How does something ordinary assume the status of an icon? Look back along the road to your life and look at the things and people which have defied convention to rise head and shoulders above their peers; at a base level they may be no different from any others in their class, but something in their spirit marks them out, elevates them. They define the maxim that the sum of their parts is greater than the whole. Most boys who grew up in England in the late seventies/early eighties are almost guaranteed to have had two posters on their bedroom walls as they passed into adolescence. One would have featured Debbie Harry at the stage in her career when she defined sex and wore no knickers on stage. The other was of something almost as sexy: a car from the stable of Enzo Ferrari. For anyone that doesn't objectify a car as simply "something to get me from A to B", Ferraris occupy a special place in their automotive frame of reference. From the age of six, when I first began to develop the ability to identify every car in existence simply by its rear light cluster (I know, I know, it's a guy thing), I wanted a Ferrari. That desire has followed me into adulthood and every Ferrari I've been privileged to drive since has surpassed my expectations. The 348ts which I collected earlier this week has been no exception. The 348 was launched to the world in 1989, the long awaited successor to the ageing 328 GTB. It represented a radical departure for Ferrari, a completely new car and engine as opposed to a reworking of an existing design. The 328 which it replaced was itself little more than a tweaked version of the venerable 308 GTS which debuted in 1980 and was made famous by Tom Selleck as Magnum PI in the TV show of the same name. With just 2,895 produced for the global market in the six years that the 348 in production, it's not a car you're likely to see too often. The styling, penned by Italian design house Pininfarina became an instant classic. Drawing inspiration from its older and larger brother, the Testarossa, the 348 was fresher, more contemporary. Looking back, it's easy to see how the design cues lent themselves to the 348's eventual replacement, the F355 which was introduced in 1995. The rear mounted 3,405cc V8 engine is one of Ferrari's best. Producing 300bhp at 7,200rpm, it delivers an astonishing 237 lb ft of torque at just 4,200rpm - more than enough to pull the car's 3,250lb weight on tickover over the speed humps that litter London's roads. In fact, in heavy London traffic, you can brake almost to a stop without needing to engage the predictably heavy clutch. Sitting in the car, the offset pedals aren't a problem, although the close proximity of brake and accelerator will catch out the unwary, as well as those with oversized feet! Heel and toe starts are a breeze given their closeness, but for those unfamiliar with the marque's idiosynchracies, a dab of the brake pedal could herald an embarassing encounter with the car in front. As with most Ferarris, letting the car idle on tickover for ten minutes or so from cold will pay dividends in the long term - by allowing the engine oil to warm to operating temperature, the highly tuned components will perform better and the stiff gears will mesh together easier. The engine settles to an encouraging burble just behind you on tickover. The gears are laid out in typical Ferrari style with a dog leg first. Slot the aluminium-capped gear stick hard left and down in the metal gate and it makes a satisfying metal against metal 'thunk' as it slides home. Blip the throttle, ease the stiff clutch out and first is good for almost 60 mph if you're heavy with the right foot. On the open road, floor it and the horizon is reeled in to you with predictable rapidity, 60mph passing in a shade over 5 seconds if you can get the power down through the 255 section rubber without spinning, and carry you on to 175mph. Try it on barely wet tarmac as I did, and you'll find the back stepping out to meet the front effortlessly - 300bhp is an awful lot of power for those driven rear wheel to translate into forward motion and it's not for those of a nervous disposition on anything but ideal conditions. The gears are stiff and the selector needs a firm grasp to drive home through the gate. At speed through twisting country back roads, the extraordinarily low-slung profile of the car pays dividends, gluing the car to the tarmac. The Momo three spoke wheel provides outstanding feedback to your hands, the tyres transmitting information on every bump, glitch and cut in the road surface. Run over any errant wildlife and it's sensitive enough for you to be able to identify the recently deceased animals sex! Flighty at high speed in a straight line over anything but the most perfect tarmac, the car's light weight and readily available power really come into their own through the twists and turns which Ferraris are most at home in. With all the weight balanced perfectly over the driven wheels behind you, the steering needs no power to effect change of direction. The brakes are sublime with no fade under heavy use and are fearsomely powerful, hauling the car to a stop from 60 mph in just 128ft. Predictably, driving this car, like any but the most recent of Ferraris is something of a chore on British roads. Ignroing the obvious stares of other motorists that accompany a drive in any car bearing the marque of the prancing pony, the 348 requires immense concentration - speed humps, width restrictions and narrow streets all conspiring to take their toll on a car designed for the track and make progress frustratingly slow and difficult. You can forgive it its idiosynchracies though, such is the promise of reward it harbours within its strange alchemy. You can feel touches of the brilliance that demarcates every great car Ferrari has produced though, even whilst the engineering compromises that make the ride so stiff and unyeilding on the road frustrate your progress. It's all worth it just for that moment when the road ahead clears and you can snick down through the metallic gate to third, floor the loud pedal and just enjoy the howl as the engine sucks in air through intakes and reels in the horizon, leaving everything in your rear view mirror. Call on it in its proper environment and it performs with alacrity - this is car that is made to be at its best when being driven at a constant 9/10ths. If you've got the £35,000 or so a decent low mileage 348 will relieve you of, you can expect to fork out another £4,000 a year in servicing and running costs if you use it the way its makers intended. At this level, there's no such thing as 'economic' sense. After all, Ferraris are cars you buy with your heart, not your head. For all its impracticality, I'm loathe to hand this one back - there's something of the Ferrari spirit with every car to emerge from the factory gates in Modena and you're always aware that you're driving something that little bit special. Besides, it's Italian - you wouldn't expect it to be perfect, would you? I've uploaded a short video of the car (just 2.08mb) in .wmv format to my server which was shot with my XDA. If you've got decent speakers on your PC, crank them up for an aural symphony of Ferrari's prancing ponies conducted by my right foot. The film is Here (Right Click, Save Target As).
LIVING WITH AN ICON
15.10.04 14:36
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(15.10.04 14:46) Gli italiani: sono perfetti. |
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(15.10.04 14:54) Bobble: LOL, I was waiting of you to say that! Have to say though, I agree -for me, perfection comes through imperfection. German cars - perfectly engineered, tight, together. Result - everso slightly dull. Italian cars - aesthetic perfection, style, soul, spirit. I'll take Italian everytime. |
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(15.10.04 15:08) My Passat is sulking LOL! |
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gemmak / Website (15.10.04 17:32) I'm sulking!! I notice your description of pulling this beautiful creature from a standing start bears some resemblance to.... shall we, say the description of something more carnal! ;o) or is that just me? lol Oh, and the recognising a vehicle from its tail light cluster is not only a male thing!  P
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(15.10.04 17:33) FT:Poor Passatt, give it a pat on the roof and let it know it's Daddy owns Bentley and Lamborghini nowadays. B_R, You're a devil for the motor test cliches, you just took me back to a 1990 roadtest in Car Magazine with the 255 shod wheels etc. Doesn't that model look good side on. I have my own opinions of Ferrari's and the early paragraphs of your blog have reminded me of a few things from my early days too...I'll try and write something similar this weekend. The one thing I do really like about a Ferrari is the styling (more than because it's a sportscar..) Look at a 308 / 328 from the front and its quite a straight sided machine, but take a look from the side and it's car styling alchemy, beautiful curves. The paradox of Pininfarina styling. ( I might use some of these terms in my own blog...lol) That's a great 'plate BTW. Reminded me of LAM 80 that was on a Pink Countach for years and now resides on a Diablo..well it may be on the latest model now! and 400FLY which lived on a Ferrari 400 from my youth. |
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(15.10.04 17:59) Finch: Aw, don't let it sulk - whatever the Ferrari's benefits, every day driving isn't one of them and I'd grab the Passat over the Ferrari every time I needed to go out at short notice. It's all well and good, but how often can you spend 15 minutes waiting for the engine to warm up before you set off? Gemma: Wash your mind out! Steve: I cannot tell a lie, I've had the worst case of writers' block I've suffered in an age today. I wouldn't have the effrontery to submit this peice for publication as is - I need to take my anti-cliche pen to it and excise some of the more howling examples of lazy motoring journalism. Must admit, I rather like the plate too as personalised plates go. I know just what you mean about the 308/328. That was the car I lusted after as a boy, although my fave now is the 348's successor, the F355. What a graceful car that is. Still, no prospect of me owning one of those any time soon, so I may as well dream! |
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gemmak / Website (15.10.04 18:04) I'm sulking!! I notice your description of pulling this beautiful creature from a standing start bears some resemblance to.... shall we, say the description of something more carnal! ;o) or is that just me? lol Oh, and the recognising a vehicle from its tail light cluster is not only a male thing! P
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jennefer / Website (15.10.04 18:08) wicked blog Blackrat. You had me driving the beast along Caledon Mountain! I test drove the new 300C this summer, and its 300 hemi was a delight - I almost lost my head a few times and zoomed straight out of the test drive area. I LOVE fast cars. Then again, I think every lesbian does. lol |
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gemmak / Website (15.10.04 18:32) oopsss..sorry I did that thing again /
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Just Me (18.10.04 15:38) Writer's block aside, well done. I know it was a rough week for you *snort* I am not a personal fan of Ferrari's. Don't shoot me. I'd pass it up every time. Hubby once asked me if I was given one as a gift, what would I do? Well, I couldn't be impolite, but I'd damn sure trade it in on a Super Snake the next day. 300 bhp in exchange for 725hp, and reported handling is a dream come true for the souped up Shelby. That aside, I am glad you were able to drive a dream car. Something I have great envy for  I hope your next one causes just as much excitement at being able to drive and report on
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(19.10.04 01:03) 725bhp is all very well, but you can't get it through the wheels. A-B the Ferrari would, how could I coloquially put it.. 'piss-it' lol.. over to you for an example of a muscle car that goes around corners as driven by mere mortals..BTW even Enzo Ferrari was a non-believer until Colin Chapman and John Cooper showed him up in F1 somewhat! |
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(19.10.04 13:40) I know what you mean about enjoying a cars imperfections BR. I test drove a Lexus 200 sport a few weeks ago and was totally underwhelmed by it's ability to do everything well. It was quiet, very swift, very comfortable but lacked any discernable character. A friend had a Lotus Esprit Turbo a few years ago a car with more than it's fair share of 'foibles' but it left you feeling exhilerated and buzzing after every ride. Give me character anyday !!!! So, have you paid your deposit on the Red Pony yet ???? |
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(19.10.04 17:00) Just Me: Thank you - but much as the Shelby might be fun, I'm with Steve on this issue. It was bad enough trying to get the Jag XKR's 400bhp down through it's pitifully inadequate wheels; 725bhp I'm afraid is all mouth and no trousers - utterly useless in the real world. Might be ok for America's unending straight as you like roads, but for the rest of the world where there are corners, I want something to inspire me, something with soul. Ferraris have it in spades. Steve: Good points, well made as usual. BP: It's what defines a car for me. I dislike the latest generation of Porsche's 911 for just that reason - brilliant as it undoubtedly is, it lacks the driver involvement of earlier incarnations, the rawness of the dynamic. Earlier versions bit back and you really had to be on the ball. The latest versions flatter the driver, ironing out his inconsistencies, making the drive safer but more anodyne in the process. Character rules! And for me, a deposit on a Ferrari is but a dream. Besides, with a £4,000 servicing bill at last visit, the one I had illustrates the point nicely - buying one is but the start of one's spending! |
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(20.10.04 00:17) oh. my. lord. |
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(20.10.04 19:37) The Aston DB7 I get to play with in France most years cost £12000 to maintain last year at Harwoods main dealer...Four grand sounds a snip, jeez the spare key on S's current Polo cost seventy quid :-( As for the Porsche, may be less involving but I'm sure a GT3 would scare the living daylights out of most people. My fav 911 was the previous model before Boxster style headlights. Since they stopped calling the derivation 911 I haven't the foggiest what model that is without a look up. I'll prob post on the subject now !! lol |
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(20.10.04 21:33) BluePixel I blogged on a used Esprit Turbo last Friday.. I'll try and send it to you http://www.20six.co.uk/TheSTEVEDAQ/weblogEntries/send.htm?entryId=1pzh4cb5upoib |
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Just Me (21.10.04 19:11) Steve - The 725 hp does make it to the wheels, and rather nicely I might add The Ferrari is great out of the gate, and would win in a short sprint. www.uniqueperformance.com has the specs if you fancy a look (I am talking about the 2003 - 2004 model Super Snakes), but Carroll Shelby never made a car that didn't perform to its potential - hence his now legendary reputation, at least here in America. But then, I am partial to our domestic muscle cars (why on earth would that be? ). They don't have the refined look of Ferrari or Lamborghini, but they have the muscle they are so well known for.
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(21.10.04 22:48) psst..I wasn't maligning the US muscle cars entirely..lol I've even thought about doing a road trip in a Dodge Charger or whatever that guy drove in Two Lane Blacktop one of my favourite ever films and hardly shown now  mores the pity.." Racing for Pink Slips eh!" US and euro muscle..slightly different that's all!I was chatting to a guy on the ferry back from Le Mans and he was describing how he had bought a Mustang and during the renovation had come to an unusual original colour - turns out it was a Shelby Mustang and now restored is worth a bomb. There's quite a few anecdotes about Carroll Shelby, some of which John Cooper in raconteur mode (when alive) told in my grateful presence his (JC) garage is still four miles to the east of me
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Dominic / Website (22.10.04 11:14) You owe me a new keyboard - this one unaccountably has drool all over it all of a sudden... For now I'm enjoying my Alfa Romeo 156 2.5 V6 - only 200 bhp, though a visit to Superchips and some new Bilstein bits&bobs will soon correct that and the sometimes nose-heavy handling. I do aspire to one of these monsters, though I really don't know whether I'd rather have a Ferrari or a Porsche 911 Turbo (993 body, please). The day I can afford either one, never mind the insurance, I suppose I'll end up tossing a coin. |
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