I wouldn't buy a Ferrari unless I could really afford the maintenance. And then I wouldn't buy one from the 80's.

Is the driving experience "great" enough that it's worth $5 per mile?

I'd rather get an Elise / Exige / Boxster S (987) if on a budget.

If you had a bigger budget, 997 911.
If resale wasn't an issue, RUF Boxster S with the 3.8L engine swap.

 

10k is chump change for Ferrari. My friend's 360 accumulated around $22K of maint. and repairs in around 6 +/- months....not helped by the car stereo folks who burned the clutch.

 

Isn't 22k in 6 months a tad excessive and unusual?

I also know people who have blown 10K+ on their Porsches because they had lemons...

 

Perhaps, but you need to be prepared for such costs no matter what out-of-warranty car you own.

I can't see spending any money on a lemon, b/c if it's a lemon problems s/b discovered and fixed (or the car repurchased) within the warranty period.

 

I mean, I have the cash sitting around if it becomes 22k... I'd just rather not put myself in that situation.

And Ckit: Perhaps you've driven a lot of Ferraris (from the '80s included), but to me... yes... there is nothing like the sound/feel/experience of driving one.

I've been considering a 997... but my recent Porsche experience has left me less than confident that that would be a good decision either.

 

I think everyone is way off on maintenance cost differential between the 355 vs. 328. FWIW, my info comes mostly from being a longtime subscriber to Sports Car Market (fantastic magazine) and Forza.

The 355 has very high costs, whereas the 328 is cheap to maintain by Ferrari standards. You have to pull the engine out of the 355 to do pretty much anything. 360s are supposed to be cheaper to maintain, because the engine at least stays in the car for major service.

I say that as a huge fan of the 355 in general. In fact the only reason I'm not in one right now is the obscene maintenance. But then again, if it weren't for high running costs the purchase prices would prob be a lot higher.

A well-maintained 328 is supposed to be quite reliable, as it was the final manifestation of an engine design that had been around for a decade. You can find 328's with 100K+ miles out there-- good luck finding even an early 355 with more than 40K or so (that wasn't a rental).

Personally, I wouldn't get into an F-car without a substantial budget set aside for maintenance + repair. Find a documented, well-maintained example and then assume anywhere from $1.50-$3 per mile running costs, and then hope for the best.