Hello from NJ! New GTS 6 speed member

I decided to try a temporary black badge look for the rear of the car. Plasti dip is a wonderful product that is a fully removable rubberized membrane like peeling cellophane off of plexiglass.
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Hi Badabing,

As far as the interior is concerned I believe I will leave it as is. It isn't trashed by any means so no sense wasting money on it. The one split seam I will live with, maybe I will glue it with leather glue 527, it has worked wonders for me on any leather project in the past. But at this time it isn't a priority, the only other thing left on the inside is a radio install. Cosmetically the car is an 8.5 right now inside, the outside is close to the same. I am not working with any leather repair shop on this: this is a full DIY with some close friends.

Regarding wheels, I do like the factories myself and prefer them. I would consider purchasing a set from any member here for a fair price. These wheels are a 2 piece 18 inch style, they were professionally refinished by wheel collision from their previous state, but for me I think I might like something different. That would transform the look of the car for sure.

Other than that, there is nothing left for me to do but drive it. I did alot of cleaning and it paid off. The car looks fantastic. All electrical functions are working with the gas gauge as the exception (new one on the way). All exterior lighting is functional as well as dash lighting at this time. When I got it there was a short in the signal stalk which was resolved quickly. All fuse boxes are clean with no water ingress evidence. I polished the shifter and gate today to a satin finish and they look great! I recommend that to anybody with the anodized coating who has wear.

 

GTSNJ. As I said in my first post to you. Welcome. And filling out your profile makes bring a part if this community seem like your objective. If you look at mind, you will see my real name and the town I live in in NJ.

There are two people here who have actually set eyes in that car. You and I. I went there to see it in behalf of an fchatter who was as serious as dirt about buying it. I spent well over an hour with car and drive it for 30 mins it so.

You don't know me or my background in automobiles or these cars. My family was in the car business for 40 years and I grew up under used cars. I have owned a lot if them and do a fair amount of my own work. I have a clue

I purposefully did not post a list if my observances on your car in respect for you. There are a number of items on that list that I have not mentioned in public and you have not yet divulged. I told anyone who is interested to contact me. A few did.

If you bought this cAr for yourself and your enjoyment then that is terrific. If you bought this car to pump and dump then sorry but you came to the wrong coffee shop.

It clearly stated in an original ad for this car that it was involved in some kind of Sandy incident. I will post the ad if you need me to.

Enjoy your project. This is the Internet and there is a lot if visibility on account of it.

 

Car is running great. No missing and a smooth idle and power till redline. This car pulls harder than any other 355 I have been in and I am not exagerating. I have driven 4 5.2's and this 2.7. Maybe its because it is a european model, or some work was done, but whatever it is the car has the torque to break the car loose with anything more than half throttle in first gear at 1500 rpm up. Tires are yokohama advan sport with 95% tread remaining inflated to the reccomended PSI 265/40/18. I am not used to this pull with a 355.

I checked transaxle fluid today (that 12mm allen head dipstick is a pain), fluid looks great.

So, all fluids are clean and clear and I am good to go. Put in a fresh oil filter just because I felt like it.

Motor mounts seem to have the typical wear, I will replace the front two when the weather warms up. They are not sagged bad at this point and there is no actuator to worry about (one benefit of not having an f1 this time), but I know what a difference a fresh set of mounts makes on the 355 resonance at idle in the cabin. awitalian sells them for about 122 each so I will order there.

 

Hey Bob, nice to meet you, I am in the north jersey area and look forward to meeting ya at one of these meets. If you would like to PM me your list of observances on the car, maybe we can chat about it if you want! I would appreciate comparing notes! You seem to have great knowledge about the car and I do not question your background or credentials.

However, you wrote this :

"The owner told me the water damage in the car was from the GTS roof being left off but that didn't explain the obvious rust on the floor in the trunk."

The truth is- There is no rust in the floor of the trunk, I am just dispelling any misinformation since it is my car now.

I understand it was involved in some sandy event from a past ad, all of which we do not know the extent of because it never went through insurance. I have saved all the pages I can find on the car, 2040 cars, usedcarsfobo, craigslist ads etc.

I am happy to be a part of the forums here, its not a pump and dump exercise, its a winter project !

Thanks!

 

Check out the parts classified. There are folks selling a nice set of used OEM wheels and some lightly used motor mounts.

Their words, not mine. Good luck.

Have you attempted to identify the exhaust?

Mufflers, cats, headers? If you take some pictures, we can help identify. Always interested in seeing and hearing different set ups.

 

Looks like stock 2.7 headers on this car, still in clam shells. No insulation evidence in engine bay and I don't hear them leaking at all. Bypass valve was resonating a rattle and so was the y pipe flange attachment at heat shield, went away after adjusting the rod and adjusting the shield. Cats appear to be factory units, exhaust doesn't have any odor.

I think the exhaust is a challenge style, Bob thinks it is something different, but I was looking at Eric c's ad for the challenge exhaust and mine has the same resonated tips and the smaller can design, but I am yet to remove the heat shield and inspect more closely. Whatever it is it screams.

 

I have a set of stock 18" (fishstar) 360 wheels (mint, like new) with a set of Michelin Pilots with 70% tread and am located in NJ if you have an interest in using those on the 355. Reasonably priced, PM me for details.

 

Actually, the VIN is ZFFPR42B000102602 - note that the second Z in your post is actually a 2 in my post. Changing just a single character in the VIN would be one way to get a clear title issued if the original title was salvaged. If anyone's running a CarFax on this car, check both VINs: The one that was posted in the eBay ad: ZFFPR4ZB000102602, and the real VIN: ZFFPR42B000102602.

This car was for sale on eBay in 2011 through a private seller in Cape Girardeau, MO, with 40,000 miles. And the VIN in the eBay ad four years ago was already wrong (the first two was already mistaken as a Z).

Your car is a 1995 model that was built in the Spring of '95. I'm not sure if there's a horsepower difference between the US and Euro cars. If there is, I'm not sure if the difference is negated after importation once the car has been converted to US spec. Do you know when the car was imported to the states and who did the US-spec conversion?

I would consider it TMU if there was a 20-mile discrepancy, but that's just me (but it doesn't matter, DBUA).

 

Well well well. I read this whole thread last night and then hit the sack. It surely is entertaining.
First off, it is very obvious that the OP is trying to flip this car. But hey good for him. It is not a 355 that I would buy at any price over 25gs and then it would be a parts car IMO. The op says that this car is an 8.5 in and out. Well let me tell you that I almost fell off my couch when I read that. I also have a little game I play when I see any 355. I look it over closely and then guess the milage. Im hardly ever off by more than 5k. This car to me has a lot more milage on it than is being shown. IMO this car has at minimum 60k on it but more than likely well over 70k. It has been used and abused and put away wet (pardon the pun). Buying a 355 like this one will require at least 40gs to make it right and you will still be the owner of a salvage tittle car. I say that because never ever is the engine right on a car that looks that bad on the outside. Then there is the overall attitude of the op that tells me he dosnt really care about the pedigree of a Ferrari. To say that he dosnt care about the ripped seats because he dosnt look at them when driving tells me everything. On a funny note though...I would like to know what kind of olive oil he used on the leather. The pictures are angled and selected very well for someone trying to hide the imperfections.
Anyway, to each his own but believe me this car is for sale and all I can say is buyer beware.
People should not take these threads so seriously....just think of it more like a three stooges episode.
Dave Rocks could bring this car back to life and it would look and drive like a million bucks but it would cost a lot that is why I say it isn't worth more than 25gs.

 

Some people just sound like a "used" car salesperson, and some don't.

 

Hi Guido,

It sounds like you sure like to play some nice games when you check out 355's. The car is an 8.5 on cosmetics now, I'm glad you did not fall off the couch that would have been unfortunate. After refinishing the dash pod and revitalizing the leather, there is nothing left for me to do inside. When I got it I would have called it a 6 inside, it needed heavy cleaning and detail work. Im sorry you guys missed out on this car, and that Dave Rocks isn't the one who got it or F1moving/miked355. (I actually re read the old threads on this car today (thanks google), and I see that a few people were after it in a another thread, I have reached out to the other prospective buyer to get more info on the car as it is nice to trace the history. And everyone who has been for a ride in the car agrees with me. The only way I would sell this car now is if I had a replacement lined up, and GTS's are hard to come by as we all know. So no, this isn't a for sale thread sorry. So, you guys actually convinced me, and I convinced myself it is worth keeping to use this year. I'm very surprized how the old gal cleaned up myself. I share this thread amongst my friends and they all get a great laugh at the contributors expense.

I am also quite entertained at how you can judge my character through an internet forum in regards to the "pedigree" of a ferrari. LOL

A ripped seam sure doesn't bother me, but it obviously bothers most on this forum. Now, if I paid $80000 for this car, a ripped seam would be an issue. That I will say. But it was less than 1/2 of that.

Also, none of my photos are taken at inconspicuous angles, they are actually under HIGH FLASH to show every imperfection.

P.S, I most definately use olive oil, I get the stuff at costco (PHILLIPO BERRIO ?) and I just rub it all over the entire car and take pictures for Ferrarichat. Thats what I do. Come on. Really? Actually it is called leather restoration, and it can be done yourself if you don't want to pay thousands.

Most individuals here are incapable of performing work on their own cars, and the ones that can, well I think you get the picture. I'm truly sorry you guys think heater core leaks should cost 100's, or an oil change $500. Or a header change $5000. I really am sorry it ruins it for everyone.

This is a CAR, man built it and it can be fixed like any other CAR. Just because it is a FERRARI doesn't mean it needs to have money dumped into it. Your $40k calculation is obviously flawed and biased, but thank you for your opinion.

 

Do you guys think I should compression test this motor? I mean considering it runs so well and hasn't used any oil or leaked anything, smoked, etc, it still would be a good idea, right? I think I could stop having those recurrent nightmares of cylinder 2 and 6 being down that is often drilled into our heads here on the forum, phew that piece of mind could be worth thousands.. I will do that at the next service interval and video the results if I am still around to post on the forum. I bet you guys would love to see the numbers. Would that make the car worth about $1.50 to FERRARICHAT members? Because we all know a smashed parts car with a blown motor, or a rolling chassis is still close to $20k. I know that is why it is hard to fathom this car runs so well for the price.

I am surprised no body brought up this yet in the conversation, everyone wants to tell me about the ripped driver side seat seam instead.

Ok, back to work. Bye.

 

There is so much I could say but really don't have to as your comments clearly have dug you a deep hole. Your between the lines insults to this board and its members are clearly the signs of a salesman. I can't vouch for everyone but I can for most when I tell you that we on here are not stupid. You are a salesman without a life vest swimming in shark infested waters here. Good luck as you will definitely need it.
PS, your last post above shows your continued assault to the members here. You seem to know everything so why even ask anyone here?
Ever heard the saying that you can't polish a turd? Just to add more here, Dave Rocks would never even entertain the thought of buying this car. He has a project car that is coming along very well but it wasn't a turd. NO way Dave tried to buy this car. You make it sound like many wanted this car, again the sign of a desperate salesman.

 

Aaahhhhh .mudslinging , insults and pretentious attitudes , this is the ferrari chat that i've come to love and have missed lately , its just been so nice and peaceful lately.

So what , the guy bought a car he likes , came on to say its not as bad as it may have been described to be , and the guy gets pounced on , hes the kinda guy that put in some elbow grease , instead of paying a dealer a fortune to do the work , give him a break . Seen these lousy attitudes more than once here .

This is just like my saltwater aquarium , when i add a new fish , all the existing fish have to take a shot at the new guy just to put it in its place to let it know where it stands .
1994 ferrari 348 spider , third owner purchased may 2013 w/ 27804 miles

 

Hi, John thank you for the positive post and seeing through the BS posted. I am honest and not a car salesman, these guys can't handle it.

To everyone else: I have rebutted every opinion and hearsay presented to me with the truth. You made the car out to be junk and it isn't. Sorry.

I didn't say Dave wanted the car, I see his post on the other forum. But at least two other guys sure did when I saw a past post. I could enclose a screen shot, but I think you get the point, all the mis information and type A personalities are running rampant here. You guys aren't used to not getting your way nor being incorrect, all of which has been proven by actual photos of my car. Just stop; you guys lost the argument, the car cleaned up, it needed some TLC and it didn't cost much except after hours time. And I enjoyed it. I think I spent about $24 bucks so far on materials, and an oil filter for $39.50.

Now I have guys messaging me saying the car smells. LOL really? It smells like fresh leather there is no odor at all.

This is what I think about THAT!!
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And Dave sure had some informative posts, I checked them out when I joined the other day, why did he leave? Over sticky business enterprise?

Maybe they will welcome me to the other forum, or I will post at both. I like it here, but jeez I can see why some people left now.

 

You haven't replied to my post.

 

i'd take salesman anyday over hairdresser . lol
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That is because you presented a fact.

All other things argued previously were just opinions. "Great condition", "8.5 out of 10", ect are all subjective.

A title being washed by interchanging as 2 and a Z is another thing all together.

 

Touche!

 

I say go for it. Leakdown too. Maybe new plugs while you're in there.

 

Shouldn't cost much more than the $24 spent to repair the seats and all the other interior ripped pieces.

 

man... people picking on you and the car...

Wish you the best of luck with it, they are wonderful in every way.

take care.

// Fredrik

 

I like facts. All the arguing about subjective stuff drives me nuts. For example.

"Great condition".

Great condition for what?

Great condition for a car? Okay, I'll give him that.
Great condition for a 20 year old car? Damn straight it is! Have you seen the average condition of a 20 year old car? It is sitting in a junkyard and there aren't many pieces left on it.
Great condition for a Ferrari? No, not really. Below average probably.
Great condition for a 20 year old Ferrari? No, probably the bottom 10% condition wise of all 20 year old Ferrari's.
Great condition for a F355 Ferrari? No, probably the bottom 5% condition wise.

Everyone is arguing a different question!!!! Who cares. He paid rock bottom price for the car and is happy with it. He just needs to lay off the sales puffery and everyone can get along.

I'm just glad someone bought it and is using it and fixing things on it, saving it.