Drove first Ferrari F355 Today...might be hooked!

Lol - wouldn’t knock the 964 too much. It’s one of the most engaging drives out there.

I’ll be honest. I got the 355 because I’ve always loved the looks. First time I drove it I wasn’t that impressed. Bought it regardless because I always wanted one and a local opportunity came along. The 355 is a lot of drama. The 964 is a pure drives car.

 

I guess it's like an ugly girl that is good in bed? Sorry, I would rather have the hot 355

 

Why choose when you can have both!

 

An ugly girl and a hot? Why would I want both ?

 

Variety is the spice of life my friend. Sometimes you want someone who is ugly but good in bed. Versus the good looking girl that just lays there.

 

Funny these guys talking bad about the 964, that car is light ages ahead of the 348 and the 355, they are garbage next to it, absolute trash put together hastily - Just fun to drive and hear that's it. I have a 91 964 and drove a 91 Ferrari 348TS for 3 full days last week and my goodness..lol

 

Exactly Ahsan, the 964 is a pure drivers car, thats fun, calculated and so well engineered, the 355 or almost any ferrari for that matter is just a good looking car thats' fun to drive..When i get in the 964 i go hit the twisty canyons of LA when i get in a ferrari i feel i just want to goto maybe Rodeo Drive lol

Owning both is a great combo though, i have a 360 and the 964 and pretty happy, but i know i'll sell the 360 sooner or later, but the Porsche..NEVER!

 

I’m fortunate enough to own a fleet of cars ranging in vintage F cars from the 70s to the newer ones including a 997.2 GT3 RS and a 360CS. All cars are legendary in their own right.
This is a strong statement, but for everyday/sprited driving ON THE STREET, the 964 is the one to have.

 

I have a fleet of cars too, and no Porsches because i cant stand the way they look!


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Once in a while they come up with something cool like the carrara gt or the 918

Which makes you wonder why they can no do that for their normal fleet.

 

the 911 is one car, an iconic car that COULD NEVER be changed and if changed true Porsche fans would go insane, i love the shape from the 60s till now, thats the 911 and always will be...that is the beauty of it.

 

I live in NYC. Whenever I drive the 964 around soho I can’t tell you how many people give me a thumbs up - ask me what year it it - exclaim great car! ... etc. The vintage 911 have a cool factor associated with them that no other car does - including other Porches. I can park it on the street without worry.
The F cars on the other hand gets zero compliments. People probably think I’m a pretentious jackass because I drive really slowly because I dont want anything scraping. Im afraid someone will spit on the car or worse, dig their key in it - lol ... I leave that in the garage.
For everyday driving without worrying, 911’s got it.

 

Listen, I'm not saying I don't like Ferraris. I love them thats why I have them. I just saying that blanket statements liking or disliking any particular car are ignorant. I'm a firm believer that every car has a role and they are all great in their own right.

 

As a blessed person to have both a 348 and a 964 I can say it will be a cold day in you know where when I part with the 964. I have been able to do a number of track days with the 964 at Watkins Glen, Pocono, and VIR and it was quite a track car. I also have had quite a few people give me thumbs up when seeing the car out and about. Don't knock it if you haven't spent time behind the wheel. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

 

this is a 355 thread on a ferrari board and there is nothing ignorant about my blanket statement. a porsche does zero for me. owned a cgt and dont miss it. owned a 996tt and dont miss it. the 355 still gives me butterflies after owning it for 17 years. plain and simple, nothing ignorant about it.

 

Aside from never owning one, I agree Ricky. It's just about looks. They do absolutely nothing, zip, nada for me. The first attraction to a car or woman is looks. That's the way the world works

 

964 is nice build quality, I would drive one, which is more than others would say here.

Still, would not call it light ages ahead in that or any other matter. Especially when its specific output is a closer comparison with agriculture than motorsports.

 

Throughout the years I have met many owners of both porsche and ferrari. I tend to find the ferrari folks more passionate in general.
I know lots of porsche owners who like ferrari and less ferrari owners who like porsche.

Just my findings no science to it

 

The 964 was a stepchild in the Porsche community for years. The had a lot of issues with the distributor and oil seep.

Ever since Singer came along they are buying all the nice 2 seater 964s. I saw a Singer up close the attention to detail is crazy. They also charge crazy money.

 

Ferrari makes beautiful cars for passionate people.
Porsche makes functional cars that are sometimes beautiful.

I always turn around and look at my parked Ferrari as I walk away. The 996 GT3 also does that for me. The 997 commuter does not.

 

I guess I should chime in for this thread Over the past 30 years I have had a '78, '87 and '93 911, then a 360 coupe, and currently a 355 spider- I didn't use any of them as a daily driver.

My take on all of this is a lot of this depends on what your use of the car will be. I am a Porsche guy at heart, but Ferrari was always my dream car and is at the top of the mountain for driving passion. I really wish I could have both an aircooled 911 and ferrari but I'm not complaining

The air cooled 911s have a unique personality, are built like a TANK, and are very reliable. They are classic sports cars. As a weekend type car, I had the 911s when I tended to drive more, go away for weekends etc. The 964 discussed here was and is a great car, but certaily no Ferrari (just as a Ferrari isn't a 911!)

When we started having kids, I knew my driving time was going to be drastically cut. Additionally, I wouldn't be taking the sports car for any weekend trips. Because how I was going to use the car changed, the timing was right to make the jump to the 360. One weekend day I was able to drive a couple of ferrari's friend owned and got in my 911 to go home and that was the final straw- I had to make the switch to Ferrari.

My sportscar driving is limited- it's not that I'm trying to keep miles off the ferrari, just that we are busy. As a result, I typically use the ferrari for point A to A drives through a nice 1/2 hour backroad loop, take it out to dinner when we can, go to C&C's etc. Additionally, just seeing the car in the garage each day (it is Artwork!) and knowing I have it is something quite special. Every mile driving the ferrari is just more special than the 911 and some of those point A to A I literally can't help but grin with a couple of 8K plus RPM shifts with the top down. And as long as it's 45 degrees or higher, the top is down.

So if you are going to use your sports car more than just 1,500-2,000 miles a year like me, or >5,000 miles or whatever, the 911 is probabily the more suitable car. The 911 is a special car. Just that the Ferrari is more special

I will say, I'm pretty sure at some point I'll have another aircooled 911. It may be when other life expenses come up (ferrari is more money to buy and maintain of course), but for now I'll have the F355 for the foreseeable future.

-Andrew

 

I can't see that a 964 would be more fun on a canyon road than a 355. A lowered F355 with the right shocks and tires is a go cart. It is a fantastic handling car with great forward vision for placing the car in tight curves. It is also a good track car as long as you are keeping the rpms up. It is much more than just a good sounding car it. It is a good high performance car.

 

I agree with you Bob- I have lived with all of these cars (one at a time not all at once!) and my F355 (which is stock suspension, a convertible and stick shift) is more engaging to drive than any of the porsches. The low height and mid engine placement gives amazing seat of the pants feedback. The 360 was faster and had better steering, but got more twitchy at the limit vs. the 355 which even with lower feedback/slower ratio steering vs the 360 is "easier" to drive briskly. The 964 steering was maybe a little better than the 355 but not as good as the 360, the non-power steering aircooled 911s had the best steering (i.e. any 911 from 1989 and before). The back roads I drive are much more engaging with the Ferrari (and also...the sound!). All of my cars had stock suspension by the way.

That day years ago that I drove my friend's Ferraris (a 599GTB and an Enzo), I got back into my 911 to go home and the car felt so high off the ground....motor seemed to rev so low, and steering felt limp- was like an SUV. The next morning I drove the 911 again and it felt way better- but a back to back drive after those Ferrari's really sealed the deal for me to finally go for my dream. Even though I bought a used 360, not something on the order of a 599 and certinly not an Enzo- ha! I will never forget the 2 times I was able to drive that Enzo, but I digress...

My perfect 3-car sports car garage: 360, 355 and aircooled 911.

 

Here's mine: 575M F1, 355 GTS F1, and a nice 993TT.

 

There’s plenty of folks here who have had both Porsche and Ferrari cars. In a Ferrari forum, expect the bias.

I’ve owned every air-cooled 911 series. The 964 is my least favorite 911 aesthetic-wise, but my favorite street 911 driving experience. Makes sense to me why Singer picked the 964 platform as a base and aesthetically modify to a predominantly longhood exterior.

In early 00s, I moved on to Ferraris as cars to own/drive for the sake of driving. I have owned (and still own) 911s afterwards but as daily drivers/commuters. No 911 has made me giggle as much as a Ferrari has. Closest one was my 69 911S race car at the track. Having said this, 911s are like old comfy pairs of jeans for me and so I will likely always have one as a practical, go-anywhere sportscar. Lately, I got the bug to build my Mezger 911 for occasional rallycross. A street daily with ability to handle minor off-roading/rallying sounds fun. It will still be accompanied in the garage by a Ferrari 355 Challenge backroads/track car.

Just one last note: over the years, Porsche has produced more Ferrari-like production cars like the 9000 rpm redline GT3, while Ferrari has arguably produced more Porsche-like reliability such as the 458. The overlap is increasing, it seems. So the debate continues...