After having several 308/328s, I finally decided to purchase a 1995 F355B with a tubi and had a few questions... 1. Why the "F" in F355?? 2. I have heard that the 95 355 had a few more horses... with the tubi, is it safe to assume that its close to 400? 3. I was also told by a service person to NOT just start the car and turn it off succesively, instead run it for a while. Something about the spark plugs.. can anyone shed some light on this... Thanks in advance
As a non-owner I can only answer #1: Luca de Montezemolo created the name and (creatively enough) the F stands for Ferrari. Yes, it is redundant.
I will take a crack at it... 1) The "F" in F355 might stand for "F#ck, there goes my exhaust manifold again"...or maybe "F@ck, I think I have bronze valve guides in this engine" ...but seriously, It probably stands for "F%ck, this car sounds amazing when I floor it" ...or maybe Challange was on the right track.... 2)The 95 had a few more ponies (maybe 5) than other years in the series...I used to own a 95, and when I drove a friends 97 I could tell absolutly no diff....375? as stated from the factory is understood to be a bit on the wishful thinking side...so as for a 95 having 400...Id say probably not......and for sure, not at the wheels,lol 3) I have never heard such advice from a mechanic, but do recall hearing about a similar complaint when reading through the board awhile back...didnt seem to be a prob with mine...or didnt appear often on this board either,from what I could tell.... Anyways,...enjoy your car, I had a BLAST with mine...one of the all time greats!!! Goldy
I am on my second "F"355 this one being a 95 and my other car was a 96. Both cars had Tubi's and I can tell you I notice a difference in throttle response. I am not sure the car is a whole lot faster, but there is a difference. The other advantage to your 355 being a 95 is you can install test pipes with no check engine lights. Mine has the absence of cats, and man just the sound is worth the price of admission. Who knows, maybe thats what is making the difference I notice and not the year. Oh yeah, the F definitley stands for F*ck this car sounds good.
Drive it hard after you warm it up just like your 328. The cars need to be caned good and hard as to get juiced....The problems are with garage queens that are never drivin. Good luck Enjoy!!!!
Probably not. The HP stats were probably the hyped results that came off an engine that was balanced, blue-printed, mounted to a stand with no accessories attached, etc. By the time you take a stock engine, run it through the tranny and put it to the tires.....we're probably getting about 80 horsepower to the pavement......which is why a Mitsubishi Evo can give us a run for our money!!! But darn if she don't look pretty and sound hot!!!!! In all seriousness (which is to imply that I'm kidding above).....I'd figure it safe to say we're coming close to 400 horsepower. Just say it. It sounds good and nobody is gonna really question it. Back in '95 the 355 was a formiddable opponent on the speed scene....but by today's standards there are MANY cars putting-out big Hp's. Fact is, we're running decade+ technology. And interestingly enough, the 360 has just a bit more HP but is significantly faster. As for the start-up and "prior to warm-up" kill...I can't see any problems with that. Then again, I'm no mechanic. Just drive it & enjoy it. Not like you had to be told that anyways. Here's a happy face: - Steve
On the 95's if you just start it and shut it off, there is a good chance of fouling plugs. This has happened to me and another guy with a 95 in town. The start up enrichment is very rich.
The idea that the 1995 F355s have more horsepower is, as far as I know, an untested belief. The theory is that there is less airflow restriction in the air intake, but how does one know that the something else in the motor (valve flow capacity, exhaust, etc.) is not the limiting factor? Some people have claimed an add'l 5 hp. I think some confusion has arisen due to the difference between DIN and SAE hp figures. The Ferrari F355 introductory brochure and 1995 owner's manual both list the horsepower as 380 in the foreign language sections, and, in the English language section, as 375. The 380 is DIN and the 375 is SAE net. The 1996 and later owner's manuals list the same figures. The 1995s do sound different with the M2.7 FI system but I don't know of anyone who has run them on dynos to tell for sure. And since the numbers I quoted above are for the 1995 model, if the later models do have less horespower, that is not going to increase the 1995 total which is 380 DIN or 375 SAE net; rather the post-1995s would have less.
my understanding is that the 95 engine has a little more HP and TQ (5 HP and 2-3 lb-ft) from a slightly richer mixture allowed by the OBDIO-I emissions specification.....
I have heard some people on this site say this. My point is that Ferrari's stated HP and torque figures are the same for all years and I have not heard of anyone verifying a power differential by dyno testing. Cheers.
Any high perormance cars should never just be started, & moved a few feeet in the drive way and than put away, you need to drive them( not just let them idle, it isn't the same)and as a fellow chatter has mentioned EXERCISE it, I have Hemi's and 440 Six pack Mopars and I only start them if I intend to drive them 7 miles or so(enough to warm it up & beat the snot out of it) The plugs will most definately foul otherwise.
1995 (OBD-I, Bosch 2.7 motronic) cars have slightly different intake systems than 1996+ (OBD-II, Bosch 5.1 motronic) cars, with the earlier ones having two airflow meters and slightly better breathing. My mechanic, who owns both a 1995 and a 1997 355, and who has worked on over 50 of them himself, takes that position that the '95 is more powerful and runs slightly (albeit noticeably) stronger. Enough to make a difference in the real world? Nope. But there IS a difference. vty, --Dennis
Extremely helpfull... I am loving it... I should have driven the 355 before... The sound is just amazing!! So far, The F must stand for its just Freaking amazing sound!! Thanks again.
I have owned both a 1995 and a 1998 F355. There is a difference in sound and the throttle response in some situations. However, I could not detect any difference in power. "Feel" can be misleading. Show me a dyno test.
I don't have any dyno tests. But just having two tests would not be statistically conclusive anyway, as each car may vary enough to make the results misleading. To really prove the theory, one should run dyno tests on several 95s and several 96+ cars. FWIW, Challenge teams preferred the '95s because they made more power. And the factory imported 1996+ Challenge cars (factory built, not-converted) with the '95 motor; those who converted 1996+ street cars to Challenge status found them slightly lacking. vty, --Dennis
In a different thread, there is a posting with a stock 95 355 putting out 313 HP to the rear wheels on the Dyno.