Damn, you mean I bought the worst Ferrari ever made! Oh well, I guess I will just have to suffer... Image Unavailable, Please Login
IMHO...the 348 spider is the one for the win. Only 500? imported to US. The cheesegraters define the eighties and the TR era.......and for the price? The 355 design in my humble opinion is a little too...Soft/vanilla? I like the edgy look of the front and sides of the 348 better. 355 rear without a doubt, however, my rear conversion I am really starting to enjoy. Way too many 355s mass produced to be a classic anytime soon. Interesting how Luca de Montezmolo called it the "worst ferrari ever" and it was the one right before his "saving" of Ferrari with the 355. Even more interesting is if it really was the "worst ever" he basically took the same car and added some refinement to it and called it a one of the greatest ferraris. Old saying, you can put a bow on a turd....its still a turd. 348 couldnt have been a turd IF 355 was so great. Frankly, it was a PR dupe...a new grand opening for Ferrari...with the 348 as the sacrificial lamb. I think as the smoke screen has cleared.....348 has gained a greater appreciation. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I used to think that the 348 was perfect with 355 wheels, but all these shots of them with 360 wheels is making me have second thoughts. The 360 wheels look awesome on the 348 too. I have been lusting after a 348....thank goodness you saved me with this thread before I bought such a POS! Birdman
As the current owner of a 93 348TS S/S and previously having owned a 97 355 Spyder, here are a few observations: 1. Both leaked on the passengers side A-frame pillar during rain (as did my 86 328gts); 2. The top routinely would not go up or down on the 355; 3. Both stop traffic; 4. Both sound amazing; 5. Both were $20k plus in the first year of ownership (including a major on each) and had "their moments"; 6. 348 pulls less hard, but I don't think you buy either car to be the fastest thing on the road. Buy the one you like, as the maintenance may quickly make the purchase price less relevant. I personnally think the 348 design is getting better and better with age and there are allot less things to go wrong. In fact, last night, I had someone refer to it as a $200k car - so it still holding its ground looks wise and the current prices are a steal. -SE Image Unavailable, Please Login
i should park my 348 in the garage instead of having a run with my mates.. Image Unavailable, Please Login
Seems like we shared similar experiences in terms of 348 ownership. After one year I was ready to trade the car in because of the many things that went wrong. But now it seems that I have replaced nearly everything that could break or go wrong and I am enjoying the car tremendously. There are not very many 348's around and many times I am the only 348 at a show or gathering. Kai
I wish I could say the same. I was at a Ferrari drive out yesterday in London and there were three 348's in attendance. Plus there were three others who couldn't make it on the day. So not only is it a POS, it's also bloody common over here!!! No wonder they are worthless. Everyone's got one. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Apart from the facelift, there must be manufacturer developments from the 348 to the 355. If the 355 derivative isn't better than the original 348, then something is going badly wrong in Ferrari's development process. Surely it is fairer to compare the 348 to the 328, ie: did the 348 improve the Ferrari standard, or fall back from the 328? Somewhere, somebody said something about the 348, which gave it the reputation of having "on the edge handling" (whether this reputation is deserved, or not). What was it that the critics were alluding to? Is the car prone to sudden oversteer? or excessive understeer? is it un-predicatable in some fashion? does it react strangely to road bumps and cambers... ie: not enough free suspension travel? does it twitch, or aquaplane in the wet (more than should be expected on a nose light and still powerful sportcar)? Are we really talking fine on the road, but "on the edge" when the car is loaded up, to the maximum, on a race track? OR are we talking occasionally rather scary in normal fast road conditions? Can someone enlighten me? David
David, you are over-analyzing. The joy of driving these cars does not equate to their ultimate performance. If you want ultimate performance, get a race car, or a Corvette. Lotus 23s are tons of fun. What 348s offer instead is a visceral experience that satisfies a need that somehow seems to be most commonly ignored in the majority of "elsewhere". And accomplishes this while driving to the grocery store. A Giulia Super pretty much satisfies the same need, but the upkeep/performance on those is way off compared to the 348. That's what you compare the 348 to, a classic Alfa, not other supercars. Or you can compare it to earlier Ferraris, who most emphatically satisfy that need, but again, the upkeep/performance ratio does not match the 348's. Earlier Ferrari (or classic Alfa) = more upkeep / less performance. The 348 is the sweet spot! And the "4-seater 348s" as well. Once you start to look at the later Ferraris, all bets are off. The price is higher. The mechanics are more complex. If you can afford it, hell, buy a 430 - the best Ferrari ever, IMO, but I can't, so I don't even think about them. (Besides, none of them have my handy back seat storage area.) And double besides, before I went to spend that kind of money, I would probably just get a nice used Gallardo - if I can fit in one - I saw one advertised the other day for $150K. Those are the two best Italian cars ever made, that one would actually want to drive regularly. (Well, while the Gallardo is indeed a reliable and relatively low maintenance Italian car, I am not so sure about its daily driveability.) OK, I've rambled on quite a bit here. Good luck!
You're kidding right? Not till 160mph does it even approach sex. 170 is cheating with another woman sex,............ if I get caught, this is going to be very expensive. 180 is kinky sex.....if something goes wrong, it's really gonna hurt. Bee Jay
Hey Bee Jay how ya been... By your words I have cheated many times ....but I'm still looking for that freaky kinky sex just to scared someone will pull my hair to hard...lol
Me? Over analyse? Yup, you're bang on! And I agree with what you're saying, the sensation, noises and atmosphere are a huge part of the picture, rather than performance figures. More performance per £ (or $)?, of course YES... Just try an Ultima GTR... 0-100 in 5.3secs. (I didn't stop smiling for three days after a demonstation in that thing!) (http://www.ultimasports.co.uk/records/part8.html). Nonetheless I wonder, wonder where the reputations of some cars come from... (didn't this thread start as a discussion that the 348 is in someway odd?). I imagine it was probably one smart mouthed journalist, who found the limit of his talent and scared himself while driving a 348... ?! I love sound of the 348 and prefer its looks to the 355. It might just be my next F car, sometime next year. So I'll try every 348 that I can test drive and draw my own conclusions... David
Mondial is fine machine and yet, undeservedly, often over looked. One of my friend's has run a Mondial, as his daily runner, for many happy years. Rather like the old 308 GT4 I reckon its day will eventually come (both value and popularity). For me (even with sunny UK weather) the roof has got to come off a sports car. Yes there's a cabriolet Mondial which looks great and, based on looks alone, the 348 Spyder is the best 348 package... but it has to be another targa roof. Targa feels like an open sports car, plenty of wind, sounds and smells, but has enough shelter so that you don't get icicles growing from your ears. (if it isn't raining/snowing the targa roof is off my 308, even at 2oC). So 348 targa... me thinks. David.
OK Brothers, I'm convinced. What in the world was I thinking of when I bought that thing. Maybe the smile I can't wipe off my face when I'm driving it. See my icon symbol. I'll need some help in ripping this graphic off my wall. See below. I'm so sick of lookin' at it . . . NOT! Happy two year anniversary to me. Damn I love that car. Image Unavailable, Please Login
