The first twist of the key...

My 1995 issue of Car & Driver is creased and has the inked rubbed off the pages describing the editors’ first drive of the F355 GTB. So, over the course of 12 years, I’ve been listening to the stereo and day-dreaming about having that amazing car someday. This week, I am awestruck that one resides in my garage and it looks exactly like the one in the picture – the car I lusted after for more than a decade. Mission accomplished.

This past weekend, however, was the moment I really waited for… my first drive. To be fair, I drove it to my house from the transporter and I ‘granny’ drove it around my neighborhood to get acquainted, but Saturday morning I plotted a route into the mountains by my home and set the alarm for 5:30AM, to make sure the road was free from RV’s and ambitious policemen. I noticed that I was actually shaking with excitement as I brushed my teeth that morning.

I slid into the seat, gave the key a half-twist to prime the systems, and let the Tubi bark to life. Simply amazing. I just took some time to admire the workmanship of 1995 while the engine burbled up to temperature and at the same time, I was mindful that I was probably waking up the neighbors.

The car is a joy to drive. It is not difficult to drive and its nuances are more amusing than annoying. It is more connected to the road than some race cars I’ve been in. You would expect that a car so vocal and stylized in its abilities would clearly communicate its acceleration. Yet, speed builds so effortlessly that I was frequently astounded by my velocity. I breezed through curves at speeds that seemed entirely reasonable until I glanced at the speedo. This car is simply brilliant. As a future owner, I could pay attention to nothing but the shape. As a current owner, I am completely consumed by the sound. I was not pushing hard, but the enjoyment came from being just inches off the road and through the apex of every corner as I caught the echo of my engine off the canyon walls. Speed up and listen to the urgency, back off the throttle, and listen the barking gargle down to idle. I can’t explain how mesmerizing it is.

I stopped only once during my drive, to get out and admire the car and the view in the pale light of sunrise and enjoy the stark silence of the desert. The only sounds were the pinging of hot metal from the rear of the car. I could see the faint heat-haze rising from the rear venting; the whole thing is just so mechanical, you seem to forget about the engineering because its masked in so much art.

During my drive, I saw exactly 3 cars. Perfect. This car was purchased not to be an exhibition of me, but for personal enjoyment of motoring that I have pursued since youth. I just wanted to share a brief excerpt of the experience with the people from whom I’ve learned a lot and will undoubtedly rely on for help in the future.

 

Pics will be up soon, I promise! Thanks for your compliments, everyone.

 

Still working on the pics, but wanted to answer some questions here.

I did buy the car from another F-chatter. "BOBAER" had listed his car in FerrariAds last year, but it took a while for me to finally take the jump.

Did I have any regrets? Hmm, not really, but its sort of a factor on how this purchase was handled.

I bought the car while on vacation in Maui because I was afraid someone else would get it first. This occured once I had decided it was the one I wanted (had also been looking at a black 456GT). We then coordinated the transaction between NY and HI and I arranged for delivery to occur in AZ while I was in the Bahamas. So, I was too distracted to worry about it. Delivery took 5 weeks, so I had plenty of time to let it sink in. However, on the morning of delivery, I couldn't stop pacing while waiting for the truck and kept running to the window only to find the garbage truck driving by.

In 1997, I almost purchased a 1989 348GTS. Then someone told me the service was $5k a year. That killed the plan. Last year, my Mercedes ate $10k in service. So, I decided that I was ready for F-car ownership and that I should probably go back to Lexus ownership at the same time.

I bought the car and excitedly told my family. Then I cautioned, "It will break. I probably will get stranded. It may even catch fire." If you go in with passion for the car, but a bucket of reserves, and realistic expectations, then you probably can't be disappointed. I educated myself enough (probably too much) and finally just had to pull the trigger. Under-promise and over-deliver to yourself.