[hazte]

Hi there F-people!
I'm a born Ferrari-lover like the most of you guys on this forum. My best friend borrowed a 360 Modena (the lucky bastard) with a manual transmition this summer for a track race in Poland (we're from Sweden). So he went by my house the day before the event in the middle of the night and woke me up with a full throttle just outside my window! That was the most glorious noise I'd heard in my life! So i went out, and when I saw the car, I shit my pants! I just couldn't believe it, a 360! So beautiful, so glorious! I just walked around it like ten times really slowly, admiring the sensual lines of the car before sitting it.

And then my friend said what I wanted to hear: "Wanna take her for a ride?". The thing is that I have a realistic dream of bying one myself and I wanted the first real drive in a Ferrari to be in my own. But I did take her for a short spin, just to get a little sneakpeak of the real deal. The steering and transmition was a dream to operate and when I put the foot down just a little more than an inch: Wrooooooom!!! God freaking damn what a nice feeling, better than anything, and the noooise!

Now dear friends I'm starting to look for my own love. My dreamcar have alway been a F355. I prefer a black one with manual transmition and tan leather. I start to drool just thinking about it. 8) I have downloaded the buyers guide here on the site but I would like to know more from people who actually own or owned a F355. I plan to drive the car almost everyday, is it up for the task? I'm not greedy on comfort. I just want it to be driveable.

Anyway, nice being a member of the forum.
Have a really nice day everybody!

/Hazte

 

[stile - alpine]

nice! too bad I don´t have friends that knock on my door in the middle of the night with a Ferrari :lol:

I am also a big fan of the F355, also prefer the black one, with manual shift

but my favorite interior color is this one here

http://ubbibr.fotolog.net/stile_alpine/?pid=11925762

good luck on your search! :wink:

 

[Boxer]

I had a F355 GTS for a couple of years and really see no reason why you could not drive it every day. As long as you keep to the maintenance schedule, it is a very reliable Ferrari and one that never let me down. For everyday driving I would recommend the tradition manual vs the F1 transmission as it will be easier to drive in traffic. I drove mine across Europe a couple of times, through major cities (with major traffic jams) and never had a problem. Comfort was never an issue and it does have quite good luggage space up front.

Along with the standard PPI, the only buying advise would be to make sure the car has had a recent cambelt change.

 

[hazte]

Thanks!

Thanks for the info Boxer! I know a guy in Sweden who sold his F355 because there was too much problem with it, but I don't think he took care of it in the right way. He's sort of an ass when it comes to paying respect to his cars. Anyway, what you told me Boxer was exactly what I wanted to hear and no, I'm not intrested in a F1-gearbox. Honestly I never liked the idea of the gearbox, I want it to be real Ferrari-engineering-feeling, metal against metal feeling, when changing gears. But it's not easy finding a black F355 with manual in good condition for sale but I'm not in a hurry so I'll keep looking and eventually I'll find a perfect sample. A question: How does the F355 go over speedbumps, any problems there?

/Hazte

 

[tonyh]

FWIW, i wouldn't use my 355 as a daily driver. Mileage is a kiiler on residuals , the interior build quality isn't up to much and the spider's roof is a PITA. As long as you take speedbumps at crawling speed, there should be no prob. More of a prob is an off camber road. The 4 inch front clearance is VERY challenging

 

[Boxer]

I agree with Tony that speed bumps are a bit of a challenge and you will learn to crawl compentently in 1st gear. However it is no better or worse than any other Ferrari I have driven.

On the interior quality, my experience was that it just needs a bit of TLC. The leather is soft and just needs to be cleaned and feed several times a year. Do this and don't park it in direct sunlight for too long and you should be fine (over time sunlight will shrink the dash and turn the center consul into goo).

Here is a recent F355 Spider for sale on the

http://www.ferrariownersclub.co.uk/sales/sales.asp

355 Spider
Black/Black, LHD, 65k km, perfect condition inside and out, looks and drives superbly, cambelts done '05. Sports exhaust. £48000. Nick Tel 07775 853522. (11/2005)

 

[hazte]

Berlinetta

Sounds good Boxer, but I'm only intrested in a Berlinetta, maybe a GTS. Spiders is not for me. But everything was perfect with that, I also like the black interior. And it has the sport exhaust 8) ! Well anyway I think my search will continue this spring when I will be able to the drive the beauty.

How's the F355 compared to the 360? Speedbumps, interior etc? I love tho 360 too and could compromise a bit if the car is a much safer buy.

/Hazte

 

[Smarty Jones]

I wouldn't use mine as a daily driver because I have to navigate a couple of bumpy roads on my way to work. As long as you can afford the maintenance, which is heavy dollars, even by Ferrari standards, then you could get away with it.

The mechanics should not be a problem but, as Tony said, the interior is a little fragile in places, especially the rubberized plastic bits. Also, it's hard not to scrape the front every now and then. Get some metal skid plates to help that.

Really, the biggest thing that I can think of is the maintenance.

 

[hazte]

Economy

Thanks for the replys. Is the 360 Modena more economic than the F355 in terms of maintenance and service? The buyers guide don't help me on this one.

/Hazte

 

[Boxer]

Cambelts are not an engine out job on the 360 so long term maintenance costs will likely be a bit less. However what you save in maintenance you will more than loose in depreciation. Most F355's are nearing full depreciation but the 360's still have a ways to go.

 

[mikerlx]

355 daily

Reality Check- if you have the funds to purchase a F355 or 360 then maintenance costs are very low on your lists. I am proud of you if you want to drive a F355 daily, and I think it is the best sounding Ferrari on earth!

 

[tonyh]

Re: 355 daily

Reality Check- if you have the funds to purchase a F355 or 360 then maintenance costs are very low on your lists. I am proud of you if you want to drive a F355 daily, and I think it is the best sounding Ferrari on earth!

Disagree strongly. Servicing costs are are very big part of every Ferrari owner's budget.

 

[Andrew]

Re: 355 daily

Disagree strongly. Servicing costs are are very big part of every Ferrari owner's budget.

I would second that. Unless you are one of the 500 billionaires on the planet then you might be less concerned about the service cost.

 

[plantagenet]

I was thinking of purchasing my first Ferrari. The F355 has dropped to about 80,000 - 90,000 Swiss Francs for a good low mileage (25 to 30,000 km)Berlinetta. However I am worried that if I stretch to buy this car that the maintenace costs will cripple me.

I only plan on using it as a weekend driver but was interested to get an idea on the sort of costs I could expect to pay. For example I hear a Cam Belt change runs to about 1500 pounds. I am not overly concerned with mpg as I will really only use at weekends...but it would be nice to know an approximate figure. What sort of servicing schedule is expected on these cars and what is a rough price guide for the service.