USA 308 bumpers Judging rules

Tommy, he argued that "all" 1980's were silver...and anyways...we're only talking about "recognized quality events", not that two bit FCA Nationals stuff! Hehehehehe! Hope all is well!

 

It's generational. I can't tell you **** about the nuances with any Ferrari after the 328 or before the 308 in 76. I'm 50 so I grew up when they were being produced. Those were what was new when I was noticing them.

I mean, I know that Ferrari ran a bunch of the first 80's with silver Nardi's and then switched to black, but I couldn't tell you what is correct on a 68 330 - the judge in Dallas was old enough then that the late 60's early 70's were possibly his favorites. Him looking at a 308 QV would be like me looking at a 458.

 

Tommy, go to my new thread (share your FCA....) and copy and paste these responses

 

With all due respect, I don't believe that Ferrari invited you to judge at their 70th Anniversary event in Italy. The same could probably be said for Cavallino, FCA Nationals, Monterey, etc. Year after year. That would be Rifledriver, so don't discount his perspective on these topics. I appreciate his insights even if they come across as a little brisk.

 

Yea no kidding!

 

I'm guessing no one complains about judge's lack of knowledge when they don't get docked a point for something wrong/unoriginal on their car...

 

I spent a few years showing my Jaguar XK120 at national level JCNA events. We did end up with a 100 point car and won our Class Nationally. That is when I realized the differences in Car Show judging. The Marque specific events, Alfa Romeo, Ferrari, Porsche, Jaguar, etc, are judged primarily on originality, and correctness of the car specific to the model, year, make.
Car shows like Pebble Beach, Amelia Island, the old Meadow brook (now St. Johns) judge the cars on appearance and quality of restoration. If a car can make a visual impression among other vehicles that is sufficient. You are usually placed in a Circle or group of different makes and models. Judging there is more for visual appearance and "eye-candy". I think that is what I personally prefer if I had my car on display. Some of us may take our car to a Marque specific show, but then we are at the mercy of the judging panel, and that may not be a positive experience! If you think the Ferrari Club shows are difficult, you should experience a Porsche even ....!!!

 

I can understand how Ferrari judging requires bumpers to be in their original configuration. I expect that this stems from a prior era where restoring an old Ferrari racing car to original factory configuration was even more difficult than restoring a 308 to original factory configuration. With the older cars, scoring well at a concours was a major triumph and a testimony to the effort and diligence of the car’s restorer. Restoring a 308 is comparatively easy, but is still held to the same “originality” standards such as bumper configuration.

The standards and goals certainly differ between venues and marques. I have watched (in horror) the judging at BMW Car Club concours such as Monterey’s Legends of the Autobahn. Replacement parts are so much more readily available for even the rarest of BMWs, that the judges have become fanatical in finding the most miniscule of differences between perfect contenders. The concours has devolved into a clean car contest where judges use Q-Tips to swab for dirt in the weirdest of places. I have talked to a Corvette concours winner who described in great detail the difficulty and drama of hunting down engine bolts with the correct stamping on the head. Sheesh. In contrast a Ferrari judge wouldn’t even blink an eye at an aftermarket radiator cap or non-vintage hose clamps.

Frankly, I think the Ferrari Club has struck a nice balance, that “Ferraris are meant to be driven” (so that consumables such as a radiator cap are forgiven) yet owners who make the effort to restore cars to original factory configuration are rewarded. Its all a matter of degree and the Ferrari Club’s balance point is one where there is also the message, “lets not take this all too seriously.”

 

It may be the original factory configuration, but this particular aspect is, let's face it, just the original US federal government regulations. It certainly doesn't represent the designer or stylist's original intention. I'm glad I have no interest in showing my car at these kind of events!

 

That is a good point. From a safety perspective, I am glad to have the better front boot lid latches, more robust bumpers etc. Aesthetically, yuck, I have pushed in my bumpers (reversibly) and have walked away from concours at least for a while.

Having said that, the original design was not a carte blanche for the designer. It was constrained on many technical fronts and is just a (beautiful) optimization within those constraints. Generally, Governments’ requirements have been reacted to well over the years and are now just much more blended into the design. The latest most conspicuous constraint is European pedestrian safety requirements which have caused bulbous front hoods on many cars. The US-spec 308 bumpers were just a poor reaction by Ferrari/Pininfarina to new constraints.

And also generally, it is too easy to think that it is important to somehow “conserve” automobiles. I think the Ferrari Club is fighting this tendency as Ferrari owners are particularly prone to want to conserve. Cars are just consumer products. While example A of a 250GTO and example B of a 250GTO may be both desirable to conserve because of the different racing histories they are now icons for, 308 don’t have that individual importance. Aesthetically, as long as one 250GTO and one 308 are conserved we will always know what they looked like. It is the icons that they become that makes them, as individual specimens, interesting in keeping. This is akin to “my father’s wristwatch”; it might be an ugly old thing, but dad wore it and with it comes an implicit history.

(Gawd, I have to get off the computer this morning and do something useful.)

 

Above all, the car is meant to be enjoyed. So if you get great enjoyment out of a perfect score in judging, it's a good thing you should keep doing it. If judging your car lessons the enjoyment for whatever reason, perhaps don't do the shows to begin with.

 

The best of both worlds is what I do. I display my car and refuse to let it be judged...I know how nice my car is, I don't need anybody to tell me

 

I actually like the US bumper look. That is how I first saw them in the flesh. It wasn't until years later I finally saw a euro configuration, where I don't remember, but it looked so unusually different to me and it never was something I wanted to do to mine.

 

See now, that's pretty cool. There's no accounting for owner preference. I really like it when folks stick with what they like above all else. I remember several years back, some So Cal Dino GT/4 owner restomoded his car in Verde Germoglio and put grass floormats in it (along with chromed Cromodoras). The final product, to me, was beautiful as an expression of creativity. He got endless crap from many, though. I wish we would do more fun stuff to our 308s. These cars are so great looking as designed, but some sure do look great all dressed up as well.

 

Yep. You like what you like.

 

I'm not sure any manufacturer responded well to the 5mph bumper regs. Is there a good looking example? The 308 was sketched in the late 60s. When were the US 5mph regs announced to industry?

The airgap crush requirements above the engine on modern cars have removed elegance, for sure.

 

I'm drawing a blank.

Here is a link to what appears to be a credible documentation: http://sparebumper.com/federal-bumper-standards/

Quoting from that document:

"On April 9, 1971, the agency issued its first passenger car bumper standard — Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) 215, “Exterior Protection,” which became effective on September 1, 1972. This standard called for passenger cars, beginning with model year 1973, to withstand 5 mph front and 2 ½ mph rear impacts against a perpendicular barrier without damage to certain safety-related components such as headlamps and fuel systems. ...

... The most recent revisions to the bumper standard took place in May 14, 1982, effective for model year 1983 and subsequent model year passenger cars. This amendment reduced test impact speeds from 5 mph to 2.5 mph for longitudinal front and rear barrier and pendulum impacts and from 3 mph to 1.5 mph for corner pendulum impacts. In addition, Phase I damage resistance criteria were substituted for Phase II criteria and a bumper height requirements of 16 to 20 inches was established for passenger cars."

 

The first 308 I saw and rode in was a 78 US car. I loved it. The bumpers didn't bother me at all. However, when I was ready to buy a 308 I saw the Euro car and knew that was the car I wanted.
Ferrari may not have done to badly with the US crash bumpers. Check out the Countach.

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Ewww, some DOT dickhead should be castrated for that crime. Come to think of it, he probably had to be a eunuch just to get a job with the DOT (Federal government's Department of Transportation).

 

So the US DoT introduced ugly regs which were enforced onto Ferrari stylists and then concourse regs reinforce the US DoT ugly regs in today's garage queen competitions. The world is strange indeed ¯\_(ツ)_/¯