To what degree are the 348/355 hand assembled/hand built

Good question

 

If you have not seen this, it's a good watch. Much more modern era, but you can get the point.

Ultimate Factories - Ferrari - YouTube

 

I just watched it again, runs fine for me. Many mistakes with the narration though...

"Hand Built" is tough to define. CNC machines make parts, robots paint, materials are transferred via conveyors, etc.

Even when I worked at GM's largest assembly plant in the world, plenty of human interaction and assembly. Not all tasks can be automated.

 

It's an assembly line car built with out sourced parts like any other.

 

Well, if the video is accurate, the engine is built in a cell by one tech. That's not how other motors are built.

 

Sorry..you are correct. I did not mention that. I was speaking of the chassis itself, not the engine.

 

this link doesnt help a bit...big difference between then and 1996 when my 97 was built...apples and oranges.... I'm sure this will cause a big argument.

 

If you worked in automotive factories like I have (since 1992), you would know it's not apples and oranges.....

 

I am tossing a banana in the ring as of right now.

 

lets make this easy....sure dave factories are the same as they were in 1996...if you put wheel spacers on you 355 your a hood rat making a hoop D (according to you) and if your not into F1 you shouldnt own a ferrari (according to you) I'm bored with you going to bed

 

Good question, Nikki. Over the years, the factory and methods have changed "more than a little". I visited in the early/mid 80's, and again in '09. On the first visit I had a personal tour escorted by Dr. something from the engineering dept. who was very proud of a new machine that allowed a machinist to produce 7 crankshafts while he was grinding one of them. The guy was very proud of where Ferrari was going.

In '09 I was part of a group of 20-30 led by a PR person who knew what he had been trained to say, and not much more. The paint line looked similar, but with more sprayers. There was a modern assembly line with work stations that had people "bolting and screwing" with parts from preassembled baskets with preset torques. Conceivably, the worst of both worlds.

I too am interested in our "tweener" cars. I guess the consensus is that the 348/355s are the last of the old, but there is a minority of votes for the 355 as the first of the new. (Does this vote include Sr. di Montezemolo?)

 

Can't speak for the plant during 355 production but the 348s still had a lot of hand work done throughout the entire car. I make this comment from info in a neat book that traces the factory from the beginning up to early 348 production in 1989. It is "Inside Ferrari" by Michael Dregni and has a lot of great shots of hand work beside automation. There are some minor mistakes like identifying six 348 engines on carts as F40 units like many books of this elk do but it is still a worthwhile addition to your library if you can find a copy. I bought it back in the day and I still see it at used book dealers.

 

Automotive factories have changed mostly the following ways over the last 15-20 years:

- Increased automation
- Increased quality control and a term called errorproofing
- The use of Kanban or similar systems for material flow
- improved organization and cleanliness

If you look at modern pictures of the 458 build, you will see the cars are now fixed to over head conveyors in frames that allow them to be rotated
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The 348 was a factory line build for Ferrari unlike most of the previous cars which were hand built and assembled. That's why almost every early car is different from the next in some small way. The 328 comes about the closest to line built. Was it Toyota that consulted on how to make the line more consistent? Anyway, the 348 seems to me about 60/40 line built and hand built. Certainly the chassis and body went down the line for assembly and painting. The engines came from the engine shop so they were sort of mass assembled. My guess is that the line was a series of cars that were worked on simultaneously and not what we picture as a stream of parts flowing down a belt being assembled by a bunch of worker bees. I remember a picture of that somewhere, unlike the F40. Even the TR was somewhat line built.

 

The last hand built car was the 512BB, where the panels where banged out on a bench with mallets and welding was done by a human and not a robot. After that everything was/is "hand assembled". During the 512BB production run 308s (all variants) where also built, but these where always "hand assembled".

 

According to their own website

GT 348 TB: fitted with a longitudinally mid-mounted V8 engine, in 1989


There is a french youtube video somewhere showing the assembly line of the 348 but I cant find it - doh!

 

Mine was 100% hand built as I took it apart and put it back together by hand

 

Urban Dictionary: hoop-d, hoopdie, hoopdy, HOOPTIE, hoop-t, hoopty, hooptee, etc

 

Yes, it's all related. Kanban is a sytem to gets materials from suppliers based on a 2 bin pull system.

It's great for the customer, sucks for the vendor.

 

Ferrari 348 TB 1990 (fabrication et éssais). on Vimeo

 

Ford did that with the model A

A few others from that era did it, they would attach a tag with the guys name. We did a resto back in the 70's and had the same guy would built it rebuild it. Can't remember for the life of me his name. Was great talking to him