348 vs F355 Performance?

I'm considering my first Ferrari purchase and am torn between the 348 and the F355.

Firstly, I'm in the UK and 348's are available for considerably less money than F355's. A nice '92 or '93 348ts can be had for around £23k, whereas a nice '95 or '96 F355 would be around £35k.

Looks-wise, there are things I like about both cars, although I think the 348 is starting to look just a little bit dated now. Still a lovely looking car though.

My question to you guys is regarding the straight-line performance of the 348 vs the F355. I know the numbers (~5.4 for the 348 and ~4.6 for the F355 0-60), but I haven't seen any in-gear numbers (30-50, 30-70 and 50-70) and I haven't driven either as yet. Have any of you driven both for comparison purposes? Is the 348 significantly and noticeably slower?

Also, what is the factory rev limit of the 348? 7,800rpm? Rev limit of the F355 is 8,500rpm?

Please no 'the 348 is rubbish, get a 355' comments... looking for informed and subjective feedback!

Cheers,
Ian.

 

Welcome to Ferrarichat Ian.
There was a really cool video on here a while a go, showing a fellow Fchatter driving his black F355 doing the 30-50mph, 30-70mph and 50-70mph tests ect........I dont remember where the video is sorry. Was cool though. Sounded AWESOME!
348TB rev to 7200RPM.
348GTB rev to 7800RPM.
355B rev to 8200RPM.

There is a TONNE of info regarding the 348/355 performance, look, handling, performance, looks, handling ect........ect........ Look in here and use the search feature to search the Fchat archives. Plenty there.
They are both fantastic cars IMO. Each to their own I reckon. I would love a 355, but not worth the ridiculous amount of money to justify me buying one over a 348. Have fun mate.

 

You are going to get them comments on a pointless thread like this IMO.
In a straight line as you are asking it goes like this. The 348 is faster than a 328. The 355 is faster than a 348. The 360 is faster than a 355. The 430 is faster than a 360. And they all pull more stronger than the last model. There is no mystery there then

 

Only 7,200rpm for the 348TB? That's a bit disappointing considering that most 'ordinary' cars can rev to 7k these days. Not exactly a 'screamer' of an engine then. Hmm.

Cheers,
Ian.

 

This is why I hate forums... I've only just joined and I'm already getting dissed by some idiot claiming my thread is pointless. Actually, it is your reply to my thread that's pointless in stating the bloody obvious. As a person interested in buying a 348 or a 355, wanting to get feedback from owners of those cars re. the relative performance of each is not pointless at all. As I seem to have to say on so many forums, if you have nothing mature and sensible to say, keep it moving. Thanks.

 

LOL!!! Ok dude i forgive you

 

Ordinary?? Dont forget mate, this car was doing this in 1989!! 18 years ago!! A mean feat if you ask me. The later 348GTB went to 7800RPM.
What 'ordinary car' was doing over 7200RPM in 1989? Id love to know.
Also, most 'ordinary' cars can rev to 7K these days. But who cares? This is Ferrari we are talking about arent we? And I can assure you............a 348 with an XOST exhaust IS a screamer of an engine.

 

Actually, I used to own a 1972 Datsun 240Z and that could rev to 7,300rpm stock. 7,200rpm is still impressive for the displacement, but it's just not 'wow, that's amazing' high. I agree, it's still a Ferrari and that counts for a lot, but I'm comparing it with a 355, not a non-Ferrari. I see you own a 348, so I can understand a little defensiveness ;-)

Just out of interest, is there a rev limiter on the 348?

Cheers,
Ian.

 

To me the bigger differences between the two cars lie in the overall feel. The 355 is much easier to drive fast, has power steering a much more direct gearbox linkage, and much more modern interior. While the 355 is noticeably faster in a straight line, the 348 has plenty of go if you have the stomach for it. I would say the 348 will give you a higher pucker factor, the 355 will make you go much faster. That said, I'll take the 348, and something completely different for a track car.

BT

 

Yea, I'm getting the impression that the 348 is more of a 'grab it by the scruff of the neck and DRIVE it' kinda car, where as the 355 is more of a cossetting, comfortable car that's also very fast. I used to like my old Datsun 240Z (with race cam, head and headers) because it was the kinda car you had to be kinda rough with... you had to man-handle it to get the best out of it. It had heavy (non-assisted) steering, a heavy gear change and a kinda switch-like throttle, so it was a bit of a work-out driving it, but it was quite a physical experience as a result and a real rush to drive.

Is the 348 nice and noisy as stock?

 

I actually messed that up sorry. 348TB revs to 7800RPM and 348GTB revs to 8200RPM. 355B revs to 8500RPM.
348TB makes 300HP@7200RPM. 348GTB makes 320HP@7800RPM.
355B makes 380HP@8200RPM

Either way, as BT mentioned, its all about the feel of the car. I dont really think the rev limiter means much, really. 348 is a great car. Sure, 355 is quicker ect...but I just love the rawness that is the 348. 355 has powersteering ect.......lose alot of feel there IMO. But drive both cars and see which one you like more. We can only tell you so much about these cars. What counts most is the roadtest which will determine which car you like best. You may swing towards the 355 because of performance specs, but when you drive both, you may love the 348. This can be done vice versa also. So drive both and then go from there. In the meantime, check out this section and check out the archives for even more regarding both these wonderful machines.

 

That just about sums up the 348!!
A real 'drivers' car I reckon. Awesome fun. They do sound cool stock. Not as noisey as fitting an exhaust to it, but still sounds nice. XOST/Tubi/Capritso all make awesome exhausts for Ferraris and the 348 sounds glorious with one fitted. I have an XOST on my car and it sounds fantastic now.


http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=132911&page=3

 

I've got the in-gear figures for the 348 GTS (320bhp) and I think also for the 300bhp model as well, but as you were so rude to my good friend Chaa, I can't really be bothered to scan them in.

 

www.the348.com & www.the355.com should help but as noted above driving both should help more

 

My little brother

 

For 50% more outlay I would want a serious performance difference. How tight is your budget?, IMO a good 348 with a £3K slush fund for unforseens would be a more comfortable proposition than a 355 with nothing over. If you are happy with the 355 cash +£5k for unforseens and want the extra performance then great, your decision is easy.

As an aside, the good dyno numbers 'seem' to come from the 95' M2.7 355's - not many later model numbers get posted (except the one on pistonheads with 320hp @ flywheel). So if outright performance is important, you may want to also compare the M2.7 and M5.2 355's. Just going on what I have read, nothing concrete.

 

From another mother!!

 

Thanks for the info. I see you own a 348tb. Have you ever driven a 355? If so, how does the performance compare to the 348? I also see you used to own Corvettes. Did you ever own a C5? If so, how does the performance of the 348 compare to that? Any problems with your 348 since you've had it?

Cheers,
Ian.

 

this question gets asked ever other day on this forum, might do a search

the 355 not only has more power and a higher rev line, it weighs 250lbs less and has a stiffer chassis, its still a raw car compared to a 360 and the a/c works. They also did a lot of wind tunnel work on the 355 with ground effects

I have had no problems with my 355 and have put over 6k mile on it since last summer, most reliable Ferrari I have owned including my old 328 which had several minor issues

You get what you pay for with each newer Ferrari

 

Thanks for the reply, but, with all due respect, I DID do a search and the specific question I asked at the top of this thread was not answered.

Cheers,
Ian.

 

As you now have now seen, everyone here has a reason as to why they own a particular model. Speaking for myself, I did zero consulting with anyone before I bought my 1997 F355 spider !! My suggestion is do as much research as you can and find your own "reason" for your choice.

I have never driven a 348 but the power difference alone was enough to sway my decision !!

 

I have limited 355 seat time, but did feel the 348 has a bit more pull down low. I didn't do any speed-limit + testing. But for driving around town, if the heavier steering and crappy shifting of the 348 is ok for you - then the 348 keeps up just fine. I'm sure on the open road the 355 walks away, as you said.

To me - the 355 with the power steering felt too removed, where the 348 felt like a sports car. But then, I'm also allergic to computerized stuff in cars (ABS and FI is ok, I guess...).

There are so many other variables in a toy, that outright performance was way down the list for me.

It's fair to say the 348 likes to be 'driven", but also fair to say the 355 is a much "better" car and is actually modern feeling (pfftt )

I have the stock exhaust and cat's on my spider - and it's loud enough for me. Especially after 14hrs driving. in a tb I'd probably go with an X-OST.

Tires and suspension setup makes a huge difference to the 348 - there's been a few threads here on the optimal spacers, camber, and tire setups.

 

Redline was 7800. The earlier models made 300hp at 7200 rpm's. It may have had more to do with mid range torque. 348's were reving past 8000 without problem on some challenge cars. Early 308 hit 7800 rpm's. Ferrari v-12 in the testarossa only rev'd to 6800 rpm's.

 

Sorry to correct you, but its a flat 12

 

Unfortunately it is even more complex than that .

See link below:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_12