First Ferrari

I am Interested in purchasing my first Ferrari.
I am debating between a 328 and a 348. Could you give me the pros and cons of car.

I am debating between these same 2 cars. I have close to 50k to spend, and plan on driving the car alot, probably more than 10,000 miles a year. I'm looking at a 89' 328, or a 92/93 348. I assume the maintenece costs are fairly similar? Is one more reliable than the other, or maintence going to be cheaper, or easier to work on? Any input from anyone who has driven, or owned both of these cars would be greatly appriciated. Thank you!

Between the 2 I think I would chose the 348. They have proven to be very reliable.

The 348's have nice power and great brakes along with a great suspension tire package and the first Ferrari AC that actually cooled the cabin.

Hello all,
new to the site. I've been seriously thinking about purchasing a 1983-1985 308. I'm a little concerned with the maintenance. I have been doing R&D work for Audi/VW/Bentley for 20 years and have a pretty vast knowledge. I would take care of my Ferrari maintenance myself. I just want to know that I could.

Vic,

you won't have any problems that we can't help you solve, GO FOR IT!!!

thanks for the vote of confidence. the timing belts sound alittle tricky. Just sounds like a "do your homework and take your time process".

Hello Vic; Like our "father" JRV says...Go For It! I was a musclecar and vette guy when I bought my first Testarossa. The car needed lots of work. I did two engine-out services, fixed many things, rewired the dash and console, and even tuned the fuel injection system. Now if I could do that then you with your knowledge CERTAINLY could! You hit the nail on the head...do your homework and take your time. It will all turn out fine..maybe even better than many proffessional shops would do it. I think that the owner of the car will be more picky, take more time, and do more verification than a lot of mechanics would. After all my efforts on my previous TR I thought the car ran pretty good. Then in my search for my next TR I tested a few and they were "proffessionally" serviced. Well my old black TR actually runs BETTER than the high-dollar serviced TRs I checked out. Asking for advice on this forum is the best thing to do. There are other sites where you can get pretty good advice but you also get the "game-players" who tend to muddy up the waters. It's hard to seperate those that truly know from those that "sound" like they know. But on this site you can rest assured your getting a great deal of knowledge and experience that you just cannot put a price on. I mean this straight from the gut! These Italian cars do have their quirks. But once you start to understand them, they are really very well thought out. Some things may be substandard, but the emotion and passion that went into the design and building of Ferraris far exceeds the sum of their mechanical parts alone. Once you get a good Ferrari you'll never regret it.

Hey Jeff,
Thanks for responding. Seems like a great site for advise. I currently have a 1969 camaro rally sport that I will most likely sell to obtain my 308.

Vic,
I also agree, go for it. From your background you should have no trouble doing service. The parts are a fraction of the cost charged, so doing your own labor makes it reasonable. The work itself is pretty basic, and lots of help is available here. When I did my first engine out belt service on a testarossa, I ran into a minor issue and received an immediate response here that allowed completion.

Bill and Jeff,

You both mention that you did your engine out service on your testarossa's. I too am looking at a 328 or 348 and have been scared off by the service costs. I am an engineer and very mechanical. I have rebuilt my fiat spider and have a shop to work on my car. I am looking at getting a full car hoist and/or cherry picker.

With the proper tools and time, and this equipment do you think the servicing can be done by myself.

Is the pulling of the engine in the 348 a huge and difficult job for the major service?

If a person does the service themselves, does this hurt on re-sale later on?

Thanks a lot for your feedback on this. You have given me HOPE!

Mark