A couple of weeks ago I highlighted the 10 cars I felt were the ones to bid on at the upcoming Amelia Island auctions. Rationales for each pick were based on value trends for the most part, but also my interests and perspectives on a particular car. In that post I referred to the Ferrari Testarossa as “undervalued” in the marketplace, and this week’s Market Monday is intended to build a little more of a case around that position.

The Testarossa is a mid-engine sports car produced by Ferrari from 1984 to 1991. It features a 4.9-liter flat-12 engine producing around 390 horsepower, allowing it to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in about 5.2 seconds and reach a top speed of over 180 mph. The Testarossa’s design was penned by the storied Italian design house Pininfarina, and is instantly recognizable with its wide stance, aggressive side strakes, and wedge-shaped profile. Originally launched at the 1984 Paris Auto Show, it was designed as a successor to the Ferrari 512 BB and became one of the most iconic sports cars of the 1980s.

The Testarossa underwent several updates during its production. The first cars featured a single side view mirror mounted high on the driver’s side A-pillar — affectionately called the “Monospecchio” — and are coveted by enthusiasts. The center-lock wheel design with special Michelin TRX tires also assist in identifying early Testarossas. The wheels were revised for 1986 to accommodate more standardized tire options and the side mirrors were moved to a conventional location in 1987. Five-lug wheels replaced the center locks in 1988, and aside from catalytic converters and a new flywheel in 1989, the car remained basically unchanged until the end of its run in 1991.

Along with many cars over the last 4-5 years, values for the Ferrari Testarossa increased significantly, with the most gains seen in excellent and concours condition vehicles. As of this writing, the value of a “good” condition Ferrari Testarossa is around $150,000 averaged across all iterations.

When diving into the data, I started to wonder how value changed across the different variants produced from 1984-1991. To make plotting this a little cleaner, I chose 1984 to represent the early cars, 1987 for the next grouping, and 1991 to reflect the final variant of Testarossa produced.

While the value differences aren’t particularly dramatic, You can certainly see that the Monospecchio cars are the most desirable, with the last year model following closely behind. As values have risen, the delta between each variant has widened a bit, which is not unusual.

When you compare the Ferrari Testarossa to other iconic Ferraris and 1980s poster cars, the value proposition of Maranello’s fiery redhead becomes more obvious. If you were to name the two most iconic cars of the 1980s, many answers would include the F40, Testarossa and the Lamborghini Countach. Values for the Countach have gone stratospheric in recent years, far eclipsing the Testarossa. The BB 512 — and quite obviously the F40 supercar — are worth significantly more.

It’s a good question. There’s a very interesting thread over on Ferrari Chat where this is hotly debated, but below are my thoughts on why the Testarossa’s appreciation lags behind other collector cars.

Of the cars in the chart above, the Testarossa was built in the most numbers. Only 1,315 F40s and just 929 BB 512s rolled out of the Ferrari factory. 7,200 Testarossas were built, which must have an impact on value from a supply vs. demand standpoint. Porsche built 4,815 Porsche 911 Turbos from 1986-1989 (I’m excluding the 3.0-liter 930s for this exercise), which may factor into its similar value relative to the Testarossa. Lamborghini built just 2,049 Countach, but the Lambo had more iterations over a longer period.

The design of the Testarossa also inspired the look of its successors, including the 512TR, 512M and to some extent the F348 and F355. The design of the F40 and Countach, however, are pretty unique.

The costs of maintaining a complicated V12 mid-engined sports car that is now 40 years old are widely discussed. Belt service for the engine is frequently quoted at around $15,000 in parts and labor — it is famously an engine-out job.

Starting problems are common, with split differentials and weak clutches also cited as concerns. Since so many cars were built, a healthy number have not been restored or require significant work to become really good cars that would command high values. The cost of restoring a Ferrari Testarossa (any classic these days, really) is exorbitant, meaning those cars likely won’t get the treatment they deserve.

Hagerty recently updated their Market Index for early 2025 and provided new data on their Rad-era index. This newcomer to their index tracks the values of collectible cars from the 1980s and 1990s, and actually showed a percentage increase in the last quarter — though it wasn’t much.

The Testarossa is one of the cars making up the tracker, but the number includes the later 512TR and 512M cars, which are vastly improved, worth much more, and therefore shouldn’t be lumped together, in my opinion. Regardless, maybe 50% of the cars on the Rad Index are under $100,000, with many under $50K — a stark difference from something like the German Car index. I think we need another 10 years or more to really see Rad-era cars go big. That said, other Rad-era cars, like the Countach, would likely go even higher.

Even at over $100,000, the Testarossa represents one of the cheaper Ferraris you can buy. I’m willing to bet that if an SF90 Stradale and a Testarossa both showed up at a Cars & Coffee, the Testarossa would draw a bigger crowd. 

Harry Metcalfe is one of my favorite YouTubers and famously drives his Testarossa on outrageous journeys, including one trip across the Sahara. These are rather usable and comfortable GT cars based on Harry’s documentary experiences, and should be seen out on the road more often than they are. Compared to the Porsche 930 Turbo or even the Countach, the Testarossa just doesn’t get much press.

I’m not sure values for the Ferrari Testarossa are poised for huge gains in the near future, but I can say that as of today they don’t appear to be retreating. If you really want one, you could do worse for the money. After all, it wasn’t that long ago that we were talking about how the Ferrari Testarossa may forever be a $60,000 car.

Wolf and Mare provides car finding, appraisals, and auction services for buyers and sellers of collector European cars. If you’re interested in acquiring an overseas car, give us a call or drop a line!