First Ferrari (looking at 308 or Testarossa) How do I drive it?!

My input as a first time Ferrari owner only a 2.5 years ago.


1. The 2nd gear is a synchro thing. Some cars have it, some do not. I have seen both in my short time as an owner and have driven a number of 308s. Its easy enough to work around by simply letting it warm up properly.

2. I think the driving hard is simply letting the engine sing. Below 4k rpm my car reacts like any other Honda or Toyota or whatever other car you can imagine, but above 4k it REALLY comes alive. Thats when the lady sings unlike anything else. If I am out for a drive I usually try to let it rev freely at those rpms at least once just to kind of open it up.


PDG
'85 308 GTS QV

 

DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT!!!

No really, just be easy on it as things warm up. But after that, drive it like you would if it were yours. Definitely bring it up to redline a couple times and stomp on the brakes...just let the passenger know that you are going to do those things.

You don't want to ***** foot around and then buy it to find out that something breaks when you are more enthusiastic.

Ask the owner if they are OK with that and if not ask them to "push" it while they are driving. If they don't agree, I would walk.

 

Last time my car was in the shop, over a year ago , they changed the trans fluid for Redline gearbox oil. The improvement in 1-2 upshift smoothness was immediately apparent and it really proved out this last winter, with much shorter warmup time needed.

True. The 3-liter engine's lack of lowend torque makes for somewhat sluggish off the line performance, but a QV will go like stink once in motion.

 

Driving the Ferrari is just like any other manual car. But couple of things to pay attention to:

1. Clutch life - the cars clutch bite at the top of the pedal, so you need to be on or off... you can easily slip the clutch - once you are used to it not a problem.

2. Gear box temp -when the car is cold - no matter what climate - the 308 series gear box likes to warm thru a bit... 1st to 3rd is common practice for the first 10 min or so... until 2nd warms up... my 328 will shift cold into 2nd but you can tell when it's much smoother. 2nd gear gets a lot of hammering so take it easy & the gear box will last a lifetime.

3. The engine uses lots of oil, that is cold - again no matter where you live, so give it a couple of min to warm up dont jump on the throttle from cold - shift points for the first 20 min at 3K or lower... you'll notice that there is some hesitation in the bosch FI cars when cold for the first 5-10 min... once pressures & heat are up to snuff - no problems.

4. When you shut off the car hot, and wait 30 - 45 min and go back to start it up... it may take a while to turn over - this seems to be common on the Bosch Fi cars. has to ovecome the vapor lock - fuel pressure in the system to get going. even with new parts this still happens its just part of the fun.

5. Traffic & Idle temp... 308's will usually get kinda warm in hot traffic conditions - anywhere above 195 - 200 mark is ok, above that you need to get more fluid circulating and cool the engine... warped head gaskets can result - know from experience. Ideally you want to be right at 195 or maybe the notch to the right... any higher ...

6. Temp gauge - not very reliable .. if you think your overheating - check the oil temp & Oil pressure guage... if you are pegged on h20 but oil is really cool... might be a guage problem, but still dont ignore it ... check to be sure. the 308 series puts out a lot of heat...

7. a/c non existant compared to todays standards... even by 1960 standards... its just the charm of the car....

8. Power- not much there, BUT - it's the classic Ferrari experience - down shifts are great, heal & toe perfect, sounds like you are going 180 - when you are at 65.... steering is so direct - its really a true sports car.

9 Break downs - it'll happen - in my experience mostly stupid electrical issues... so carry basic spares fuses etc... make sure you have the books

10. Windows - slow, slow, slow... again part of the charm. - Did I mention how great it is to drive?

 

I've had manual cars my whole life and don't normally have an issue in traffic but my 308's clutch is $@&@ing heavy.

A few days after purchase I took a scenic route to my in-laws house. On the way the police had closed a road and set up a diversion - up a steep hill for about a mile, solid traffic to a light that rarely went green.*

With a heavy clutch and a hand brake that won't hold the car I had my work cut out for the next half an hour! Arrived drenched in sweat, unable to walk with a cramp in my left leg hahahaha.*

I avoid that route now just in case the police pull the same move again!

 

For a first time Ferrari I would seriously consider the 308.
1. Less purchase price
2. Less maintaince cost
3. If you want to move to the Testa later you will be able to sell the 308 and not loose a bundle (assuming you buy it right) .
Enjoy the hunt and buy a good one .......whatever you buy.

 

I drive my Mondial like any other car. Put 12,000 miles on it last year with no problems. Sometimes when cold 2nd gear is a bit stiff so I just go to third until it warms up.

If I only drove two miles to work I'd take a Honda or a bicycle. If you want to drive a Ferrari very short distances I'd likely go nothing older than a 360.