348 Challenge Questions

Greetings All,

I am very happy to have recently acquired a 348tb SS Challenge. Based on what I have learned so far, it has the later (‘95) Challenge package with gussets on the front cage uprights, Speedline wheels, etc. Apologies in advance for the lengthy post / questions!

Q1) I live in St. Petersburg, FL, and plan to drive the car on the street, with occasional use on the track. The A/C condenser was removed as a part of the Challenge package installation. Pre-purchase research told me that the condenser was sometimes replaced with a remote oil cooler, but the pre-purchase inspection revealed this not to be the case on my car. Given my location and the fact that I would like to continue driving the car between March & October, I am considering having the A/C reinstalled. I am considering a conversion to R-134 at the same time. Does anyone out there have any experience with / advice on this?

Q2) The car has seen some track time, and as mentioned above will hopefully continue to do so. Consequently the front fascia, leading edge of the hood, etc. have their fair share of marks & chipped paint. It’s nothing too serious, but there is a little bit of metal showing through a couple of the worst spots. I am concerned that these spots will deteriorate and want to bring the car back into top form anyway. So, I plan to have the paint redone & a 3M coating applied. Will the 3M coating stand up to debris encountered at track speeds, or should I just skip it and plan on having paint work done every year or two? Is my local (100+ miles away in Orlando) Ferrari dealer the only place to have this kind of work done properly?

Q3) Is there any way that I can find out how many of the SS cars had the Challenge package installed? (I suspect no.)

And finally Q4) Can anyone out there recommend a good shop / mechanic / paint shop in my area?

Thanks for reading! Any information will be greatly appreciated!

J.

Q2) I have a 355B that sees plenty of track time. I just put repainting the nose of the car as one of those expenses with the car seeing pelnty of track time. About every 2 years I have the nose repainted ($800 or so) to bring the nose back to show-room condition.

The 3M coatings should help a lot--in that they defer the nose repainting by 2X-3X.

Jim Glickenhaus thinks that paint chips are a mark of courage and that the cars should be left that way (at lest until a complete restoration takes place).

R134a conversion: http://webpages.charter.net/aircover...irConditioning