Ferrari introduced the Mondial Cabriolet in 1983 which was in production in various guises (3.0, 3.2 and 3.4) right up until 1993 so the dangers of convertibles theory can't be right. Before that, the first Ferrari Targa top car was the 246 GTS that came out in 1971, a time when Ferrari were happily building 365 GTS/4 "Daytona" spyders and the World wasn't too concerned about convertibles. By 1989 when the 348 came out, loads of manufacturers had full convertibles in their range so again, the dangers of convertibles theory holds no water. I live in the UK where the sunny days a few and far between, where it often rains and for most of the year the temps are between chilly and freezing. We get @ 3 months of decent weather in the summer time but that's about it really, the rest of the time it's grey, damp and cold. So should I have bought a TB then? - Hell no! Unless it's raining (in which case the folding soft top will be fitted to the car - The hard top is always left at home in the garage!), the roof is off, the windows are down and the car is driven as Enzo Ferrari intended his cars to be driven! On the rare sunny hot days I have the roof off, the air con on full blast on it's coldest setting, with My shorts on and a T shirt. On the chilly days I have the roof off, the heater on full, windows down and I'm wearing jeans and a sweatshirt. On a really cold day - say @ 10°C or below (or when I'm driving home @ 2am ), I have the roof off, the heater on full, windows up and I'm wearing jeans and a thick woolly jumper to help keep Me warm. One thing TB owners will never get to experience is driving along late on a summers night, with a cool breeze fluttering against the top of your head, and all that is above your head is the night sky and the stars in space. I had a couple of journeys this year coming back from My friends house 130 miles away @ 1~2am, and both times the journeys were quite magical! - It's a memory that I won't forget in a hurry!
Well written Phil. As shown in your photos there is no visible difference with the top on when compared to the Berlinetta so you really do have the best of both worlds to choose from. And the night driving is definitely amazing.
There was a rollover law in 76 that never got passed and I know that GM stopped making convertibles for a time and if I recall correct the last one then was the Eldorado in 76. Because of this later convertibles didn't sell well. Here is a quote: "Proposed roll-over standards were initially to be all inclusive, and convertibles weren't selling well, so the companies decided to discontinue their convertibles. The standards excluded convertibles, so eventually the companies began building them again. The car companies walked away from the market, which had shrunk due to fuel crises, more highway travel, more desire to have air conditioned cars, etc."
That was only in the US while the rest of the work carried on status quo. Funny how things turn around because the convertibles are the biggest sellers there now and have been for many years.
The point I was making though was that by the time the 348 came out in '89, the concerns about roll-overs and possible legislation banning convertibles was long gone and Ferrari had already started making a convertible model 6 years before the 348 appeared, so why would they decide that they could only make a targa version of the 348 instead of a full convertible to avoid any legislation issues? I'm not proclaiming to know why Ferrari decided to make the TS first instead of a Spyder, but the whole "dangers of convertibles" theory simply doesn't hold water in the 348's case. I did the exact same thing with both of the FIAT X1/9's that I owned "back in the day", if it wasn't raining then the roof was off the car, Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. (And one thing that get's Me today is that the X1/9 is tiny compared to the 348 TS, but it's roof panel is a similar size and fits beautifully under the front hood [and on top of any bags or shopping that you may want to put in the front boot], causing no issues for taller drivers at all. With the the 348 I've had to buy a folding soft-top to carry on the rear parcel shelf because I cannot fit in the car with the hard-top behind the seats. The packaging of the FIAT X1/9 was quite remarkable!)
Hi Phil, what do you mean by folding soft top for the 348? I've never heard of it and sounds interesting, do you have photos please? Many thanks.
Here you go: http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/348-355-sponsored-bradan/370777-348-ts-folding-roof.html http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/ferrari-parts-collectibles/461183-348-folding-soft-top.html Pictures of My top in this thread (not on the car though): http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/348-355-sponsored-bradan/471483-folding-canvas-roof-355-gts.html I bought mine from a seller on ebay in the USA which ended up costing Me a total of @ £1600 with import duties/tax etc., etc. At the time it was the only one available and I really had to have one in order to have a roof with Me when out and about in case the weather turned and it rained (which has happened to Me once! - The soft top roof did a good job too. It wasn't 100% perfect as there was a very slight drip coming in at the front edge of the drivers window but it was absolutely belting it down and I was so glad I had the roof in the car! I cant have the hard-top behind the seats as I'm too tall!)
The perfect 348!!! Blue 348 TB coming up for sale at Amelia Island auction with an estimate of 75-90k Image Unavailable, Please Login
Thanks Phil I've never heard of them before but would love to have one for the same reason of pushing the seat back further. Looks great in your photos. I'll keep an eye out for one but yeah they're expensive for what they are. Cheers.
They are expensive, mainly because they're hen's teeth rare! (For once in My life I was lucky with My timing. I bought the top off ebay a week before I actually went to see and buy My car because I knew how rarely they come up for sale). The good thing about them though is that you can leave your hard-top at home and still have a roof in the car just in case (Mine fits on the parcel shelf perfectly), you can then have the seat as far back as you need and be more comfortable whilst driving, and, so long as you keep the top in good condition, you should really be able to sell it later if you wish, for what you paid for it, if not more because they are sought after. Maranello parts are showing them as being available for @ £1520 inc. VAT (this type is the one without the front latches that Mine has). I can honestly say that it's worth the money for the added flexibility it gives the car for taller drivers when taking the car out in changeable weather .
I have found the one without the clamps but prefer the one that does have them as its a better flush fit rather than resting on top of the windscreen. Does anyone have a part number for the latch version? Thanks.
This is my way overthinking this. I can justify the silly upside down motorized mouse passive restraints required for the US market far better in a ts than in a tb. But I wouldn't make that a deal breaker. Joe
Then just put the solid removable roof back on and you retain the original stiffness. It's also reinforced. It's the best of both worlds, wherever you choose to drive.
The top with the latches fits the car exactly as the standard hard top does and looks like it should be the OEM soft top but it's not, it's a Ferrari North America part and so has no Ferrari part number as far as I'm aware. The top without latches that sits more on top of the car is the official Ferrari top and so has an official part number. I do prefer the FNA version (which is lucky as it's the version I own), but I didn't deliberately set out to buy an FNA version only. Had a Ferrari version been the only one available at the time then I would have happily bought that one instead because it was more a need for practicality than style.
Thanks Phil, I found the official Ferrari version easily but I prefer the FNA version like yours. I will keep a lookout. Cheers.
Yes the TS does have a little bit more flex in it's chassis than the TB, but for 99.7%* of the time you will never even notice it! - And the other 0.3%* of the time is counter-acted by the fact that you can drive with the roof off! (* Be aware that these are totally made up statistics that cannot be verified in any way shape or form but they sound about right! )
I have a 92 TS with the top painted Rosso Corsa like the body panels. Gets mistaken for a TB all the time. Looks like a different car with it off and sounds so good. Image Unavailable, Please Login
