What Is The Cheapest V12 Ferrari in the World Actually Like? Ferrari 550

The Ferrari 550 Maranello was a legendary return to form for Ferrari, bringing back the V12 front engine GT with huge success. It is now regarded as one of the finest and last of the manual Ferraris and has shot up in value.. this example however is very cheap.. why? and does it still drive well or is it hiding some serious problems?

A Spectacular V12 Ferrari 550 For Just £40K? Genius or Bankrupcy?

[grahamh]

So in the can't afford it, and he doesn't want to sell it anyway! Bit of a non story!

[JayEmmOnCars]

Fun Fact - the alloys WERE magnesium, but the originals cracked - so they were all replaced with aluminium ones. The original mag items are now considered unsafe, but unscrupulous sellers do try and sell them on

[pgr]

A ropey old Ferrari V12 is still a Ferrari V12 as per the owner's inclination to hold onto it.

[gnuttz]

Have to say i think it will be an absolute money pit.

[marcusott]

I'll tell you the same I told my best mate before he bought a Alfa Gulia GTAm
"if you need somebody to talk you out of it, you're talking to the wrong guy!"

[pereldh]

Paint fade is one thing, complete mismatch is another! :)
Ferrari 550 - how many times havent we looked & dreamt on the classifieds for one?

[JezUK]

I can't live without Air Con, and whilst I'm absolutely no expert, if I was told that AC would be circa £10k to fix I wouldn't be surprised.

[mmjackk]

I could listen to those wonderful gear box clicks all day.

[Lemma]

No such thing as a 'bargain' Fezzer, let alone a v12, mate! I ran a 456M GT (2002) for a few years - dream car, in my favourite Verde Zeltweg with an absolute dream of an engine (same as the 550 Maranello), which is bulletproof. Stuff you don't want to have to think about are 20 year replacement bits - one example can serve: quoted £2k for the 2 short pipes on the transmission oil cooler (didn't even know it had one! Got them fabricated for £500...); suspension (did you try the Sport flip switch - it made a huge difference!); don't talk about wiring (had back and forth with Maranello, who eventually admitted there were 'differences in the cars' looms... so "non possiamo fare niente..."; just everything o these is aging... Happily moved mine on five year's back, and agree with an FOC lady who said "they're like boats - the second best day in your life is the day you finally own a v12, but the best ..." etc.! That Dino 308GT4 is the way to go. Preferably in Giallo Fly, or Verde Germoglio ;-)

[robsmall]

Hope it gets further restored as time goes by

[caeserromero]

5:13 thought for a second he was gonna drive it through the back of the barn :)

[kipsome]

I have to agree with those comments about there being no such thing as a ‘cheap’ Ferrari. Even viewed on the screen of an iPad, the car just looks ‘edgy’, the rear bumper out of alignment, and virtually every panel a different shade of red…and that’s before you get onto the interior cosmetics and all the stuff that’s not working properly. I’d give it a very wide berth, personally.

[Michael-grfv]

You can see the bodged panel repairs a mile off

[eliotmansfield]

As a layman the paintjob is poor - makes your average 90’s red vauxhall astra look concours.

[cervelo]

You have the best happy smile and happy persona in Youtube Autos.

[caeserromero]

4:39 waiting for a football to come over the fence and hit the car :)

[johnandrews]

As soon as you walked around the car, Jack, I knew there was DS rear damage (at the very least)... paint doesn't match up well. Interesting car and if it eventually does go, it would be a fun daily if you can piss away 40 grand on an old, V12 daily. LOL

[Gentleman...Driver]

YES - new Ferrari content for the channel. Lets hope it will bring new viewers.

[nickb]

I had a 95' Taurus SHO w/5 speed manual that was a "salvage" title here in the US that I scored cheaply at the time. It was a brilliant car for the time I had it, the repair was of high quality and you'd have never known it was in an accident. I suspect the damage was very light, but the hood was god awful expensive for the SHO version because it was an aluminum one piece stamping(unlike normal Taurus's) so it was "totaled" by the insurance company and someone scooped it up and fixed it to turn a small profit off of me, which I was fine with as it was done right and I still got it for a "song" at the time according to KBB.

[mikeroper]

Why not to sort out the issues if £28k in profit?