I has been a while since I have updated this thread so here is the latest. I have about 500 miles on the 328 since I got it back from the dealer and all is going well. I found a small oil leak and it was just an oil blow-by hose so it was replaced and no more leaks. Other than that everything is working perfectly. The car seems to be getting better every time I drive it, and it is always so enjoyable to run through the gears. I figured out how to adjust the steering wheel to give me a more comfortable driving position as I am 6' and 200lbs. Pretty easy job, just a phillips screwdriver and two 13mm wrenches and the steering wheel is now 2" lower and 1" closer. Yesterday I was at a car show I help organize in my hometown for the 4th of July and another F-Chat member happened to be strolling through. We had some great conversation about our cars, he has a silver 1982. Image Unavailable, Please Login
I received an email from the dealer about the Classiche stating that my 328 has "reached certification", approximately 3 months after submission, and we are now waiting on the Red Book to show up. I am interested to see how everything about the car is laid out in the book.
Congrats!! Have you been taking it out to the shows? I unfortunately haven’t been making it out to most of them this year. Would love to see the car in person and hear more of the story!
I have it out at least once a week whether it is going to a meet or just driving around the river valley here. I will have it at the Geneva Concours on August 25th, always a good show!
So I finally received my Classiche Red Book! It was about a 4 month wait from sending everything in to receiving the book. So after reading it from cover to cover it is certified as a 100% original sans the tires, battery and other consumables. Interestingly under the bodywork-interior section it states "The bodywork/interior will be deemed authentic if all of its components are those originally installed on the car". The bodywork and interior sections are signed off as 100% original with no mention of the body color top being incorrect. Since there is no specific mention of the top in the report we have asked for specific clarification on the top as to it being a special order original option. Image Unavailable, Please Login
That's the problem with Classiche. They don't go into enough detail about each specific car. Other manufacturers give you a copy of the build sheet with a diagram outline of your car with the specific issues they had to rectify, any special requests, etc. It's been awhile since I've opened my book but I don't think they even state the day the car left the production line.
I agree, for the cost it should have every scrap of information and copies of any original documents included with the report. I guess it all depends on what they have for reference documents saved at the factory. I do not know how extensive their records are of each car but if they have chassis, engine and gearbox numbers recorded then they should have a "build sheet" that shows how it left the factory. The build date of my car on the door jamb tag is May 1989 and my report says the delivery date was august 1989 and the dealer was Ferrari North America NY. I will keep trying to get some more specific information from them, we will see how it goes!
Their response WILL be very interesting. It will either confirm that they resource detailed build sheets they’ve kept for the cars, a fact many people doubt, or reveal that the Classique program is a sham. It is great that you are challenging them to provide the build sheet; it certainly should be included in the book.
I had to read this whole thread from start to finish .......and it took awhile, I can only say one thing. Never ever sell your 328, I sold mine in 2000 and had sellers remorse for 13 years until I got a 355....... Thinking about it now, I still wish I had the 328 to go with the 355. So drive it and enjoy it. Job well done
Well, ten years ago they gave me the precise day for both my cars, and for free: GTB #81085 was born on April 5th, 1989; GTS #80515 was born on February 24th, 1989. For What it Is Worth, of course, because I don't know what Date Of Birth (sorry, of construction) means exactly: is this the day the car left the factory? The day it was tested, and suspension geometry adjusted (Which was materialised by the blue adhesive round patch on the rims?). Their archive must be as secure as those of the Vatican, and probably more secret. No-one knows exactly what they have. The rumor has it that, until computerisation, which occured in 1983-1984, there was some "build sheet" for each car in the form of an A5 sheet of paper, kept in shoe boxes; the sheet should be signed by the test driver who certified the car. After computerisation, well...something must exist indeed, as the cars were optioned, at least in Europe. I have a copy of the ordering bulletin for my GTB, which lists options taken, colors, etc... Rgds
Thanks for sharing James but that is crazy that you have to ask more information AFTER receiving the Red Book ! This company is lucky to have customer like you.
Doing some deep cleaning for the Geneva Concours next weekend. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
You must post some photos of the now cleaned engine bay. Also is your black roof spoiler smooth or textured?
Still working on the detailing. I will post pics by the end of the week. My spoiler is the stock black textured material.
Cheers. Love to see some pics. Hmmm if it's textured I'm thinking the owner may have sprayed the roof red rather than the factory. I would imagine the factory would apply the same logic to a painted targa roofed GTS to their GTB's. That is, any painted roof would get a smooth roof spoiler. Interested to hear what the factory comes back with.
I am the third owner of the car and I know the guy I bought it from and he got the car with the top the way it is in 1995. If the top was modified by the first owner whoever he paid to do it would have to be a professional, have access to the same materials and processes Ferrari used to create the seals around the windshield glass and other areas, have a perfect paint match and also have the ability to make it look like factory work matching all the other parts of the interior and exterior. For this reason my self and 2 others who are very familiar with Ferraris agree it must be a factory job. Look at the picture and note the sealer is the same in every way, size, color and aging along with defects from whatever tool they used to apply the sealer with. I have been restoring cars for 30 years and I can tell you recreating that seal on the edges of the top would be pretty much impossible without a ridiculous amount of R&D to perfect the match to existing factory seals. I am also very interested to see the response since they have already certified it as the way it left the factory. We sent pictures to the Classiche dept. in Italy and it was obvious in the pictures that the top is painted to match. There is no way you could miss that. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Fair point but I wonder why Ferrari would apply sealer running along the length of the targa top when they don't apply it to the standard targa tops. Could it be to avoid the painted edge from moisture getting in along the gloss black trim?
It follows suit with the way Ferrari did the black trim up the A-pillar. As shown in the previous picture of the windshield, A-pillar and targa top.
Ferrari ran a strip of black sikaflex up the A pillar but they never ran it across the targa top. Hence my query. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Had a great day at the 2019 Geneva Concours d'Elegance. I understand the scores were very tight, a judge came back after my initial meet with them and asked me some more questions about the car. An incredible 1985 308 won the class. Also met the Central States Region FCA club, what a great bunch of Ferrari enthusiasts! Can't wait for the next get together. Image Unavailable, Please Login