Who designed the 355?

Without being funny, it was basically the guy who designed the 348 The 348 was Leonardo's Fioravanti's last Ferrari.

 

Exterior, interrior, or motor?

 

As I said, the 348 was Leonado Fioravanti's last Ferrari, after Enzo died the aspects he always put in his cars, and you can add the 288 GTO and F40 to the above list, gave way to higher tech, more user comfort, more predictable handling etc. Leonado was Enzo's favourite design engineer but I don't think he had the same priorities in a sports car as LdM.

Who designed the 355? Well if you're talking the changes to the 348, you're looking at a consortium. The interior is largely the same as a 348, just tweaked and perhaps borrowing some cues from the 456. The bodywork changes would not have been the result of the same team, they were from about 1300 hours development in a wind tunnel and the guys who do that are not going to be the same as the guys who design interiors. The engine is also a development and again mechanical engineering of combustion engines is a different discipline to aerodynamics - totally different team involved. Basically the 348 was developed to be the 355 by a whole host of people. I think Ferrari worked differently under LdM - for the 348 and before you'll see cars attributed to a given designer, post LdM you generally won't.

In a way, you could say it was still a Leonado Fioravanti car, probably the greatest designer of Ferraris, but in honesty I think the things that made it a 355 rather than a 348 are the reason LdM didn't use Leonado again. Leonado designed old school sports cars where things like comfort and usability came a distant second to driving feel. And if you can't cope you shouldn't be in a Ferrari (not my sentiment but seems to have been Enzo's) I'd say the 348 is really his last Ferrari.

None of that takes anything away from the 355, but times change as did the way Ferrari did things and by employing the best brains from all the departments to 'lead' on their own areas, LdM created a great car.

 

So, if I understand this correctly, the 348 was the last design approved by Enzo, and the last of an illustrious run for LM,shouldn't that enhance the value a bit for the 348? Signaling the last of an era, the last without air bags, the last without a flappy paddle option, the last without power steering?

Shouldn't all that culminate to a foundation of being one of the more valuable, or at least more valuable than it is?

Have you ever looked inside the engine compartment of a 288 GTO? See anything you've seen in a 348? What about the extended wheelbase 348 test mule for the Enzo?

What is the 348 Spider production for US cars? Around 500 or so? How does that compare to how many 355 Spiders, or 360 Spiders bound for the US market during their production run?

I remember the days when the 246 Dino was a relatively unloved car, and now is commanding serious money, is the 348 ever going to realize that sort of market shift?

 

Figure 8000 US 360 Spiders. The rub is the engine out and the older engineering. 246 didn't require engine out.. I' m a coupe man but I appreciate the 348 as the gorgeous design and great sports car that it is.

 

The 246 went from the cheapest way to own a Ferrari to one of the Marques most loved cars; from "not a proper Ferrari" to more often than not being priced at POA in the classifieds. I don't see that happening to a car like the 348, or any modern Ferrari other than possibly the very limited production models.

I have seen a big change in the way in which many people see the 348 though. Think it was about 2 years ago or so I wrote my first post on Fchat. It was basically predicting a change in the way the 348 was percieved, think it was thread of the month or something, I'll see if I can find it. Not so long ago the 348 was seen as very much the 'black sheep' between the 328 and 355. In the UK, specialists often didn't sell them, I was advised by several experts to avoid the model. Those same specialists and experts now have wanted adds up looking for 348s. Since the time I started that thread there have been several articles over in the uk about the 348, all of which have been hugely complimentary, comparing the 348 to the mighty 355 in a couple of cases and to every other Ferrari V8 in one; in each case the 348 has been shown in a great light. I've heard owners of newer models saying how much they like the 348, several picking them up to own alongside their more expensive cars, and of course the 348 was voted Car of the Year by Exotic Car Resource.

I personally love the 355, it is a fantastic car. But I got the 348 because to me it really is the last 'old school' Ferrari. I dare say they had to change, and the 355 is a great step forward in so many ways, but there is something about the older cars I love, particulary those designed by Leonado Fioravanti. Look at a few - Daytona, Boxer, 246 Dino, P5, 308 GTB, 288 GTO, F40.... then the 348, she's not in bad company! The 348 was also the first car to basically keep up with the V12 that was in production at the time of it's launch round Fiorano, the biggest lap time increase compared to it's predecessor, actually handled well enough to stay with a 288 GTO - a car with 100bhp more power and lower weight (and they say a 348 doesn't handle well )

I actually think the 348 will continue to rise in popularity, although I very much doubt it'll ever rise like the Dino in price or even rise particularly at all if I'm honest. I do think it's starting to be seen for what it is though - the last car designed to Enzo's specification by the genius that was Leonado Fioravanti - the last made to a certain ideal that was all about the drive and very little about making it 'useable' or even comfortable. That's just how I see it.

 

The Testarossa was really originally just a rebodied, stretched Boxer and obviously he designed that. Much of the reason for it was to get the two radiators at the side and to the rear of the car. A chap called Diago Ottina did the new body work at Pininfarina. Leonado used design cues from the Testarossa and his own car, the F40 in coming up with a design for the 348.