate control panel in between the seats, labeled “STOP”. To turn the air conditioner back on push the “STOP” button again. I noticed the “STOP” button the first time I drove the car but had not worked up the courage to push it. Who knew what might happen? Sitting in line at the DEQ with the car in neutral and the parking brake on I pushed the “STOP” button. In about 5 seconds the windows fogged up. A freezing Ferrari became a sauna.

Learning to operate the climate control was not my only Ferrari ah ha for the day. When sitting perfectly still, with no forward motion what so ever, the Ferrari’s speedometer read 11MPH. I had pushed the “STOP” button during my first few minutes at the DEQ I now had almost one hour to ponder the optimistic speedometer reading.

My first guess was electrical malfunction. I did not remember the car reporting a speed which seemed high when moving,. 20 seemed like 20. 60 like 60. When I got home and parked the car I noticed that the tachometer did not drop to zero when the ignition was switched off. If you just had the gauges to go by you would assume that 500 RPM is the slowest the engine can ever turn and 11 MPH is the slowest the car can go.

I researched “Ferrari Speedometer Malfunction” on line. I posted questions on the Ferrari Club technical forum. Lots of people looked, no one answered. After two days with no responses I did the sensible thing. I used a shop light to illuminate my dash. You know the little pins on the speedometer and tachometer that keep the needle from going below zero? Well, below zero in a sensible car. On the Ferrari the pin stops the speedometer at 11 MPH and the tach at 500 RPM. Ferraris don’t just go to 11, they start at 11.

This episode taught me a valuable lesson in Ferrari ownership. If you want to enjoy owning a Ferrari don’t worry about the stuff which would be unacceptable in a Toyota. You have every right to expect a Toyota’s speedometer to start at zero and accurately record every increment of speed thereafter. In a Ferrari anything under 50 is irrelevant. The little things that make a Toyota great are lacking in a Ferrari. The big things that make a Ferrari great are lacking in a Toyota.

Chapter 9 - Stop Shopping

On Tuesday January 13 2009 someone asked “how to talk your wife into buying a ferrari”. That’s an excellent question. Good luck fellow traveler may your manifolds never crack.


Stop Shopping

Gran Prix asked for a check for the entire amount of the car. I wrote it. Joe said they would hold the check until Scott comes through with the loan then I will have a Ferrari and Gran Prix will have $71,000.

Later that day Joe called to say that Dick Guthrie had given the car “a thumbs up” and Gran Prix would trailer it to the paint shop. I used all of my negotiating powers to get Joe to throw a re-spray of the front bumper. It took several hours and I had to storm out of the dealership twice but he finally capitulated. Actually, he volunteered to have the bumper cover repainted saving me the expense of doing it later.

I called Dick to get the full measure of his opinion. He told me the car was in great shape and needed nothing. That was good news. Even better the car had the best compression Dick had seen in a 355. The only negative item he discovered were some scrapes on the undercarriage, maybe from a bit of off-roading in the car’s past.

I felt good about the car after the last test drive. This news made me feel even better, I was confident this was a good car. Based on what I learned during my search for a Ferrari I developed a theory about 355s and Ferraris in general. This theory is based on nothing more than my own observations and prejudices. As such it may be entirely worthless but as I have gone to the trouble to tell you other nearly worthless things I believe I should be consistent and throw this in too.

My theory is that there are milestones during the life of a Ferrari when the opportunity to purchase is more compelling. The first opportunity is when the car is new or nearly new. In a Ferrari nearly new means fewer than two thousand miles and only a year or two old. The only downside with a new or nearly new Ferrari is they often sell for over MSRP.

The second buying opportunity exists in the mid twenty thousand mile range for cars which have been well taken care of and had major service items completed. As I researched 355s I noticed that cars with very low miles sold at a premium. This does not make sense. I can understand why a newer Ferrari with a few thousand miles and a warranty would sell at a premium but the newest 355 will be of 1999 vintage and out of warranty. It seems to me that a 355 with fewer than twenty thousand miles comes with a fairly large maintenance liability. A bunch of critical items have not had a chance to break yet.

Cars with over twenty thousand miles often have had this work done but sell at a discount when compared to their less well traveled peers. If my math is right a car with lower miles and lacking the valve and manifold services will sell at a $15,000 premium over a higher mileage car but may require upwards of $20,000 in service. That is spread of over $35,000 for a car with ten thousand fewer miles, roughly half the price of the higher mileage car.

Take it or leave it, that’s my theory.

On Friday December 7, 2007 I had some free time and used it visiting ADT. Easier said than done. After two trips around the block I gave up driving, parked my truck, and started walking. On foot it did not take long to find Dick’s shop, the Ferraris parked inside gave it away.

I will do my best to give you a description of what I saw and heard after walking in. There was stuff everywhere. Interesting stuff, stuff best described as having lots of texture. If ADT were sandpaper it would be 40 grit. Ferraris, in various states of disassembly, classic motorcycles, and other interesting mechanical bits were piled everywhere. Some cars were hidden under covers. There was an old, partially restored Aston Martin and remote control airplanes, big ones, mostly models of World War II fighters hanging from the ceiling and stuffed onto shelves.

Classical music was playing loudly from speakers mounted atop the office space which had been carved out of one corner of the large, old commercial building which housed ATD. A heavyset fellow, dressed in shorts and a tee shirt, was arguing that the complexity of the universe and the difficulty human’s encounter when attempting to understand nothingness is compelling evidence for the existence of a higher power. He did not appear to be addressing anyone in particular.

ATD was one of the most wonderful places on the planet. It was perfect, I could live in here.

A woman came out of the office and introduced herself as Linda Guthrie.

“Are you David?”

“Yes”

“I had expected someone shorter. Tall people are disadvantaged when it comes to Ferrari ownership.”

“Uh, well I slouch a bit when I drive”

“Are you going to buy the car?”

“Yes, I bought it.”

“Congratulations, what a beautiful car. I like the contrast between the silver exterior and red interior. And 355s are such nice performing cars. Have you owned an exotic car before?”

“No, but I have a 911.” I said hopefully, but could see from Linda’s expression that my 911 does not count.

The fellow talking metaphysics decided it was time for him to leave, said good bye and wandered out. Almost simultaneously Dick emerged from the office. Dick was bigger than I am and so at an even greater disadvantage when it came to driving Ferraris. Dick asked if I bought the car and upon hearing my answer reassured me that I had made a good choice.

Our conversation switched to some of the cars in his shop. The Aston, whose restoration has been stalled for years as the owner decides on a paint color and the old red truck whose dash had repeatedly come in and out. Finally, I asked Dick how much I owed for the inspection.

“One hundred eighty dollars.”

“You said two fifty when we talked.”

“Well my memory’s not what it was. One eighty will be fine.”

While I hope my car does not have to visit them, I looked forward to the chance to talking with Linda and Dick again. Sadly this was not to be. Dick passed away shortly after I had the pleasure of meeting him.

Things seldom work out exactly how you planned.

The car left ATD on Thursday and went to the painters. I hoped that between the time at ATD and the painters I would be able to arrange financing and not have to dig into savings to cover the cost of the car. Scott had fast tracked my request and should have the money early next week. If possible I would like to pick the car up on Wednesday, one week after I bought it.

Everything was in order for the loan. Everything looked good. No skeletons in my closet. Scott had to attend a seminar in Portland on Tuesday so he was going to bring the paperwork Barb and I needed to sign.

Only two months ago I decided to buy a Ferrari and write a book. I had accomplished a good bit toward that goal; posted an on line journal of my progress, found a good car, and hopefully, found a way to purchase the car using little to none of my own money, and most importantly convinced Barb that buying a Ferrari is a good idea.

Did you know that banks are required to give you three days to think about what you have done after you sign papers for a loan so you can change your mind? I didn’t. Once I signed the loan papers Summit will not be able to apply the funds to my account for three days. I will not be able to give Gran Prix a check that will clear until Friday.

For about 10 minutes this was not a problem. Almost immediately after learning I had to wait three days for the money I received an email from Joe letting me know the painters were unhappy with the quality of the paint job on the bumper and decided to do it over. If I had the money for the car I would be disappointed but as I am not ready to pay for the car it was blessing, but only for 10 minutes. Hot on the heels of the “car is not ready” message was the “we accidentally cashed your check” message.

I called Barb and asked her to stop shopping.

Chapter 8 - I just bought a Ferrari

On Thursday October 9 2008 someone was led to my site by Goggling “how to build a model tar pit”.



I just bought a Ferrari!

It was anticlimactic.

One day after the test drive Joe called to ask what I wanted to do. He caught me sitting in my truck, stopped at a red light on Highway 30 in northwest Portland. I had decided to buy the car, even if I had to spend over $73,000. Even so I was still not ready to say yes. Close, but not ready. I bet many potential Ferrari owners become non-potential owners at this point. I was comfortable with the 355, both Barb and I liked it. It would make a great character in this story but I did not want to commit to buying it, was not ready to commit to buying it, sitting in my truck stopped at a red light.

30 Minutes later I emailed Joe and told him I did not want to get in a bidding war with a 12 year old and would pay $71,000 for the car. I then closed my email and did not look at my Blackberry for an hour. When I logged back in I had a message from Joe saying the car was mine.

Simple as that. It was Wednesday, December 5th 2007.

I am not sure what I expected. The rain to stop, maybe some theme music punctuated by an F1 motor howling in the background. I called Joe to start the process of getting the pre-purchase done. I then called Scott and told him I needed money as soon as possible. I had started to fill out the forms for the line of credit but stopped when the car was “sold” on ebay. I now have to hustle to get those done, to make matters worse Scott is going out of town for a few days.

That’s it.

I had just bought a Ferrari. I was sitting in my office. It was quiet. It was raining. No different than before.

I am not being truthful. I know exactly what I expected.

My expectation of my Ferrari purchase did not include rainy Oregon weather, email, or filling out forms. Frankly, my expectation for my Ferrari purchase did not include 355s.

This is tad embarrassing but this is what I expected.

After finding and negotiating the purchase a perfect F50, Silverstone with Bordeaux, from a Count who was a dear friend of Enzo’s I made arrangements to collect the car the Ferrari factory and enjoy a few days of great driving and wonderful food in Italy.

The flight to Italy was pleasant. I am a big guy but the 1st class seats were comfortable and accompanied with a never ending supply of cheese and champagne. Plus, the flight attendants were nice enough to bring warm towels every hour or so. I usually don’t travel well but getting to Italy was effortless. Even customs was easy, I got a laugh from the customs agent when I wrote, “To pick up my dream car” as my reason for entering the country.

This was our first time in Italy and I confess I was nervous about driving the Ferrari here. I don’t read Italian. There are were little cars, scooters, and motorcycles zipping chaotically around. After a full day of traveling I decided not to rush to see the car. I wanted to take a shower, a nap, and get a good meal.

We booked a room at the Giovanetto in Castelfranco Emilia, a small town just outside of Modena. It’s a quiet bed and breakfast, the beds have thick comforters and big down pillows. The room was painted a pale yellow. After a glass of wine and a plate of antipasti I slept well.

When I told other Ferrari owners I was picking the car up at the Factory and getting a tour they were incredulous. Why should I get a tour? I bought a used car. Sure, it’s an F50 but it was still used. The answer is simple. I bribed my local Ferrari dealer.

I was not taking any chances, how often will I get to go to Italy to pick up a F50? It did not take as much as you might expect. Tonkin arranged the sale and I made sure two cases of Barolo found their way into Steve’s hands. Admittedly they were 2001’s but I think it was well worth it. That was it, 24 bottles of wine and we are picking the car up at the Factory and getting a tour.

Barb and I arrived at the Factory at 11:00 am. I am glad we chose to wait and recover from the flight prior to seeing the car. We were met by an attractive tour guide, wearing red, who led us to the only F50 parked inside the main entrance. Sharing the courtyard with the F50 were two 430 Scuderias and a 599.

The F50 is essentially a formula one car with an extra seat and wearing a slinky dress. The car has a 4.7 liter V12 that produces 513 horsepower. The chassis is made of carbon fiber. If you look closely at the bodywork you can see the carbon fiber weave through the paint. Ferrari made only 349 F50s and our car is one of only a few which is not red. The car looked perfect in each of the 312 pictures I had been sent. It looks even better in person.

I hope the weather will stay dry as the F50 does not have a roof. That’s not entirely true. I made a commitment to being honest. The car does have a roof but it was stored in a rather large piece of luggage which arrived in Portland the day before Barb and I left for Italy.

I spent 20 minutes looking at it. Just staring. I didn’t touch it. I was afraid to get in, worried that doing so might cause me to wake from a dream. After a broken Italian/English conversation with our guide Barb learned we were going to have lunch before going on the tour. That was fine, I was hungry.

We went across the street from the Factory to Cavallino for lunch. The tour started at 1:00 so we had plenty of time for lunch. I have no photos to share. The rumors you hear about Ferrari not allowing cameras on the tour are true.

I can tell you that the Factory is amazing. The most memorable part of the tour was the Ferrari Classiche department. Classiche will restore older cars with original parts or build new “original” parts for the car. There were some beautiful cars undergoing restoration.

With lunch and the tour over it was time to drive the car. It was only now that we realized we couldn’t leave the Fiat in the parking lot across the street from the Factory. One of us gets to drive the Ferrari one of us would be stuck in the Punto.

Barb and I flipped a coin for it. She won. Jealously, I followed her back to the B&B to drop off the Fiat. For our first drive in the Ferrari we had mapped out on a driving tour which took us on some narrow country roads north of Castelfranco Emilia.

The weather was perfect, 70 degrees big clouds, blue sky, and beautiful Italian sun. This was the right place to pick up the car. The roads were barely wider than the Ferrari and twisted through farms and little villages. We nearly got stuck in one village when the road became too narrow for the car. The houses were built right up the road.

An old woman wearing a shawl poked her head out of her window and shook her fist at us. If she could have I bet she would have slammed her shutters. Admittedly the car is loud and the sound was amplified by the echo of the exhaust note off the houses. We made quite a scene backing out of her neighborhood in search of wider roads.

We had five days of this. Great roads, wonderful food, beautiful wine, and the Ferrari to enjoy in Italy. When we returned the car to the Factory I got to drive. I said good bye to the F50 and was back in the Fiat to the airport for the trip home. Tonkin arranged for the Factory to ship the car to Portland.

Of all our experiences one stands out as unforgettable and completely surreal. It was our third day and we planned a driving trip south to Monfestino, for no particular reason other than the roads looked nice on the map. Just outside of Pazzano di Sotto we turned right onto a small, narrow road. We had not gone more than 300 meters when the road was lined with attractive, young people, male and female, in underwear. They were standing about 10 feet apart. Some were standing at attention, some talking with their neighbors. Those at attention seemed annoyed by their chatty neighbors.

The underwear started off white, then as we progressed, now slowly, down the road the underwear started to gain some color, first light blue, then greens, the yellow, then orange, the last was red. Needless to say we were both confused until we saw several cameras mounted on a motorized rolling platform. I stopped and asked what was going on and a British guy told me they were filming a laundry soap commercial. He said they had 312 models in their underwear. I asked why they did not close the road. Why bother was his answer.

That is what I expected.

Chapter 7 - Barb drives a Ferrari

On March 29, 2009 someone mused about a “speedometer sitting at 10mph” What could that have to do with Ferraris?




Barb Drives a Ferrari

We have a tradition of making homemade pizza every Friday. We call it “Pizza Date.” We make the dough a day in advance and let it rise in the refrigerator. We use Italian bottled water. While I would never presume to say we have perfected pizza I would venture to say we make a pretty good pie. One of my plans for retirement includes opening a pizza restaurant in an interesting town and pursuing the perfect pizza.

Mom came over and after a slice of pizza and a glass of wine I asked if she would watch the kids Saturday morning so Barb and I could take a look at the 355.

It rained.

Not much chance of a test drive, I doubt Joe would worry about the car getting wet but I want to focus on the car not navigating a powerful sports car on slippery roads. It would certainly make for exciting reading but I don’t want a chapter describing my experience of losing control of the Ferrari and stuffing it into a muddy ditch while avoiding a family of ducks.

Rain or not Barb and I decided to take advantage of mom coming over and drove to Gran Prix. The folks at Gran Prix had been cleaned the 355 up. It looked much better.

Originally, silver was not high on my list. It seemed to me that silver was a non-color for a Ferrari. A color picked by someone unsure what color they wanted. Not flamboyant like yellow, classic like red, or menacing like black. Silver was an admission of indecision. This 355 is technically grigio titanio or titanium silver. The color has a liquid quality which does a nice job of highlighting the complex curves on the cars flanks.

Walking around the car I notice there is a spot in the interior where the leather does not quite cover a trim piece. The exposed bit of trim says much about the Ferrari. Ferrari’s goal was to craft a magical suspension and mate it to a fantastic V8 then cover the result with the thinnest veneer possible. It also suggests that quality control was not what it should have been.

Barb fit in the 355 better than I.

“I like it more than I thought I would.” Was all she said.

We are off to a good start.

Joe wants us to take it for a drive but you already know I am uncomfortable with that. While I plan on driving any car I buy in the rain I don’t think I can answer the questions I have about the car if I take it out in this weather. Further, I like to approach decisions carefully and Barb driving the car is a major step in any purchase. If she has not driven and approved of the car I will not buy it.

Yes, I am hiding behind Barb’s test drive, but by delaying the test drive I can postpone my decision and chew on it a bit longer. Joe is leaving on Sunday for a vacation and is gently pressuring us to put some money down or just buy the car. I’m not doing either. I don’t like extraneous deadlines influencing my decision making process and have not yet had the time to settle on this car. After all, it is the first 355 I have looked at and only the second Ferrari I have driven.

Before I decide to buy a Ferrari I want to look at others, talk with a Ferrari mechanic about the problems I can expect with a 355, 360, or 456, and find a shop to perform a pre-purchase inspection, PPI for short. Tonkin seems the obvious spot for the inspection but Gran Prix does not want the car going there as there is some bad blood between the two dealerships.

Turns out I was able to kill all three of those birds with one stone. A few days later, when searching for Ferraris online, I found a black 355 for sale just a few miles from my office.

I snuck out to take a look.

While the asking price is over $10,000 less, cosmetically the car was not in as nice of shape as the silver 355. I didn’t feel comfortable enough with the car to drive it. I had a hunch it would be pretty easy to spend $10,000 fixing cosmetic items on a Ferrari. Further, I suspect anyone who would neglect cosmetic issues would neglect mechanical issues as well.

The trip was not a total waste, after I explained my plan to the owner, he recommended I contact Dick Gutherie at ADT, an independent Ferrari shop, to do the pre-purchase inspection and serve as a resource to discuss Ferraris.

I called Dick when I got back to the office. He was wonderful to talk with. Of the cars on my list he liked the 456 the best, saying it was a wonderful car. Unfortunately, there are no 456s anywhere near me and I would like to limit my search to local cars to keep costs and complexity down. If I were searching for a rare Ferrari or had more specific requirements staying local would not be an option but as I am open to a number of models and color is not a sticking point I expect to be able to find a good car close to home.

While I hoped he would know the car, there are not that many 355s in town, Dick was unfamiliar with the 355 at Gran Prix but agreed to complete the PPI if I wanted to move forward with the purchase. He believed the most important component of the PPI on a 355 is a compression test to make sure the valves are in good shape. The PPI for the 355 will be about $250. He did not want to perform a PPI on a 360, too many electronic parts. He suggested I go to Tonkin for that. During our discussion he expressed some doubt regarding the long term reliability of the 360. His concern was the cars were still relatively young and have lots of complex parts that may or may not age well.

After talking with Dick and hoping for a sunny, or at least dry, day I scheduled another test drive. The night before the drive I decided to do a bit of homework, to be ready to wheel and deal with Joe if necessary. To check sales activity and recent prices on 355s I looked at completed eBay auctions. Yes, I know eBay is not a dependable source of pricing information for Ferraris. It’s a great venue for dealers or private sellers to get their car in front of a national audience but not an entirely viable tool for buying something as personal and complex as a Ferrari without seeing the car. I checked eBay to review the “Buy it now” prices of Ferraris. I think those prices are often more appropriate than bids from potential buyers.

Two 335s had sold recently, a yellow 1997 spider with 49,000 miles and a black 1997 spider with 24,000 miles. The yellow car went for $55,100 while the black car brought $60,000. There were several pictures of the yellow car and it looked to be in good shape but neither car had enough service history information to provide a good picture of its mechanical state.

After viewing the sold items I looked at the current crop of 355s for sale. The silver 355 from Gran Prix, the car I was supposed to drive the following day, was already bid up to $72,950, Gran Prix’s asking price. I planned to drive the car then make an offer in the high 60s, pending service history review and PPI.

I was frustrated.

Had a higher power dedicated itself to ensuring I never parked a Ferrari in my garage. Higher powers should have more important stuff to do.

There were two bidders chasing the 355. After reviewing their bids I felt better. The bid history was not consistent with what I would expect from someone with the intent to purchase a Ferrari, an Xbox and some video games. Huh? Seems like a big jump from Gran Theft Auto to a real life, full size, dents if you wreck it Ferrari.

Finally, I compared the price for the silver 355 to other cars currently for sale. The silver car is the most expensive 355 in terms of bidder activity on ebay. Based on the bid history, the other items the high bidder’s has sought, and the unusually high price relative to other cars I believe the bid is spurious. The higher power has pitted me against a pimply 12 year old in Peoria who at this very moment is bragging to his friends how he is buying a Ferrari.

I could be completely wrong. The bidder could be a local buyer, familiar with the car, who does not want to purchase directly from GP. The bidder could be someone who has always wanted a silver 355 with red interior and is willing to pay extra to get it. If either scenario was the case, I apologize. Please know I meant no harm. Enjoy the Xbox.

Spurious bid or not I was still frustrated and decided not to drive the car. If the ebay auction falls apart I can make an offer for the car. If the auction is successful I may have missed out on another car but there will be others and I will have some funny content for this book: Beaten to a Ferrari by an 8th grader.

I will know in three days.

I called Joe and told him I didn’t feel it was necessary to drive the car as they have already “sold” it for more than I am willing to pay.

“Come drive it anyway. No one is going to buy the car until you decide what you want to do.”

Flattering Joe. This is a tactic to get me back in the dealership and back in the car and I know it. It worked anyway. Minutes earlier I had resolved to let the auction run its course, to risk the opportunity to buy the car to see if the 12 year old was really a questing mid lifer. My internal critics were howling. “What are you doing? You just decided to stand on higher ground. Stay true to your decision.”

To placate my critics I thought, in my most reasonable inner voice, “I am not going to buy it or even place a bid. Barb and I are just going to drive it. It will give her a chance to drive a Ferrari. Where is the harm in that?” All the while the speaker (thinker?) was privately thinking “Tricked em. Now we can buy the car no matter what.”

How can one part of my brain conspire against other parts? How is it that at least some of these different parts seem aware of their skullmate’s intentions but are unable to resist his manipulation?

Did Joe know about this when he made his offer?

I assumed my test drives would take place on warm, sunny days. On the day of our second attempt at a test drive, it was raining lightly at our house. In Wilsonville the weather was worse; it was 37 degrees and trying to snow. It did not fit my mental image of what a Ferrari test drive should be.

The first car I noticed upon walking in was not the 355. It was a red 360 Challenge Stradale. It was the most impressive 360 and one of the most impressive Ferraris I had ever seen. If you are unfamiliar with the Challenge Stradale it is a performance oriented 360, as if ordinary 360s are not performance oriented enough.

Folks in the know call it a CS or just a Stradale. The Stradale is Ferrari distilled, a Ferrari with all the extraneous stuff boiled out. The interior has just the creature comforts needed to make the car bearable. The seats are a carbon fiber shells covered in Alcanthra. There is no carpet and not much trim. The floor and other guts of the car are exposed. There is a carbon fiber center console with a big red “START” button. Generally, I dislike the idea “START” buttons in road cars. “Start Buttons” seems silly, especially if you need a key in addition to the button, but I am going to give Ferrari some leeway in the case of the Stradale. Engine output is increased to 425 bhp and the more powerful motor is mated to an even faster F1 gear box.

Ferrari added some significant but unobtrusive aerodynamic modifications and a stiffer suspension to take full advantage of the power. This car is fantastic. With the exception of the $230,000 price tag this Ferrari would be perfect for my project.

The 355 was hiding behind the Stradale. Even with a big red bow on the roof it looked pedestrian and uninspired when compared to the Stradale. Barb and Joe were out first. After about 15 minutes she was back and it was my turn. “Easier to drive than our Porsche” was her only comment as we changed places.

Joe’s crew had found and fixed whatever had caused the odd noise coming from the engine. The car sounded great with no out of place or worrying noises what so ever. I told Joe I wanted to take a longer test drive to get to know the car better. Joe suggested a route with some nice stretches of road and good curves. As we were driving he mentioned there was a dip in the road where he became airborne with a fellow during a test drive in a 911 turbo. I kept the Ferrari on the ground.

The car performed flawlessly on the wet roads. It turns out that Ferrari’s have windshield wipers which work just like windshield wipers in regular cars. It did not leak, the glass did not fog up and the paint was not water soluble. During the drive I tested the clutch for slippage by putting the car in 6th at about 45 miles per hour and flooring it. The car accelerated smoothly as the RPMs rose.

Why was it OK to test drive a Ferrari in the rain this time when I did not think I would learn what I needed by driving the car in the rain last week? Don’t know. It might have had to do with the car being “sold” on ebay. It might have had to do with my realization that I wanted this car and if Barb did not drive it I would miss the chance to buy it.

This is the Ferrari I was going to buy. I knew it before the drive but never admitted it to myself (or you). The car has a solid service history with all the services documented in a binder. Also included is the original window sticker, pictures of the car being delivered and a receipt for a $250 model with a color scheme with matches the car ordered by the previous owner. The service history reveals that the valves were replaced during the 30,000 mile service which was performed about 3,000 miles ago. Unfortunately the model does not come with the car.

If I am going to buy this Ferrari or any Ferrari eventually I will have to make an offer. I hear myself telling Joe I would like to buy the car in the mid 60’s around $67,000. I was removed from this, like an out of body experience. Joe responded that he already has an ebay bid for $73,000 and they have high 60’s in the car. I countered by asking what they want for the car. Yes, I know that’s a dumb question but negotiating is not my strong suit. Closer to $73,000 was his reply.

On the drive down I had set my high offer at $67,000. I felt that if I could buy the car for $67,000 I would be getting a great deal and have a good chance of breaking even on the car. When I did not know the service history $67,000 gave me a bit of wiggle room. I now know the service is up to date but do not want to offer a higher bid without reflection and consultation with Barb. I told Joe I would be in touch and we left to pick up Max.

Chapter 6 - 355 Test Drive

“where is the door handle on a Ferrari 355?” This question was posed by someone on May 3, 2009. Don’t scoff. It is a pretty good question.


Ferrari 355 Test Drive

Nine days after driving the silver 360 I dropped by Gran Prix, and parked next to a slightly dirty 355. After I walked in Joe told me the red 360 was not there but suggested I take a look at the silver 355. As I said earlier, the 355 is a good looking car, old school when compared to the 360 but still an elegant and compact Ferrari. The car parked in front of Gran Prix is the older, smaller brother to the 360 I drove; even the color combo was the same, silver with a red and black interior. I didn’t loiter around the car for too long, I didn’t want to make the owner nervous.

There was a yellow 355 spider on the floor. I had yet to sit in a 355 and this seemed as good a time as any to see if I would fit. The door of a 355 has two large air intakes which take up most of the bottom half of the door. On the top half of the door there is only the key hole. No door handle is visible. Hmmm. I discreetly pushed on the key hole but that didn’t do anything. I don’t want to demonstrate my Ferrari rookiness by asking how to open the door but I could not figure out how to get in the car. The top was down, but I could not figure out what on the interior of the door constituted the latch either.

Joe saved me. He walked up and asked if I fit in the silver car.

“Don’t know I thought it was owned by someone wandering around the dealership.”

I didn’t add that I could not figure out how to open the door. Best to keep that bit to myself. When we walked back out I purposefully followed a few steps behind Joe so he would reach the car first. It worked. The door handle is tucked inside the top of the two air intakes. I had run my hand along the intake but the door handle is recessed and I missed it.

Gran Prix had just taken the car on trade. While I did not drive the red 360, I did get to drive a 355. From the second the motor started the different character of the car was apparent. 355s are less refined than 360s. It is a loud, rowdy little car. Joe reinforced the rowdy ethic by getting the car sideways in the dealership driveway. You could do the same thing in a 360 but it would seem out of character. The 355 is less refined in a good way.

Joe drove a few blocks then pulled over so we could switch places. I was more comfortable in the 355. Not physically, physically I was less comfortable but mentally, the 355 was not as intimidating as the 360. I suppose there are two reasons I am more comfortable. This was the second Ferrari I had driven and I knew I was not going to do anything foolish. When driving the 360 I was keenly aware of the price of the car. I did not want to shunt $140,000 worth of Ferrari into a ditch or have a piece of wayward piece of gravel put a divot in the windshield. The 355 is significantly less expensive and already had a small divot in the windshield.

At first, the sensations delivered driving the car reinforced the differences I felt from the passenger seat. The 360 is a bigger, broader, stiffer car. Where the 360 felt refined and elegant the 355 felt nimble and playful. The 360 felt as if it would bail me out if I got in over my head, the 355 felt as if it would joyfully get in over my head with little help once I got there.

With the exception of the gated shifter, everything about the car felt lighter than the corresponding component on the 360. Shifting the 360 was effortless. Shifting the 355 requires a firmer hand. In many ways the 355 is similar to my 911. It is analog where the 360 is digital.

After just a few moments the similarities between the cars began to shine through, there was the same feeling that all systems in the car were built to work together. That nothing was out of place. I take that back. There is one piece of the 355 which did seem out of place. The steering wheel. I liked the size and feel of the 360s steering wheel better. The 360’s steering wheel is a slightly smaller diameter than the 355s, making it easier to fit my legs under the wheel, and the air bag housing on the 360s wheel is much smaller. The 355’s steering wheel looks like the giant steering wheels found in early 90’s Mercedes.

Even though my test drive methodology prohibits fast driving my seat of the pants analysis suggests the 355 was not quite as quick as the 360. I bet it had to do with the 355’s slightly lower amount of torque. As Joe and I wound out through the country, on the same roads we used when test driving the 360, I was struck with the feeling that this car was more delicate than the 360. It did not seem delicate in the sense that it was fragile or going to fall apart but delicate in the sense that it had only the lightest touch on the road. I think the best way to describe the way the 355 feels on the road is that it is dancing. The car danced down the road.

In the 360 there was more of everything. More room, more dash, and more power. Well, maybe not everything. The 355’s massive steering wheel dwarfs the wheel in the 360. When driving the 360 the view out the front and through the rear view mirror constantly reinforced the sense that you are someplace special. The view from the 355 is more pedestrian. With the exception of the fantastic engine note coming from just behind my ear the car is less of an event to drive than the 360.

During the test drive I did have one bit of trouble. My feet are big and the foot box in the 355 is small. The one time I found myself with an open stretch of road in front of me and decided to give the car some gas I over revved the engine on the shift from 2nd to 3rd by about 3000 RPM. I couldn’t let off the throttle. My foot was stuck under a heater vent above the throttle. The RPMs immediately jumped to about 8000 and the bypass valve for the exhaust snapped opened. The car was shrieking, but coasting since I pushed the clutch back in the instant I realized there was a problem. It only took a second or two to free my foot but that is something to remember if I drive another 355. It would be inconvenient if that happened in traffic.

Back at the dealership I inspected the car more closely. It was clearly used, with some pitting of the paint on the air dam and a scratch here and there, but in nice shape. During the test drive I noticed an odd rattle coming from the motor that seemed to vary with RPM. I cannot afford to buy a Ferrari with any hidden problems and I am predisposed to fear the maintenance liability that I think 355s have, but Gran Prix’s mechanics have yet to give this car a once over so it is still on the list.

355s had been at the bottom of my list due to their history of maintenance problems but the car I drove started fine and with the exception of the rattle, ran like a champ. It did not seem like an unreliable car. Plus, 355s had depreciated to about ½ of their original sale price and should not depreciate much more over the course of the year.

The 355 seemed like a good deal.

This car might just satisfy my goals for “one year with a Ferrari” better than the 360. Why? It is less stuffy, less serious, costs a bunch less but is still obviously a Ferrari.

That said, I am one of those people who are attracted by bargains. Sometimes I feel compelled to buy stuff I don’t need just because it is a good deal. Away from the car I was not sure if I was attracted to the 355 because of the price or because it is a fantastic car. To compound matters after becoming so spun up about the 360 I am unsure if the 355 will satisfy my Ferrari desire. I needed a sounding board. Someone who would not call me a dork for wondering if a 355 is Ferrari enough. A call to cycling buddy and fellow car nut Brain Abers was in order.

Let me paraphrase our conversation.

“Brian got a question for you. Do you think my one year with a Ferrari idea has less value if I go with a 355 rather than a 360?”

“Well Box what are we talking about here? Are there any bad Ferraris?” Brian responds.

“No it’s not like it’s a Magnum PI car.” I say.

“And even a 308 is a Ferrari and is faster than most cars on the road”

At this point Brian’s cell phone lost its signal and our conversation ended. Brian answered my question. A 308, Testarossa, Mondial, or even 400 would be a fine car for the book. Any of the Ferraris I was considering were more than adequate and there were more pressing problems to deal with. I still had not found a home for our 911. I was pretty sure I could talk Barb into parking the minivan in the driveway for a few weeks but winter is well on its way and it would be unfair to ask her to load our kids and Max’s wheelchair, into the minivan in the rain. Thoughts of winter, rain, and snow lead to another question, is the beginning of winter the right time to buy a Ferrari? The car might be less expensive but there will be many days ahead when it will be impractical to drive. Plus, I will be selling it in the winter and need to remember that I should expect a slightly lower price as well.

I don’t want my book to be titled “One year with a Ferrari – How I turned a Supercar into a Messy Divorce in 365 Days” so attention to detail where both money and reducing the impact of this decision on Barb’s quality of life is concerned is important.

Back to storing the 911, if you live in Portland and want to store a boat, RV, or the pile of junk from your attic you are in luck. If you want to store a sports car you are out of luck. Some creativity was required. My Mom has extra space in her garage. Tempting but my sister’s Honda Del Sol had been abandoned there for months and ended up looking like a washboard after losing countless battles with door of Mom’s car.

It remains a mystery why Maryann abandoned the Del Sol. Originally, she left it at Mom’s house in California. After Mom moved to Portland the Del Sol followed like a lost pet you would read about in a gossip magazine in the check out isle at the grocery store. Miraculous little Del Sol reunited with owner in different state. “I don’t know how the little guy found us.” Overjoyed owner exclaims. Unfortunately, the little guy followed the wrong person. Maryann did not want Mom to sell the Del Sol but did not want it back either. I suggested we dissemble it one small piece at a time and send parts to Maryann. A shift knob one month, a hubcap the next. No one appreciated my plan.

This was all noise. Picking a good car, finding the space for it, buying it at the right time, at the right price and finding a way to pay for it were obstacles to overcome on my way to Ferrari ownership.

They were not big obstacles.

In hindsight all the obstacles I faced seem trivial but when faced with the prospect of doing something outside my comfort zone it was easy to slip from considering where to park the car to being consumed with the thought that buying a Ferrari was a bad decision, horrible waste of money, and would spell financial doom for our family. It was easy to become overwhelmed by the noise.

I decided not to buy a Ferrari several times during my searching for a car phase. It would be so much easier not to buy one, to give in to doubt, fear, and laziness and go back to doing what I had always done. I could always look at cars on line and I had now driven two Ferraris. These thoughts were my response to trying to do something new.

Do people come with a built in system of checks and balances or do we learn them as we grow? Sure, a cautious analysis risk is good for survival but why do I allow this analysis to spiral out of control and produce unwanted outcomes?

My perception of risk is not appropriate for my situation. My gauge for assessing risk is similar to that used by my parents when they were my age. Their situation was different than mine. They were divorced and struggling financially. Their parents lived through the depression and the stories of hardship they heard when growing up greatly colored their acceptance of risk.

When assessing a situation I tend to focus on the things that may go wrong. You know the old adage “Hope for the best, plan for the worst”? That sums up my approach. What a horrible way to approach life. Typically you get what you plan for not what you hope for.

Planning involves the creation a series of actionable steps which will bring about a desired result. There is nothing wrong with hoping for the best but hoping is not actionable. I think a better approach is hope for the best, plan for the best, and hedge against the worst. Not as catchy but a better way to manifest desired results.