Driving in the rain

Make sure the wipers work - contrary to most opinion here your car won't dissolve in a little rain

 

New wiper blades are a good idea.
I don't drive in the rain, but have been caught a few times a few miles from home.
Yes my wipers worked but it occurred to me the blades might be original
20 year old blades don't work that well.

 

Put Rain-X on your windshield, side windows, backlight and outside mirrors. In fact, do this to all of your cars.

 

One of the greatest driving experiences I had in the 456M was driving out of Roswell, NM in a pre-dawn thunderstorm, headed west on US 60. The car handled great, and I wasn't driving timidly. Having replaced the stock driver's side wiper arm with an F430 unit that didn't hit the hood (Typical Ferrari fault), I had zero problems, and the lights are fantastic in the rain. Very exciting with all the lightning, and as you can see here, the car didn't melt, and the sunrise was glorious.

Wiers, wipers, wipers. Ferrari wipers hardly ever get used, so make sure they are in top shape. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

If one drives in central Florida, one will get caught in the rain. It's not a big deal so long as tires and wipers are in good shape - the worst of it by far is thoroughly cleaning the car afterward.

 

Rain should be fine.
But avoid road salt, as an 82 predates the galvanized steel, and the steel the Italians were using back then isn't the best.

I've driven my 328 in both light and heavy rain. My window gaskets are fine, so no leaks.
But the wipers do struggle a bit with heavy rain.

 

I drove 2 days of a 3 day drive from Texas to West Virginia in 2" per hour rain on near slicks.
Other than the white knuckle effects, it was fun. Filling up in 2" per hour rain is not fun, though.

 

Be careful with traction. If you're running track focused tires I would be extra careful.

 

Depending on your tyres and the road surface, watch for aquaplaning. If it happens, don’t panic - in fact, generally don’t panic!

Taking corners in the rain in these older Ferraris can be fun, but aquaplaning is never fun, and newer cars are much less susceptible.

I haven’t driven a Mondial but older mid engined cars in the rain in general don’t love it when you lift off the throttle, or indeed do anything sudden. In my experience.

Have fun.

 

Carry extra fuses.

 

Wipers, and make sure the windows go up.

Only issue I've ever had was when a window switch decided to crap out and I couldn't close the passenger side window.

 

Yes be careful and check all those things. Having a real hood helps a lot too. On a Mondial, if you can, get a bottle of dielectric grease and hit all the connectors you can reach in the engine bay. Or even electrical tape some of them. I had done 2 long trips in pouring rain in my 360 spider this spring and then the alternator and cable failed in the summer. I had to wonder if the rain made a difference but it was a known fault with the system. I would need the new cable anyway for the better crimp.

Just drove it again in the rain last Sunday on a date. Traction control works well. The computer will control everything even in full manual ASR off. Shifting and the whole deal. the only thing I don't like is new rattles behind the drivers door near the drain tube and some ticking when hot at idle. It may just be the new alternator belt or tensioner. I pray it's not a header. Power is fine and sounds great with my solenoid disconnect for vales open all the time. I just wonder about the grill top rear engined cars. But go for it anyway

 

Anyone WAX there windows.....all of them?

If your car is garage kept and you wipe it down after use..especially in high humidity areas....you will notice the results while driving in the rain....TADPOLES.

I have driven in a deluge at 60mph (new tires....yokohama's avid ascends) and don't use the windshield wipers.....the windows and windshield look like tadpoles.

Wax the windows and windshield first. If the windows are that bad, use 3M Rubbing Compound #05973 (about $25 to $30) then wax......then touch it up with some detailer every now an then.

 

On an older car I'd just want make sure the weather stripping hasn't deteriorated...had an old corvette with rotted weather stripping, rain water would pour in and lead to some interior corrosion.

I personally hate driving my car in rain for 2 reasons: 1) traction 2) I hate having to re-wash the car again afterward lol

 

People don't avoid driving in the rain because the cars can't handle it. They avoid driving in the rain because the vast majority of people can't drive decently when it's dry.

 

...and the post drive detailing gets pretty tough after a rainy drive!

 

We get rainstorms completely out of the blue here in summer, so I've driven through plenty of rain. GTS stays dry inside with the roof OFF provided you can keep above 80kmh. Driving on wet nights is truly miserable though...

 

About 15 minutes after buying my 328 in North Carolina I got caught in a raining-hippos-and-elephants rainstorm, rather than a "cats-and-dogs" variety one. I drove to Dallas in off and on rain all the way. Since then I've been in rain several times...

... most recently I'd been on a road trip to South Texas and was just approaching Dallas when another "hippos-and-elephants" event happened. It quickly passed but traffic was, now, at a dead crawl..... guy next to me motioned for me to lower my window, which I did, and he said, "Bet you wish you were in something else!"

To which I replied, "Nah, I got one of the rare ones... it's got windshield wipers."

Enjoy your trip.... I love driving my 328 rain or shine...

 

Sometimes in Belgium, Image Unavailable, Please Login you have no choice

 

Put nice drip towels where you and passenger can reach them for your knees for the A pillar drips, and take a good outdoor car cover for when parked at night and raining. (Keeps the rain a bit out of engine compartment, fuse box in front, Ecu in trunk, etc. )

We did 1200 miles in the 86 mondial a few years ago for a fun trip and wouldn’t hesitate to do it again any day.

 

I've been in the rain in everything from a 308 tp a 348 (at the track), to an F40 and a CS on Corsas. They work fine. Don't melt, and the Corsas worked fine. Image Unavailable, Please Login