Hi, I am a newbie to this forum. I am considering a classic Ferrari and have narrowed my choices down to a 308 GTS QV or a 328 GTS. I own a few 70s and 80s classics so I am well aware of the "fun" involved. Its a hard decision so please comment at will. BTW, if anyone know of a 308/328 available for sale in HK, please let me know so that I don't have to go through with the trouble of importing one from the UK. Many thanks
Hi, welcome. Get the book "Original Ferrari V8" by Keith Bluemel from your local bookstores or Amazon. Has some good information on this series. I would personally get a GTB=Berlinetta=coupe rather than the targa as the body flexes, noisey & leaks. Especially when they're so old. The engine & trans are quite bullet proof. The 3.2 is a much better car to get with nice bumpers, higher power, better cockpit but price reflects as well. Check around edges for rust & the old fuse box are known to be problematic but can be upgraded. The 3.2 has modern wheels to fit modern tyres with the convex design while the earlier 308 had concave wheels that need metric tyres. I'm not sure but I think only the late production 3.2s have ABS. Visit the 30/28 section of this forum & you'll find tons of information.
+1. What he said. However, 328s with ABS can be identified by the 16" wheels. Convex type spokes(less attractive to me,IMO) for the ABS equipped, circa '88.5 onwards and the concave ones, pre ABS. The said design differences were theret to accomodate the ABS readout 'rings' whatever, correct me if I'm wrong during those early ABS days. Now, the 308 series comes with 3 types of wheels. Early ones, especially the vetroresina (or resin or fibreglass) bodied cars runs exclusively on 14" hoops. Then comes the 2V injected ones and by this time, they're normally shod with the TRX wheels and tyres. A system invented by Michelin whereby the said wheel diameter and tyre sizes are all in metric...!i.e, 220/55/380 whatever....Tyres are hard to find and they're not so great either.... Good news is that you can actually retrofit the wheels of the last and best looking iteration of the 16" Starfish pattern for the 308. Normally shod on the 308 Quattrovalvole or QVs (4 valves/cylinder, Italian speak) in MY/SG and other Asian market, being an option actually, the 16" comes in staggered sizes Front and Rear. 7X16F with 205/55/16 and 8X16R with 225/50/16. If you're looking for a HK car, I'm sorry for not being able to help you there. If there aren't any in HK, there are a few in KL and like you said, there's always the good 'ole Blighty.... Sorry for the long windedness on just the wheels.... More info can be gotten from using the 'search' function here and I just can't resist having more words to post than my buddy Jon above me...
Good luck on your search. Check carefully the rules on importing into HK. Can be a real pain now. Seatbelts, appraised value, etc. I have a friend who had major hassles with a Dino. He gave up and uses a classic car movement permit. I would not get an S for the reasons noted above
Tifosi66, SFChallenge : thanks for both of your comment. This really shows the depth of knowledge of the member in this forum. Glad to have joined. Will keep you posted on my findings....
Both of them are classics. The 308 has the original Magnum PI look and the 328 with upgrades / improvements. The vintage toggle switches on the 308 are the same as the 250 California Spider that says something about it. I went through the same exercise 10 years ago and went with the Carb 308 GTS, Carb for the sound and 308 for the originality design. QV are much civilize to drive in the city. The bottom line is it all depends on your personal preferences. Serviceability is also important,consult your mechanic about it too. Good luck with your search. LY
