Drove my 348 for the first time

Good post

 

Congrats on your car. A SlickShift replacement shift gate plate won't improve the cold gearbox thing, but it sure improves shifting otherwise, especially downshifts.

 

Glad you are enjoying the new car, it only gets better from here. Some really good info on here regarding trans oil that can possibly help out on the shifting. I went with Red Line Shockproof and it really made an improvement, even second gear that is tough on all the cars. Best driving weather of the year is around the corner for you.

 

Congrats and happy you are driving your 348 like it was designed to be. Start out slow on the turns, let the confidence build. This car handles like a go kart once you have it down. I too felt like it would break loose easy. But now I can't wait for Saturday to take her out to the canyons and get my adrenaline pumping.

 

Driving a 348 is a far more basic driving experience than the more modern cars, and in some ways there is a bigger sense of achievement getting the best performance out of it than in the newer cars because it's all down to your own efforts and talents.

Whilst the modern cars will help you out when things get out of shape (to a degree), the 348 just leaves you to sort it out yourself (essentially saying: "You got us into this mess!, now you can get us out of it! - If you've got the talent!").

I've never felt that the clutch is as heavy as some make it out to be, but then people who have driven My BMW's over the years have noted that the clutch feels heavy in them so perhaps I'm just used to heavy clutches anyway (to be fair, I do usually find that other makes of cars I drive feel as though their clutches are incredibly light!).

As for 2nd gear, some 348's are better than others, but on the whole it's best to avoid 2nd until the gearbox gets warm.

The gearbox can be a bit obstructive when cold, and does loosen up nicely once warm, but you will still find that you have to be very deliberate with your gearlever movements (you can't simply flick the gearlever around with a couple of fingers as you can with say a BMW, you have to be firm with the lever and "persuade" the car to go into gear. That doesn't mean trying to force it to go into gear, you just have to be "firm" with it).

When I bought My 348 I was told that to get the best out of the gearbox, even once fully warmed up, was to pay attention to rev-matching whilst changing gear, both on the up-shift and the down-shift.

The pedals are ideally setup for heel n' toe driving, but it can take a lot of practice to get used to it, and the throttle pedal is so light that you have to be careful not to over-rev the engine.

I know exactly what you mean. When you're out and about in a Ferrari, it does seem as though you're driving it as much for everyone else's pleasure as for your own, which makes the drive even more special because you're making other peoples day too!

I have had a few negative comments shouted at Me whilst out driving (usually from teenage lads thinking that they're being clever), but on the whole, the majority of people look at the car a bit mesmerised, as if they cannot believe they're looking at a real Ferrari.

(I would add that in general, it's pretty much only boys/lads/men who notice the Ferrari. Girls/women do not seem to show that much interest in it whatsoever! [with some rare exceptions!] ).

You always have to bear in mind that the 348 is now @ 25 years old. She's no spring chicken any more and time and technology has meant that plenty of "lesser" cars can now match, and even out perform the 348 today, including many family saloons / hatchbacks.

Saying that, they're still no slouch compared to most "ordinary" cars.

The 348 is very sensitive when it comes to tyres and suspension.

In the owners manual you will find that Ferrari recommend changing all four tyres at the same time regardless of wear to keep the cars handling balanced (I'm sure some owners will say it's not necessary and that they have changed just the front or rear tyres with no adverse effect, and others will say they did the same and the car became undriveable).

They also don't react well to having different brands of tyres on different axles.

Along the same lines, wear and tear on the suspension can have a serious effect on the cars handling, making it feel very skittish and nervous. It really is important to ensure that the suspension is kept in "tip-top" condition to ensure the 348 handles correctly.

As for the car having spacers, the general theory amongst owners on here is that whilst spacers front and back make the cars wheels look better in the arches, it's not the best set-up for serious performance driving. The recommendation tends to be to only fit spacers to the rear of the car for the best handling upgrade.

The one thing the 348 does get credit for is having the best steering of just about any Ferrari made, and when you drive one you discover it to be true!

The 348 gets a lot of bad press claiming it to be a bad car, but the reality is, as many an owner has found out, it's a great car in its own right!

The thing is though, the 348 is not a car you can just jump into and drive flat out from the start. You need to get to know the car, learn to understand it, and learn how to read what it's telling you. As with all Ferrari's, the car is constantly talking to you, it just takes a bit longer to learn what the 348 is telling you than most Ferrari's.

I won't sugar coat things, the reality is that the 348 can be unforgiving at the limit, but that's really a limit you should only see on a race track where there is plenty of run-off area.

On public roads, so long as you take your time to get to know the car properly, treat it with respect, don't drive it nervously (making sudden throttle changes mid corner or braking mid corner), and keep the tyres and suspension in top condition, then you should have no trouble enjoying your 348 and the whole Ferrari experience.

At the end of the day, the 348 is a much better car than people give it credit for!

As I see it, the 348 is like a big go-cart on the road. A bit frisky at times but a whole lot of fun!

Enjoy!

 

My own color wrt the handing: The 348 steers with the throttle masterfully, but is unforgiving to sudden changes in torque to the rears, and ham-handed steering inputs.

I would recommend finding a nice road with some sweepers and get a feel for the throttle steer. Getting on it as you come through the bend is great fun, just keep the inputs smooth and the corners of your mouth in the upward position

 

Congrats! I am sure you either have off tires or low pressures. For better handling set your pressures at around 29-32 lbs front-back. If that doesn't make it handle better after you get some temperature in the rubber, then u need new shoes.

The bad news is that getting a decent tire set for stock 348 wheels is not easy and involves a compromise. Changing to 355 wheels makes it easier and is well worth the cost. Even going to 360 wheels is a big step up.

 

I just got my first 348 a few weeks ago and I've experienced all the same things you have. I fortunately live in sunny California, so I've been blessed to drive it a few times already. Hope the weather gets better quick for you and you're able to stretch her legs out.

 

The other thing that really helps the shifting is lubricating the shift cables. Here's a step by step:https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mIvAhIBVzBA

 

Amazing video, makes it look achievable. Only wish I had a lift to do it.

Thanks for posting!

 

Congrats! And three things.
1. Yes lube the shift cables. You don't need to remove them for a noticeable improvement. White lithium in the shifter links. Teflon spray on the cable collars underneath front and back. Just go through the gears to hit each end.
2. Definitely get better gearbox oil. Redline super light shockproof was good for me.
3. Blip the the throttle and heel toe if you can on downshifts if you can. My feet are kind of big so I get by with a double toe technique on the right foot. Brake, Blip, then Shift, Lift clutch. My synchros are good and whine really nicely when downshifting without rev matching. I prefer to rev match.

 

I second this. I drove my 355 with the normal gate for a while, but eventually changed it for the slickshift and it makes a much more pleasant experience.

Glad you enjoyed your drive!!

 

Drove mine for the first time of the season , from work to the house , 30 mph the whole way behind a buick suv , f me


1994 ferrari 348 spider , third owner purchased may 2013 w/ 27804 miles

 

Post a pic of your 348

 

It's a good thing you didn't have a gun in the car; you might have shot him - or yourself.

 

My trip to church this morning! Sweet Lord have mercy!

 

I always seem to have the opposite problem!

I took My 348 TS out over the weekend and yet again found that the World (or at least the UK!), is full of dickheads desperate to prove that their hot hatch/BMW/Audi/Japanese roadster is faster than a Ferrari!

Yesterday I had one Mazda MX5 driver decide that the place to overtake the Ferrari was on a blind 90° right hander that had solid double white lines (in the UK this means do not cross the centre line, major danger ahead!), and then he sped off, still crossing solid white lines to take "the racing line" through blind corners.

Staggered by the stupidity I slowed down to let him go on his way but he slowed down as well to try and goad Me into racing his crappy Japanese girly bath tub. (At one stage I was driving @ 30 mph in a 60 mph zone and he slowed down to match Me!).

In the end, just after he'd passed a pub, I pulled in the pub car park and sat around for 10 minutes to get the t:censored:t out of My life!

The way he was driving was going to get somebody killed in a head on smash! - And all because he had some pathetic need to outrun a Ferrari! (a 25 year old Ferrari at that!).

Unlike these micro-penis wielding t:censored:ts, I have nothing to prove to anybody in My Ferrari and neither does My car.

What they don't realise is that I simply don't care if their car is faster than My car or not, because at the end of the day, they'll get home (in some cases if they lucky!), in their boring run of the mill car that no one gives a s:censored:t about, that will be baked bean cans in 10 years time, and I'll get home in My classic Ferrari that makes people smile/wave/flash their lights/sound their horn and helps make their day when they see it!

Sadly the UK has far too many of these knobheads on the road!

 

Unfortunately, this problem is universal. I understand your feelings totally.

 

Just yesterday someone in a Seat Ibiza wanted to race me so badly he was prepared to go into head on traffic! Such an idiot. The positive attention from young kids and the older generation of gentlemen really is amazing!

 

I just can't understand why these drivers think it's worth risking peoples lives by driving in such a dangerous manner, just to overtake/out-run an old Ferrari!

I can only assume it's for some sort of ego-trip or to brag to their mates that they out ran a Ferrari.

The sad part is, I was having a nice, quiet drive out and about and I'd had people wave at Me, sound their horns and flash their headlights, give Me a thumbs up, kids walking along the pavement pointed and shouted out: "FERRARI!!!!" with a big smile on their faces, I even had two hard looking "gangsta" types look at Me whilst I was stopped at traffic lights and say: "That's a nice car bruv' - Fair play to ya!".

Then I encountered the knobhead in the Mazda and he pretty much ruined the whole day for Me by driving like a t:censored:t!