I Just wanted to share a few real world observations about the Ferrari 348. Im new to the brotherhood, only owning my personal 348TS for about 3 Weeks now and feel the need to share the following few thoughts. It rough Riding, has very poor electrical components, (in general) and shifts crude and Stiff, the manual steering really does take quite a bit of adjusting to. Generally it can be brutal in busy city traffic. Being 62 and weighing about 280, I find it a little cramped and it can be uncomfortable at times. I hear its also under powered as other Ferraris go. I also here it is very lacking in refinement of newer Ferraris. Personally in the user friendly category on a scale of 1-10, I would rate it a 3. I could go on but everyone that owns one, and may desire on some day pretty much gets the picture, O yea it also is very expensive to maintain. But for me personally, I wouldnt trade my 348 for any other model available Today, except maybe an Enzo. I personally think, it truly is one of the best Looking Ferraris ever to roll off the drawing boards, bar none. In my opinion There is only 2 others that even come close, a Boxer, or a 308GTO. When I look at my 348, I can only imagine the dismay many newer Ferrari Purchasers must face when they come to the realization that they cant buy A newer car, with that same great look. This is evident by the Continuous bashing by the owner of later model cars. My point is they will never be the best Ferrari, just one of the best looking. Mine is a brut, but Im a brut. I will always feel privileged knowing when I Go to my grave I will be one of the very few owners of one of these cars. Im looking forward to being a long standing member of the 348 Brotherhood, and making mine perfect. Best Regards Indy
Very well said.... I agree with your observations- I too have a 348TS and I love the car for all those reasons. To me it's a challenge to drive smoothly and it seems the more agressive you are, the more "right" it feels. To me it's the last of the Ferrari's that had a bit of that race car feel- I'll probably be flamed for that, and I'll qualify my statement by saying I've driven newer Ferraris (355, 360 and a 550) and although undeniably faster, the 348 (IMO) is one hell of a fun ride- way different than anything since...
Welcome to the brotherhood Indy. Your post was pretty much on the money. Im a life member of the 348 brotherhood now and I intend on taking my 348 to the grave with me.
All that you say above has more than just the ring of truth to it, but there's more to the story. As you've already learned, there's fchat (congrats on subscribing, btw). The internet changes Ferrari ownership if you use it. For instance, if you go here: http://webpages.charter.net/aircover/348/1994Ferrari348Spider.html#postprep then you'll see that there are a few cheap, easy-to-do things to your 348 (post purchase prep work). These fix many electrical problems and prevent far more...fix the notchy shifting with better gear oil...and improve things like lights with LEDs and other problems with new relays, etc.
Congrats-welcome to the institution-it's kinda like the Hotel California-you can check out, but you can never leave! I'll give up my 348 when they use the jaws of life to pry me out of it!
I'm Actually from San Diego, And yes I am in the USA. I'm taking my ride in for belts, hoses, and a new water pump on monday. I'll post pict when I get it back. Best Regards Indy
Hey Indy, welcome to the family. Your 348 was designed in the 80s & built in the 90s which makes it almost twenty years old now. If we look at a lot of cars from that era, they don't hold up as well. Anyway, the 348 is a fraction in terms of price of a 360 & higher so don't feel so bad about it & the plastic in those cars don't hold up very well either. They are a lot more expensive to fix as well. Go read up Nodoubt's site & do some upgrades & you'll feel it's a lot of bang for your money. It's a raw car & it started the Challenge series so don't think too much about the comfort level, you can leave that to a Lexus or BMW for that. Get the suspension right, change the fluids, wheels & tires, brake upgrades, maybe even tweak your ECU & slap on a sports exhaust & you'll be smiling.
Naturally the first thing is the basics. It runs and sounds great. I was being a little jestfull in my original post, I actually love it's race car feel when I drive it. After the belts & hoses next week, the next thing on my list is to get rid of those stupid seat belts. I intend to do a little research, and mayby upgrade to 355, or 360 seat belts, and remove that monstrosity mouse trap. I bet if you could corner the guy that designed those, he would turn red with emabrrasment. I understand all the purests desire to keep things original, But I actually do think these belts were an original @?uk up, required by the feds in that day. The next thing on my list is to do some more research and replace the original window, and rear view mirror switches with something newer and more robust that matches the decor well. I'm thinking maybe newer stuff, once again later model or maybe german switches. You know I would like to install those really nice looking 355 wheels I also have also seen on some other cars. You know I can't say enough how much I really love the car, and something like seat belts might seem petty, but I really do hate them. On a San Diego note, it really is a beautiful place to motor with the targa down. Bests Indy
My mechanic will be selling his 355 wheels (with new tires) shortly. If you are interested send me a PM and I will get you in touch with him. They will be flawless when he goes to sell them. He offered them to me, but I think I might stay with the 348 wheels. BT
