Summary
- Buying a Ferrari comes with attention and admiration from car enthusiasts and strangers, but it may also attract unwanted attention and tire you out.
- Ferraris are not practical as daily drivers due to their low ride, stiff suspension, and lack of comfort. They also require careful maneuvering and can be difficult to enter and exit.
- Maintenance costs are also high, especially for older models prone to reliability issues.
Buying and owning a Ferrari isn’t for the faint of heart. It can be unnecessarily complicated and infuriatingly frustrating. Jay Leno, one of the world’s most famous automotive enthusiasts, doesn’t own a Ferrari simply because the requirements are too stringent. For instance, you can’t just walk into a dealership and drive out in a new Ferrari. The company has to vet you; even if you pass the vetting process, the manufacturer prioritizes existing owners.
Wealth doesn’t matter to the company. Collector Robert Herjavec said Ferrari values loyalty to the brand above everything else. You don’t buy a Ferrari; the company chooses to sell you one. If you get lucky and become a first-time owner, there are a few things you need to know about owning and living with the Italian exotic. Here are 10 things to expect as a first-time Ferrari owner.
We've looked up data from a number of reliable sources including Hotcars, Edmunds, NHTSA and Hagerty to put this list together.
10 You Will Attract Plenty of Attention
Many people consider Ferraris supercar royalty. The Ferrari crown is conspicuous and alluring, attracting car enthusiasts and people who know little about cars. If you drive, say, a bright red Ford Raptor, a spectacular machine in its own right, you will get some attention. The few people who may approach you at gas stations will probably be fellow enthusiasts looking to know more about the car.
The situation changes when you drive a burgundy Ferrari. Cars on the freeway will hustle to get close to view the vehicle or to give you a thumbs up. Ferraris are attention magnets; everyone will want to get a look. Some will want to ask you questions about the car and about what you do. You may also get requests to rev the car.
Phone camera flashes will follow you and your car everywhere you go. It can be a nightmare for people who hate attention and a bonus for people who enjoy the limelight. However, no matter how much you enjoy the attention, the never-ending selfie requests, questions, and gawking eyes will tire you.
9 Ferraris Don’t Work Well As Daily Drivers
Most people with Ferraris have at least another car to use as a daily driver. These Italian supercars are optimized for performance, meaning they ride low, have stiff suspension systems, and have next-to-no visibility. These features hinder the use of Ferraris as daily drivers. Speed humps are a nightmare to negotiate, as you’ll probably scrape a section of the car’s floor. You might even damage your Ferrari when getting it onto your driveway.
Furthermore, the ride quality is atrocious. Performance and comfort are often inversely proportional: the more you tune the car for performance, the less comfortable it gets. After a five-hour road trip, a BMW 5 Series driver won’t object to two more hours of driving. You, however, in your Ferrari, will be begging for a rest and a back massage. Another issue with daily driving a Ferrari involves egress and ingress. The vehicle’s construction can complicate movement into and out of your Ferrari, especially if you are tall or built.
8 Your Ferrari May Not Be As Fast as Advertised
Shockingly, your Ferrari on your driveway may be slower than the manufacturer claims. In 2011, Chris Harris, a respected automotive journalist, outed the Italian car manufacturer for offering reviewers different cars from the ones they sell to people. Harris claimed that the press cars sent by Ferrari to journalists provide more performance than cars on sale.
He pointed out that the Ferrari 430 press car was two seconds (!) to 100 MPH than a customer car he tested. It was Harris's most striking example of performance manipulation by Ferrari. The Top Gear presenter said other reviewers knew of Ferrari’s conmanship but were reluctant to reveal anything because they feared reprisals from the manufacturer. Ferrari denied the allegations and banned Harris from buying or getting a loan car from the manufacturer.
7 Older Models Can Be Expensive To Maintain
Maintaining a Ferrari isn’t cheap. For new cars, you must change the oil every 6,000 miles or after a year, change the brake fluid after 12,500 miles, and service the engine every four years. Brake fluid and oil changes aren’t expensive - the oil change costs about $400. The major engine service, however, can cost you as much as $15,000. Eventually, you’ll wear out consumables - things like tires and brakes. Replacing them will cost you around $5,000.
Therefore, the costs of maintaining a new prancing horse are considerable but not that high. The situation changes when you buy an old Ferrari. If you’ve purchased a Ferrari made before the 360 Modena - cars like the Mondial and the 348 - you may have to pay plenty in maintenance costs. Most old Ferraris, which are often relatively cheap to purchase, suffer from reliability problems like leaking gaskets and faulty electronics.
6 Ferrari Bars Owners From Servicing Or Repairing Their Cars
While it isn’t illegal to service or repair your Ferrari, the manufacturer strongly advises against it. You risk voiding the warranty if you work on the car at home or install unauthorized parts. Only licensed dealers have the authority to work on the vehicle.
Saving on labor costs might motivate you to service or repair your vehicle at home. In doing so, you might enter the dreaded Ferrari blacklist. Once the manufacturer enters your name on the blacklist, you’ll have no means to purchase another one of its cars.
5 Some Ferrari Models Depreciate Fast
Buying a Ferrari can be an investment. For instance, people who bought the Ferrari 488 Pista, a vehicle tuned for track performance, own a car whose value is almost double the original MSRP. A new Pista in 2020 costs about $330,000; a lightly driven Pista in 2023 can cost as much as $625,000. The car’s value has increased by nearly 90 percent.
Conversely, buying a Ferrari can be a huge financial mistake - some depreciate rapidly. Owners of the FF can attest to this fact. In 2012, the car cost around $300,000; in 2023, you can get one for as low as $111,000. That car’s value has dropped by a massive 63%. You’ll likely lose money when reselling your Italian supercar.
4 Ferrari Might Prevent You From Reselling Your Car
There is some paperwork involved when buying an expensive supercar. Most of the time, you need not read the contract - it likely contains standard clauses you would find in any supercar sale contract. However, when purchasing a Ferrari, it’s essential to read the fine print: some purchase agreements bar the owner from reselling the car within the first year.
This stipulation is meant to prevent people from reselling limited Ferrari cars for profit. The manufacturer may also require you to notify them of a potential sale even after the expiry of the one-year period. It allows Ferrari to vet the prospective new owner of the car. Businessman Steve Wynn breached the contract by selling his LaFerrari before the one-year period expired. Ferrari retaliated by stripping him off his Ferrari dealership.
3 Models Sold After 2005 May Have a Brake Fluid Fault
In mid-2022, Ferrari recalled 23,555 models built after 2005 with a brake fluid fault. The affected vehicles had a defective brake fluid reservoir cap, which caused the creation of a vacuum in the tank. In some cars, it would cause a brake fluid leak. If unremedied, such a leak could cause partial or complete brake failure. The models affected included the California, FF, F12 TDF, and Portofino.
You wouldn’t want to have your Ferrari’s brakes give out on you when traveling at 120 MPH on a track day. Check your car on the NHTSA recalls site to see if it was among the recalled vehicles.
2 Ferrari May Sue You For Modifying Your Ferrari
You can modify your prancing horse as much as you like. However, you risk angering the execs at Maranello. The manufacturer usually bans people who modify their cars from purchasing another one, as it did with Justin Beiber. Sometimes, it sues the infringing party. Ferrari famously sued artist Deadmau5 for wrapping his Ferrari 458 in blue, adding custom badges, floor mats, and plates, and calling his creation the ‘Purarri’.
The suit forced Deadmau5 to remove the modifications. Displeased, he sold the 458 and bought a Lamborghini, which he modified similarly. Ferrari also sued racer Jean Blaton for modifying his F40 IMSA LM. The manufacturer opined that the car Blaton built was no longer a Ferrari and obliged him to remove the car's badges. Blaton was also banned from official Ferrari track days.
1 Ferraris Cost More To Insure Than An Average Car
Insurance for a Ferrari is typically higher than insurance for an average car. Finding a willing insurer for your vehicle might also be a tad challenging as some mainstream insurers don’t cover supercars. The best solution is choosing a specialty insurer covering antique, collector, and exotic cars.
The average annual cost of insuring a Ferrari is about $5,500. YouTuber and car reviewer Doug Demuro spent around $3,000 insuring his ten-year-old 430 for a year. The average cost of car insurance for full coverage is around $2,150.