Bit of irrelevance, but curious how these cars compare performance wise and driving experience wise to each other. The looks (which i Love), seem to mimic each other a little, along with 308s, so is a boxer like driving a beefed up 328?
The 328 has a rubber band for a motor in comparison. Its not even close, the boxer has torque and Hp. The boxer feels heavier throught he wheel and less lithe, I also thought the 328 brakes were better. The wheel feelign on the boxer is easily imporved though and agressive pads bring the brakes up to speed.. A boxer will be more of a handfull at the limit. The speed and noise of the boxer means its like comparing a 430 to a miata, they both steer and handle nice but... Along with the performance boxer will also be infinitley more expesive to maintain. Think of it like this, if you could put the motor from a daytona in a 308 you would end up with something like a boxer. For really tight twisty roads ie 70 mph down where the drive is all about monetum, a 328 may be better. If you are satisfied witht he power of a 328 then no need to got oa boxer and a 328 is a betetr choice. If you wish for more, then short of a 288 the boxer is the same thing on steroids. As to performance, the accleration of a boxer between say 40 and 140 is somethign few cars even today are up to.
Even the lowly BBi is quicker in a given gear than a 360 that is untill the aero takes effect around 150 or so. Even witht he slow stick vs paddle a BBI can outrun a 360 in 3rd and 4th. 1/4 mile well boxers dont have launch control or even very robust clutches. The boxer will be faster once rolling from 50-145 or so. But compared to a 430 no contest the 430 takes it. Of course these more modern cars rely on milisecond shifts to get their speed, so seat of the pants speed is not the same as the epic power/torque of a 12. Thing is you need a strong running boxer, and to get a boxer running properly you need someone who know how to set it up porperly, whereas with a modern its plug it into the machine ad replace some bits according to the screen. Most boxers run, but they dont run optimaly, not surprising after 30+ years of use or sitting..
the boxer is now 30 and more years old. how can one compare this "lady" with a 430 "young girl" ? ? ? and even this old lady shows the young girl where the way goes put in the BB a sinter metal double clutch as I have inside the 430 has no chance
I love my 512BB, but I beg to differ. 0-60, 1/4 mile, Top Speed, HP, Weight 512BB: 5.5, 13.5 @ 104, 186 mph, 360 @ crank, 3,600 lbs 360: 4.2, 12.8 @ 112, 189 mph, 400 @ crank, 3,197 lbs 360 CS: 4.0, 12.0 @ 119, 190 mph 425 @ crank, 3,064 lbs The trap speeds tell the story. I also currently have a CS and previously had a 360 F1. By the seat of my pants both are faster by any measure than a 512BB. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrari_Berlinetta_Boxer http://www.automobile-catalog.com/car/1976/705965/ferrari_512_bb.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ferrari_360
Same impression for me when comparing my '90TR and '04 360 Spider. The Spider is faster, but less torque. The Spider requires the right gear at the right time but the TR will grunt forward in most any gear. Rgds, Vincenzo
But I think w especificaly said no 0-60 or 1/4 miles, a boxer does not work like that. As the TR owner said in gear grunt is huge and to go faster in the other cars you have to downshift to exactly the right gear. When following afreind ina 3600 all I listen for is the blip blip ans the computer does the downshifting. in the boxer I just bury the throttle, by the time the 360 is done findign the right gear and reving u the boxer is into its stride.
Agree with John B.. Love my BBi, but the CS is way quicker, faster, nimbler etc. That being said, perhaps in the low rpm range the boxer has more torque. But once you get anywhere near the happy zone, it's all CS.
A CS not a regular 360. In any event both a BB and a 360 not to mention a CS are worlds away form a 328 and the Op was asking about a boxer vs 328. I think a Cs and regular 430 not too far apart and I had said a 430 takes it. On the street in a boxer you dont have to be all downshifty all the time, you just put your foot in and go, meaning there is more of the performamce more easily extractable more of the time than a 360. If there is one newer ferrari that I find attractive its the CS and maybe a scuderia, but I hear the CS more fun to drive. And yeah a CS is going to be way nimbler than a Boxer, even a 328 is nimbler. But with different wheels and tires you would be surprised how nimble a boxer can be, nick masons BBLM is 4 secs quicker around a track than his F40. On the street no one is extracting max performance from a Cs or boxer to the nth degree that one is relalisticaly going faster in one over the other. Whereas in a 328 etracting max is still going to be back of the pack.
Having driven 328's / 308's and boxers I recall a comment I made I made a few years ago about my injected boxer vs my modified carb'd 308GTB. I had just corrected a distributor advance issue on my 82 boxer, my 308 nut and bolt restoration had just been completed and I drove them back to back one evening. I drove the 308 and loved it, nimble, light, tight and tossable - had a lot of fun. Then I hopped in my boxer and took the same route. I turned out of my subdivision (hung a right) onto a 4 lane empty road and gunned it. At that moment I was adjusting my seating position so I was slightly turned to the right in the seat at the moment I hit the gas and what happened next Ill never forget. The acceleration and my awkward seating position forced me to tense up and I hurt my back lol. I strained my lower back to prevent myself from flopping back in between the seats! Violent is the word I would use when compared to a 308/328 when it comes to torque. As fun as it is to say I went 200MPH its the grunt and thrust out of the hole that provides the biggest grin and a boxer in any form provides that more than any 328 can not to mention the sound of a flat 12 - no comparison.
Closer to a boxer and nothing like a 328 but the Testarossa feels much bigger and heavier than a boxer with a similar sound.
Performance-wise, there is an interesting and thorough comparison between the two cars (328 vs BB) in: "Autos, die Geschichte machten, die Ferrari 308 und 328, by Dirk-Michael Konradt, Motorbuch Verlag, 1990". I won't tell you the outcome, as an owner of two 328s, I'd be accused of vested interest; but you'd be surprised by some results...you have to read german, by the way... Remember that, when tested by the french magazine "Sport-Auto" (a serious magazine) at the time of its arrival on the market, the test driver enthused: "as for pick-up, it takes the 328 only 9 sec 2/10th to go from 100 km/h to 140 km/h in Fifth gear, that is two seconds quicker than the Testarossa"... Rgds
And to keep in mind; European spec cars have difrent weight and power, compared to those in other market. Test results have to be seen this in mind.
In the book I was talking about, a thorough comparison was made when the 328 appeared on the market with the two versions of the Boxer, which has been replaced by the Testarossa a year ago, a carbed and an injected Boxer. The test were done by german journalists, using the same stretch of road for the three cars, by the same weather, and by the same drivers, alternating behind the wheel of the cars for cross measures. Outcome was that only the Carbed Boxer was clearly superior to the 328 all along the speed ranges; but there was no marked difference between the 328 used for the tests (an Euro car, so no cats, and in GTB version, which is a better performer than the GTS) and the BBi: under 120 km/h, the 328 was actually the better performer, above 140 km/h, the BBi was slightly superior, but only by a small margin: even in 0 to 180 km/h from standing still, the 328 was only 4/10th behind the BBi. Main results were: Acceleration from standing still: 0-80 km/h: 1. Carbed Boxer, 4sec 1/10th; 2. 328, 4,2; 3. BBi, 4,5. 0-100 km/h: 1. Carbed Boxer, 5sec 5/10th; 2. 328, 5,8; 3. BBi, 5,9. 0-140 km/h: 1. Carbed Boxer, 9sec 6/10th; 2. BBi, 10,0; 3. 328, 10,2. 0-180 km/h: 1. Carbed Boxer, 14sec 8/10th; 2. BBi, 16,4; 3. 328, 16,8. Maximum speed: 1. BBi, 288 km/h; 2. Carbed Boxer, 285 km/h; 3. 328, 267 km/h Pick-up from 60 to 120 km/h in fifth gear: 1. 328, 12sec 5/10th; 2. Carbed Boxer, 13sec 7/10th; 3. The then new-Testarossa: 14sec 4/10th Rgds.
I find the Boxer brakes significantly stronger than the 308. With a good sticky competition pad in the 308, the BBi still feels like it could lock the wheels at a hundred, while in the 308, I can put considerable force on the brake pedal and not sense the deceleration more easily attained in the BB. i.m.h.o.
This is one of the most ridiculous set of specs I have ever seen. 60 KMH is 37mph. I cant even imagine putting my car into 5th at that speed, would it even run. At 37mph I am in 2nd gear or if cruising 3rd. 5th gear I only go into at 75 mph when cruising otherwise its 4th. The boxer needs close to 4000rpms to move. 4th is geared to 145 mph at redline and 3rd 105., at least that is what the cop claimed. How fast would a new vette accelerate in top gear ie 7th from 37 mph. So yes a 328 has shorter gearing and might be quicker from near idle in 5th, but of what possible relevance is this, other than to make 328 owners feel there car has near 12 performance. Drive a boxer or a Tr its not even close.
