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Elite Italian sports cars more common in Sacramento(Sacramento Bee, The (CA) (KRT) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Jun. 1--No, your eyes don't deceive you. More and more people are driving Ferraris on the streets of Sacramento. And that sparkling new Maserati dealership that looks like something out of Beverly Hills or Palm Springs? It's on Fulton Avenue. In the midst of this economic downturn, dismal housing market and sky-high gas prices, things are looking up on the local scene for high-end Italian horsepower that can cost $200,000 or more. Some say the uptick in these wonderfully impractical cars may be playing a part in a cultural shift in the city. "For years, people in Sacramento had an image issue with owning a Ferrari. But the more that are out there, the more social acceptance there is for having them. That's always been a hurdle for our town," said Mario Biundo, general manager of Maserati of Sacramento, which also sells pre-owned Ferraris, even the occasional Lamborghini. These are not cars for doing anything but driving and, perhaps, gloating. The trunk might hold your lunch but not your golf clubs. There's no room for the kids. An oil change will run you $700 to $1,500. For some models from the 1990s, the 30,000-mile "tune-up" costs $12,000. All of which explains why the typical Ferrari is driven just 2,500 miles a year. By Biundo's count, there are more than 200 Ferrari, Maserati and Lamborghini owners in the Sacramento area. They range from a former Sacramento State quarterback turned businessman, a developer rejuvenating the urban core, a plumbing contractor who lives in Elk Grove and, of course, Biundo himself, who tools around town in a 1995 Ferrari F-355 he bought used for just over $100,000. "Sacramento is coming of age. There is social acceptance of people who have done well," he said. It's a long way from the years when Joe Montana could be spotted around town in his Ferrari while at the San Francisco 49ers' training camp in Rocklin. In 1986, a Ferrari dealership opened in Fair Oaks but closed a couple of years later amid a flurry of lawsuits and tax problems. If there is a newfound Ferrari/Maserati movement in town, Biundo is the mover. He said the renaissance was in full-swing in 2002. In 2006 alone, he sold 29 used Ferraris. It almost didn't turn out that way. Biundo, 35, graduated from law school and soon realized he was in the wrong line of work. In 2000, Biundo, then 27, started Luxury Motor Cars and began sharing his dream of owning a Ferrari with the well-heeled in the area. "I made a career change and followed my passion," he said. The buyers are passionate, too. Biundo said Ferrari and Maserati owners have been known to pour a glass of wine, sit in their garage and simply stare at their prized vehicles. A year ago, Biundo sold the business to run the new Maserati dealership, which is owned by the Niello Company. Biundo recently hosted an event at Infineon Raceway near Sonoma to bring together his customers for a day of letting it all hang out without worrying about speeding tickets or jail time. Eighteen drivers with varying degrees of skill and bravado showed up. There were no women drivers. Several owners said they have yet to see a woman behind the wheel of a Ferrari. At the track, the owners were required to wear helmets. Some drove as if they were chasing down Formula One star Michael Schumacher. Others, frightened perhaps that they had more car than they could control, eased their way around the twists and turns of the track as if they were in the slow lane on Interstate 80. Put Angelo Oliva in the former category. He paid $135,000 for his barely used 2000 Ferrari 360 F1 Modena and he likes to drive it hard. The engine, he said, is so pleasing to the ear that to play the stereo would be to insult the car. "It's a different animal out here," said Oliva, 44, between one of several 20-minute sessions on the track that day. "It's really on rails out here." Oliva played quarterback at California State University, Sacramento, in the 1980s, then found success running a medical company. He lives in Davis but said residents in the decidedly left-leaning college town don't give him a hard time about his gas-guzzling car choice. "Typically, that type of person is an artsy person who can appreciate a Ferrari. Now, if you're driving a Hummer in the Republic of Davis, you're going to get the middle finger," he said with a laugh. Ask Oliva why he drives a Ferrari and he brings up heritage, beauty, lust, power. He even likens a curved section of his yellow car to a woman's hips. "For Italians, it's all about the passion," he said. "My whole family's from Rome. I grew up around this. You're born with this passion, this disease." The passion is not over when he pulls into his garage. "I wipe down my car every single time after I take it for a drive," he said. "It usually takes me about 20 minutes, depending how rough the ride was and how many bugs." Glenn Sorensen, 49, isn't Italian, but he's still got it bad for Ferraris. The Sacramento developer has a 2007 F430 Spider that costs $265,000. He doesn't collect cars -- he drives them. "A lot of what happens with Italian cars involves emotion," said Sorensen, 49, who bought his first of three Ferraris seven years ago. He said the increase in Ferrari and Maserati owners is not just an isolated movement -- it says something about Sacramento. "There's sort of a culture game going on in Sacramento," he said, referring to the midtown restaurant boom, the newfound pedestrian traffic and the surge in loft living, which he helped to flourish as one of the partners behind LoftWorks. At Infineon, Sorensen was so fast he occasionally pulled into the pit area to let slower Ferraris get clear. On a course with practically no straightaway, Sorensen was often going 125 mph and hugging some very tight turns. "These cars are really comfortable in this environment," he said with a smile. "As the driver, you're in a relaxed space enjoying being in the moment." That's not how Jeff Wolfe would put it. A first-timer at the track, the 52-year-old Elk Grove plumbing contractor seemed overwhelmed, still focused on taking the right line as he approached the numerous challenging twists and turns. "It was nerve-wracking for the first 10 minutes," said Wolfe, who had an instructor sitting next to him in his Ferrari 360 Modena. "There were so many things to remember." And Wolfe, despite the shock and awe of letting loose with his Ferrari, isn't over his lust for things fast and Italian. "I'm probably going to get a Lamborghini next," he said. "It just looks sexy." Biundo said you don't have to be super rich to drive one of his offerings. "You can get into a very nice Ferrari for $45,000-$50,000. That's the price of a Chevy truck," he said. Just try to keep a straight face when you take it in for an oil change. To see more of The Sacramento Bee, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.sacbee.com/. Copyright (c) 2008, The Sacramento Bee, Calif. Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For reprints, email [email protected], call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA. |