what is the dark red, maroon color that the 355s come in? is it rosso corsa or rosso fiorano?
"rosso corsa" ("racing red") is the traditional Ferrari red that most of the cars come in. (The modern F1 cars, though, are in a somewhat brighter red imposed by sponsor Marlboro.) "rosso barchetta" is the only term I've seen used officially for the darker red. I believe the term refers to the 1949 Barchetta which scored Ferrari's first win at LeMans. I saw that car at Monterey in '94 and it is painted that color.
I'm still learning my Ferrari history, but it seems to be that the 'traditional' rosso corsa didn't become popular until Magnum PI drove a rosso corsa 308 on TV. The Ferrari history books I have begun to read don't have many photos of this color until the 308. Seems to me the TV exposure in the 80's is what made the color popular. The color F355 Nashville asks about is in fact rosso barchetta and I believe jimpern is correct about its lineage. In fact, most of the early race cars from Ferrari and Alfa seem to be in this color. In my mind, this is the real 'traditional' Ferrari color as it dates back to the earliest race cars. Of course I am biased, I have a 355 in rosso barchetta. Image Unavailable, Please Login
I know the Alfas of the 30s were "rosso barchetta" but all the vintage red Ferraris I've seen at historic races except the '49 LeMans winner have been "rosso corsa". As far as the V8 road cars, I don't believe I've seen any in "barchetta" until the F355, and yours is a superb-looking example!
Martin, I thought somebody on this board said they bought this from you. What happened? Deal fell through?
Jake, silly me. I thought that was Martin's post -- I'm so used to see that familiar background for his shots. Apologies. Car looks fantastic.
I THINK the 166 Sports that won the Targa Florio in 1948 and later won the Mille Miglia in coupe form (also in 1948) was in the same darker, blood red. From pictures, this barchetta red seems to dominate the 1948 and 1949 vintage cars, with the brighter rosso corso coming on in 1950 or 1951. I've never seen these early cars in person, so maybe someone can either confirm or refute this. Hard to correctly nail the correct hue just from a picture. Thank you for the compliment. I think you are right about rosso barchetta debuting with the 355, I can't recall seeing it before then on the V8 cars.
can someone post a picture of a f355 in rosso fiorano? i think thats what color my car is. i am tired of people asking me "wow what color is that" and having to respond its "maroon"
It might be rosso barchetta but I suspect the light in there is not helping. Between artificial lights and the accuracy of the film (or digital media) determining the true color of any car in that environment is nearly impossible.
I think not traditional rosso barchetta; 612 appears to have fine metallic highlights? maybe a new color? I think the rosso fiorano (top of thread) also is metallic? was used on a 360 in ads for speedline wheels 2 yrs ago?
I special ordered my 1982 GTSi painted Rosso Barchetta from the factory. The color is the same as Martin's (Rosso Fiorano), but mine does have a touch of metalic in it. I have yet to see one (any model year to date) that is the same color as mine. Very strange. WilliamR