"The Poor Man's Ferrari" article

[DUCeditor]

Hi all,

I've been away from the forum for quite a while. Health issues have kept me off the road and limited much other activity. But my beloved Spider is never far from my mind, and my recent writing gig (something I can still do!) for PJ Media's "Lifestyles" section has given a chance to share a bit about our wonderful cars.

If you're interested the article can be found here: http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2014/05/28 ... s-ferrari/

Cheers!

-don

[Jimb]

Neat video.
So, is the Ferrari then the rich man's Fiat?
Jim

[DUCeditor]

So, is the Ferrari then the rich man's Fiat?

Quite literally it is!

-don

[TX82FIAT]

Nice article and video. I always look internally and think about the "poor mans Ferrari" description of the FIAT Spider. Yes, it is a nice soundbite. But is it true? Ask yourself what motivated you to purchase of one of these classic little cars? Did it haven anything to do with the Ferrari name or was it the Italian look and feel. In my opinion the success of the Spider has nothing to do with the Ferrari name and everything to do with the technology and style put into an affordable car. The look, feel, and sound of the car is exceptional The way the car drives and handles is distincly Italian, Ferrari is one of many Italian cars. The styling by Pininfarina is not owned by Ferrari but often associated with Ferrari. In fact, the car designer frequently designed cars for Alfa Romeo, Peugeot, Fiat, GM, Lancia, and Maserati.

I like the idea of calling it "an economical and fun entry into Italian motoring". I think they even had an ad that said those words for the Spider 2000 back in the day. however, it just does not have the same ring. Can't let the facts get in the way of a good soundbite. So we are stuck with "Poor Mans Ferrari" in the same manner we are stuck with "Fix it Again Tony".

[HersheyPAGreg]

Don, sorry to hear about your health issues, hopefully you're on the way to a complete recovery. I enjoy your posts, you've been missed!

Greg

[V12StealthHunter]

When I think "poor man's ferrari", I think more on the lines of a Mondial than a Fiat.