Hi there, I know there are some knowledgeable people on here and wanted to see if I could clarify a few small points and harness some opinions in relation to my 308. Some background though; I am a NSW club member, with a small collection that began with Alfa Romeos and grew into Ferrari's. Last year I was lucky enough to acquire a one owner 1978 308GTB, a well known car around Ferrari club circles, at least during it's time while the owner resided in Sydney and was a little younger. The whole purchase experience was awesome: driving up the NSW north coast and meeting this elderly couple with my daughter left a lasting impression on me. It is what car passion is all about. Lovely people who clearly enjoyed "their" car. The car was serviced by the owner himself (and helpers, he owned an earth moving company I think) so the physical history file wasn't as complete as it could have been but it was a solid car that had been lovingly looked after. Early on its life it had a colour change to red, it was originally a metallic blue (I don't know the Ferrari name for it) and the job was well done. Over the years this car won many trophies, some of which the owner gave me with the car and some he kept. I have 4 photos from when the car got painted and if I am not mistaken it may have originally been not only metallic blue but also finished in a boxer trim. The car has been a dream to own to be honest, though it is time to attend to a few things, most of which are straightforward. However my questions are: Did we get any such cars get sold (308 in boxer trim) in Australia in 1978? is there a way of finding out? Should I change the colour back to original? now or one day? (I have just bought a 1985 red 308GTSi, so have a "red one") I attach a photo of the car - from my limited knowledge the rear bumper belongs to a fibreglass model as the reverse lights are located within the bumper bar. Yet the early photos I have (circa 1980) show the same bumper bar. Naturally it could have been replaced between 1978 and 1980 though the previous owner said it was original. Or maybe I have it all wrong and it is the correct bumper bar? Can anyone clarify please? I look forward to your replies. EZ Image Unavailable, Please Login
Keith Smith's old car? If so, I don't recall him owning it from new. He was a bit keen on gloss black paint and polishing everything too. Unlikely to have been delivered with a satin black lower half, but this could easily have been added at any time. Yes, I would paint strip and restore to original colour - the rising values of 308's makes this viable. What colour is your carpet? I also had an originally blue but changed to resale red GTB and the carpets were dark blue, which I think was the default factory combination. The rear bumper may well have been there since new, I'd only worry about changing it if you're planning on entering concours. Oh, and please lose the shield on the back!
If it was Keith Smiths car it used to have a towbar fitted , the chassis number will verify the previous owner. As you say, the rear bumper is not original for a steel body 308 GTB. I wouldn't bother repainting it now unless there is a problem with the paint. Does it need it ? If you want to know the original details of the car I suggest you get in contact with Terry Willis of the Maranello Concessionaires archive [email protected] or [email protected] For a modest fee he will provide copies of any documentation they have about the car, inlcuding original orders etc. Will tell you what the colour was, and if it had boxer trim M
Hmmm,interesting perspective from 2 sages in Aussie Ferrari world. Sorry to be a pain,in this particular department....,if you would like a little more cred,please fill in some profile,as you will see,the two repliers to your question have names(as I do). You will be have a great deal more respect and friendliness....other than coming onto a forum asking questions. IMO,relating to your possible paint dilemma,I'm with Ian...any day of the week. An original painted colour,country of delivery car,should be,where practicable,be the original colour,particularly given the selling market(not that you would have purchased for that reason). I'd like to see the rest of your collection as well,some of us are not one eyed and have progressed though the ranks.
Thanks for the replies. I have a few things to do this morning but will respond in more detail during the day hopefully. Will fill in my profile as well. The rest of the collection? ....same thing, can reply over time....one of my cars was the red Testarossa at the rally last November and the silver BB512 at the same time. I have met a few of the "sages" here. Just figured until I had anything meaningful to add or contribute there was no point making useless posts. Ian - Yes it was Keith Smiths - I'm sure the books say he bought it new from Parramatta at the time, I'll check. The shields and anything else are as they were when I bought it......and yes Mike, Keith showed me pics of his tow bar and trailer - funny, no interesting, take on the whole thing! Cheers Emmanuel
Well would be a bit quiet without some of the hopeless posters here ( ) Useless posts is what we do best here ........ I blame Horse, he takes nothing serious
He also made up a "stone guard" for it. Imagine a roughly 2m x 1m rectangular steel frame, with steel mesh welded to it. Now imagine that upright, in front of the nose of a 308, supported by angle iron legs bolted (I presume) to the front suspension pick up points. KS was famously prickly, but even he had to listen to mirth when he turned up with this contraption. He did love that car though...
btw have the sodium valves been changed? Check your receipts carefully and don't drive it another metre if you can't prove they've been replaced with stainless steel valves.
Hi all, Ian - thanks for the insight. Over time I hope to piece together some pics from various archives, though Keith still had many himself, just to keep the "story" of car together and to allow it to grow with it. I know there is always debate about whether this is important but hey why not? Keith assured me the valves were changed to stainless steel about 4 years prior to my purchase. I have no reason to doubt him. Just looked up the log books - Keith was indeed the first owner, purchased the car in January 1979 from Ron Hodgson Motors. Car is recorded as a 8/78 build in this book. Found the photos of the car in the early days plus when it appears to be prepped for painting - if I can scan them over the weekend I'll post them. That bumper was definitely there way back then. I have emailed Terry Willis in the UK - thanks Mike. more info as I collate it. cheers Emmanuel
Really weird about the rear bumper bar. I'm looking forward to reading WTF when you uncover the background about it. If it's not the standard bar on it, I reckon you could do quite well swapping over for the later model bar with someone who wants that model....maybe
Wrong rear bar, it is from a fibreglass car. Metal cars had the reverse lights in the outer tail lights as your car does. My guess would be at some point the original was damaged and was replaced with an earlier version. Maybe it was cheaper or he bought a repro from one of the numerous sources who have the mould. Maybe he cut up the originalbar in that aforementioned tow bar modification?
He used to have the bar on a flip up mount with the towbar behind so I'd say it was changed to accommodate. May have taken off original bar to preserve?
If it did come from Ron, he was known for taking the odd ferrari off the yard, occasionally with a mishap or two. Wouldn't be surprised a certain shop in Camperdown replaced it if he did have a boo-boo.
I got an email response from Terry Willis and have now sent off for the "official letter" from The Maranello Concessionaires Archive. This email says..."the car was delivered to Lowe the importer March 1974 in Azzuro with Beige hide. Engine is correct"....the 1974 must be a typo of course but this confirms the Azzuro colour. Someone asked about the carpets: they are original tan/light brown (?) and yes the interior is still the beige though it isn't light but rather a darker shade, maybe it has aged. It is definitely original as I have seen the same in other cars. I will try to scan those old photos today. Ok I think we can all agree that that the rear bumper isn't correct and it was either changed by the dealer or Keith for some reason. I am not selling the car so the increase in value isn't really relevant. I am just getting ready for the day when I want to return it to original spec, so knowing the value is there would help that cause. I recall (I think it was "Aircon") recently saying red is important more so to the first time buyer? I appreciate the input so far. When there is an opportunity I will bring the car to a club day.... EZ
I did say that. Most, not all, but most first time Ferrari buyers want red IME. I'm not sure if that might be changing a little...hard to say. My 308 is Azzuro, and I'm glad it is. It looks spectacular and when I'm on a Ferrari club event, it's not just 'another red ferrari'...which is nice too.
As a buyer of NOHOS, I can confirm that the market still prefers red Ferraris to an overwhelming degree. There are a lot more people returning for their 4th, 7th or whatever Ferrari and they tend to venture beyond the red hues. Personally, give me ANYTHING but red. As for Azzuro, gee we got a lot of Ferraris in that hue back in the days before Magnum PI took hold and red took over.
I have noticed that most of my friends who know that I am looking to buy my first Ferrari are surprised that I am more interested in purchasing a non-red car Your Azzuro 308 looks fantastic - I hear its for sale although I also hear that it's had a few modifications
Hi Emmanuel Congratulations on the recent purchase. I'm glad it's going to be a keeper for you. Just enjoy it for now. When the time comes and you want to do some work to it, I think you will definitely do the car justice by returning it to Azzuro. It is a stunning colour that really shows off the lines of the GTB. Hope all else is well mate. Any plans to come to Melbourne for Motorclassica this year? Dan
I got black for my first Ferrari I have to admit though, if my cousin wasn't going to sell me his car I most likely would have gone red... I am so glad it worked out the way it did. I love the fact that it's not just 'another red Ferrari' too!
Whoever told you my car is for sale is just winding you up. It's not for sale. All modifications can be undone in one day, maybe a day and a half. I'd be surprised if the next owner changes a single thing about it.
