# At the Money: How to Buy a Supercar

An episode of [Masters in Business](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/730188152), 10 Sep 2025, 19 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/4e4cd910-40a1-4619-a5f3-ae2b0012ffff/8980726c-de28-460d-829f-b3540172519c/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=5873a3cb-298f-40bc-b71f-ae2b0013000d

Buying any car is an exciting milestone, but buying a supercar is next level. It's fraught with unique challenges, costs and responsibilities. There are some things you should know before you buy a Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren, Pagani, or any supercar. Hannah Elliot is the super car reviewer for Bloomberg, and has been covering the auto industry and exploring car culture for over 15 years. She also drives a 1975 Rolls Royce Silver Shadow. Each week, “At the Money” discusses an important topic in money. From portfolio construction to taxes to spending, join Barry Ritholtz to learn the best ways to put your money to work. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:02] Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.
[0:10] Speaker 2: Oh lord, won't you buy me a Mercededes bands? My
[0:17] Speaker 2: friends all drive Porsches. I must make gamemns. We're hard
[0:23] Speaker 2: all my lifetime. No help from my friends. So, oh lord,
[0:29] Speaker 2: won't you buy me a Mercededes bands? Oh Lord?
[0:35] Speaker 3: Buying any car is an exciting milestone, but buying the supercar, well,
[0:41] Speaker 3: that's next level. It's fraught with a set of unique challenges.
[0:45] Speaker 3: It's big money and comes with big responsibilities. If you're
[0:50] Speaker 3: thinking about buying a Ferrari, Lamborghini, McLaren Pegani, or any supercar,
[0:56] Speaker 3: there are some very expensive mistakes you want to avoid making.
[1:01] Speaker 3: I have the perfect expert discuss this topic. Hannah Elliott
[1:06] Speaker 3: is the supercar reviewer for Bloomberg. She's covered the auto
[1:09] Speaker 3: industry and car culture for over fifteen years and has
[1:12] Speaker 3: pretty much driven every million dollar car out there. Let's
[1:16] Speaker 3: ask her what we need to know before dropping a
[1:19] Speaker 3: lot of money on an exotic. So, Hannah, let's start
[1:23] Speaker 3: with the basics. What makes something a supercar? Is it price, performance, exclusivity,
[1:29] Speaker 3: some combination.
[1:31] Speaker 1: This is a great question, and it is a bit
[1:33] Speaker 1: of a gray area because there's no one definition, but
[1:37] Speaker 1: I would put back to you it's a combination of
[1:40] Speaker 1: all those things. A supercar is a superlative vehicle that
[1:44] Speaker 1: is at the top of the line of an automaker.
[1:46] Speaker 1: Yes it's expensive, Yes it has top performance for that line.
[1:51] Speaker 1: Yes it has a resting designs, and yes it has
[1:57] Speaker 1: mind bending performance. Those are also of qualitative values that
[2:02] Speaker 1: when you put them together, you'll get a supercar out
[2:06] Speaker 1: of it.
[2:06] Speaker 2: Now.
[2:07] Speaker 1: I have a debate a lot with my colleague Matt
[2:09] Speaker 1: Miller about is a Corvette a supercar.
[2:12] Speaker 3: It's a mass market car, So.
[2:14] Speaker 1: I say no, because supercars also need to be rare.
[2:18] Speaker 1: They need to be built in small quantities. This is
[2:21] Speaker 1: part of their They need to feel elite and exceptional.
[2:24] Speaker 1: That's what makes them super. So it's a combination of
[2:27] Speaker 1: all of these things. A car can't just be fast
[2:30] Speaker 1: and be a supercar. It can't be just expensive. A
[2:31] Speaker 1: Rolls Royce is not a supercar, even though that's an
[2:33] Speaker 1: expensive car. It's a combination of all of those factors.
[2:36] Speaker 3: If it's just a matter of speed, well then a
[2:38] Speaker 3: lot of the evs that.
[2:39] Speaker 1: Are out to Tesla's are fast, but they're not supercars.
[2:42] Speaker 3: To say the very least. So let's talk about the
[2:45] Speaker 3: experiencing of purchasing a supercar. How is that different than
[2:50] Speaker 3: say you run of the mill Mercedes or range Rover
[2:53] Speaker 3: or some other expensive vehicle.
[2:56] Speaker 1: Okay, to purchase a supercar new it's going to it
[2:59] Speaker 1: requires more of a relationship with the dealership selling it
[3:03] Speaker 1: to you. Now, most dealerships are allocated small, small amounts
[3:09] Speaker 1: of supercars. They might only have two or three for
[3:11] Speaker 1: their whole area. So they way who will be afforded
[3:16] Speaker 1: the opportunity to buy the supercar?
[3:19] Speaker 3: Clearly, no flippers, right, that's right out.
[3:21] Speaker 1: That is written in the contract. You cannot flip this vehicle,
[3:25] Speaker 1: and if you do need to get rid of it,
[3:26] Speaker 1: it goes back to the dealer. You can't flip it.
[3:30] Speaker 1: That is in the contract. Wow, So it is about
[3:33] Speaker 1: establishing a relationship with your local dealer. Ferrari is notorious
[3:38] Speaker 1: for rather requiring their customers to buy up the Ferrari
[3:45] Speaker 1: food chain to the top level of their cars. You
[3:48] Speaker 1: cannot walk into a Ferrari dealership and hope to buy
[3:51] Speaker 1: a Manza that just even if you have the money,
[3:54] Speaker 1: it doesn't work that way. You need to earn the
[3:57] Speaker 1: right and the opportunity to buy those hiring cars. So
[4:00] Speaker 1: it's about maybe you have to buy Aroma first, and
[4:03] Speaker 1: then maybe you buy you know, two nine six, you
[4:09] Speaker 1: work your way up to the opportunity to buy the
[4:13] Speaker 1: top stuff.
[4:13] Speaker 3: So that's if you're buying new. Let's talk about buying used.
[4:17] Speaker 3: A lot of these cars used to trade at a
[4:20] Speaker 3: discount when they were I guess the term is pre owned,
[4:24] Speaker 3: but in a lot of cases that's gone away. You're
[4:27] Speaker 3: paying a premium even for a pre owned car. What's
[4:30] Speaker 3: the story with that? Is this just a function of
[4:33] Speaker 3: the waiting lists for new cars? What's driving us supercar prices?
[4:38] Speaker 1: Instant gratification drives you supercar prices because the thing about
[4:42] Speaker 1: supercars is there again they're made in small batches, so
[4:47] Speaker 1: usually you're gonna have to if you want one new,
[4:49] Speaker 1: you're gonna have to order it. You're gonna want some
[4:51] Speaker 1: of your own custom touches on it. That takes time.
[4:54] Speaker 1: You might have to wait a year. So if you
[4:56] Speaker 1: don't want to wait that long, you want one quick.
[4:58] Speaker 1: You want instant gratification, and you buy used supercar.
[5:01] Speaker 3: So what's the process like for purchasing a used car?
[5:04] Speaker 3: Is it the same sort of pre purchase inspection, maintenance records.
[5:09] Speaker 3: What's the due diligence like with.
[5:11] Speaker 1: This, I would say it's the same as any other car, really,
[5:13] Speaker 1: I mean it's potentially a lot of money. I would
[5:16] Speaker 1: certainly have a pre purchased inspection. It depends on who
[5:19] Speaker 1: you're buying it from. Are you buying it from an individual?
[5:21] Speaker 1: Are you buying it from a dealership like a certified
[5:23] Speaker 1: pre owned thing. If you're buying for the dealership and
[5:26] Speaker 1: it's been certified as okay, whatever that means for the automaker,
[5:30] Speaker 1: I think you know that's pretty straightforward. If you're buying
[5:33] Speaker 1: it from a private individual, I think you would want
[5:35] Speaker 1: to do some real due diligence. Supercars are tricky and
[5:40] Speaker 1: stressful to drive. If you're not on a track, you
[5:42] Speaker 1: know they are low. They are finally calibrated and highly tuned.
[5:48] Speaker 1: So when you're driving around the city and there are
[5:51] Speaker 1: potholes and there are inclines, there's just a lot more
[5:55] Speaker 1: that can be slightly off on a supercar rather than
[5:59] Speaker 1: an suv, and suv is a lot more durable. So
[6:02] Speaker 1: these are these are I don't want to say fragile,
[6:05] Speaker 1: but they are not made to go all over everywhere,
[6:11] Speaker 1: so I would go a little bit slower.
[6:13] Speaker 3: It makes a lot of sense. One of the things
[6:15] Speaker 3: I noticed when I'm trolling bring a Trail or a
[6:19] Speaker 3: Cars and Bids or any of the other auction sites
[6:22] Speaker 3: is the frequent mentioned no after market modifications. Why is
[6:28] Speaker 3: this such a concern.
[6:31] Speaker 1: It's a concern because after market, Uh, the aftermarket is
[6:35] Speaker 1: the wild West. You're you're you are not under dealership
[6:40] Speaker 1: guarantees at all. You are you are in the wild West.
[6:45] Speaker 1: There is no guarantee. I mean, we all have seen
[6:50] Speaker 1: those terrible cars with exhaust exhaust things and sound systems,
[6:57] Speaker 1: and cars that have been chopped up and things have
[7:00] Speaker 1: been welded on.
[7:02] Speaker 3: To say nothing of all the wraps and things along
[7:04] Speaker 3: those lines.
[7:05] Speaker 1: Neatly wraps. You know, that's one thing. But when you
[7:11] Speaker 1: change anything in these highly refined vehicles, that changes everything.
[7:17] Speaker 1: Physics do matter. So when you're adding weight or you're
[7:21] Speaker 1: cutting something off, you're cutting fenders, or you're welding on fenders,
[7:25] Speaker 1: that changes the structural integrity of the car potentially, and
[7:30] Speaker 1: it just seems like a minefield unless you really know
[7:34] Speaker 1: who and what you're dealing with.
[7:36] Speaker 3: Not everybody a singer to say the very least, right,
[7:39] Speaker 3: What about costs beyond the purchase price? How different is
[7:42] Speaker 3: it maintaining a supercar, storing it and ensuring it.
[7:46] Speaker 1: Well, it's going to be a lot more expensive in
[7:49] Speaker 1: general to repair and replace things components of supercars, like wheels,
[7:54] Speaker 1: Like supercars, have a lot of carbon fiber, splitters, air ducks, venting, spoilers.
[8:02] Speaker 1: All of these things typically are made out of carbon fiber,
[8:05] Speaker 1: which is rather fragile and rather expensive to replace. So
[8:10] Speaker 1: it just everything is compounded price wise, I would say,
[8:15] Speaker 1: in general, it.
[8:16] Speaker 3: Makes a lot of sense. What about insurance? I know
[8:19] Speaker 3: certain insurers don't necessarily cover the Bugattis and Pananis of
[8:25] Speaker 3: the world. I was gonna say, Panini. I guess I
[8:27] Speaker 3: got lunch on my my head. What about insurance coverage?
[8:31] Speaker 3: Not everybody covers the Bugattis and Pananis of Panis, Paganis, Panini.
[8:40] Speaker 3: Not everybody covers the Bugattis and Paganis of the world,
[8:44] Speaker 3: or even the Ferraris and Lamborghinis of the world. What
[8:47] Speaker 3: sort of coverage should a supercar owner be seeking?
[8:51] Speaker 1: Again, I would go to a specialty provider like Haggarty
[8:55] Speaker 1: or Chubb or any of these other ones, go to
[8:57] Speaker 1: a specialist, do your research, and again you can probably
[9:02] Speaker 1: stipulate that this is not a daily driver, it's going
[9:04] Speaker 1: to have less miles per year, and you can get
[9:06] Speaker 1: a specialty.
[9:07] Speaker 3: So I tend to fall in love with a different
[9:09] Speaker 3: car every week. When you see all the variety of
[9:13] Speaker 3: things you Gotti Pegani, Ferraris and Martin McLaren, Lamborghini, bet
[9:18] Speaker 3: only Porsche, it seems like the choices can be endless.
[9:22] Speaker 3: How does someone figure out which car is right for them?
[9:27] Speaker 1: Well, that's a good question. Again it sounds so cliche,
[9:33] Speaker 1: but follow your own interests. If you've got somebody in
[9:39] Speaker 1: your town who has a car that you like the
[9:41] Speaker 1: look of, go up and talk to them and ask
[9:43] Speaker 1: them how their experience has been at the dealership. Ask
[9:47] Speaker 1: them where they keep the car. You know, there's no
[9:49] Speaker 1: dumb question.
[9:50] Speaker 3: Really.
[9:50] Speaker 1: I think if you identify someone who has a car
[9:53] Speaker 1: that you like the look of, go talk to them
[9:55] Speaker 1: and ask them how is it working with, you know,
[9:59] Speaker 1: maybe the factory. If it's a highly customized car, they
[10:02] Speaker 1: work directly with the factory to customize the car. Find
[10:06] Speaker 1: out how that relationship is. Because again, if you're buying
[10:10] Speaker 1: a new supercar. It's going to take some time to
[10:12] Speaker 1: get it, and you're going to be in contact getting
[10:15] Speaker 1: updates about the car, about how the production is coming along.
[10:19] Speaker 1: I think you want to try to find someone that
[10:21] Speaker 1: feels a good fit for your personality what you're looking for.
[10:26] Speaker 1: I think you just got to talk to people who
[10:28] Speaker 1: you think own the car.
[10:29] Speaker 3: What about test drives. I can't imagine that you could
[10:32] Speaker 3: walk into a Bugatti dealership and say, hey, I'd like
[10:35] Speaker 3: to take that viron out for a spin.
[10:38] Speaker 1: No, I don't think you can. Maybe they'll take you
[10:41] Speaker 1: for a ride. That's tricky. I think that's tricky. I
[10:44] Speaker 1: don't really know the answer to that other than again,
[10:49] Speaker 1: make friends with people who have that car. And I
[10:51] Speaker 1: know that sounds maybe trite, but these cars are out there,
[10:56] Speaker 1: and I think if you see someone with out driving
[10:59] Speaker 1: that car early, people are pretty friendly. They're proud of
[11:02] Speaker 1: their car, and I would just start asking questions about, Hey,
[11:05] Speaker 1: you know, who can I talk to? Where did you
[11:08] Speaker 1: get this? I really love it. I don't think it's
[11:11] Speaker 1: wrong to hang out at the dealership and you know,
[11:14] Speaker 1: try to get a ride.
[11:15] Speaker 3: It's the relationship I have noticed in places like Paris
[11:20] Speaker 3: and Amsterdam and then in the United States, in Vegas
[11:24] Speaker 3: and Miami, you can rent a Ferrario Lamborghini. First shockingly
[11:28] Speaker 3: little amount of money for twenty minutes. Is that that's
[11:32] Speaker 3: a good idea? Will that give you the same experience?
[11:37] Speaker 1: You know, I don't know about the mechanical standard of
[11:42] Speaker 1: those cars that are being rented, but it's something I
[11:44] Speaker 1: don't think it's wrong. I mean, we have that in
[11:46] Speaker 1: la It's a good idea. You can drive through Hollywood
[11:49] Speaker 1: in a rented Ferrari. At least it's something to get
[11:52] Speaker 1: you in the driver's seat and get a taste of
[11:55] Speaker 1: what it might be like.
[11:56] Speaker 3: So let me ask you about a pet peeve I
[11:58] Speaker 3: have with supercars. I believe that if you aren't paying
[12:04] Speaker 3: your taxes on your car, then our roads are much
[12:08] Speaker 3: worse wherever you happen to live. What are your thoughts
[12:11] Speaker 3: on people who buy supercars and then register them in
[12:14] Speaker 3: Montana to avoid state sales tax.
[12:18] Speaker 1: You know, I did a whole story on this ferry
[12:20] Speaker 1: I do. It's not really looked at kindly among the
[12:24] Speaker 1: car community because everybody knows that's what's happening.
[12:29] Speaker 3: So I used to be a member of an online
[12:31] Speaker 3: car community that wasn't any specific marquee. It just was everything.
[12:36] Speaker 3: And I vividly recall the BMW and Ferrari guys talking
[12:42] Speaker 3: about representing the brand and when you're tanking up with
[12:46] Speaker 3: gas or you're at it any sort of social function
[12:49] Speaker 3: cars and coffee, be a good brand ambassador. Don't be
[12:54] Speaker 3: that sort of jerk. What's your experience with that.
[12:57] Speaker 1: There's etiquette involved here with cars, especially with supercars, and
[13:03] Speaker 1: in my experience, the people who are revving the engines
[13:07] Speaker 1: making a ton of noise pop pop pop pop in
[13:10] Speaker 1: the parking lot are eighteen year old boys. Yeah, don't
[13:14] Speaker 1: be an eighteen year old boy. Act like you've been
[13:17] Speaker 1: here before. Act like you have a sense of respect
[13:19] Speaker 1: and appreciation and situational awareness what I like to call
[13:23] Speaker 1: read the room. You're already in a really expensive car.
[13:26] Speaker 1: That's awesome. It's important to be open and friendly. You're
[13:30] Speaker 1: driving something that yells look at me, so people are
[13:33] Speaker 1: going to look at you, which is awesome. And I
[13:36] Speaker 1: would just say, just have a sense of decorum. Act
[13:39] Speaker 1: like you've been around for a long time and you
[13:41] Speaker 1: know what you're doing.
[13:42] Speaker 3: What's the best advice for interacting with the public when
[13:45] Speaker 3: someone comes up to you while you're either getting gas
[13:48] Speaker 3: or whatever.
[13:50] Speaker 1: I would just say be friendly and anticipate and expect
[13:53] Speaker 1: that people are going to comment on your car. If
[13:56] Speaker 1: you want to be incognito, drive a black Honda, or
[13:59] Speaker 1: don't go out. I think when you go out in
[14:02] Speaker 1: a flashy car, that is that that is an indicator
[14:07] Speaker 1: that you're going to be approached, and that's awesome. That's
[14:09] Speaker 1: what cars are about. It's about sharing cars, sharing the experience.
[14:13] Speaker 1: So just expect it and just be friendly. You know,
[14:15] Speaker 1: they don't have to sit in the driver's seat if
[14:17] Speaker 1: you don't want them to do that, but I would
[14:18] Speaker 1: say welcome it.
[14:20] Speaker 3: That's fair enough. Let's quickly discuss cautionary tales. You could
[14:25] Speaker 3: go to YouTube and there is a series of videos
[14:30] Speaker 3: called supercar fails, some really embarrassing, just dumb self inflicted accidents.
[14:37] Speaker 3: What's the warning for people who are driving really expensive
[14:41] Speaker 3: cars as to what they should not do.
[14:46] Speaker 1: Don't show off, no sudden movements. Be aware of the
[14:50] Speaker 1: size of your car, the size and dimensions of your car.
[14:53] Speaker 1: You know, I see a lot of people who have
[14:56] Speaker 1: rims that are scraped on the side because they've curbed
[14:58] Speaker 1: it or splitters under under the chin because they're not
[15:01] Speaker 1: aware of how low the car is. So I think
[15:03] Speaker 1: the number one thing is be aware of the size
[15:06] Speaker 1: and dimensions of your vehicle. It's less prominent than you
[15:11] Speaker 1: might think. Number two, you don't need to show off.
[15:13] Speaker 1: The car is already showing off. And that goes back
[15:15] Speaker 1: to our other thing about etiquette. You don't need to
[15:17] Speaker 1: show off and do a burnout or you know, past
[15:20] Speaker 1: five guys down the sunset strip. We already see you
[15:23] Speaker 1: in the car. We already know it's a cool car.
[15:26] Speaker 1: No sun movements. The other thing about supercars is there
[15:29] Speaker 1: does their high performance machines, which is awesome, which also
[15:33] Speaker 1: means there's a less room for error. So any mistake
[15:37] Speaker 1: that you make in that vehicle is going to be
[15:39] Speaker 1: exaggerated and amplified a lot expensive and a lot quicker. Yeah,
[15:44] Speaker 1: quicker and a lot more expensive. So no sun movements.
[15:47] Speaker 1: Smooth as fast, stay calm. You know, you don't need
[15:52] Speaker 1: to get all worked up. Just be relaxed, slow as smooth,
[15:55] Speaker 1: smooth as fast, exactly exactly. And there's one more thing
[15:58] Speaker 1: I wanted to say, kind of on our the etiquette thing.
[16:01] Speaker 1: I just got back from Portugal from driving the Lamborghini Temorrio.
[16:05] Speaker 1: And there's an interesting thing that Lamborghini's doing on some
[16:08] Speaker 1: of their supercars. The Rivelto is another one. These are
[16:11] Speaker 1: hybrid supercars. They've got something called stealth Mode, which is
[16:15] Speaker 1: six miles of electric only driving. Now you sneak out
[16:18] Speaker 1: of the right you might think that's not actually enough,
[16:21] Speaker 1: but it has a very important purpose, which is it
[16:24] Speaker 1: makes the car fully electric while you leave the neighborhood
[16:28] Speaker 1: or while you come into the neighborhood. And I actually
[16:32] Speaker 1: love it because again it's it's out of respect for
[16:36] Speaker 1: the neighbors. And I love cars, but I don't want
[16:39] Speaker 1: to hear your Lamborghini at five am. So I kind
[16:41] Speaker 1: of like that.
[16:41] Speaker 3: Any other aspects of supercar purchasing, the ownership, that's worth mentioning.
[16:46] Speaker 1: You know. The one thing I would also say too
[16:48] Speaker 1: is if you're buying a new one, be really careful
[16:51] Speaker 1: about how you speck it. Please try to have some restraint.
[16:55] Speaker 1: And I say this for two reasons. One because again,
[16:59] Speaker 1: these cars are wild, they're attractive, they're stunning, they're made
[17:03] Speaker 1: to grab attention. You don't need to then add on
[17:07] Speaker 1: a bunch of colors and textures and textiles and details
[17:12] Speaker 1: to just make it look like vomit. So just try
[17:15] Speaker 1: to have a little restraint, and I promise you the
[17:18] Speaker 1: car will look really cool because it's already designed to
[17:21] Speaker 1: look really arresting. The second thing I would say is
[17:25] Speaker 1: for resell values, the cars that do not have really
[17:29] Speaker 1: weird one off custom jobs inside will probably be a
[17:35] Speaker 1: higher value than a car that looks terrible that someone spect,
[17:39] Speaker 1: you know, in the nineties, that is just terrible.
[17:42] Speaker 3: So to wrap up, hey, if you're fortunate enough to
[17:45] Speaker 3: be able to buy a supercar, bring some self awareness
[17:50] Speaker 3: and some rationality to the process. Make sure what you're
[17:56] Speaker 3: buying is something that you're really interested in. Prepare yourself
[18:00] Speaker 3: to have conversations with people every time you tank up
[18:04] Speaker 3: the car or take it somewhere. Just be aware that
[18:07] Speaker 3: you've already managed to get one of the most sought
[18:10] Speaker 3: after vehicles in the world. Behave well, don't do anything
[18:15] Speaker 3: too stupid, own the car, display it, speak to people,
[18:19] Speaker 3: and try not to end up on YouTube's supercar Feles.
[18:24] Speaker 3: I'm Barry Ridolts. You're listening to Bloomberg's at the Money
[18:28] Speaker 3: the Town.
[18:29] Speaker 2: Everybody, Oh lord, won't you buy me a Mercedes bands
[18:35] Speaker 2: My friends, all draft pushes. I must make amends. Worked
[18:41] Speaker 2: hard all my lifetime, no help from n

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