Musing a flat 12

I'd hurry up!! That 'Different price point for sure' is narrowing all the time!!

 

I am 5-10 and my hair brushes the head liner. I do know taller people who have had them and claim they are comfortable but don't know how. 355 is a roomier car.

Being in Dallas not sure how important good AC is to you but a Boxer doesn't have it. Another factor for comfort is the radiator is in the front and most of the air coming through it comes out the hood vent. That air blows back across the windshield and comes around and right in the open side windows. Also you are sitting under the windshield.
Things to think about in a hot climate.

 

Do try one on when being on the Driver's side before deciding. I'm also 6'4", and the passenger side of my ex-TR was a lot tighter for me than the Driver's side (because of the passenger footwell plate -- the pedals gave more leg length room). It wasn't roomy, but Italian driving position (seat bottom a little forward so seat back could be tilted back more to lower my head) + smaller diameter steering wheel + 50mm steering wheel extension made it tolerable -- so you might need similar changes in a BBi.

 

I have a 91 TR and a 78 BB and am 6’4”. I am quite comfortable in both. The TR seat has more thigh support, but both are fine for headroom. Your feet are more offset when reaching the pedals in the BB.

The TR is a great cruiser which makes great sounds. Lots of knowledge exists concerning its maintenance and and technical issues. It is not that hard to maintain and is generally very reliable. I used to commute in mine.

Without wanting to rekindle a debate, if you chose the Boxer I would suggest a BB over a BBi. More charismatic, quicker. Better sounding. I have a fresh engine in mine with slightly elevated compression and an Ansa exhaust. Essentially it is as fast as my Testarossa, maybe with more torque at low revs. I feel like I am at Le Mans whenever I climb into it. The carbs sound fantastic. You should look for one which was never federalized if possible.

Watch the front spoiler on the BB when entering driveways. The Testarossa has no usability issues whatsoever and is probably more durable.

 

Im a BBI owner, Id say go for the crabed car, just a bit more classic to it, and as John says with some compression(and acam) they can really wake up. Same could be said for a BB, only maybe not as much.
Its most defintely not a hot weather car, but its also fun on curves in a way a Tr is not.
If I were goign to be drivign stoplights and highways then a Tr ois simple going to be more useable and more tolerable.
If you have some great backroads witjhs weepign bends, hard to ebat a BB.

You said an earlier 60s v12 ff the table, and thats a great guide right there. A Bb is far closer to a 60s v12 than nay modern ferrari. Its basically a 60s Ferrari that happens to be mid engined and can do corners.

 

My 78 is set up well. Chassis wise, it is completely stock, which gives a vintage driving experience which I like. But the engine is a brute from low rpm. A ridiculous kick in the seat off idle. Great fun.

The TR is more midrange and up. For reference, a 512TR is even more midrange and up, with a top end power delivery good enough to result in a prison sentence if used to redline in the wrong place.

Look for a good BB.

 

Good day Rob,

Just to note that the 512BB has four 3-bbl carbs (which are almost identical to the 365 BB except for a few things) and not six 2's. The 365/.512BB carb was also used in early Porsche 911's and I believe the Miura as well.

With regards to the BB's carbs... ensure you have a shop that truly knows these carbs and you should be fine.

Cheers,

Sam

 

Good day Rob,

You are most welcome!

Although the physics of carburettors are the same across various manufacturers, Webers are in a league of their own. Webers do share similar components found in other carbs like jets,etc, but Weber takes it to another level. In addition to main jets/accelerator jets, there are idle jets, air correctors, emulsion tubes, changeable primary and secondary Venturis (they call them chokes), etc. Webers are almost infinitely configurable which is great, but is also a negative... if one is unfamiliar with its bits. Also, on the BB, 308, etc the intake/carb setup is designed such that each carb throat feeds a dedicated cylinder... and each carb operates simultaneously. This approach is completely different to how carbs were used on North American cars (e.g. carb or carbs feeds a common plenum feeding the cylinders and if there are carbs, they are typically setup to be progressive, etc).

Pierce Manifolds (https://www.piercemanifolds.com/) is a great resource for Weber parts, but also for Weber carb diagrams, etc. If you wish to understand Weber carbs more, then there are a number of books, tuning manuals, etc that are available. Check out a book called "Weber Carburettors" by John Passini if you want to dig in and understand the theory behind Weber carbs. I am regularly amazed and in awe of what Eduardo Weber designed and especially so given the era of time some of the carbs were designed (1960's when the BB's Carb... the IDA 3C was designed)... when computers, simulations, etc were not main stream as they are today. In fact I think Weber produced his first carb somewhere in the early 1920's!

Cheers,

Sam

 

The 5 liter Boxers already have ports on each pipe for an exhaust analyzer so each cylinder can be measured individually. As was SOP on C4s and all US version V8s.

 

If you're thinking of a Testarossa do not drive a 512TR. It's a pathway that can't be undone.

 

Good day David,

Innovate's tech is simply a wide band O2 sensor (WB02) with some additional features. It works well, but only provides a portion of the info that the sniffer ports that Rifledriver mentioned. Personally, I find that a 4-gas analyzer is much better and you can sniff from the exhaust pipes or the sniffer ports. The WB02 is limited to the location and number of bungs... which means a permanent mod to the factory manifolds or exhaust.

As for effectiveness... for some time I was chasing a rich condition identified by the WB02. Here I assumed it was too much fuel, but the 4-gas revealed that my issue was not enough O2.

However, YMMV.

Cheers,

Sam

 

never have read this short cut. what does it mean?

 

You don't have the internet where you live?

https://www.howtogeek.com/693183/what-does-ymmv-mean-and-how-do-you-use-it/

 

under this link I found;
your mileage may vary

sure I have, otherwise I could not write here. but I´m too lazy to google for every for me unknown shortcut. but also I think a lot of english native speaker not know what this would mean

nevertheless steve: thankyou

 

Joe, it is a disclaimer used in car commercials. When Toyota says the Tercel gets 34 miles per gallon they will also say "Your mileage may vary" meaning it can be different in your situation.

 

Good day Romano,

As Steve and Rifledriver mentioned, "YMMV" does translate directly, but is slang and/or idiomatic expression used on the Internet and other forms of informal communication that simply means "your experience(s) may be different".

My apologies for the confusion!

Cheers,

Sam

 

no problem, always great to learn new things

 

I'm 6'4" and own an 84 BBi and a 92 512TR. In my experience, the Boxer is a tighter squeeze than the TR. My height comes more from a long torso so headroom is always a concern. The TR is better on headroom. The TR also does better on legroom. The Boxer gearshift knob ends up under my knee in some gears. All of these issues go away when driving either car. The sound of the 12 cylinders is glorious.