A lifelong dream draws attention in Raleigh

By Scott Sexton
Winston-Salem Journal

In the sea of Cadillacs, Mercedeses, SUVs and the occasional environmentally correct hybrid, one car stands out in the parking spaces reserved for the honorables in Raleigh - the Ferrari 360 Spider that state Rep. Larry Womble, D-Forsyth, has been driving for about a week now.

The Ferrari is a sweet ride. It's silver, it's a convertible, and it's fast. The standard engine in this baby is a 32-valve, V-8 with 490 horsepower. The speedometer dials up to 220 mph.

A brand-new Ferrari Spider has a suggested retail price of $192,484. With 20 percent down and a 6.5 percent loan payable over 48 months, that comes out to a monthly nut of merely $4,000 or so.

Because Womble got a used Ferrari - it's a 2002 - he didn't quite pay that much. He's not saying how much it was, but a 2001 Ferrari 360 Spider was available yesterday at an online auction for $167,629.

"Slow day? You guys got nothing better to write about than my car?" Womble asked. "I've been driving an old 4-cylinder Corsica for 10 or 12 years, and nobody says anything about that.

"I guess (the Chevy) is just not as attractive, doesn't look as good on the street, huh?"

Even though I'm a fan of silver on vehicles, I have to say if I owned a Ferrari, it would have to be red... When I think of Ferrari, I think of the color red. Last year, I saw a yellow Ferrari at Duke Univ. and that was one ugly car.