355 servicing quandary

[andyleeds]

hi everyone,

i have got a quandary regarding the servicing on my 355.

its a 25k mile spider with FSH with a lot of stamps in the book and the last service was april 2015, when it also had the belts done.

i bought the car in feb 2016 and it it went into storage as at the time i had no where to keep it, i have just got it out of storage and is now sat in the garage, i would imagine that the most amount of miles that i will do between now and october when it will get put away again will be 500 miles.

the question is do i get it serviced now or do i wait till next spring? as two be honest i would rather spend the money on new tyres or something like that, but i want to make sure that there is no issue with the history when come to sell it as thats one of the reasons that i bought it.

i spoke to a mechanic at a well known ferrari inde and he said that to be honest on a car like this servicing every other year is fine on low mileages etc

cheers

[johnnyreggae]

To me every other year means two summers use and two winters standing not three of each so it should be done now before use based on April 15

[andyleeds]

i am inclined to agree, so if thats they case shall i do it now or september / october just before it gets its head down for the winter, as its only done 200 miles since its last service

the reaiity is that is actually just being one summers use in three years lol

[DarrenKMC]

Hi Andy,

Personally I think it should still be done every year regardless, there are ways to reduce the costs for the interim service slightly but the cost will be reflected when it comes to sell IMO and will certainly give any buyer greater confidence vs a car with gaps even when mileage is low.

In this instance also the last service was carried out prior to your ownership, so have you confidence the car is in perfect condition for a summers use?
There's no way of being sure items weren't advised verbally last time and left or there are issues lurking that aren't picked up on an MOT for example, even before considering the timeframe.

Get it done then get out and enjoy the car before the sun goes in! (Too late! )

[andyleeds]

i have had it checked over my a ferrari master tech and i have mot'd it, no issues on the MOT and the ferrari master tech said that its all in really good shape, so the only reason to get it done is to get the service book up to scratch, so i think that it will be done this year, just a question of whether to do it now or in 12 weeks time....

[Zoobeef]

So its not a full service history then.

[DarrenKMC]

andyleeds said:

i have had it checked over my a ferrari master tech and i have mot'd it, no issues on the MOT and the ferrari master tech said that its all in really good shape, so the only reason to get it done is to get the service book up to scratch, so i think that it will be done this year, just a question of whether to do it now or in 12 weeks time....

Ok so confidence in using it then. I'd still do it now, reducing that gap even by 12 weeks makes sense so far as the car's story goes: it wasn't done at the April 2yr anniversary as it was in storage, so you've had it done once out before the driving season is underway proper.

[andyleeds]

Zoobeef said:

So its not a full service history then.

i am not sure what you mean? its fully stamped up but its also being in storage for a bit of its life so its not every year (if thats what you mean by full history) but before i bought it i spoke to a couple of specialist and they said that every other year is fine in this respect as long as the mileage tallies up i.e. not moved on much, which it did so i bought it.

DarrenKMC said:

Ok so confidence in using it then. I'd still do it now, reducing that gap even by 12 weeks makes sense so far as the car's story goes: it wasn't done at the April 2yr anniversary as it was in storage, so you've had it done once out before the driving season is underway proper.

i agree i am going to just get it booked in now....

[MDL111]

well ... from my interpretation how people in the UK look at service history (and the UK is by far the most fickle market in Europe from what I have seen) you are late already. It should have been serviced last year in April and then again this year in April regardless of mileage/storage etc.

Does not matter a whole lot for driving the car, but with regards to realizing full value potential you should have full main dealer Ferrari service history incl every annual service (and every invoice, mot thingy etc)

[andyleeds]

MDL111 said:

well ... from my interpretation how people in the UK look at service history (and the UK is by far the most fickle market in Europe from what I have seen) you are late already. It should have been serviced last year in April and then again this year in April regardless of mileage/storage etc.

Does not matter a whole lot for driving the car, but with regards to realizing full value potential you should have full main dealer Ferrari service history incl every annual service (and every invoice, mot thingy etc)

yes it will be 8 weeks late whilst its being sat in the garage..... i am not going to lose much sleep over that lol

on the main dealer topic, although it will be main dealer, a lot of people would rather an inde who actually knows the model as some main dealers mechanics wont have much experience with a 20 year old ferrari......

Edited by andyleeds on Thursday 8th June 17:10

[EpsomJames]

andyleeds said:

MDL111 said:

well ... from my interpretation how people in the UK look at service history (and the UK is by far the most fickle market in Europe from what I have seen) you are late already. It should have been serviced last year in April and then again this year in April regardless of mileage/storage etc.

Does not matter a whole lot for driving the car, but with regards to realizing full value potential you should have full main dealer Ferrari service history incl every annual service (and every invoice, mot thingy etc)

yes it will be 8 weeks late whilst its being sat in the garage..... i am not going to lose much sleep over that lol

on the main dealer topic, although it will be main dealer, a lot of people would rather an inde who actually knows the model as some main dealers mechanics wont have much experience with a 20 year old ferrari......

Edited by andyleeds on Thursday 8th June 17:10

Unfortunately MDL111 speaks the truth.

Last service you say was April 2015, so you are already 1 year and 8 weeks late to keep up the (perceived by UK) full service history, no matter what mileage was done.

To actually use the car it isn't likely to matter. But come sale time, get ready for some questions surrounding the gaps in history and you will (probably) be taking a hit on the value.

[andyleeds]

it didn't bother me when i bought it as it clearly hadn't being driven whilst in storage, and had being kept up with so well..... clearly wont be worth as much as one thats being driven 500 miles a year with 20, 19 stamps etc in the book but certainly no issues about why hasnt it being serviced? why the gaps?..... errr because it was in a specialist car storage ..... i guess thats why the dealers i spoke to said for these sort of cars doing that sort of mileage every other year is more than acceptable........

but hey ho each to their own

thanks for the input

[DarrenKMC]

Of course if it's now serviced every 12 months that gap will become less relevant as time goes by anyway, so long as it doesn't become the pattern which sadly it often does once that regular cycle is broken.

Another point entirely but it's mentioned above; this whole thing about dealers vs specialists for "older" cars is silly, all main dealers in the UK see alot of older cars and know them very well, they've been a constant presence not just reappeared after 15-20 years. OK perhaps not every member of the team is fluent on each model but they can manage that resource like any other business would.

When we start talking pre 1980's it becomes more of an issue for some dealers but certainly not when we're talking more recent than that, if anything there may come a time when the skillset goes the other way - all the ex-dealer trained guys who now work as independents aren't up to date on the newer cars, or at least only through learning on the job not factory backed training or with access to technical data etc.

[andyleeds]

DarrenKMC said:

Another point entirely but it's mentioned above; this whole thing about dealers vs specialists for "older" cars is silly, all main dealers in the UK see alot of older cars and know them very well, they've been a constant presence not just reappeared after 15-20 years. OK perhaps not every member of the team is fluent on each model but they can manage that resource like any other business would.

When we start talking pre 1980's it becomes more of an issue for some dealers but certainly not when we're talking more recent than that, if anything there may come a time when the skillset goes the other way - all the ex-dealer trained guys who now work as independents aren't up to date on the newer cars, or at least only through learning on the job not factory backed training or with access to technical data etc.

the guy who told me this is a friend who actually works in that side of a business for a main dealer, personally i saw a bit of this when i owned a 993 and the service definitely wasn't as good at a main dealer as specialist inde that stayed away from what at the time was the more modern stuff but i am sure there will be examples of both sides of the coin where ever you go

[DarrenKMC]

andyleeds said:

the guy who told me this is a friend who actually works in that side of a business for a main dealer, personally i saw a bit of this when i owned a 993 and the service definitely wasn't as good at a main dealer as specialist inde that stayed away from what at the time was the more modern stuff but i am sure there will be examples of both sides of the coin where ever you go

Agreed there are examples of it, and no doubt it is in fact true when you get to mainstream so I should clarify I'm talking specifically Ferrari here, much smaller market of course.
I'm not knocking specialists either, I know some great ones and in general they often provide a better personal experience; face to face with the business owner, same faces when you return each year that remember you etc etc.
I think that is perhaps the disconnect; the customer facing staff in dealers aren't always as knowledgeable, they develop/move on maybe, they don't have the same buy-in as a business owner, you can't always build that relationship and that reflects as a whole.

[MDL111]

given the car is more than 20 years old, you could also look into Classiche certification - that should have a positive effect re value (I seem to remember reading that it costs a mid-4-digit amount to do)

[andyleeds]

is that the thing where they make sure everything is standard and also of a certain level?

[MDL111]

andyleeds said:

is that the thing where they make sure everything is standard and also of a certain level?

yes along those lines - I have not looked into details as don't own a car old enough anymore, but recently saw it mentioned in a sales advert for a 550 and remembered it again when posting on here

[andyleeds]

cheers will check it out if nothing for curiosity.....

[355fiorano]

Classiche is good for older significant cars. I think its a waste of money for newer ones.
I am told that for newer cars with parts availability, if you pay the 4/5 k then they can mount a part for the certification and then take it off. The certification is only for the moment it is given so a car that has had this done does not mean when you come to sell, the car is as it was in when it was certified. Unless it was checked again there is no way to really know so I certainly would not pay extra to get a modern Classiche certified car. I'd get it PPI'd by a good independent