To paint or not to paint

I wish I could read it

 

Most dentists know how.

 

I agree. From what I've seen, the original paint on these cars was hardly Sistine Chapel-calibre. If it's cracked, crazed, faded, etc., paint it. No one wants to see a tired-looking Ferrari.

A few stone chips: no problem. Spider-webbing: it's basically worn-out paint, and no more impressive, IMO, than worn-out tires, a cracked dash, torn seats or an original windscreen that is opaque from years of stone chipping.

I think most of the value of a 308 right now is due to condition - not its rarity, as is the case with a 1947 Ferrari. It's true that an original 1984 paint job may be cherished someday, but there are many nice condition 308 QVs with original paint for the fussy buyer.

There was a good cautionary post above about the disassembly work to do it right, but if you're confident then I'd say go for it. I can virtually guarantee the car has rust lurking on it somewhere anyway unless by some odd chance it's a lifetime Southern California/Arizona vehicle.

Your car, your choice. All of this is just what I would do if it were mine.

 

It might be worthwhile to thoroughly document the condition of the vehicle prior to painting (short video or pics) to show no body damage was being fixed, only cosmetics. Perhaps labeling it "pre paint job" in the pic/video.

 

?????? Please explain this comment.

 

Hello! I contacted Mr. Cosgrove a couple of times a few months ago via. ferrari chat e-mail politely asking him who he contacted to obtain his certificate for his 308 and he declined to answer me. so I obtain the address from Ferrari Spa. in Italy and post it here to help anyone who would like it, if he already has this information,how can one not be able to read it? name-Ferrari Classiche/Ferrari Spa.
address- via Abetone Inferiore 4
Zip/city/country-41953 Maranello (MO) Italy

 

Art is art, cars are cars. These things were built to be driven. And part of the expereience in driving a Ferrari is looking good in it.

So paint it so it looks HOT and drive it HARD!

Trust me, you will get stranger looks from people if they see that the car looks worn and not taken care of. Just make sure you put your heart into it when you do the job and it will look like it just rolled out of Maranello.

 

There is a difference between old paint with a pleasing patina and old paint that looks just plain worn out and bad. It's up to the individual to determine which is which. An original 7 out of 10 IMHO adds to the beauty of a car, while a 5 or less needs a repaint. But is my 7 your 7? That's the cruxt of the issue.

A pro detailer or a lot of elbow grease can make old paint really look good. When I bought my car the paint was dull and old looking and a repaint was high on my to do list. After an entire summer of hand rubbing and several coats of wax however, a lot of blemishes vanished and I became quite happy with the appearence. It now looks very attractive and retains an original look I like so I'm not repainting it any time soon.

YMMV

Ken

 

Any way you might be able to share this info about the secret little black flap? I have a 79 coupe. Thanks Bob

 

Bob Goodmorning! I can only speak for my 84 308, yours might be located in another location, but if you lift open the rear deck lid and look at the left hand side of the engine bay, right next to the "high voltage" sticker there will look like a 1 inch piece of black undercoating that is loose, its actually a piece of tape the factory used to cover the plant assembly number before spraying the black undercoating. This tells you the # your car was assembled at the factory for a certin year and model -example- say your car is a 79 308 gtsi and the # under the flap is 41. That would tell you that your car was the 41st assembled 308 gtsi off the line for 1979 and their would be a seperate leger for the gtb models for 1979. As I understand it. "kare" is a ferrari chat member who is a really great guy and Im sure he would help you with any questions you might have.( thats who I talked to!) Best of Luck! Kim

 

More info here:


http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=61994

 

My apologies, Kim, for the address thing. I checked my PM list and see that you did ask me a little while back. I am asked that often and send it out everytime and I guess your request just was overlooked. The address I have is not in Italy but to FNA in New Jersey. They are the people that sent me the letter with my build dates but it was not a "certificate". It was simply a short letter answering my questions on their letterhead. I have been under the impression that a certificate was not available for cars after about 79. I may be confusing this with a "build sheet", though.

As far as not being able to read it, the site you posted comes up in Italian, which I cannot read. I didn't look at it long enough to see a language change button or what ever it's called.

The NJ address is at home and I am at work. I'll post it here for you this afternoon along with a phone number.

Sorry for the confusion and misunderstanding on my part. I am happy to help in any way I can. By the way, welcome to Fchat and Ferrari ownership.

 

Hi!

Just getting back in........does anyone have the link to the FerrariOwners.com site? That's what I was referring to.....

Brb.......lunchtime and we just had something explode.....LOL!

BOOM!

No one hurt everything's ok........

 

Mr. T. Cosgrove, My apologies to you also over the post, I guess deep downI was a little "bent" on being "blown off" as I saw it at the time.Thanks for the explanation. Kim

 

Wise words

 

No problem.

By the way, Kim, in case you don't already know this; you will need to get both the engine number and transmission number from your car for FNA. The transmission # may require a can of Gunk to find. Mine did.

 

Jscar71 Hello! I respectfully have to disagree with your position, These cars ARE true art and cannot be lumped together with the masses! Ill be honest with you, I can pour a cup of coffee and walk out into the garage in the morning and it makes my day to see that 308 setting there. although I like to drive it, Im not a "look at me,am I neat or what" kind of guy! My manhood does not revolve around that ferrari! ha! Bottom line, I bought it to impress me. To take the time and look at the lines and be amazed how form/performance/function came together. It is art as a rolling sculpture!

 

I respect your opinion, but I prefer driving ferrari's more then I prefer looking at them.

But I do agree that they are nice to look at and should not be bundled with the masses.

 

Dr .T, Thanks for the info. No, I was not aware of the transmission #. Can you tell me where on the trans I need to look? Normally I would just put it on a lift, but we just built a new home 12 miles out of town on the lake (thats where my car is at) and all I have here is two hydraulic shop floor jacks, so Im able to raise the car max about 30" Thanks! Kim

 

I have a picture of mine. I will look for it tonight and post it. I got very lucky. While it was up on jackstands I hit the bottom with the Gunk spray and the first plase I wiped off was where the number was. Seems like it was more on the passenger side.

 

still looking for the picture but the address is:

Ferrari North America, Inc.
250 Sylvan Ave.
Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632

201-816-2600
201-816-2626 fax.

They sent me a form to fill out. In addition to the engine and tranny #'s I mentioned earlier I had to send a copy of my title.

Let me know how it goes.