Shouldnt there be some slots on the bumper like the 355 bumpers i have seen?... Image Unavailable, Please Login
You are correct the bumper does not seem to be like my 355.. And also it has single exhaust pipes on each side - should be double even with most aftermarkets.... Interesting... I am thinking this is a replica.
I am thinking that this is a kit car also, something about the shape of the glass seems off. Could be a weird reflection though. He has a Ferrari Dealer liscence plate frame, so who knows? But check the plate itself, lol.
probably oem?...who knows. Does the wheel offset seem fishy?....i guess only the owner knows it its real or not....
I believe some of the earlier cars did not have slots in the rear bumper. This was something that I wondered for a while as well, until I saw several examples of it and figured that was the case. Maybe there is a different reason, but that is what I have put together. In this case, the entire bumper is painted yellow, I'm guessing a repaint, so you can easily see the lack of slots. Those which have the normal flat-black painted in that horizontal groove area make it look like the common bumper and is harder to tell.
Couple of more points - This says Berlinetta on it so not a challenge (muffler) however they could have put a challenge exhaust on it.. But I would think they would go with tubi, Ansa, etc.. And did you notice the 3rd stop ligth (cyclops) is not on the engine cover thingy but on the rear of the upper back of the car. This is a fiero kit - IMO...
Also if you pull this up in photoshop and zoom in on a couple of things - like the headrests of the seats - these do not look like the original or sport seats... look like pontiac
Vents look real on the dash and the exterior door handle appears correct. I say its real. These things are usually messed up on a kit. The picture was taken at race track (helmets and driving suits), maybe the owner though moving the brake light would aid in engine cooling. Track junkies can get wacky with mods.
this car is from canada......It is not a kit car.... He was at a track event posted in the Canada section
Im in love. That car is legit it just has a different bumper looks like he painted the back slot to go for the all yellow look.
This car is 100% legit and belongs to a friend of mine. It is the first yellow 355 delivered in Canada in early 1995. This guy mainly tracks this car and drives it a lot. It has almost 90,000km. I know for sure that the rear bumper has been painted at least once and that it is fitted with Challenge exhaust thus the single pipes.
Car is not a kit. Canadian spec bumpers are different. I'll post a pic of the 355 I have in my shop right now. It's a 97 spider,the 3rd brake light is in the same spot, and the bumper does not have the vents in it. Quite possiable the head rests are of a different spec aswell for Canadian requirements.
Mystery solved... Good stuff.. There are more differences than I knew about on the 355 than I have noticed before. Thanks for the info and clarification.
Early 355s (1995) did not have slots in the rear bumper regardless of whether they were US or non US cars.
355 berlinetta rear windows go in for rear air intake in the rear, This car does not...Also rear hatch openings look plasticly. I believe it's a kit, rather good one but a kit non the less...my opinion
So let me get this right... You brought back a nearly 8 year old thread to dispute several people that posted they know the car personally?
I just read the post yesterday so I really don't get the 8 year old comment and I wasn't disputting anything just stating my opinion like everyone else. I noticed the windows being flush with the sides of the vehicle and it struck me odd. Before I bought my Ferrari I looked at kits, specifically in Canada since they're illegal here. One company in particular in Canada made these exceptional replicas. I remember because it was the only kit where the doors and sill plates were separated which is a tell tale sign of a kit...but the only thing that still gave it away was that air intakes on the windows and thats why I made that comment. Another sign is the transaxle is sometimes vissible under the bumper on a real 355 which is not visible here. I could still be 100% wrong but so could some of these other post, what I'm trying to say is that it is my opinion, and I stated that on the post, further, I explained why I thought it was a kit. If you would like to dispute my post go ahead, since you're also dissputing it on the same 8 year old post. There are some excellent kits out there and if anything, it should be a compliment to the owner, if its in fact a kit, that most people can't tell. I had no interest in arguing or starting anything...just added my 2 cents because I believed I noticed something that most missed.
I believe that the point Joshua was making was that you somehow managed to find and ressurect a thread that was last posted in almost 8 years ago to make a personal opinion on a subject for which the original question was already well answered a long long time ago. It is called being late to the party (which in this case had no more invitations) and expect to get flamed for it. Just to put you at ease you are indeed 100% wrong. I personally know (or rather knew as he has since passed away) both the original owner and current owner of this particular car. I have ridden in this car, seen it on a hoist, and followed it on the road. It is the real thing regardless of what you may or may not see in one photograph. End of story.