Hi everyone. I've lurked through the forum a few times, but now that we are actually considering a purchase, I thought it was time to say hello. The car we are looking at is a 1989 348 TS with 16K miles on it. The interior is in excellent shape, and the car seems mechanically sound. I plan to have a local shop look it over just to be sure. Some questions, if you will: The gearbox. Doesn't like going into 2nd until after the car warms up. I've read that this is common, but is it a problem that is going to get worse? Driver's side window rolled down, then didn't roll all the way up. The current owner had to grab it and help it along. On a Honda or a Ford this would be an easy issue, but on a Ferrari I'm not so sure. Is this a cause for concern or is it an easy fix? Is there anything specific I should have checked on the car? I've heard the high speed handling for early 348 is twitchy, but I like having a driver's license and I've no intention of losing it, so I won't be making any 120mph runs through town. The car runs and drives great. It's not as fast off the line as my '05 Mustang GT, but it handles a lot better, and that's more appealing to me, anyway. This will be my first Ferrari, and I'm excited and nervous. Could use any snd all advice you guys are willing to give me. Thanks! -David
Ok I sense from your queries your lurking has not really included serious reading so here's something else My Ferrari 348 2nd gear does not get worse window mechanisms gum up & motors wear out Somewhere there or in the master thread list there must be a buyers checklist And have the inspection by a shop that knows 348s not just any local shop (which is probably not what you meant anyway but just being sure)
If you dont like women throwing their stinky unsanitary panties right in your face multiple times throughout your drive...then i would avoid this car like the plague. However, to answer your questions: 1. 2nd gear very common, happens on mine. Does not appear to get worse, just need to be patient and heat up the car 2. Haven't dealt with the window issue, nothing to contribute 3. Handling is probably one of the best I've ever driven. Raw, true go kart feeling which makes you feel connected to the road
Raging, show me the soiled underwear women have been throwing at you ??? I have never seen, smelled, experienced any of that. Ten year old kids, on the other hand, will point and want a ride. To David, if those are the only issues, buy it.
Responses regarding the 348 tend to be here and there. Now, if you were asking about a 355 you'd have a 100 comments already. Nothing negative, just a numbers thing. Some short answers: GB - there's a bit of a concern regarding these, so yes, do the proper warm up Slow windows are common with old Ferraris Handling: Twitchy = engaging. Just be careful on wet cloverleafs. And add some rear wheel spacers as well. Disclaimer: My 348 is perfect for me and I'm really not interested in owning anything else.
You assume correctly. Until recently (as in last week) I only came in here once in a blue moon. Usually looking for info on 308s. This is the most time I've ever spent in Ferrarichat. Thank you for the link. I plan to spend some quality time on my348.Com this weekend.
There isn't much in the way of service records, which is a concern and the primary reason I insisted on a pre-purchase inspection by a qualified mechanic. I do know it had an engine out service a few months ago, but there aren't many service papers included. Given the low mileage, is it normal to have a dearth of service records?
Best practice if no records are available is to assume that the service has not been done at all. No proof of last major means you may be able to negotiate the price down to include some of the cost. Major service typically will cost between $5 - $7K and could be more if there are other issues found. Something to keep in mind
Hello mate. Car sounds nice, what colour combo is it? Any pics? Very common thing for lots of Ferraris, including the 348. You can get away with it by letting the gear oil warm up by driving it around. Or..............switch to Redline gearbox oil. That's what I did. The gearbox has been amazing ever since. I have done two oil changes in 10 years and to this day the gearbox still shifts perfectly. Here is a thread I put up, check it out- http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/technical-q-sponsored-algar-ferrari/101885-pap348-gearbox-oil-change-10.html Not a major issue. Mine were the same and I tried some spray on dry lube and graphite powder. It helped, but was still was not 100%. I eventually put in some booster relays. They were made and designed by an FChatter many years ago and they work well. My windows go all the way to the top now. A few people sell them, they are available here- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fgMv54Y2Jk Birdman's Ferrari Parts: Window Accelerators Anything checked in particular? Not really, just have the PPI done on the car and they will hopefully report back telling you everything is good. Don't worry about the twitchy handling. I have had my car up to all sorts of speeds and never felt unsafe doing so. Just the other day I took the car to 120 with one hand on the wheel while I was recording on my iPhone to send the video to a friend. And this was on one of the worst roads in Australia. Lol. The roads here are crap and I have driven a lot faster than that on these crap roads. And it's never been a problem at speed. Talk to a few long term 348 owners and they will suggest replacing both front and rear tyres at the same time. So if you need to replace a tyre or two, change them all out. I have only ever changed the rear tyres and again, never had an issue with the handling or performance of the car. Hopefully it all goes well for you and you become a Ferrari owner David. The 348 is a fantastic car, I have owned mine for over 10 years now and I absolutely love it. Take care and let us know how you go.
Strange, perhaps the owner did not care for keeping such records. My car had an extensive service history before I bought. Every single service and repair was well documented. Including all major services which were done every 3 years religiously. Over kill, but someone kept throwing money at this car for major services and regular maintenance. My 348 had 21,000 miles on it when I bought it. Definitely have the PPI done. +1
The major service was done a few months ago. Those are some of the records I've seen. It's more that there are not many records available between the original purchase and the major service from earlier this year.
Can you see the manage attachment box below the smiley faces when you make a post? If so, click on manage attachments and then upload a pic from there.
No need to try, you did it! Car looks great man, hopefully the PPI goes well and it ends up in your garage.
That was my second try. Thanks for telling me how. I took some pictures of the engine but the microSD card in my phone decided to give up on me. I'm confused on the car's value. Hagerty says 45K, NADA says 49K, one CU says 38K (they use trade in vslue) while another local CU says 63K. When I search online I don't have much luck. Where can I go to search real wold values on the 348?
Looks excellent! Thanks for the pics. No worries man, glad I could help. I can't help with values as I don't really follow them as I have no interest in selling my car. I think I know what I could sell it for here in Oz, but I don't pay attention to the US market. A really nice yellow/black 348 TS sold at the Mecum auction the other day for US $36K. 20,000 miles and it looked lovely also. Add in the buyers premium it took it to say US $40K. Not sure in the service history etc as you normally buy at your own risk at auctions. So I don't know if US $36K is a good price indication as you don't normally see 348s sell at auction, but it might be a cheap car because it WAS at an auction. lol Hopefully others can weigh in with their opinion on the real 348 market in the US.
Go on eBay search 348 and filter by "Completed Listings". The ones in Green are the ones that sold and will help determine value.
Someone here has been posting some very nice price point comparison charts for the last two quarters. Can't remember his user name though, so you'll have to do a little hunting. As you've probably already learned, the lower panels on that car were originally black and have been resprayed red at some point. The wheels are obviously from a 360, so if the stock wheels are not included factor that into the price if originality matters to you. The later cars had several updates versus the early ones. Some early cars have had some or most of the updates performed over their lives, which would be the most valuable info you could get from the service records. If this car has not had the oil pump chain bearing (or whatever it's called) update done most people here highly advise that it be replaced, which is a spendy proposition. Also, the later starter and alternator are more reliable, so at some point not having those will likely cost you money in either rebuilds or replacements for updated units. I can tell you for a fact that the handling complaints are overblown. If you lower the car, align it correctly, and widen the rear track (the 360 wheels do that inherently) the car will handle fantastically. However, since the early cars lack most of the updates instituted over the years I tend to value them lower than a comparable later car unless they've had the updates added during maintenance. Oh, one thing that will tell you a lot about how well the recent major service was done is to check the invoice to see if Hill Engineering tensioner bearings were used. If they were and it is specifically mentioned on the invoice there's a decent chance that whoever performed the work knew what they were doing. It doesn't ensure that the labor was performed correctly, but it does imply that they knew enough to stay away from the iffy factory bearings. Just a little food for thought for you...
That's extremely helpful. Thank you. I knew about the 360 wheels (One of the things I like about the car as the original wheels do nothing for me.) but I didn't realize the lower panels were originally black. I've seen pictures of cars with black lowers and just assumed it was an available option. Honestly, I like the red, so that's also not a problem. The guy who owns it has owned numerous Ferraris, and currently owns five (including this one.) He also owns a local shop where he works on all his cars himself. I will ask him about the Hills bearings. He told me all the things he's updated and shown me the paperwork but I don't have any of it with me. I know he changed the belts and the water pump, as well as a few other things. I'll call tomorrow and see if I can get copies of the records he's got. This is the primary reason for the PPI, which is being done by a local dealership that specializes in Ferraris and other exotics.
