355 vs 348

First off....Anyone who knows anything about the 355 knows that the 95 2.7 has more horses. The Factory says that the 2.7 has 5 more horses....many that delve deep into the 355 will tell you that the difference is more like 15 horses.
Yes the F1 is faster in LAP times simply because they shift faster than a manual. To me the F1 shifter in the 355 simple destroys the REAL feel of the car. In later models (mid 360up) this changes.
The company you mentioned is a joke period.
The people that did my chips in Italy do the chipping for all the Ferraris including the F1 cars of Alonso and Massa. My mechanic was working in the Ferrari factory when he was 17 and was Mikes main guy for 6 years in F1. He also had his hand in the design of 5 Ferraris. He can make an ordinary 430 go as fast or faster than the Scud version. Give him a call and he will tell you which version is better and the reasons why( if you can understand his Italian version of english)
You make it sound like the 2.7 having 2 main brains is worse that the 5.2 with one. If you ever watch the show "The Shark Tank" The guy usually sitting on the far right is Robert Herjavec. He races in the Challenge series with his 458 challenge. His main Mechanic is Giuseppe and worked for Ferrari in Italy and did 2 years in F1. He now works here in Toronto For Ferraris challenge racing division and does research at the local track for Ferrari. He told me while looking at my engine out 6 years ago that the only reason Ferrari went to a one main brain was to save money and they weakened the engine.
As for the later years in any model being an improvement.....Well then why do the challenge cars use the 2.7 engine?, including the later years challenge cars. If you talk to any Ferrari mechanics that work strictly on Ferraris, they will tell you the same thing....The 2.7 is more versitile and more powerful.
I admit that the 355 with an F1 shifter is faster in a LAP but that isnt because it has more power. Check the link out below for the straight line speeds of the different year 355s.
http://www.zeroto60times.com/Ferrari-0-60-mph-Times.html

 

In December of 2011 the esteemed magazine EVO had a supertest of ALL of the V8 Ferrari's and were surprised to find that the most memorable car of ALL of them was the 348. It had the steering feel and the rawness of Ferrari's of old and was quick enough to put a smile on your face. They felt the newer models were superior in speed and handling but just not as much fun. You can read the article on their website

 

I would love to read that article.....Link please.

 

They reprofiled one of the turns in 1996 that made lap times .5-1 second faster...You didn't think that the f1 transmission really made much lap time difference, did you? You just didn't miss any shifts anymore and could rfb allowing more consistency.

Anyway, I've yet to see any dyno comparisons of a 2.7 to a 5.2 car so I don't think there's much difference in stock form. However, the 2.7 cars are much easier to 'chip' as the 5.2 setup is encrypted and I don't think it's been unlocked, while anybody can buy a chip reader/writer and the software to tune the 2.7 setup. There are even emulators available that allow real-time tuning.

 

I can't find any evidence to back up your claim that "The factory says that the 2.7 has five more horses".
According to the official Ferrari website, both versions produce 380hp at 8250 rpm, and 363Nm at 6000 rpm. I also have the owners manual for my '98 F1 car and an owners manual for an earlier F355 version. Again, both have exactly the same figures.
Perhaps there is some difference in the US cars? My reference is for the European cars.

I am happy to bow to the knowledge of the experts you mention, and I may well look into having my chip done the way you suggest if that turns out to be the best way.
But I'd like to know why you dismiss the company I mention as "a joke".
Why are they a joke? And presumably you also think all of the other companies producing chips are "a joke". If so, why?
They are happy to provide before and after dyno graphs to back up their claims.
Are they lying? Did they falsify the graphs?

As for the link you provided, it is interesting but all it really proves is that 355's were pretty consistent in terms of straight line acceleration throughout their life. The very small differences here or there in any model year can easily be explained by variations in individual cars, driver technique, weather conditions etc.
The website itself makes it very clear (and rightly so) that there are many factors that can affect those times and they make no claim as to the validity or reliability of any of the times mentioned. They also mentioned that some of the 0-60 times have been "adjusted" from a 0-62 time. This would explain the occasional VERY fast time of certain models.
I mean really, does anyone believe that a 2000 F360 is faster than a 2006 F430?

To summarise, according to the factory both versions produce the same power. Your own link shows that their acceleration is so similar as to be virtually identical, and you admit the later F1 versions go around a track faster.

So, why is the 95 car *definitely the one to have*?

 

I think the 95s may be easier to smog, the OBDI being less "involved" than the OBDII?

 

Fair enough. This is not an issue where I live.

 

That's interesting. I didn't know that.
Regardless, it is clear that the later cars with the F1 box are not slower than the early ones.

 

At the risk of sounding a bit rude. I can tell that you havnt been around the these cars very long. Give it 5 more years and you will learn a lot about the 355 and understand what Im saying and I will leave it at that.
Cheers

 

I don't consider that you are being rude at all.
You are right - I haven't been around these cars for very long. Hence why I ask questions.
You have made various claims regarding the supposed superiority of the earlier cars.
I have asked you to back that up with some evidence, and you have chosen not to.
That's fine.

From other posts I have learned that the 2.7 cars are easier to work on and easier to get through your emissions rules. They are advantages but that does not make them superior cars.

I haven't seen any evidence that either version is faster or more powerful than the other, so I'm happy to go along with what the factory that made them says.
Cheers.

 

it is finally nice to see that the Brotherhood has given up on this quite pointless argument (which i once started even!!!) and its now strictly a Sisterhood catfight!!!! meowwwwww......

 

Really?

 

I didn't say they are! I said "I think" they may be! LOL! I'm not an owner; it's simply what I've heard. You, Dave, would know! ;-)

 

http://www.evo.co.uk/features/features/276598/ferrari_458_italia_meets_308_348_f355_360_and_f430.html

 

Beat me to it by an hour, was just about to post

Actually a really good aritcle as it picks out great things about all the cars. I think when the guy says in his conclusion "For example, my highlight was probably the 348’s steering, and that’s not something I’d expected at the beginning of the day." you've got to read back to see why. It was the one model that he said he wasn't as excited about driving but he changed his mind once he actually had a go.

In case you're interested here's an article that came out in a mag in the UK a while back. Slightly different take on it all than some may have but the last two paragraphs say a lot about the way this tester saw the comparison. Hope you can read it ok.....
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It's too bad they didn't explain the F1 system correctly. There is no linkage between it and the throttle. It does not automatically blip the throttle. That is one of the things I like about the system. You can blip the throttle yourself.

 

Hallefrickenluyah, someone else gets it! I consider the old school F1 of the 355 best of all worlds: hands on the wheel, no missed shifts, but still heel-toe and full driver interaction.

BTW, I heard the 2.7 made more power primarily due to emissions restrictions that were added to the 5.2. Hence the "power on the table". But I also think the GAINS in the 5.2 are only greater because you can get back to what the 2.7 does out of the box.

Competizione in Maryland probably knows as much about chipping them as anyone. Give them a call.

 

Now that ive read the article I can ask...Is that all you got from that article? He said a lot about every car but I didnt get him saying that much geat chit about the 348. Yes he liked the steering, many people dont. I think the 355 steering is more than good and its nice to drive in town traffic and feel that your arms arnt coming out of your shoulder sockets.

 

That's because your getting old brother

You need the 355 steering now

 

Hi Gerry. How about the other article? Doesn't that have a valid point of view, albeit different to your own?

I prefer the 348 though I can perfectly see why other people prefer the 355. What I don't get is why some 355 guys just can't comprehend why some of us prefer the older style looks, feel and driving of the 348. Some people prefer the 512 TR, some the older Testarossa. Some would take a 308 over a 328 any day of the week. It's all personal preference.

I often get the "you've only got a 348 because you can't afford a 355" stuff. I'm sure it's true with some who buy a 348 and there's nothing at all wrong with that. My 348 has been totally resprayed, totally retrimed, wheels refurbed, underneath refurbed, engine detailed, new exhaust system, numerous other bits and bobs - trust me many 355s on our market would have been a good deal cheaper. Looking at cars like Sy's or Andy Hills I'm sure their's were a lot more than your average, or even most, 355s.

Some of us prefer the 348. We're not mad, not wealthy enough for a 355 or lying. We just prefer them. The guy who wrote the article I posted seems to like both cars (as I do) but does give the impression that he likes the old school 348 a tad more. Just get that impression from his concluding two paragraphs. That doesn't make him wrong, it's just his opinion.

 

I was seriously starting to worry about you Pete. Quite a few posts and days before you decided to chime in...whats up....busy at work, planes getting lost?

 

No mate, no longer in the RAF, left a few weeks back. Looking at becoming a golf pro instead but taking a year out just chilling and hitting the course to see how things go. Had more time for FChat when I was working for Queen and country, spend 7-8 hours per day practicing at the mo so not as much time for forums etc. terrible admission really.

 

Gerry, I think you're mixing up the steering of the 348 with the Testarossa

 

The EVO article finishes with the sentence that the steering of the 348 was the highlight of the test