VeloceToday - Online Magazine for Italian Car Enthusiasts! The Carol Hollfelder Story
I did own both. The sound is dependent on the muffler and cats you have. One can sound better than the other purely for that. My 96 sounded way better than my 95. As for power, I could not tell from my butt-dynomometer.
2.7 is the easier setup to deal with for a race car. Over the years, the 355 challenge cars had upgrades such as the sway bars and steering rack in 98, which earlier cars upgraded to. Ferrari could’ve easily transitioned to 5.2 and forced 95 cars to convert to 5.2 spec.
@308 GTB Does a challenge car with the upgraded rack and pump still feel overboosted, but simply quicker? I’m curious if the upgraded fhp/challenge pump was actually designed to boost less than a standard pump. Some people speculate it is boosting more than standard to accommodate the quicker ratio.
A smaller momo steering wheel largely solved the over boosted and slow issues with the steering. This is coming from a 993 owner which, at least in my opinion, has one of the best steering racks in history.
Ken, my car competed in the Challenge Series in 1995, 1996 and 1997. As a result, it did not get all the upgrades you mentioned. The transmission oil cooler radiator was never installed and so I have both driving lights operational. It did get the wing, strengthened shifter linkage and sway bars amongst other upgrades. I double checked two weeks ago as my car was being prepped for Watkins Glen and my car did not get the FHP steering rack and pump. Many F355 Challenge cars that competed early on did not get the full complement of upgrades. Perhaps their drivers were accustomed to the steering feel and did not bother to upgrade the steering rack and pump. So I can't really answer your question. I can tell you, however, that my car's steering does not feel overboosted, especially at speed. A lot of factors come into play when it comes to steering feel when the car is on the track, eg. speed, tires, springs, shock absorbers, alignment, track camber, etc. Image Unavailable, Please Login My momo Competition wheel is 350mm in diameter. I've driven the car on various tracks for the past thirteen years and I wouldn't change a single thing when it comes to my car's steering set-up. I don't have onboard videos to demonstrate my car's steering but this video of an F355 Challenge with a stock rack and pump at Lime Rock Park should give you an idea of how a set-up like mine performs... As you can see, the position of the steering wheel conforms nicely to the turns. My car simply feels right when I'm on the track. This year's track season started with an upgrade in my suspension; adjustable Penske shocks and Hypercoil springs with Eibach helpers. My car was lowered ~12mm but is still within Challenge specifications. My current set-up is a major improvement over the old Challenge set-up I had. I continue to increase my confidence in my car's handling on the track and have been improving my lap times.
Great post! While I haven’t had near the F355 track time you have had, I was out yesterday on circuit and after changing my suspension to quantum coil overs with 800 pound front and 600 pound rear spring with Fiorano rear sway bar, I can say the steering is much better on track than on the road. I want to see how the FHP rack changes it on the street but yes I agree with what you are saying on the track. Feels quite precise.
Thank you for your observations, Elliott. By comparison, my Challenge set up was the Challenge shock absorbers with Challenge 2200 lb/in front and 900 lb/in rear springs along with the actuator/active suspension. They're all in a box now having been replaced with Penske PS-8300 Double-Adjustable shocks, Hypercoil 1750 lb/in front and 950 lb/in rear springs with Eibach 250 lb/in helper springs front and rear. With your current set-up, I can see how you appreciate your car's steering on the track. I, like Ken, am curious about how your FHP rack performs once it's installed.
