First impressions and experiences - 365 BB #17977

Mad is not the word - disappointed, yes. The big ticket items are fine on the car, that was my main concern. There were a couple of things that they should have sorted out before I collected the car, but I'm sure they'll get it sorted over the winter. "Thankfully" I won't be in a position to drive the car until spring now, so we have plenty of time.

@Geno - it's very flattering you say I'm making you drive your 365. Glad I could be of service. , Enjoy her while the sun's still out, it won't last much longer.


Onno

 

Hi Boxerfriends,

I managed, after two and a half months in the West African jungle, to visit my Boxer in England and test drive it after all the work that was done. I was lucky that it rained all weekend, the salt on the roads was mostly washed away when I drove it on Monday. Weather was grey and misty but dry otherwise.

First impressions as it was warming up were impressive - since I bought it, it has always run well on idle but now she sounded slightly better. Still purring at 800rpm. A lot of work was done on the carbs to improve the low rev/high rev gap, and driving it she certainly has improved a lot - it is almost gone. Starting when hot was perfect, engine-wise all seemed great. She is running just a little richer than before, but the bangs and pops from the exhaust are quite addictive. Worth the petrol!

Brake pads were skimmed, and the geometry was improved - she is now much more stable at high speeds. Speedometer and oil temp guage fixed, and a new clutch was fitted. The alternator problems, which were the main headache, were fixed by stripping the wiring and fitting a modern alternator with the regulator built-in. It's not original but at least it works - my Dutch specialist had also recommended this option if we couldn't get the problem sorted. I'm not troubled by the non-originality much, the car is meant to be driven.

All fixes were done under warranty, so I am happy with the state of the car now. I think she's ready for next season and I, for one, can't wait. Only 5 more months to go...


Onno
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Close on answer c), Geno. I work there, so I spend 95% of my time there, and I am a planning engineer on a gold mine.


Onno

 

It's an interesting market at the moment, Gene. There are some real bargains to be had because quite a few companies put themselves in debt to start up a mine - only 9 months ago the industry had a record gold price and little to worry about. Now, companies without cash are in trouble and are potential take-over victims. If you're buying a gold mine, you're buying the ore body - it's the only real asset they have. This means that you are buying an estimation on gold in the ground which can vary between realistic and pure fantasty, so the trick is to recognise what potential pitfalls there are with developing the mine (if it's a new mine) or fixing the problems it has (if it's an old one). Developing a new medium sized gold mine in West Africa will cost around US$250 million, so to quantify the risk you need a reserve (which is a term that indicates that competent, certified, people have calculated the amount of gold available for mining) of at least 1.5 million ounces (which equates to 1.25 billion gros revenue, or around $200 million a year for an 8 year life of mine). Buying such a property could cost between $100 and $400 million, depending on the strength of the orebody, the state of knowledge (i.e. the risk that the gold is there and the ease with which you can extract the gold). It can be very hard to extract economically if the metallurgy (i.e. "chemistry") is wrong.

If you're a private investor, buying some shares in a good gold company is not a bad idea in this market. The gold price is poised to go up as the crisis deepens, and IMO looks certain to break back through a $1000 first half of 2009. Demand is already at a record high, but a lot of banks and investors have been dumping to regain cash positions. This will stop soon. The trick is to know which company you invest in - this requires a knowledge of them, their assets and of their track record. With gold mining, the risks are always substantial. After a couple of wrong assumptions, our start-up neighbouring mine turned out to have 70% higher costs than expected and went bust even at a record gold price...

However, if you get it right... Check out our share price over the last four years (NASDAQ:GOLD)....



Onno

 

Incidentally, Gene, I received copies of the original order and sale documentation of my car the other day. It is interesting to note that the order sheet specifies Blu Ribot as the colour, but as it was it was delivered in Dino Blu... So she should have looked like a twin of yours!


Onno

 

I can scan them in for you, Gene, I'll do that after Christmas.

How you can go about getting these for your own car, I'm not sure. My car was delivered through Maranello Concessionaires, the UK importer, and they still exist and have a great archive. I was tipped off on the archiver's name and contact details by another forum member and contacted him. 65 Sterling and a couple of weeks later I was as happy as the proverbial pig in the proverbial excrement! It really is fantastic to have these docs with the car, it adds tremendously to the overall sentiment and history.

What I suggest you do, is ask Marcel Massini where your car was originally delivered, and then contact that Ferrari dealer to see if they have something. Also, you can ask Marcel if he has any tips for you in finding those documents - if anyone knows, it will be him. He will also know your car's original colour, if it was different, and date of manufacture and delivery, and most likely the first owner's name.

BTW, I was also not aware that Ribot Blu was an official colour - you don't find references to it very often. However, here are a few:

http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showpost.php?p=138009254&postcount=46
http://books.google.nl/books?id=h41dPH-R79MC&pg=PT89&lpg=PT89&dq=ferrari+blu+ribot&source=bl&ots=XkL71wQ13s&sig=rzLvHSheFa-BUJILLpZ-aABYjxs&hl=nl&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=7&ct=result#PPT89,M1
http://www.365gtc4.com/Reference/ColorChart.aspx

One thing is for sure, though: it may be rare, but it is spectacularly beautiful! I would love to see your car in the flesh one day, photos never quite deliver dark colours the way they should.


Onno

 

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuMZ3K7Eeew[/ame]

 

Haha, yes, Born to Be Wild would have been nice but I just grabbed a cassette from the dash.

You're exactly right, it is an ANSA sports exhaust specifically for the 365, it's been on there for a very long time, I think since the '70ies. I had no idea that Quicksilver remakes the original ones, good tip! The car will be sold soon so I won't replace mine but good to know for the future as I will undoubtedly have a 365 Boxer in future (but then LHD).

Thanks!


Onno