Re: Why do Ferrari\'s hold their value so well compared to Vipers?
Like any limited quantity, coveted item, when the buyers exceed to items to be bought, the price goes up.
Like the BMW Z8, and the Porsche GT2, the Ferrari 360 Spyder had only a limited number built, and only a handful made it to the U.S.
So unless you were on a waiting list, years in advance, and have a buying history with your local Ferrari dealer, you will have to pay extra for limited exotic cars like the Ferrari Enzo, 550 Barchetta, 360 Spyder, Aston Martin Vanquish, GT2, Z8 and other cars until there isn't a 2-3 year waiting list.
I expect to see the Ford GT(44), Porsche Carrera GT, Mercedes SLR to all sell for well over the MSRP for the first few years.
With the SRT-10 Viper, the certificate program slowed the privateer's gouging, but I think that with the limited public availability of the cars, that the price will stay the same, or possibly go up over the next couple years, depending on how many cars are in circulation to buy.
Also the Ferraris are usually bought with investment in mind, so they almost always have less than 15K miles used, and often under 5K miles, so buying a used car is essentially the same as buying a brand new car. Especially since there have not been many changes in the body or drivetrain over the years.
I've seen that the Ferrari 456 and 550 have dropped off at about the same rate as the Viper since the 575 has come out. And Diablo prices have dropped a lot since the Murcielago came out, and will again when the Gallardo hits the road.
And I expect to see the 360 and Spyder prices to drop once the new 420 Modena is released, the same way that the 355 and especially 348 prices have dropped over time.
It's the "New kid in town" syndrome that many wealthy people practice.
Rarity, desirability, and status reign king, and price is a secondary consideration.
But I do suspect that the longer that D/C holds off on releasing the coupe version of the SRT, the more coveted that the GTSs will become.
The current dropoff in prices are no doubt due to many current Viper owners selling their cars to buy the SRT-10 Viper. And that flood has dropped prices for the time being. Now is a great time to but a Gen1/2 Viper, and not a great time to sell. But I suspect that the prices will stabilize within a year, and the Viper will hold it's value as it has for many years.
-Dean.