Never cared for the 355. Dated without being iconic. 360 vs 430 looks...I’m really undecided on that one. 430: I prefer it’s slimmer headlights and bigger side air intake, and some elements of the rear end, although they may age it. 430 interior is more ‘supercar’ as well. 360: as much as I like the more aggressive rear design of the 430, somehow, the 360 just looks lower and wider, which is sexier and a CS grille seems like a superior way to release heat. Manual 6 is a relative bargain that’s unbeatable, but it’s a different Ferrari experience from an f1 f430. More vintage/nostalgic Ferrari than modern performance Ferrari. Both authentic experiences. Not sure how timeless either one will be, honestly. To me, it’s like debating between the early Countach and late Countach. You either like the plainer/purer simple early versions or the more tricked out final models.
f355 in a class of its own from a looks and sound perspective.....nothing like an f355 with no cats and tubis
love the f355 looks classic. on of the last "small" ferraris i owned a f430 so i am basis and that's how i would vote. i drove a 360 once and it was just too underwhelming
Timing chain(F430) vs Belt(360). Being these cars are cousins, the timing chain won out and I bought an F430. The 360 does seem a little wider and lower.
It’s been the same story for a lot of Ferrari models...the one following, is always slightly faster, with slightly less maintenance, arguably technically superior...although subjectively slightly less attractive looks and sound and higher cost of entry.
my ownership experience is 360 F1 to 360 Stick to CS to F430 F1 to Scuderia. in that order. All coupe. All stock, no mods. IMHO looks: CS > Modena > F430 > Scud. how I feel while driving it: CS = Scud > Modena F1(with CS TCU) > F430 F1 = 360 stick. sound: Modena > CS > Scud > F430. ( lots of people would disagree with me on this point) but I am not a stick guy, I appreciate scud 60ms very much. The Modena engine sound I felt nothing too excited at first. Until I own the F430 f1 and kinda tired of the CS. Suddenly, I felt the 360's OEM sound is great in its own right, so great that I think it trumps the CS in high RPMs by a large margin. On low RPM, the CS sound trumps the modena sound by a tiny bit. Modena's exhaust valve opening event(7000rpm for my market) is making a much more psychological impact on me than any other car. CS and modena's steering feel trumps scud and f430 by a large margin, too! its just me, lots of people would say i am not the mainstream
The manual shift models don't hold a special place for me, but having owned a 360 and 430, I will start with saying that the 430 is more satisfying ownership experience. Ferrari seems to have fixed a bunch of design and mechanical things that seemed just lacking proper fit, finish, or function on the 360. The difference is slight in reality, and you cannot just list a lot of the things that are a "feel" type of thing. The cars are so similar in many ways, but the power and feel of the 430 just seems like a huge upgrade. The thing that I expected to be greatly improved was the F1 trans, and that isn't much of a change Add to that the elimination of the timing belt service interval and concern, and the 430 wins. Twice the price??? Maybe not. The difference between purchase price for my two was less than $30k. The 430 still makes me feel like I'm driving a car from the past era, but with the best combo of features and upgrades.
I personally prefer more rounded styling. I think most of the most beautiful cars ever made were more round. The 360 doesn't really have corners. The 430 is starting to get more angular/aggressive which I don't like. Don't get me wrong, I think it is a beautiful car, but I think the 360 has a more timeless design. That being said I think 430 has a better interior. 430 wins in terms of performance and maintenance. No competition. I guess it all depends on the metric that is most important to you. Sent from my SM-N950U using Tapatalk
For anyone contemplating a 360 and worried about it being 'slow' don't be. It's plenty quick enough and enjoyment has not diminished. If you can track down an illusive factory challenge style racing exhaust you'll also enjoy one of the best soundtracks available on any car. Period. Also even if you want more grunt it's entirely possible, I've now successfully demonstrated that you can take an unmodified 360 and get it to perform reliably within a whisker of a F430 with relatively little invested. Heck if you want to be crazy take my 360 for instance, it can outperform a 458 and is more fun than anything else in my garage including other 700hp cars like my Mclaren but that level of performance didn't happen overnight. What I'm trying to say is the platform is fantastic with great handling so if your happy to experiment with geometry, tires etc you'd be surprised what you can do.. 15 years on and i still adore it!!!
I'm thinking a 360 Spider manual and 599 GTB F1 would be a nice pair that would pretty much cover all the bases. The 360 Spider is appealing in that it seems to be the last of the "old school" Ferraris mechanically, but the first of the modern styling--and it still looks good. The 599 F1s are just extraordinary value for money right now imo, even compared to the F430.
the only downside is the shift speed, to be fair (no , the CS tcu won't cut it). If it can be fit a SF2 software, the 360 would be my perfect machine. If I have a scud gearbox, scud f1 actuator, scud tcu, no e-diff, and maybe some yaw sensor and maybe some abs ecu upgrade, and Trev if you can come up with a software solution to it, that'll be the ultimate upgrade the 360 could ever have. But I assume its an engineering that would take a small team.
I do like a good challenge and I'm certain I could do it! I'm also confident too we could even upgrade F430 gearbox internals to SF2 Scud spec with me doing a bit of jiggery pokery to get it working but..... And there is a big but here.. I'm not even sure I would want to do it for my own car... I loved my gated shifter waaay too much
Which would you take and why? '04 360 Spider F1 Rosso/Beige 7400 miles, $109,900, Listed by Foreign Cars Italia: https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/835028255/overview/ '06 F430 Spider F1 Grey/Beige 20,000 miles, $109,900, Listed by Foreign Cars Italia: https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/835644546/overview/ To me, picking the 430 is a no-brainer. But I'd love to hear the argument against that or an explanation as to why they are the priced the same (aside from mileage and color combination-maybe that's it?).
Just like you stated, I think it’s the mileage and color combo, not that the one on that F430 isn’t good, just not a classic resale Ferrari combo. That F430 with CCB option is a no brainer to me too. Plus a little more mileage is not a bad thing as it was driven more often. Sent from my iPhone using FerrariChat
Curious as to how you made a 360 ‘outperform a 458’? Is this based on the published claims of various add ons??
No bad decision either way. I thought about it, and, given the ability to get a three pedal 360 for about the same price as an F1 430, I went that route. No question the 430 improved in almost every way. Except one for me: styling, inside and out. Sent from my iPad using FerrariChat
It's always going to be an interesting debate, however, as a rule - 360 owners will say 360 and 430 owners will say 430. I have pretty much loved all Ferrari's, there are a few that I have never wanted on styling alone, a few I can mention are 400, Scaglietti and 360. The 430's styling addressed everything I didn't like about the 360. Headlights, bumpers, side intakes, wheels etc, and there is still some angles which can look a little awkward on the 430, its not perfect. Its a good job we are all different, as on styling alone the F430 is the much better looking car, and then you have all the others improvements as well. This debate will rage on, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder !
It used to be which one would get you more chicks. Damn, I haven't thought of that in 50 years; $h-t I'm old.
If you want to attract chicks, get a Triumph Spitfire. With all the expensive and fancy cars I've had, none was more of a chick magnet than my old red/black 1972 Spitfire.
This string has been a great help to my current decision. I have 360 Modena which I have “ made mine” . CS TCU, Steve Maze tune. Tubi exhaust, etc. I’ve also upgraded the fuel pumps, preemptively changed the transmission heat exchanger, did my own belts and much more. Next on my list was recovering the glare shield. But now I see a 10,000 mile 430 on the market . Never drove one. I’m tempted but overall it sounds like it’s not a HUGE change but perhaps a refinement of the 360 .Please talk me into the 430 if you care to or should I think of putting significantly more $ for the 458? That will take some real self deception on my part LOL …now poke holes in me
Look into my eyes, look into my eyes, the eyes, the eyes, not around the eyes, don't look around my eyes, look into my eyes, you're under - get the 430. Did that work?
