Admit it; if you’re one of our regular readers, as much as you may like mainstream models such as the BMW 3-Series Coupe, chances are that the thought of owning a genuine German or Italian sports car has crossed your mind more than once.

But unless you’re super rich (you’re not), you’ll probably never have the opportunity to buy a new supercar which leaves you with only one option if you really want to make your dream come true: look for a used exotic sports car.

However, while the used supercar market offers a variety of options for many different sized wallets, before you go car hunting on eBay, we would like to remind you of the saying, “All that glitters is not gold”.

Naturally, not all used cars are the same, but just because you can afford to buy a second- or third-hand Ferrari doesn’t mean that you can afford to maintain one. Keep in mind that these vehicles were designed for people who had no problem spending the equivalent of a house on a car.

Like us, most of you will have read numerous horror stories on web forums, but this sale of a 1997 Ferrari F355 Spider on eBay caught our attention, not so much for the price of the car (you can “Buy it Now” for US$49,900 or “best offer”), as for the maintenance receipts.

In mid 2008, the previous owner of the yellow colored Spider spent –hold on to something now- $47,854.84 to repair/rebuild the Italian model’s V8 engine after he noticed some mechanical problems! In fact, the final cost was even higher, but he received a gracious discount of $8,160.02 from the New Jersey Ferrari/Maserati shop.

According to the invoice, (before the discount) the total labor cost was $27,770 while the shop charged $26,634 for parts.

If you look closely, you’ll see that the invoice includes the original estimate to fix the engine, which was originally $1,000 (+ tax), but the shop subsequently revised the cost to $30,000 and then to $45,000.

The positive about this sale is that the owner has only driven the F355 for about 5,000 miles since he repaired the engine.

However, the service receipt is a stark reminder to daydreamers (like us) of what kind of a financial mess you can get into with a used Italian exotic.

Story References: eBay via VWVortex

FERRARI SERVICE INVOICE

PHOTO GALLERY