It is hard to believe that the Ferrari 360 is now over 23 years old. Most non-car folk will look at the Ferrari 360 and consider it to be a brand new Ferrari, which is a testament to the design. The car has aged well and most people will be surprised to hear it is as old as it is. But when you look at the price the question is often asked, why is the Ferrari 360 so cheap?
Depreciation is the primary reason why the Ferrari 360 is so cheap, with the market not currently willing to pay higher prices compared to other models. There are underlying factors which are driving the market prices including the total number of units sold.
But if you are considering buying one, how the market discounts the price of the Ferrari 360 should not be something to worry about. After all, this is working in your favour and means you get more car for your money!
Mass-produced Ferrari
16,365 Ferrari 360s were sold in total over a six-year period, which may not sound like a lot but in Ferrari terms, this is a mass market Ferrari. 8,800 Ferrari 360 Modena (coupe) were sold, with a further 7,565 Spider (convertible) models manufactured. So for buyers, there is always plenty of choices. Simple economic demand and supply are driving the price, and luckily for buyers prices are relatively low.
Comparison to other Ferraris in the range
I say relatively because the Ferrari F355 is the model that preceded the Ferrari 360, and comparatively it is now more expensive to buy. The F355 is less usable and more temperamental, but it does have two key factors going for it.
Firstly, the Ferrari F355 is perhaps one of the most beautiful Ferraris ever made with scoops and curves in all the right places. The second factor in favour of the Ferrari F355 is the engine sound. It sounds epic and is solely down to the five-valves per cylinder engine design. Unique and not since repeated, the car sounds like a Formula 1 car on the road.
Similarly, the car that followed on from the Ferrari 360 was the Ferrari F430 which is more expensive than the 360. Not surprisingly you might say it would be more expensive since it’s newer, but this isn’t always the case. The Ferrari F430 is more refined, more reliable, and has the Enzo design DNA.
There are good reasons why the Ferrari F430 is more expensive but personally, I prefer the Ferrari 360 over the Ferrari F430. I think the design is cleaner, and don’t like that the Ferrari 430 is trying to be an Enzo. The Ferrari 360 Modena is just trying to be itself, and I like that.
Should you buy a Ferrari 360?
Before I give you the reasons why, I will say with caveats, yes. I love the Ferrari 360, particularly in coupe (Modena) form. Now let me give you the reasons why.
The Ferrari 360 Modena is a modern Ferrari, and the first Ferrari made completely from aluminium. The main benefit of an aluminium chassis and body are little or no rust issues, lightweight, and greater torsional strength. Whether you are looking to daily drive a Ferrari 360 or garage and keep it for special drives only, you will appreciate the aluminium build for sure.
The car can be driven every day if that’s what you want, unlike other Ferraris like an F355 for example. There are many examples of 360 Modena owners who still drive their cars every day, and the car manages that amazingly well.
But they can be temperamental and the hydraulic roof mechanisms are known to fail on the 360 Spider models. As you can imagine that is not just expensive to repair but also poses challenges. Taking the car to Ferrari to fix will be cripplingly expensive as they will just want to replace all related parts rather than repair anything.
In fact, thinking about it all daily driven Ferrari 360s I know with high miles are all coupes (Modena) models. I’m sure there are some Spiders out there with high miles, but of all the daily drivers I know, they are all coupe.
One factor which keeps coming up when considering the 360 is whether you buy a manual or F1 gearbox. The argument is that the manual is much better than the F1 transmission and so you should always buy the manual box. I consider this question to be a red herring for a few reasons.
At the time when new it was a given that the F1 box was better than the manual. Manual was seen as dated and old, and so the world went F1. The issue only arose when dual-clutch transmissions were released and everyone compared the early F1 boxes to the new dual-clutch. In comparison the early F1 boxes are slower, but then a Ferrari 458 Italia with dual-clutch is twice the price. You’ll need to ask yourself how big is your budget.
Manual transmission Ferrari 360s are now commanding a premium over the F1 boxes. Is it worth it? Well personally for me it would depend on how close the price was to the Ferrari 458, which in my opinion is one of the best modern Ferraris made. Between the two, I would take the Ferrari 458 Italia any day.
But buyers should bear in mind these are not cheap cars to run. Buyers make this mistake with used Ferraris and Bentleys alike and think the maintenance costs will be lower now the car has depreciated. It’s a common fallacy and buyers get caught out. Maintenance costs should be considered and based on the price of a new model, not the current market value. Parts are expensive and will continue to be so, no matter how far the car depreciates.
I once purchased a Ferrari 456M for around $25,000 and went on to spend $20,000 in parts costs! And my car was a running car in need of just a few “maintenance things”. If you want to hear more about my Ferrari 456M you can listen to the Podcast here: https://www.supercartribe.com/ep10-i-spent-20k-ferrari-456m-service-parts/
Just because you can buy it for $60,000 dollars does not mean it costs the same as a new BMW to maintain. The reality is you should multiply that maintenance cost by at least three. The good news though is through the science of Man Maths (I have a PhD), you can offset the maintenance cost against the lack of depreciation going forward!
So there you have it. If you have been sitting on the fence, hopefully we’ve pushed you towards ownership. Go on… You won’t regret it!
