355 Berlinetta cracks

When I first started this search, I was only looking at spiders. Now my mind has opened and I am looking at the B. Question, on every one I have looked at I see the spider web starting in the paint at the base of the c pillar. Am I seeing the cracking issue that is common on the B cars? If so, is there a cure for this? How are owners dealing with this issue?

 

Not common---a few here and there---a good PPI will detect any of those problems..

 

I've seen it on a lot of the berlinettas. It's a stress point in the design (also in the 348, IIRC) and needs to be sanded down, filled and resprayed periodically.

 

I hear that it will eventually show up on ALL 355s, you usually see it on cars with more miles. The reason as I understand it, is becuase the of the weight of the motor and where it sits in proportion to the c pillar base puts stress on that point of the body. You simply put stress on the car by just plain ole' driving. The more aggressive the car is driven will probably show the cracking sooner than later. To fix it properly, you have to sand it down, re-enforce the weld, and then re-paint it.

 

Just like bad headers, bad valve guides, bad cats---Don't believe the hype! ALL is a mighty strong word...

 

It is very common. The same thing happens on 348s.

In fact, if you see a 348 tb/ts or 355 B/GTS that does NOT have little cracks in the paint at the base of the pillars, watch out for re-paint work.

 

C'mon guys, what do you expect for $120K??? quality engineering?? attention to, and correction of design flaws during a 10 year production run??

 

I asked my dealer this about 8 months ago. They advised that they had this problem early on with 355's when they did the major service. It had nothing to do with the car in ordinary use.....rather it was when the motor was pulled for the t belts and the car sat there on a hoist for a wk or so. With the body panels un-supported the c pillar/fender joint cracked at the paint line. They further advised me it was standard practice to simply re tig this area and yes, repaint and the problems never re-appeared.

So is it a problem? No, just have it tig'd /painted and the issue is done.
No big deal.

 

You sure? I haven't heard of welds developing stress cracks just from sitting, and I'd be surprised if the engine supports the body panels.

Maybe engine removal causes it?

 

I've too never heard of welds developing cracks without any weight? Welds are connecting two pieces of metal together and the weld can be the "weak" link in this process. Excess weight and movement, or both, in my opinion, can cause stress cracks on welded points. Of course, I'm and electrical engineer not a mechanial engineer so I can't be 100% positive.

 

Yes, they all flex and some crack around the rear buttress. I owned my 348 for around 1 year before the paint cracked on the LH side.
This can also happen in 355's.

Take your car to another dealer.
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How good are shops at matching paint when you do this rework? Just curious for future reference. Can one expect not to nice the "fix"?

<shudder>

 

All depends.......of course. Take your car to a paintshop who does good work and has a good reputation in the area.

Check out this repair my friend did on the front of my 348. He owns and runs the best paint/panel shop in town.

My brother cracked the paint off the front lower LH side of the spoiler. He did this running into his sons ride-on toy. Anywho, here are the before and after pics. My mate rubbed back the damaged area and repainted. He ONLY did that area and he mixed the paint and blended it in perfectly. You cannot tell it has been repaired in the after photos or up close in person. Its that GOOD!! So if the guy is good, it can be done!
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I remember reading here that the reason for the c-pillar cracks is that the fenders are steel, and the roof is aluminum (or vice versa), and these two metals are supposedly hard to weld together. It was a while ago that I read this, tho. On the 355's I've seen with this problem it is hard to notice, unless you're looking for it.

 

Wow, did I open up something. Thanks for all the info. I have to admit that I was looking for the cracks and I did find them. Nothing that would make me think the paint was ready to flake off, but I did notice them. I suppose I could add another $1/mile I drive it and go for a paint job at service time!

 

The roof and fenders are both steel. The front and rear lids are aluminum. I believe the cracks are simply stress cracks from driving. I have never seen a really bad crack and even on mine one has to look really hard to see them.

 

Exactly correct mate.

360 came out all aluminium.

 

Ditto, it is unusual to see a 355B/GTS without some sign of cracking. I am not sure what the fix is, but I have seen cars with obvious repaint work, and fresh cracking...

 

cool man, thanks for the info. I probably dreamed it or something...

 

When you remove the sub frame/motor there is some flex and this causes the cracks in this particular joint. My car had this area re tig'd and spot painted (cannot see the repair) after its first service and the problem has NOT returned......and its now gone through 3 services. The dealer has advised that at the next service this will not be a problem.

As for driving? No it has not caused any cracking in this area. I'm surprised to hear that others are experiencing cracks from road use.......seems very odd.
I know of one mechanic who actually uses a temporary brace when doing the engine out to help prevent this problem from occuring and suggests this solves the problem for those cars that have not had the tig repair.

 

Its time to ask an expert such as Dave Helms or Rilfedriver on this issue. With all the speculation surrounding this issue, someone who is experienced and understands this problem needs to weigh in on this. Is the stress problem due to aggressive driving, having the motor pulled out for a servcie, etc.? My car has 9000 miles and had the engine out service 4 years ago and I don't see any signs of stress cracks due to having the engine out of the car. I still vote for aggressive driving and/or a car with many more miles.

I believe we can all agree that the cracking will occur at sometime.

 

I don't think even the experts can give you or us a "for sure" answer as to what "exactly" causes the problem. Their conclusions will be educated guesses, as ours are. Indeed, as you point out there are, or could be, many factors.

I mean, it seems pretty straightforward -- it is a stress point on the car. The tiny cracks occur after normal use.

 

If this is true then anyone looking to buy a 355 should stay away from ones that have no cracks or respray as the engine has not been out yet

 

Very good point indeed.
When I was shopping for both a 348 and 355 I found an alarming number of cars that had NO SERVICE history of any kind........not even proof of an oil change.
Yet they all claimed to have been fully serviced, but when push came to shove.......no papers could be produced.
And they all wanted top dollar for their 'lease' cars.

 

Yup, all cars flex, and you have right angles there at the base of the buttress. The Boxer/308/328 would have done it as well, except that the buttresses attach to the deck lid, not to the rear quarter panels.

As Mr. Pap said, not a big deal to fix.