348 Spider Sold at Mecum Indy Yesterday | FerrariChat

348 Spider Sold at Mecum Indy Yesterday

Discussion in '348/355' started by Hubs348, May 20, 2017.

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  1. Hubs348

    Hubs348 Karting

    May 9, 2013
    173
    Thousand Oaks, CA
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    Brian
    #1 Hubs348, May 20, 2017
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  2. Hubs348

    Hubs348 Karting

    May 9, 2013
    173
    Thousand Oaks, CA
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    Brian
    #2 Hubs348, May 20, 2017
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
  3. ///Mike

    ///Mike F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2003
    6,097
    Bugtussle
    Mecum has proven to be a terrible venue for selling Ferraris. I'm surprised that anyone tries to sell one there... which highlights the possibility that one or both of these was a fake "sale".
     
  4. Hubs348

    Hubs348 Karting

    May 9, 2013
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    Brian
  5. Hubs348

    Hubs348 Karting

    May 9, 2013
    173
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    Brian
    Your right Mike, mostly American muscle buyers at Mecum.
     
  6. chas-3

    chas-3 Formula 3
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    Probably because the rear wheels are mounted on the wrong side. ;)
     
  7. itsablurr

    itsablurr Formula 3

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    If they overlooked that, imagine what else has gone overlooked/deferred... probably another $20-30k in work easy.
     
  8. andrew911

    andrew911 F1 Rookie
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    Sep 8, 2003
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    Northern NJ
    True mileage unknown car? Sounds like this car had some (not good) history or lack thereof? Plus what other's said about maybe not the best auction for a car like this...
     
  9. thorn

    thorn F1 Rookie
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    Aug 7, 2012
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    Because it's a 348.

    The handling, breaking, & power aren't particular notable. The styling - ripped right off the TR - looks forced, and ... just odd. Almost like someone took a Fiero and tried to make a TR kit car (without stretching the chassis).

    When I first saw the 308, I thought "wow, I want one when I'm older." When I first saw the 355 (in the Bond movie, actually) - I was practically drooling. The first time I saw a 348, I thought "What the hell is that... what did they DO...!?" Certainly the 308 and 355 aren't particular fast by today's standards... but they have a certain something to them that's just incredible. In my opinion, the 348 doesn't.

    Even Ferrari wasn't happy with the 348.

    Plus, being a spyder... that makes it even less desirable (or a no-go) for many buyers.
     
  10. amorepresto

    amorepresto Karting

    Jul 14, 2004
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    NE Ohio
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    Dave
    Please Don’t Bash the 348!
    There are a lot of us who are longtime owners and know how wonderful the 348 is.
     
  11. Wade

    Wade Three Time F1 World Champ
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    Mar 31, 2006
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    #11 Wade, May 23, 2017
    Last edited: May 23, 2017
    Precisely my thoughts.
     
  12. Wade

    Wade Three Time F1 World Champ
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    Now why would you come into the 348/355 forum to make a negative, opinionated comment like that?

    I'd venture to say that a lot us 348 fans and owners aren't very interested in the 308, and it's a pointless comparison.

    Oh, and its "braking" (as opposed to "breaking") is perfect for today's style of driving e.g. public streets with traffic.
     
    goose22b and vdettore like this.
  13. fdekeu

    fdekeu Formula Junior

    Jun 19, 2008
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    Belzium
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    Have you ever driven a 348?
    I guess I have a different opinion
     
  14. ///Mike

    ///Mike F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2003
    6,097
    Bugtussle
    Can trolls even get driver's licenses?
     
  15. bjwhite

    bjwhite F1 Rookie

    Mar 17, 2006
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    Brian White
    I find this statement funny. You drool over the 355 and think the 348 looks like a kit car? The 355 and 348 are identical from the centerline up (except for the rear flip spoiiler). Funny how by changing the front and rear bumpers and the side vents now makes you drool. The 348 was the original iteration by Fioravanti....there is a respect there. The 348 taillights (as well as the TR's) are really iconic and original.

    Funny you mention the 308. I am decidedly not a 308 person--sometimes they look good,
    Spider comment I get. I wouldn't want a Spider....but then again I won't knock others who like them.

    But Ferrari wasn't happy with the 360 and made the 430. Wasn't happy with the 308 GT4 and made the Mondial, etc..etc...etc....

    That's the way of the world. The press loved the 348 when it came out. Montezemelo was less whining about the 348 as much as he was pushing forth that Ferrari could no longer be hand-built cars and ushered in an era of high quality, higher production methods which is the Ferrari you see today.

    Why I prefer the 348? No power steering, still raw, center console (I hate the open center consoles of the 308/328 and 355 and later. ). I prefer the front and rear bumpers and I really do like the taillights. The gauges are some of the best of the era (esp vs the boring 355 gauges.)

    I'm mixed on the side strakes, and they do date the car. And yes, kit cars copied these strakes because everything wanted to be like the Testarossa back in the day. Even 911s got strakes...body kits of all kinds got strakes.

    But the 348 does the strakes better than the TR (and any other car that has them).

    And there are other things about the 348 that are awesome. The T gearbox layout was quite revolutionary.

    Anyway.
     
  16. traimpz348

    traimpz348 Formula 3

    Apr 13, 2004
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    The 348's problem were never with styling. Even as Luca made negative comments towards it, it was never about it's appearance. Anything negative about the 348 has evaporated with time. It's a classic car now so the appeal is different. It doesn't matter if the NSX is .2 seconds quicker to 60, or more nimble around a track. The 348 provides amazing styling with great driver involvement... something anyone who has driven one would understand.
     
    goose22b likes this.
  17. Meister

    Meister F1 Veteran
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    certainly entitled to your opinion on the 348 out of curiosity just curious about your actual personal experience with one?

    I owned a 308 for a long time. After selling it to get a 348 the only thing I miss about it is the styling. 355 is without question one of the best car designs ever penned.
     
  18. itsablurr

    itsablurr Formula 3

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    #18 itsablurr, May 23, 2017
    Last edited: May 23, 2017
    Cripes, thorn. Agreed with all of the above. Subjective aesthetic opinions aside, you are missing out on one of the great road Ferrari experiences, and are quite wrong with the handling and attitude about the car.

    The 348 is a car that continued to embody innovation and tribute to Ferrari's history, innovating with technical aspects derived from road and F1 icons, and styling that pays homage to iconic (historic and in-period) Ferrari design through the final stroke of Fioravanti's legendary pen. It was the last of an original 'to hell with the uninitiated or untalented' driver-centric purity under the purview of Enzo. With Enzo's passing, a paradigm shift occurred to service the broader customer profile... the cars became progressively friendlier, easier to live with, built to a higher standard, quicker, and more assisted, but ultimately losing a certain edge and character compared to older, simpler counterparts. LdM would never have conceived of and built the F40, not in a million years, and similarly the 348... a car that involves you, required a force, effort, and respect to drive, and rewards you in kind. It has a masculinity that runs through it, in function as well as in form. It is not perfect, far from it. That is exactly what makes it such a great, rich experience when presented in good form. The car does not suffer the foolish or unskilled, the slow or the timid. It has a delicacy to the chassis, finely tweakable and more reminiscent to the temperament and resolution of a race chassis than a road chassis, and some of the best steering to come out of Maranello's gates.

    While it certainly stood on its own at its debut, lauded by the press against its peers, as well as now as it begins to age into the classic realm, it is a car that takes familiarity to really dig into and appreciate the substance within... seeing the greenhouse and buttress integrations that grew out of the 288 GTO Evo, bestowed through the F40. The F40 design themes carried into the trapezoidal front fascia shapes, which would then go on to be adopted from the 348 and into the 512TR. The iconic Testarossa side strakes and tail light louvering... day by day less dated and more and more becoming a classic aesthetic of an era, a more distinctly "Ferrari" signature than simple radiused scoops, virtually defining the word 'exotic' to those that grew up with cars of the era on bedroom walls. Nearly as synonymous with Ferrari as the image of a gated shifter to a generation. The longitudinal engine orientation adopted from the 288 GTO, becoming the first application of the traditional race layout into the standard V8 mid-engine line, extending into the current day 488. The transverse gearbox design, a first, and an immense point of pride for production Ferraris, its "TS/TB" namesake gearbox inspired by the revolutionary design derived from the 312 T Formula 1 racers piloted by the likes of Lauda, Scheckter, Villeneuve.

    There was a comment in a recent thread about discovering the 'golden ratio' incorporated into the design of the 348 ashtray lid. Something that subsequently disappeared with the evolution of the line under LdM's purview, speculated as perhaps being judged unimportant or irrelevant, or simply unrecognized for its design purity and thus forgotten. I think that goes to illustrate perfectly what the 348 and predecessors are all about versus the successors.
     
  19. Nader

    Nader Formula Junior

    Feb 12, 2011
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    East of Seattle
    Some of these thoughtful and passionate responses need to be collected and "stickied" to the top of this forum!
     
  20. bjwhite

    bjwhite F1 Rookie

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    Jeez itsablur. Eloquent much? Bravo sir, bravo.
     
  21. c7matt

    c7matt Formula Junior

    Mar 3, 2016
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    Greater Detroit, MI
    *golf clap*
     
  22. ///Mike

    ///Mike F1 Veteran

    Dec 11, 2003
    6,097
    Bugtussle
    Nicely done, Matt. You described the extrordinary character of the 348 beautifully.

    Funny, but I was thinking earlier how I've driven all of the production V8 sports cars (GT4-355 (the 360 and later are too big to be considered sports cars)) under various conditions and the 348 is hands down the most exciting and involving to drive. I love the looks of the 308 but its driving position leaves much to be desired, meaning that the 308GT4 is actually the second best driver of the group.

    I'd love to own a dry sump 308 because they're so pretty but in truth the 348 and GT4 are better cars for many reasons.
     
  23. ihavearedferrari

    ihavearedferrari F1 Rookie

    Nov 23, 2007
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    I'd take a 348 anyday of the week for $40k even with its pitfalls.
     
  24. Hubs348

    Hubs348 Karting

    May 9, 2013
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    Very nicely done Matt / Itsablurr.

    I need to add the only comment in favor of the Spider, both for the open driving experience and the incredible engine note.
     
  25. thorn

    thorn F1 Rookie
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    #25 thorn, May 24, 2017
    Last edited: May 24, 2017
    OP: "I always have trouble understanding why the 348 values arent higher."

    3 Years ago, a Concours-level 348TB was selling @ $35K; it's at $75K today. It's doubled (using Hagerty's numbers) in value over the time period, yet it's considered "not high enough?" Lesser examples have similar risen in price. But Hagerty's numbers aren't biblical law on THIS CAR WORTH = X. It's worth what a buyer is willing to pay for it.

    I offered an opinion on why 348 values aren't higher still... are only positive opinions permitted in F-car discussions?

    If you want an honest opinion on how much someone might value a particular F-car, you can't just ask the people that own them, love them, and flip them. There are certainly owners out there that think buyers should be scrambling to pay $85K for their average 82 Ferrari 308 gtsi. Hint: You can ask $75 for such a car, but don't be surprised when your phone doesn't ring off the hook.

    Yay, let's point out a typo and win the thread.

    Come on, Mike. Itsablurr and BJ did a fine job offering counterpoints to mine; there's no need to go Ad Hominem.
     
    vdettore likes this.

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