355 Handles like a modern supercar

There’s only so much ( scus the pun ) re invention of the wheel engineers can do .
Colin Chapman / Gordon Murray s philosophy, weight kills handling is the key .
Your 355 and my 348 are light relative to modern “ super cars “ ok not as many horses for drag racing , but that’s not your Q . You are taking taking corners .
I have just completed a euro hoon around the Swiss passes in my 348 SP with a mate in his 488 …. Yep I went round the hairpin bends quicker it was more agile .
My Michelin PS4 helped over his std Pirelli P zeros . The mich is the current car guys go to tyre at the mo .
You 911 is a marvel that dispute Porsche best engineer s just can’t defy physics. I mean never mind the rear engine over the axial what about the fwd fuel tanks constantly changing the balance as it empties? Huh .
At least your Ferrari s tank is sat in the middle of the chassis.
It’s no surprise really 348 / 355 handle after 30 or what ever yrs .
Physics has constants in equations. They don’t change .

 

I think a bigger factor is an individual is only so comfortable with cornering making similarly designed cars appear to corner about the same. I guarantee you a 488 has more mechanical grip than an f355. An individual just might not be comfortable exploring those higher limits.

A highly skilled driver will corner faster in a newer supercar.

 

Newer isn't necessarily capable of higher lateral g. Put the same tires and good alignment on an F355 or 488 what makes the 488 capable of higher lateral g?

Maybe it's more composed on certain surfaces and overall certainly faster but I don't think a huge delta would be observed unless you're up in speed where downforce is a big factor.

 

I just put Pilot 4S on my 355 but I’ve only had it for 2 weeks so I’ll not be able to compare. I can/do corner quickly now, maybe knowing they are fresh.

I wonder how long you’ve had your 355 and if you are more comfortable cornering in it since you know it well. My previous Porsche was much more familiar to me.

I feel like I am learning the feel of the 355 and hope to join you on an 80 mph turn one day! I am still trying to master the clutch work and reduce my gated shifter lurching after car warms up.

 

No, even with fresh 355 tires, my 458 was taking desert sweepers at speeds 60% higher. Did you replace the steering rack bushings and front shocks?

In fact part of the 'beginning of the end' for my 355 was that I got a Giulia Quadrifoglio for a daily, and within 4 months had added the 458 because the QV annihilated the 355 in every performance measurement.

 

Dissing a 30+ year old design for its dated straight line performance or cornering abilities is missing the point. The F355 is a obviously a classic car, but its qualities lie in its ability to deliver thrills at much lower/safer speeds than any modern, overly-efficient car. It's a car that wants you to have fun with it rather than boast about track times or whatever cold/quantified/meaningless data.

 

I don’t really take that as a realistic statement. But I’ll tell you what my modified 348 was super fun ripping around yesterday. Hard to drive a car that makes me smile as much as this one.
And everybody else that sees it on the road, modern sports cars don’t make people smile that much around here.