Anyone ever track their GTS? Flex? Issues with tops on the track. Kind of curious. I have heard convertibles on tracks (yikes) and I hear they flex? But what about the rarer GTS?
Have seen quite a few (all things being relative) 348, 355 (328 and 308)s. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
I used to have a GTS and did run it one day at Autobahn in Joliet. (with the top off) Felt great and I didn't notice any flex (that I remember anyway), but the track is smooth. The only time I noticed flex was when I hit a rough patch of pavement with the top out and it would get a little cowl wiggle, or pulling into an off camber driveway.
The old place where I use to live when turning into the drive way had a steep right hand corner. So when the right front wheel first went into the corner and the other 3 still planted flat I could hear the flex with the top on. So there is flex. Not painful to hear. But it was there. Having said that..... On a smooth track like what James said its very smooth and enjoyment to drive.
You are not much better protected in a GTS than you are in a Spider-- the targa bar is not very stout. If you have enough time to think about chassis flex on the track you are not going fast enough to generate much of it. The cars are not all that stiff compared to newer cars but they're stiffer than older cars that are regularly tracked. From a practical perspective it is a non-issue. On a stock car tire and brake management are much bigger concerns.
Compared to a roll bar no but rather substantial in comparison to only a windshield frame. Either way, will not hurt the car. If you have enough experience driving other vehicles you can feel flex in a gts in comparison. IMO however it is still much better than many modern open vehicles. Drive a 23 year old 355 gts then hop into a 17 Convertible Camaro. 355 feels like it's carved out of granite in comparison which besides the age is even more impressive when you see how much scaffolding they add to the underside of the Camaro.
Even the B is a flexiflyer. The 355 is really a terrible chassis for the track but we love them anyway...
I've tracked my GTS a couple of times. It felt fine to me, but I'm probably not going fast enough to notice anything anyway. It's a lot of fun and most of the time I'm too busy trying not to mess up to worry about anything else. I'd have thought if you were really serious about tracking you wouldn't be buying a normal road version 355 in any case. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
I tracked my 328 GTS a couple of times always with the top off. I never noticed, I was focused on other things What I did notice was how fast a whole tank of gas disappears on the track. I noticed more flexing (noises) with the top on driving on the street.
I drove my '89 348 TS at the big track at Willow Springs. Didn't notice any flex, too busy having a good time.
With the top off, yes they flex a whole lot. Having the top on and fixed in place tightly reduces it a great deal. But yeah, they still flex a bit. Either install a roll bar/cage or get a GTB.
