Ferrari 488 GTB order books swell for Australia

More than $25 million is riding on red in Australia. It's not a roulette game but the dollar value of the order bank for the new Ferrari F488 GTB.

Actually, it's probably more than that figure as no one at Ferrari will give exact numbers for the queue to drive the red-hot successor to the 458 Italia. Or the price.

"The waiting list is probably around a year-and-a-half. And those orders came within the first two weeks of the photographs of the car being released," says Ferrari Australia boss Herbert Appleroth.

"We're not expecting deliveries to commence until right at the end of the year. So we're talking into 2017."

We have not seen this level of interest since 2007

The success of the F488 is good news for Ferrari and its fans as well as a pointer to the health of Australia's economy.

Top-end brands all report big buyer interest and there are waiting lists for popular models from the likes of Lamborghini, Porsche and Mercedes-AMG.

"We have not seen this level of interest since 2007, before the global financial crisis," says Appleroth. "We can safely assume the supercar market is back to its previous glory. Well, it is for Ferrari." The financial upswing has also triggered a change in colour choices. Rosso Corsa, or Ferrari red, is back on top with a clear preference for the 488 among buyers.

"In Australia, red was less important from 2008 until now. That's because people wanted to play conservative. After the GFC they still wanted to live their dream, but not flaunt it.

The 458 is $525,000, with most owners splashing at least another $100,000 on bling

"But there is very strong demand for red again. This could be our clients being more confident things are going well."

They will definitely be doing well to afford a 488. The 458 is $525,000, with most owners splashing at least another $100,000 on bling, and that will increase with the new model.

"Globally, the price of the car is 2.5 per cent more than the 458 Italia," says Appleroth. So the bottom line is going to rise by more than $13,000, without thinking about options and on-road costs.