Track Ferrari

i did it with a gtb.

actually i'm still/again busy with it now

 

Check the ARCHIVES under my username in the 308 section (and you'll see others in threads that have done the same). Been there, done that, read the book, saw the movie... got a real track car (Formula 2000) because it was cheaper, far faster and nearly equal in some straights to far and away better than an Enzo (at the twisties) in performance... for only $35k.

Would i do it knowing what i know today? Heck no. Get a track prepped Miata to learn tracks, vehicle dynamics and racecraft.

 

any other trackcar would be nice too, sure, but they are not a ferrari


My lastest (unplanned)update: removable front and rear-end
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Depends what you mean by track car ... IMO a real track car has a full roll cage. Be careful pushing a car to it's absolute limits without a cage on a big track. The serious track 308's I've seen that have been properly prepared with lots of money or talent have been very very fast.

Now autocrossing ... that can be safe without a cage at the limit ... here's a video from behind the wheel of my 308 at the last P car autocross ... 19th overall and my car is far from a dedicated track beast. Sure ... I was beat by a Miata with every mod in the book and a very excellent driver that the club wants as an instructor ... my car still has A/C components, no cage, license plates, and street tires. Nothing that was a "stock street car" came close though ... it just depends what your frame of reference is.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw5jWyHagg4[/ame]

Depending on what your driving skills are, I have found in the "real world" most guys can't drive their sports car anywhere near it's limit so it's pretty easy to keep up with 99.9% of the general population with a 308 even at "weekend warrior" competitive events.

There is no comparison in performance to a small open wheel car but they are really not for me and they are waaaaaaaay too fast for most of the weekend warriors I know. I would not want to crash in a little car like that and I see no reason to do a track day if I'm not at my all out limit. If you're a newbie to the track it's fun in just about anything FYI ... I unfortunately don't get "excited" anymore about loading up my trailer .

I bought my first 308 in '95 years ago and have really enjoyed the journey I have taken with 'er. If you are a competent hands on guy there is something rewarding about mod'g a Ferrari vs. just about anything else. If you have to pay someone to do it and don't get any personal satisfaction doing anything yourself you may look back on the experience as a waste of time and money. I'm an engineer for a living so all of my 308 "experiences" get thrown in the mental "tool box" for future use .

I say go for it .

cheers,

Sean

 

The removeable panels are so cool! Those have been on my list "forever" .

cheers!

Sean

 

Easy to do with a good size check book - It won't be long before your north of $50K, even with you doing a lot of the work yourself. I know....

 

do like i did: crash it and you have a good reason

 

I did not spend that much ( I think..) but basically i think your quite right. Obviously depending on your goals a trackcar can and will be a real moneypit.

I've met a guy recently who turned his 328 into a full trackcar, including nice stuff like dry sump, TBs and an almost full carbon body. The car was less than 1000 kg and the engine made an impressive 460bhp. He spent well over 150K on it......

 

I did not think I was sending that much either, but I made a huge mistake. Over the years, I threw EVERY receipt into a box. Then, one night, I added it all up..... Oh well, there are worse ways to send money...

 

Excellent advice, I have gone this route and have had an absolute blast in the process. If you dont want to buy your own car you can always try Skip Barber for a weekend or two to test the waters and see what you think about driving on track. There are also plenty of places that rent spec miatas.

 

Beside that i just "recently" joined the f club all you wrote applies to me as well.

I used to work on other cars for decades, also for racing and rallying but none of them come close to the feeling i get working on my F. It's just someting special. Surely a single seater would be faster and a blast to drive but doing it with a ferrari ads somethng that cannot be replaced. tracktimes will surely be considderable slower but the fact that i'm driving a ferrari on the track compensate.

for me it's not just "tracking" that give me the smile but its "tracking a ferrari" that does the thing.

so I also say: go for it!

 

yep ... it's like the "Harley" thing here in the U.S. ... if you don't get it, it can't be explained ... I didn't get it ... built a custom V twin bike from scratch ... rode it for a few months and got rid of it ... but that doesn't mean I go around telling people they should just buy a Yamaha "clone" because they are "so much better" (no denying that "based on the numbers") ... some people consider building/riding/maintaining a hog as "living the dream" ... good for them I say ... whatever makes you happy!


cheers

 

thank you for posting the video of you 308 autocross; fun stuff and I was almost shrieking with you!