Hi all, afterhaving sold my first Ferrari 328GTS last year, I have been slowly but surely on the look out for a 308GTS model. Mostly I pefer the interior looks (more oldtimer than 328) and the finer front bumper lay out, but that's my opinion (no deep spoiler for me!). Having read a lot on the 308 (including Keith Bluemel and Keith Martin on Collecting Ferrari- hope names are correct, don't have the books in front of me), it looks like the 308QV is generally thought out to be the best offer, if carburetors are not your thing. However, I have been eyeing a very nice 308 GTSi from 1981 recently and was a bit scared off by the article in 'Collecting Ferrari' relating to oil loss and the engine needing full rebuild in such cases (note: I also had a Porsche 911SC in the past so sounds similar to chain tensioner story). Therefore, I would like to hear from owners and drivers of a 308 GTSi/GTBi if any of them have indeed experienced such bad problems and if so, how important ($$) was the fix, and was it a permanent fix. So, what is fact and fiction? Would like to make sure that I don't step into problems instead of waiting for the perfect QV to come by ) P.S. I am from Belgium so if any of the above stories are US specific or Euro specific, please specify. Best regards from rainy Brussels, Frank P.P.S. if the above issue was already discussed at length in a previous thread, let the 'wise old men & women' on the forum indicate the correct thread and we can close this one to avoid web overload...
Welcome Frank, I can only speaks for my 84QV US that I purchased almost two years ago. Ever since I bought mine, I have not had any major issue, the car have been reliable and running like new. Sure I have a few oil drops but nothing to worry about. I do however drive it quite often. I've put 7500 miles in less than two years. You really can't go wrong with a QV and IMO it's not that far different from the 86/87 328 and yet you still have the classic looks. You should really try to drive one. As far as oil loss I think that's fiction. Since you're in Belgium I suggest the 84/85 QV Euro
Frank, Go ahead and try some of them out. I have an '82 GTSi Euro spec, done 7.000kms with it this year and it is just great. My car has a very modified exhaust, and speed-wise it is short of nothing. More horses is always good, but once you get used to them you'll want more yet again. Anyway, it's the driver that makes a car fast, not the engine My car uses about a pint of oil/1000kms, but it is being driven hard when warm As stated in another thread that is running at the moment, it weeps a little oil, but no spots on the floor. Go for quality rather than year, put some modern rubber under it and enjoy! Cheers, Jack.
Hello from California. I have a 1981 GTSi with 76,000 miles on it now. I do have an oil leak around the left cam seal for the air pump. This was fixed at the last Major and it did not leak for awhile but it has started up once again. Not as bad as before but there none the less. It appears to be the way Ferrari designed the seals for the Cams. The seals for the QV is different in its design and looks to seal better. I am only having a problem with the one seal and it is most likely because the cover housing or the the area on the head is out of round to some small degree and causing the seal to leak. I have not noticed any real oil loss which could be considered oil burning from the cylinders. The plugs appear to be fine and there is no smoke at all. So far, any oil loss I am seeing is from the seal. The engine runs very strong and appears to be performing well. Jeff
Jeff, The Euro models are blessed with the absence of a smog-pump. The only thing I check regularly is if the cambelts are dry; they can easily be accessed, there is enough space between the engine and the covers. If and when the seals would start to fail, it'd be detected easily. Cheers, Happy motoring, Jack.
It was a problem with only with the 80-82 injected cars. No QV was affected and it was not an oil "loss" associated with cam seals. It was an oil burning issue most likely associated with piston rings. Not every car had the problem. There was no pattern to it. Even some of the warrenty replacements did it. If your car is one of the affected ones it does not mean you need to do anything other than add an extra qt of oil or so every 700 mile. That's it. You don't need to rebuild it - unless you just want to. Think about it, why does that 81 model suddenly need rebuilding after 25 years now that you are looking at it? It is simply not that big of a deal. There are hundreds of 308's still running fine after a quarter century that are still factory sealed. Trick: pull the tag off. If it is extra oily/dirty/greasy/whatever behind it, it could indicated that problem (who pulls their tags off to wash the car everytime?)
I've got one that burns a little oil. Maybe a quart every 700 miles or so. Burns alot less than when i first got it. It starts right up idles well and runs cool. Car pulls strong and doesn't hesitate on accel. No smoke at anytime. No oil leaks. Why rebuild? Just drive..it's made it 27 years this way. Take advantage of the considerable discount you get for this car. The only negative comments you'll ever get are from F-chat and others who know of the reputation of the '80-'82 cars.
I don't know how much I can add to this conversation other than to say that I have one of the cars being discussed (1980 GTBi) Ser #33335. It has 16,500 miles so its been a garage queen. I too looked at all of the data on the 308's and to me these cars (1980-82)are the best deal if you are like me and just wanting a Ferrari to drive. I really don't care if the carbs or the QV's go faster, I look just as good as you do going down the interstate (grin) and I've got a few extra $$ in the bank. lol I think 10 years down the road there's going to be some people wishing they had bought one of these now. The 2v's will be some of the rarest 308's in the future. I just got mine recently and have not had the chance to really put any miles on it but one of the first things I looked for was the well known oil leaks. After driving my car twice and getting it warmed up real good I parked it in the garage and the next morning had NO oil leaks. It could start tomorrow but right now it is dry. I also read where the factory replaced a lot of engines in these cars on a recall but does anyone know HOW you know if your car had an engine replacement? Just my 2cents. Joe
not sure about your car but mines a 85qv and I have the owners warranty and service book, and in side the cover it has the vehicle details,like the door key #,engine#,and the paint code......mine says the engine #to be 525 so if I compare that to the # on the engine in the car right now it better have the same #,,,,,,,you know I've never checked......be right back I got to check
OK you got me too! I just looked in my book and it has everything written in "except" the engine number! lol There has to be a database somewhere that would show which cars had the engine replacement? J
I have a 1980 GTBi, serial #31,983 and 29,000 miles. The car is almost stock. I removed all of the smog junk and installed a Larini exhaust system. The car performs flawlessly and does not leak nor burn any oil. If fact, it was able to take on a tree branch and still survive. Currently the car is at the paint shop for a complete refinish, including replacing the door skins. I don't care about having 15-20 hp less than a QV, neither is a horsepower beast, at least by today's standards. Most mini-vans have more HP the 308. If I want to go fast, I'll drive my Cadillac CTS-V LS6 that's supercharged or my Hayabusa. If I want to experience the thrill of driving a true classic, and a raw drivers car - I'll take the Ferrari. At the end of the day - It's a Ferrari! -GT
Sorry to hijack, but you don't live too far from me. If you don't mind me asking, how much for the paint job? Plus, I would like to hear about how far they went in terms of prep.
Thanks for all the feedback! seems like there are variable opinions on the subject. Speaking of the one I am looking at, priced in Belgium at 40,000 Euro (about $50,000), still seems like a lot (I sold my 1988 328GTS for that money and it was in near perfect condition...). Finally, question I also asked in separate thread, how easy would it be if I was buying a US model to convert the bumpers from US to Euro ? Pricetag ideas ? Seems like $/Euro would make import worthwhile looking at... Best regards, Frank
It's no large deal to change the bumpers, but the front grill has to match as well, our bumpers have big blocks built into the bottom to prevent override..... As mentioned, this oil loss problem was when they were new, and it was hit or miss. So many were rebuilt the pistons became rare! Good luck on your search. The North American cars will be somewhat heavier due to crash protection reinforcement, so the European cars are considered somewhat more desireable. But with the dollar falling I understand your motivation..... Find a good one I'll fly over with it and drive it to you! LOL!
Mine is an 81 GTBi and the engine was replaced at 7300 miles. It was noted in the front of the warranty book.
As usual, Dr. Tommy is absolutely right. And my 82 308GTBi is no garage queen, with over 100,000 miles on it. I do add a quart or so a bit more often than they typical QV owner (about every 750-1000 miles) but she runs VERY strong. The only significant "mod" I've made is a Hyper-Flow exhaust, which ROCKS! The bad reputation of the "i" series is largely undeserved. While resale values aren't as great, I highly recommend taking advantage of the deflated prices of the 308i series if you want a great car for the money. With an investment of less than $2k, you can boost the performance back up there with the carbureted cars. Less expense and less trouble!
I had a '82 GTSi that I sold with over 82K miles about 7 years ago. Loved that car but couldn't keep it at that time. (Wish I had!) The engine had been rebuilt to rectify the oil burning issue by the previous owner, but I'm not entirely sure it was needed. That GTSi was an absolutely fantastic and fun car and, despite the reputation as the slowest of the 308 series, it was plenty of fun to drive with plenty of performance for everyday driving. IMO, if you found a good 308 GTSi/GTBi, it's worthwhile to consider it and take the "discount" on the price as others have stated. Remember: oil is cheap - adding an extra quart now and again is no big deal.
I found what I think is the engine number stamped just above the waterpump? Since my manual does not have the origional engine number written in the cover, how do I find out what engine the car was built with? I've looked at all of the stickers I can find in the car. I would like to find out if my car had the engine replaced during the recall back in the early 80's. Joe
That'll be tough without records.... You can register at the Factory Owners website they have a Contact Us feature there....or maybe see if FNA in NJ has records of it......neither entity is very forthcoming with this type info....rather not discuss it, ya know????
