5K RPM on 328 or any vehicle

Hello Everyone,

Beginning August, 2009, I have been learning about how to drive a Ferrari since owning my first, a 328 GTS.

Long story short, I have just recently learned that almost all high performance cars behave best at high RPM since that's where the HP and torque reside.

So, the conclusion now is this:

1. Maintain above 3K RPM as much as possible. (However, be gentle on the clutch.)

2. To wake up the car, go beyond 5K RPM.

The problem, or question, now is this:

Someone can probably drive a Honda Civic with the above RPM habit and said his car is very responsive. What, then, is making a 3X8 different?

 

The Ferrari is a lot more fun than a Honda above 5000RPM.

 

Not much.

One could argue that Honda has built some of the best high revving engines in the world over the last decade, albeit in small displacement 4 cylinder setups. I had an early series S2000, the one that red-lined at 9000k. It was very docile at 2500 rpms, but the thing just screamed from 5,500 rpms all the way to the red line. Most of their VTEC 4 cylinders have shared these traits. With this setup Honda has put out some impressive hp/liter numbers, including CIVICs over the years. I have been in love with high revving cars ever since owning the S2000, so...........

.........I bought a Ferrari 308. Unlike most here what drew me to the 308 was it's tech specs. Yeah a low slung mid-engined, Pininfarina penned, lightweight chassis with a Ferrari badge is pretty damned cool, but once you throw in a small displacement, 8 cylinder motor that revs up all day to just shy of 8000 rpms, with 4 sets of Weber sitting on top is just pure car porn in my book.

 

Try comparing it to a Honda from the late 70's early 80's. If you just want performance and don't care how much it depreciates get a new Vette or a WRX

 

This thread reminds me of the 83 Honda Civic I had in College. I was racing it one time with a friend who had a BMW 2002. To stay competative I had to keep the engine near redline the whole time. If you want to run hard and fast you have to stay in the hot zone. Not saying my car was fast, it wasn't, but pushed hard and listening to that small engine screaming was fun. Our f-cars are what they are. Take your time getting to know yours. The look, feel, sound. They are old and not very competative to todays hot cars. Unless you're running on the track you probably won't keep it in the hot zone. Not in traffic either, but when you're out in the open or a tight curvy road......

It is your car now, you can drive it anyway you want.

 

Beautifully said. Should get some literature award for that.

 

Is it just me or does anyone who really owns and enjoys their 308/328 really need a primer on how to drive it? The whole point is that it is NOT a Honda Civic, who cares what a Civic drives like... Rev your 328 hard (once warmed) and enjoy the sound, appreciate each click when you shift, heel and toe every now and again, take a curve faster than you should... that's what these cars are all about, period. Also enjoy the way she looks after you park her

 

I have a 2000 Honda Civic si, which has a fairly hot 1.6 liter engine that puts out 160 hp and revs to 8000 rpm. The car is not a rocket ship, but the engine is very impressive. Owning this car since it was new certainly developed my affection and appreciation of high rpm engines. I like the ferrari 308/328 for some of the same reasons, except that with eight cylinders instead of four it is twice as good.

 

We gave our daughter a new '08 Civic Si 6-spd Coupe 2 years ago, that the little car can scream! You can really feel the push when the VTEC kicks in.

Sure, I'll take my low-mileage '89 328 over this little Si but I'll take the Civic Si over a worn-out beat-up 308 anyday now.

 

If your 328 demonstrates some "coming on the cam" at 5k then something is not right. The HP curve on these cars has virtually no dips/peaks, it is a very broad and fairly straight power curve; the engines are not cammy at all.

I have said before that what actually impresses me most with the 328 is the fact that it pulls willingly from 1500 RPM in any gear. Of course it makes more power at higher RPM, as do all engines but what's important is how it produces the power through the entire rev range.

You should be able to floor it at 1500 RPM and feel steadily increasing acceleration to the HP peak at 7k. You should not feel any sudden "surge" in acceleration at any RPM. If you do, and the engine has not been modified with the intention of adding upper HP (with the common subsequent loss of low/midrange) there is some issue that needs checking.

 

Hi Crallscars, I agree with you on that. Ferrari is much better above 5K RPM. At least I had tried that just two weeks ago.

Hi tommott77, I was attracted to 3X8 since 1986 and had a 5 foot long poster of a 328 in my room. In August of 2009 I removed that 23 years old poster because the real thing has arrived! I like this car for its design but did not pay attention to the performance. I admire your knowledge.

That said, knowing that this car not only looks good but also drives nice is a bonus to me. I wasn’t expecting the following:

On day one when I drove the 328 from the Seattle Ferrari dealer, a modified WRX came close to me on the highway and started going “vroom, vroom ….” I ignored him but saw him dash away with a downward thumb.

Reading many of the posts here I know that I have missed much about 3x8. At this point I am merely an owner but nothing else. I hope my comparing to Civic did not offend anyone here as I am exploring and my questions can be silly. (I hear echo .... "it is silly!")

Hi KKRace, I was not after performance. I want to become a knowledgeable owner.

Hi PV Dirk, Seattle to Port Angeles awaits us. Come …..

Hi montegoblue, I agree with you. I lack the knowledge (yet) to enjoy a non-static Ferrari.

Hi ztarum, I hope you seriously consider getting a 3x8 now. Because the price is to your advantage. When will price drop again like this is hard to say.

Hi mustardfj40, I told my son when I get myself a 458 he can have the 328. He has a long, long wait to do. (over my dead body, )

Hi mike996, My 328 is fine. Another Ferrari technician not from FoS has checked and confirmed although my car has higher mileage; it is well maintained and perform the way it should.

 

Steve, after reading this post and your first one a week or two back, it seems to me that you might have a lot of fun and learn a lot if you could get hold of a performance driving instructor for a day to take you & your car to a track & maybe do some road work as well to show you what your car can do & how best to do it.

The 328 is not so quick a car by modern standards (its quite likely that you would have been blown away by that WRX if you had decided to "play") but it is none the less a quick thing. On the safety side its plenty quick enough to hurt you too if you don't understand what its going to do when you press on or when you get close to the limits of adhesion.

I did this when I first got my 328 10 years ago and it was money very well spent. It gave me a lot more confidence with the car because I understood much better what it was doing and when it was going to do it (and what to do about it!). The handling of mid engined cars is different & if you can find a safe place to explore that a bit I am sure it will help you to enjoy the thing much more for the long term.

As has been said the power delivery is very linear, but it just seems so much more alive in the 5-7K rev range because that's where the maximum power is.

 

"(its quite likely that you would have been blown away by that WRX if you had decided to "play") "

Unless it was modified WRX (very possible, of course) a 328 should be able to outrun it without much difficulty. Most tests show the WRX as a mid 14 sec 1/4 mile car - a couple 10ths slower than a 328 and a 5-7MPH slower trap speed. The trap speed tells the real story so a stock 328 will just flat outrun a stock WRX.

The 1/4 time is just a function of the launch and the same car can vary from high 13's to low 15s simply depending on the launch. However, the trap speed at the end will be essentially the same regardless of the launch. The trap speed tells you how much power the car can make; the 1/4 time tells you how good the launch was. (In tuning engines, nobody pays any attention to the ET, just the trap speed.)

 

Hi Iain, I intend to hire a race instructor. Did you do that with some road race skill (by practice or by reading) before you go?

 

Yep, 5k in the 308 is very sweet, but since that's 100mph in 5th, the only time I see it is at track days... All these folks driving and shifting at 5k must be getting around in 2nd / 3rd gear - neighbours must enjoy the symphony

 

Hi Steve,

I'm happy to help you learn a little more about your car and how to get the most out of it. I'm also in the Seattle area and have a few ferraris and other exotics which may be interesting to compare and contrast with your car, and thereby perhaps learn more than you might just by yourself, or via Q&A on f-chat here. If you like, send me a private message and we can figure out a time that's convenient. I'm located in NE Seattle.

 

Hi mike 996, That WRX was a modified one. Since crashing a Ferrari will hit the news channel much faster than crashing a WRX, my loss is bigger than that WRX owner, I choose to "concede failure" without a fight.

Hi Kerrari, Isn’t that engine roar referred to as “Ferrari music”? Oh, it’s not fair for me to say that as Harley Davidson people will complain why there isn’t “Harley Music”.

Hi CliffBeer, Thank you! I have sent a private message to you. Hope to meet you and see your collections!

 

Forget Harley's they sound absolutely crap. The only good sounding bike is a Ducati. Period, end of arguement, no need to reply etc etc.

 

And the only color for a 3x8 is RED; Period, end of arguement, no need to reply etc etc.

 

Neither. I knew about the guy before hand, rang him up & spent a day with him. He arranged for us to go to a vehicle testing facility which happens to have a 2 mile track .

It also has a large area of tarmac with concentric circles marked on it. Pick one & follow it round going faster & faster till "things" start to happen - very illuminating!

Then we went out on the road for a couple hours.

 

"Enzo's Symphony" absolutely! But unfortunately not all neighbours have the same taste...I'm lucky I have a neighbour with Buell & HD bikes so we have a sort of mutual admiration society and come out to listen to each other leave!

 

I would record a Ferrari F1 sound and put it in my door bell. Next time a kid come ring my door bell and run away, I will be saying "thank you"!

 

9000K nine thousand thousand. WOW! That would be a screamer!

 

DAMN... I got jipped. Mine came black.

<big grin>

Rick