355 Berlinetta vs GTS vs Spider is there much difference

That's really funny Dave. Go back and look at the sequence of posts in this thread. I'll leave it at that.

 

Perfect and thank you.

 

I'm going to take a giant stab in the dark and guess that "your guy" will back up your view 100%, and even if he didn't you wouldn't post it on here.

Anyone who thinks that with "roof in" the GTS doesn't offer at least some rigidity over "roof out", or that the GTS with the roof in is NOT more rigid that a Spider is an idiot.

But, more the point, anyone who thinks anyone other than a tame racing driver would notice the minute difference either way is a deluded fool.

Buy the one that appeals to you the most. You won't notice the difference.
Is it really that hard?

 

I can't believe this is even a discussion. Sure the GTS top adds rigidity, but nothing significant until the car has already twisted a couple of inches so the added rigidity is basically meaningless.

 

Steve I missed the spider discussion. If that was directed at me I didn't debate that topic.

 

Bob someone suggested that a Spider is probably more rigid than a GTS.
Which is crap. HOWEVER...

My point is not to be critical of any variant, but to say that in the hands of any normal driver on normal roads at normal speeds ANY 355 variant will be amazing, and it's limits will be so far ahead of the driver that any argument otherwise is pathetic and juvenile willy-waving.

On the racetrack, flat out, the story may be different, but let's face it

Half the people on here who own a B because it is "stiffer" and "lighter" are probably 300lb fat bastards anyway...

 

HEY!!! Im only 200 lbs and own a B ) LOL

 

Whoooa! A little touchy are we not? I will post whatever he says. But IMO the roof in would make about as much difference as an extra gallon of water on a factory fire. Yes you are right, It makes a difference.

 

Haha!
Well, I'm 180lb so I guess when I'm in my GTS and you're in your B the weight is exactly the same.

Of course the difference between a full and empty tank of fuel is more than 140 lb, and I never fill mine up above half....

And so on, and so on...

And none of us can really tell the difference.

 

Not touchy at all.

We both know that you already know what "your guy" is going to say.

If I got "my guy" to give his view, would you give it any credibility?

 

My guy was practically raised in the Ferrari factory and is the only guy that anyone knows of that can still effect recalls on these cars while not directly working for Ferrari. He knows more about these cars than everyone collectively who has posted on this subject. And NO I don't have a clue what he will say. Its people like you and your last 2 posts to me that make you look like a bafoon and ruin what this site is supposed to be all about.

 

What a load of crap.

To think that "your guy" is the only guy in the world who has any worthwhile expertise on these cars is breathtakingly ridiculous.

There are many, many, many people throughout the world who can do anything your guy can do. It's not the space shuttle, and even then there's probably more than "one guy".

Get a grip, mate.

 

OK Steve, carry on. Exactly what I said in the last line of my last post.

 

So Steve, you agree that the top in must resist chassis flex to some degree, even if very minimal correct?

You then go on to say that even though there is a difference, anyone who says they can feel this difference is full of ****?

That isn't logical.

You don't need to be a race driver to feel a difference in chassis stiffness. The average guy is going to notice flex or cowl shake on a rough street, not a smooth as glass race track.

I've never driven a Spider but it may be stronger than a GTS. How would I know the structure of the two cars without seeing technical drawings or cutting one in half? How would you?

 

We always have a few gutted in the shop, yes there is a little difference with the spider with added reinforcements. I have a spider and driven GTS and B. They all flex the spider slighty more. I would consider none of them a stiff chassis. Want a stiff chassis production car buy a Subaru

I will try grab some spider chassis pics tomorrow
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Thanks for the pics!

 

you are so funny Dave. You are the one who cannot admit he is wrong. Grasping at absolutes. Yes you could put a. 2x4 in there. Let me know how that works for you. You are holding on to "technical" correctness just like pi is not 3.14 but pi is really 3.1415. The bottom line is the roof adds nothing to the integrity of the car as driven and there is more going on than compression and tension. Nikki is right.

 

You are the funny one....

Other owners (yes, owners) have posted that they can feel the difference panel in vs out and yet you, non-owner dismiss them.

You consistently come to these thread and act like a mentor but you provide no useful help - ever. You are the expert on a car you don't own and have never owned.

Please go stir the pot elsewhere.

Thank you.

 

You need to consider cars are designed with different zones. Most basic forms are chassis and body flex not even getting into crash zones and their effects at different stages of stress.

Just having fun

 

Tim,
Thank you for posting actual pics. Are they a B or a GTS? It would be interesting to actually see the built in engineering of the three models.

The story that I was told was that the GTS was merely a B with the roof cut out, but that the Spider was actually stiffer than the GTS because Ferrari reinforced it 'in all the right places'. That story was told to me by a 'knowledgeable' guy trying to sell me a Spyder. ;>)

Of course it is general practice to stiffen the chassis of a ragtop, but I have no idea where the Spider fits in the 1-2-3 stiffness queue. The car is stiff enough for semi-sane country road driving.

 

I'll try to grab some pics during the week
I know the spider has some extra on the rear floor and rear door latch vertical pillar and possibly on the front hinge pillar

The GTS I believe it has a door pillar support only to keep the rear window in place and to keep the engine from coming into the driver compartment in a frontal collision don't quote me on it I forget more then I remember as I just do things naturally

Maybe you can see in the parts book on ricambi. I know sometimes the bracing is not easy to find or just gets listed as a different part number



EDIT

Here we go shows Spider and gtb differences for the cabin, just search the text

http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=1502


http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=1505

Maybe something here about the gtb also

http://www.ricambiamerica.com/parts_catalogs.php?M=FE&P=&V=diag&I=1504

 

I find it hilarious that people who have had an F355 for roughly 2 years claim to be absolute experts on everything to do with the model.... from stiffness to shift speed, all its known defects and fixes, how they should be driven, how many miles an engine can do, etc. These owners must be doing massive mileage to have such extensive knowledge in such a short time. Then again, how can they be putting such crazy mileage on their cars if they are constantly posting on FChat 24/7 as their 2k-3k posts a year reflect?

Then you have other members with under 200 posts claiming to be the most prolific, knowledable, foremost experts on everything F355.
You workd at the factory? So did my fathers brothers sisters cousins former roomate, and he says you're an idiot!! lol

Outside of the certified Fcar mechanics, shop owners, and those that actually work on these cars regularly...
the rest of us are just stating our opinions... and we all know what opinions are like.

Guys...
they are just cars. Nice cars. Fast cars. Beautiful cars. Desirable cars.. but cars.
The way people argue on this forum over mundane, unimportant bs is amazing to me.
I wish I had that much down time and unused energy...

 

I hear that the GTS doesn't flex only if it's a rev matching F1 model.

 

On tuesday afternoons LOL

 

Correct. The paddles and the lack of a big hole in the floor adds significant stiffness to the chassis.

My guy also said that the only ones that do flex are the 95s. But they fixed that on the later models.

Anyway, if the GTS is just a B with the roof cut out, why does it weigh 22 lb more?