So what does it feel like ?

It's like your first 3-way: pretty much the same as when you have sex with 2 hot woman...but the sensation doesn't pulsate nor end till ya turn off the engine. Like Darth says.....perfectly natural.

But there are classic stages to Ferrari ownership:

DENIAL: That YOU actually own a Ferrari and get to take it home!

SCARED: That you'll get into an accident or it'll be damaged/stolen.

ANGER: That you eventually have to park it or get a 30k $ervice

ACCEPTANCE: That you have found your way to Ferrari ownership!

 

I bought my car sight unseen after saving money for 20+ years. The first time I rode in it, the dealer was driving. I got all the usual 'instruction', don't use 2nd gear until the engine is warm, take driveways at an angle, etc. We stopped to buy gas then it was mine. I remember it like it was yesterday. It was so LOW! The shifter felt weird, 1st gear wasn't where I was accustomed to. I kept downshifting into first to take sharp corners just because my brain was wired that way. I drove it 600 miles the next 2 days, and 1700 in the 10 days after I picked it up. It's the only Ferrari I've ever driven.

 

When I was a kid, my big brother took me to see Steve McQueen's "Le Mans". Ever since then, I wanted to own a red Ferrari.

Fast forward about 30 years, and I'm driving home in my 328. For the first few days, I was very scared. I was petrified that something catastrophic was going to happen to it and that I would send my family into bankruptcy correcting it. After a while, the paranoia wears away . . . mostly.

I love to drive my Ferrari when there's no one else around. Instead of being seen, I prefer deserted roads where I can relax and enjoy the drive.

The Red Rocket

 

The reality far exceeded the expectation...

 

every time i drive the beloved ferrari, 328gts,the feeling is just like the first time, except that each time i drive it i learn more about the car and drive it more skillfully and with better appreciation of just what a fantastic work of art it truly is.

so the first time feeling NEVER goes away.

buying the fcar was definitely one of my best decisions.

 

Driving my 328 for the 1st time was, mmmm, exactly like photographing my 1st open heart surgery w/ my Nikon hanging 2 inches over a live dissected heart w/ several dozen sutures strategically holding a new valve in place & then seeing it spontaneously start to beat on its own after closed. Yeah, it was like that.

 

Ahem, gulp. Now THERE's a new way of describing it I never heard of. Not quite sure that's a good thing though.


On a technical note I assume you used the lens with the flash built around it (like for dentist fotography)?

 

Yes, I used a ring flash type set up. Nikon Macro speedlight flash. Works well for stuff 1" to a foot away. The trick is not touching anything in the process.
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I'd say so too, cause it would be that guy's heart!

Anyway, back from hijacking this thread:

My absolute first time I drove my own Ferrari was not that spectacular as it was a rather civilized test drive with the previous owner on the co seat.

My personal first time in a Ferrari was however: Rented 348 in Las Vegas. About 1 block from the rental place I looped it for the first time...

 

You just need to starve before you drive. Then picture yourself willing to dive off a cliff sucking in all the air between the top of the point & the ocean below. Easy if you have the heart. Been there, done that.

 

The first time I drove mine was with the previous owner and that was after I spent 4 hours doing a backyard PPI.

I had only driven a Ferrari once before. I ran it through the gears and drove it for almost an hour. I had to drive it in my socks because my feet are too big for the pedals.

I bought the car a week later and drove it home on December 27th in a rain storm. I rode two different ferry boats to get it to the mainland and then up a flooded freeway for 45 minutes. I was busy trying to find out how the heating and defrosters worked as well as what switches did what the entire way home.

Kind of nerve wracking because of the weather but once on the freeway at 55 MPH it was rather anti-climactic, just cruising along in high gear with everyone else.

It is still a special thing to take it out, even after two years.

 

I had fun driving it. Got on the interstate and ran about 90. I found I didn't have near the seat and visibility problem than exists with the GTV6. Shifting was different from what I am accustomed to in my Chevy truck, C 320C and SLK 350. Definitely not the short throw, easy shifting of the MB.

Carol

 

I tried to read the manual & decided Italians don’t come close to Japs in climate control so gave up. Its like a freaking 747 in the cockpit. God help me in July in GA.

 

Oh thats funny.

Like me in the rainstorm with the windshield fogging up........

 

Haha, I had the same impression when I first read the owner's manual. I've had nothing but Hondas since 1978, and they all had beautifully-integrated ventilation systems. But I reached the conclusion that one has to be an engineer (which I happen to be!) to figure out the 328's HVAC setup!

My advice--ignore the heat/fresh air controls and just use the air conditioning switches. In mild weather just turn on the a.c. fan only; when it gets warmer turn on the compressor with the other knob. In cooler weather I find that there is enough heat coming off the radiator and its pipes to keep the interior comfortable. But this heat can be a problem in the summer, so I sometimes turn on the a.c. even when I have the roof off!

 

I bought my first f car ( 1978 308gts, carb) in Newport Beach in 1985. When I signed the paperwork I was so nervous my palms were sweating. I owned a business and after 15 years of hard work I had decided I wanted to buy my dream car. I always lusted for a Ferrari and of course the 308 fullfilled my fantasy. I still remember starting it up and hearing those weber carbs come to life and thinking "O, what a sweet sound!" I had never heard anything so awesome and I realized my dream had indeed come true. I know if anyone looked at me I probably looked like I was drunk because I just couldn't stop smiling. I think I yelled or screamed when I finally had courage to actually drive it off the lot! All those years of hard work were worth the first 5 minutes driving down the road behind the wheel of "my" Ferrari. I have been fortunate to have many nice cars (business has been good to me) but I think the most memorable moment was that day in Newport Beach. I have had 4 F cars since and really there is no other car that brings out the passion of driving as behind the wheel of a F car on the open road. Dream big and go for it.

 

My trip home from the transport delivery point was my first-ever ride or drive in a Ferrari. First incident, five minutes after getting underway--rounding a right corner, the back wheels caught a patch of dry salt left over from a recent freeze, causing the car to spin 90 degrees, heading back into heavy traffic. I regained control easily, and got out of there safely. Very impressive power and handling! Second incident--much nearer home, but still in heavy traffic, I hear someone honking and yelling "hey, man". It made me jump but I looked over to see a much younger guy in a small Japanese sedan, big grin on his face. He yells out "is that a V12?", I yell back yes, 1964, and he flashes me a very emphatic thumbs-up. Then, when I got home, my somewhat skeptical but excited wife fell in love with the car. How did it all feel? Good, with appropriate drama for my first Ferrari ownership experience.