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Things You Should Know Before Buying a Ferrari

You might have the money, but buying a Ferrari still might not be a good idea.

By Buddy BrownPublished 6 years ago 5 min read
Top Story - January 2018
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Saying that you drive a Ferrari automatically sounds like a brag, even if you are trying to sound humble about it. Then again, if you're driving a Ferrari, you're probably choosing to do so at least partially, for bragging rights.

But, is a Ferrari really a good car for you? Maybe, maybe not. It all depends on what you're looking for in a car and what you're expecting to do with it.

Believe it or not, there's a lot you don't know about buying a Ferrari until you've actually done it. We did the research to find out what it's like to be a Ferrari owner, and what we learned may shock you.

Buying a Ferrari automatically makes you part of a community.

Most people who drive Ferraris already can tell you that their cars come with a built-in community. Because it's such a rare car brand, most Ferrari drivers know one another—if only because it's so hard to actually find car dealerships and garages that cater to them.

Additionally, owning a Ferrari tends to be a good way to get invited to parties you wouldn't usually be able to access otherwise. For some reason, Ferrari owners tend to stick together on a social level too. Many are gearheads who view their cars as prized possessions.

Since the cars do come with a community, seeing someone buying a Ferrari for the first time is a rarity. According to Autocar, the majority of Ferrari owners are repeat customers simply due to the community effect owning one of these cars has.

Unlike other supercar brands, it IS possible to find a used Ferrari.

Good news for people who have been wanting to get their hands on a Ferrari but can't really handle brand-new pricing. A typical used Ferrari will still be pricey, but you'll definitely have an easier time buying a Ferrari that's used than buying a McLaren that's used.

Wondering how much it costs? Budget hunters should expect to shell out around $70,000 for a used Ferrari. That being said, some Ferrari models can still cost upwards of $1 million—especially if they're from a line of the best supercars on the market.

Just because you're buying a Ferrari doesn't mean you can drop your main car.

Here's one major pain point that people might not tell you about Ferraris: they're almost never the main car of the driver who owns them. Most Ferrari drivers don't take their cars out for more than 5,000 miles per year.

In other words, if you were hoping to make this a commuter car, you probably shouldn't. Ferraris are really not good for daily driving and are major gas guzzlers.

Besides, insuring a Ferrari for daily use isn't exactly fun, either. (Then again, insuring a sports car never really is.)

Driving a Ferrari means you'll end up getting a lot of speed, power, and sound.

The biggest reason why people enjoy buying a Ferrari is because of the speed. They're insanely popular muscle cars and sports cars known for having a powerful engine that tears up the pavement.

Even the most low-end Ferraris will end up offering a lot of power. If you're looking for a car that's easy to keep at the speed limit, you might want to try a more family-friendly Audi instead.

It's a thrill car, and driving it is all about fun.

Fun as it is, driving a Ferrari is expensive—and getting gas can get ugly.

With most Ferraris having anywhere from a V8 to a V12 engine, it's not surprising that buying a Ferrari comes with an implicit understanding that it's going to be a gas-guzzling vehicle. They also have really big gas tanks, too.

In other words, expect to feel a lot of pain at the pump and quickly learn why most Ferrari owners don't own a 'rari as their main cars. There's a good chance that you will end up wincing when (not if) someone askes you what the gas mileage is while you're filling up.

Did we mention people will approach you at the gas station? Oh, they will...

The attention you'll get is through the roof.

Here's the thing about Ferraris: they're meant to grab attention, and if you're buying a Ferrari, you already know that. It's the same with every high luxury car from Aston Martin to Bugatti.

What you may not realize is how much attention you're signing up for.

The attention you're getting is not just from women, or gearheads; it's from everyone, everywhere you go. People will point at your car, approach you, ask you questions, and even ask if they can sit in your car.

It can get really old, really quick.

Maintenance will become one of the biggest reasons you'll hate your car.

Few cars will be as pricey to keep up as a Ferrari, and that's one of the biggest reasons why buying a Ferrari isn't for everyone. A typical Ferrari oil change will cost anywhere from $200 to $800 a pop—and that's something you can expect to do once a year or so.

Burned a tire, need to patch it up? That's around $1600. Transmission? Belt service? Well, you didn't need a firstborn child, anyway. Yes, it's that bad.

Dealing with both minor and major services is brutally pricey, and to make matters even worse, you need to go to a Ferrari dealer in order to get it fixed.

Technically, you could go to a regular shop to fix a Ferrari—but that would make you virtually unable to resell your car.

Don't ask why, but Ferrari people will usually never consider buying a Ferrari that's been sent to a regular tire shop. It's weird, it's crazy, but that's just the way the car life is sometimes.

If you've ever owned a Ferrari, you already know this and probably now are wondering why you decided to stop at Pep Boys. Ferrari owners are very picky about cars.

Ferrari isn't just a car company, per se. They also have Ferrari shoes, Ferrari keychains, and yep, Ferrari watches, too. Aspiring Ferrari owners very well might actually try to impress an owner by showing them their gear.

To a point this means that buying a Ferrari will end up making you realize how many people wish they had that kind of money. Just, you know, try not to cringe when they do that.

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About the Creator

Buddy Brown

Detroit-born Buddy Brown is a 80s hair metal fan who loves cars, games, and sports. When he’s not drinking PBR while listening to Downtown Brown, he’s playing Grand Theft Auto or working on his El Camino.

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