A big part of that is numbers - there were only around 8000 328s made - and I believe around 13,000 308s (excluding the GT4). But they're out there. Ricambi I believe recently had one.
That's correct, but the problem was that the clutch is engaging high. That's not adjustable and it's a worn out clutch.
With this thread in mind, I just got back from a very spirited run in my 328 GTS with attention to what's being discussed. And yes, I can see where one could argue that the takeoff at 'pole position' (no one ahead of you at a light on a long stretch ) at the VERY START is perhaps a tad sluggish (I have a VERY well sorted car) compared, say, to my 2006 Merc E500 (now replaced with an 08 E350) But really truly - once you're 'in the zone' from 4.5k to 6.5k it's just exactly what I would expect a 1986 Ferrari to sound like, run like, pull like, and most importantly LOOK like. I hit a long (and 'cop safe') freeway onramp and hit 110 with zero effort, and total exhilaration before being a good boy and slipping in at 65. At the peak speed of that run, I had more pull than I would need to just keep on going, with a total sensation of power to the wheels. So it really goes back to the original point - either your expectations are just too based on MUCH higher power cars, or the one you drove was crap. I suspect the latter. Jedi
Not true. Book is wrong. Argue all you like but I have been adjusting 308 and 328 clutches since long before they quit making them.
True. My first impression driving one was..."This thing is just like any other old Italian car. Cheap!" But, for some reason, I do enjoy driving it and don't have any plans (or reason) to sell it. Matter of fact, the thought of selling it...I just don't think I would for what it'd bring. Funny how that works. I agree it's an aquired taste, or has been for me anyway. The more you drive one, the more you seem to like it. I don't know why it seems that way. I know people do use them as daily drivers, but, for me, its' not transportation, it's a toy. As far as the speed...In my opinion...any thing faster on the street...I just don't need that kind of trouble in my life anymore. Buy one. Play with it some. Drive it. If you don't like it after a while you can always sell it. Good luck. Enjoy! edit: One thing you can't take from it....there isn't anything else like it. I think that's what keeps me from ever wanting to sell it. Matter of fact...that may be why I'd like to even have another..
Ain't that the truth? I KNOW that in my 'delayed teenager syndrome' at 47, I'd probably KILL myself or someone else in an Enzo or 599 or even 360. The 328 gives me enough 'thrill factor' to make me happy and I know it would be pretty hard to really be stupid that being stupid in the Merc wouldn't be anything different. I don't know - works for me just fine Jedi
my advice would be to drive at least 2 or 3 more 328's before buying one. I test drive 4 before buying mine last year and noticed huge differences in handling/power from car to car. My 87 328GTS is a real joy to drive but I must admit I am 'old school' and grin when I use my gated shifter and smile when I have to out some muscle into turning my steering wheel at low speeds I recently took my car on a few hard laps at the Mosport race track and am still amazed on the balance and tightness of the car on the track for a 22 year old car!..alas beauty is in the eye of the beholder my friend so just make sure you love what you buy ...
?????WOW...are you serious??? I pissed my pants with excitement the very first time I drove one!..geez I still get shivers when I take her out for a drive...it's like better than taking a holiday for me now if you were talking about an old Fiat 124 then just maybe I could some what see where that was coming from..
Anything faster ...take it to the track. Alot more fun there anyway! "FERRARI" I was just suprised at the "fragility" of the feel of it. That's all. I think that's something I had to get used to. Not one repair so far...(2 years now). Even though it does still feel more fragile to me than some other sports cars from that same era, it's a feeling that may not be necessarily borne out in reality. I wouldn't hesitate to take it anywhere, and the harder it's pushed, the better it seems to like it also. It's been a learning process for me.
I'd have to say that the biggest difference between '80s Ferraris and "modern" sports cars are that the newer cars are a lot easier to drive quickly. On paper, my EVO VIII should be "faster" than the 328. It certainly rockets up to speed faster (once the twin scroll turbo starts jamming air in). But for all that, the 328 still feels more "solid" in a turn than the EVO. Maybe that's because I'm olde school -- I grew up on RWD normal breathers. The EVO gets the job done by brute force: jam on the monster Brembos before the turn, wide sticky 235-width tires for corners, and big turbos to power back up to speed. By comparison, the 328 seems to apex quicker -- less braking before the turn, less power out. I haven't really run a stopwatch on it, so this may be subjective, but the 328 still feels quicker through turns than the EVO. I certainly have more confidence in turns with the 328. But the 328 is a bit more work to drive. With the monster turbo lag and the hopeless damped hydraulic clutch, there's virtually no benefit from trying to heel/toe the EVO. The 328 doesn't really come alive without it. The 328 *wants* to be driven like a racing kart. I'd been driving Italian cars for 30 years before buying the 328, and it still took me a while to get the "full good" out of it. You don't just jump out of a Lexus (or even an Alfa) and then take a 328 to the limits on your first drive. The CIS does limit it a bit. Between the big pie plate in the intake and the mild cams, it doesn't have quite the throttle response it might achieve with carbs or EFI. But that's the only real complaint I can make after over nine years of ownership. (Other than non-handling issues like stowing the targa top.) I do use the 328 for a fair-weather daily driver. But I have to confess that there are days when I take the EVO, just because I'm feeling too lazy to put in the effort it takes to drive the 328 correctly. (I can always use the excuse of stopping for groceries with the car that has a full trunk. ) (Although I have to use luggage straps to keep them from bouncing around in the trunk -- even bungee cords didn't keep 'em in place.) Hey! I loved bashing a Fiat 124 around sideways through mud and gravel. "Cheap" only from the sense that you didn't mind bending the brightwork a bit.
The original post stated "the clutch releasing at its very end". I interpreted this to mean at the top but he could mean at the floor. In either case apart from adjusting the pedel height, how would you adjusts the point of engagement?
This post says it very well and is also good for pointing out the different experience of driving a fast and highly competent car compared to driving a hella emotional car like the 328. The 328 is truly "engaging," and this is one of the ways it delivers the unique Ferrari pleasure. I test-drove a very nice 355 around 2000 at Los Gatos Ferrari in Calif. True, the 355 was lightning quick compared to the 328, yet at the three times the cost of the 328 (still $155K asking price at Ferrari Los Gatos in 2000), it was actually LESS engaging than the 328, so the 328 nevertheless seemed like a more desirable car. Also, unlike the 360, the 355's interior was still a lot like the 348. To enjoy the 328 thoroughly, one has to give up the expectations that its speed will match is rocketship looks. And those looks are timeless, like other classics of Italian art.
This may be off subject, but since we're talking about disappointing moments with cars ....I too have alot of disenchantment with the Model 'T' I took for a test drive last weekend. Its acceleration was ...well slow to minimal..I think a skateboarder passed me, windows didn't work, the A/C...well there was none!...WHAT?... Mike
Del, If that's the car above APS then I've seen it quite a few times, not up close but driving by. Even from distance, does look a bit rough. I'd think at that mileage you'd need the car to be very clean cosmetically and maintenance documented and correct. Even then, it would be many thousand off. Your welcome to take a look and drive mine to see what a proper running 328 drives like. Sounds like you need a 360, though! Maser looks great, btw, see it every so often driving by your office, that is a perfect color/wheel combo, very mean! Jeff
And I don't believe they added subwoofers and iPod dock until the Model A around 1930 or so.... POS!!!
I have to admit I never got the "zone", I kept it up to 4k rpm. I thought the car was struggling so much to get there that if I "forced" it into higher rpms the engine would blow up. But what I understand now, that's normal, that's how it feels. So I missed the sweet spot.
You've already answered your own question, my friend: Don't buy THIS car. "Potentially" a few more problems? No, sir. I can tell you now, without even looking at the car, that any 328 with the problems you mentioned immediately in evidence, there's a lot of other serious stuff that you don't see right away. A well-tuned 328 should make you glow with the same anticipation you did when you knew you were about to lose your virginity - EVERY time you sit down in the driver's seat and turn the key. If this individual car doesn't do that for you, don't get it. If you can't find ANY 328 that will do that for you, then YOU don't get it.
You're also getting a first hand view of the maintenance issue associated with these cars. When they're not right to the Ferrari lovers, it's sad. When they're "right" , you know it in full song! Delicate?? Aside from interior odds and ends, they're NOT delicate. At the Virginia City Hillclimb, Ferrari and Shelby guys drive for hours to get up there and home, and race for two days in between. You might look up some YouTube videos. How fast is fast: Drive a few comparable cars of the year. A 2007 Subaru WRX is fast. Do you want one of those?
You're right. Below 4000 rpm, you're pretty much toying with it. But, still, you need to find a good one to drive. A tired old 328 with shoddy paint, a poor clutch, worn suspension and reduced power due to a bad state of tune isn't going to bring much joy. You have to drive one that is mechanically tight and looks right. As an aside, the cosmetics of most surviving 328s are not even close to the impact the car had when new. Even on the best cars, the beige leather fades after 20 years (if it isn't hard and cracked), and the crema color is a dirt magnet. The dash material can shrink. Tan carpets don't wear well (black wears better). The gauges fade. The paint oxidizes. The paint chips out of the rear emblem. The wheel caps crack and fade. The headliner/rear shelf fabric doesn't age well. Centre console switches lose their markings. Etc. When you see a 328 that has had all that restored or kept like new, it stops being an "old car". I liked mine from day one, but after a year and a half I finally had the interior restored to its original glory (someone had re-dyed the leather) and had it professionally detailed for Monterey. The car can now sit next to brand new BMW M5s, Maseratis, Mercs, 911s, etc., in restaurant parking lots and when I return to the lot it is hands down the most appealing car there. It looks, feels and smells like a new car. You have to accept that what was one of the world's fastest production cars in 1986 just isn't anymore. It is still the best looking and probably the best built of the Ferrari V8s (although the F430 may fare well in terms of quality -- the jury's still out on the new model), and as others have posted it offers a driving experience you really can't anymore, except maybe in a Lotus Elise/Exige.
As I said before, these motors are responsive and should not struggle to reach 4K. You can putter around at 2500-3000rpm with the motor running smoothly and while it won't push you back into the seat when you give it some gas, it should respond immediately and start building speed. Power grows in a linear and steady fashion even from low rpm. What you describe is not normal. Dave
I guess it's all relative, but my Lexus GS400 can pull a 14 second 1/4 mile, yet my slow Datsun 240Z still feels quick when I drive it. The Z would probably get trailered by a minivan, but I guess the small size and minimal NVH isolation, it feels quicker than reality. My recollection of driving a 308 and 328 was that they were plenty "quick" - given the above. Sounds to me, as others have said, the car has issues.
