Hi, I've decided to track my car. I've never run a Ferrari on a track (at least not *my* Ferrari) and need to get some gear. I've got lots of the basics from my Porsche days, but need some 355-specific gear and I was hoping that some of you could point me in the right direction: Anyone know where / how to mount 5-point harnesses in a 355? In one of my old 911s (before I had a track car with a cage), I had this bar from Brey-Kraus that spanned the seatbelt shoulder mounts. Is there anything like that in Ferrari-dom? Something like that would be ideal... *Any thoughts on wheels? My Porsche experience would lead me to a nice set of Fikse FM-5s of FM-10s. What else should I consider? Is there a change in size wheel/tire set that I should look at? Extinguisher mounts? What's the best location to mount a halon extinguisher in the car? Anything else I need? If anyone has sources, pics, URLs, stories, etc. I'd love to hear 'em! Thanks!!
I would send Rob Lay (FChat administrator) and Martin Wiescholek (FChat member) an email or call them. Martin: 305-867-7676 [email protected] Rob: [email protected] (this may be old) 817-421-4342 Good luck! TTG
Since you are in the NY area... I can recommend Wide World of Cars. They do all of the necessary work for the track and even go to the track events. Give them a call. Just click on the sponsor list, the website is there. See you at the track. Good Luck.
Mount your 5 point harness to the seat bolts. and mount your extinguisher in front of the passenger's seat. Buy a NEW full or open face helmet. I reccomend Sparco or OMP for their quality will match the car.
I've been running my 355 on the track for a few years, have maybe 30+ events under its belt. It's a nice, fun car for track days, and doesn't need that much in terms of mods to make it safer/faster/better. The lap belt and anti-sub belt can be mounted directly to the floor. You'll have to remove the undertray to secure the reinforcing plate and nuts, but it's straightforward. You can mount the shoulder belts through the firewall; you'll need a reinforcing plate on the engine side. If you don't want to drill through there, you can custom build a bar that will attach where the stock 3 point belt exits - you remove the stock belt reel and attach the bar there. I don't know of anyone that sells harness bars for a 355 (like the Brey-Krause bar). If you run a 5/6 point belt system, and you don't upgrade to a track seat, you should modify the stock seat to accept the anti-sub belt. You can have an upholstery shop cut through the leather "accordion" trim that runs between the seat bottom and the thigh extension, then route the belt through the cut - you'll want to avoid wrapping the belt around the bottom of the seat and pass the thigh extension. I'll leave aside the debate as to whether one should run harness belts in a coupe without a roll bar. I do. If you really want a roll bar, I have a friend who is selling a custom belt roll bar out of her 355. The most common replacement wheel is the 355 Challenge wheels. If you go that route, you'll need longer lugbolts, as the hub on the CH wheels is slightly thicker than stock wheels (and the 355CH run a wheel stud system instead of lug bolts). Every one I've seen has it mounted in the passenger footwell; it's tough fitting a large-enough bottle anywhere else. Well, from your Porsche days, I'm sure you're aware of the need for fresh DOT4 fluid and track or track/street pads (e.g., ATE Super Bleu and Performance Friction PFC-97). Stock brakes should work fine with a pad/fluid upgrade. CHECK THE ARCHIVES, both here and on the "old" FerrariChat archives. LOTS of useful stuff, even one or two prior posts from me (e.g., where to find aftermarket lug bolts for cheap) and many others. I strongly recommend you read Rob Schemerhorn's articles here: http://www.ferrarichat.com/partsandservice/index.htm Good luck! vty, --Dennis
