1990 Ferrari Mondial t review from North America

Power window (driver side) failed.

Power side mirror (left) failed.

Coolant hose in the engine ruptured.

Computer chip failed and shutdown the engine.

Motorized seat belts failed.

Thermostat failed.

Clock failed.

Fuse box failed.

Exterior black trim fades badly.

Windshield trim de-laminates quickly.

Original paint is thin in places.

30,000 mile service costs $10,000.

Look folks, this car is not for the faint of heart or the light-of-pocketbook. It costs a small mint to keep running. The cabriolet ragtop on it takes 10 minutes to put up or down (yes, it's manual), the car fishtails around turns, handles abysmally on wet roads, only does 0 to 60mph in about 6.6 seconds, and is not reliable enough for road trips of over an hour or two.

I've spent about $17,000 on maintenance in the three years since I've bought it. It's now 12 years old.

That said, one does not buy this car for reliability or financial reasons. The reason to buy this car, if you can afford it, is that it's rare (only 1000 Mondial t's were made worldwide), it's a Ferrari, it looks beautiful with the top down and the engine makes beautiful noises.

Driving down the highway in Chicago on a sunny day, I get stares and thumbs up signs from significant numbers of other drivers. This does not happen to Porsche owners, suffice it to say.