Hi guys, I joined up a few weeks ago after I bought my 1992-3 348TB, I have been dreaming of Ferrari's since I was about 8 years old, and a month ago it all turned into a reality when the right car for the right money presented itself. I always thought I'd end up with a 308 as they tend to be the most accessible and practical Ferrari's to own, I dreamed of a 365 GT4/BB which there is a story. A friend of my parents owned this beautiful example, one Sunday morning when I was 18, back in 1984, he took me for a drive, and it was everything I dreamed it would be, ever since then I was addicted. The noise, speed, braking, the look....the smell!! Thats a very young me in the drivers seat (RHD) Damn I still just love the lines of these Boxers, they are a damn fine looking specimen. Image Unavailable, Please Login Anyway, the reality of a cackling, growling, screaming 365 Boxer was slipping further and further away from me as time marched on, and the prices went up!! Fast forward to 1989, and I remember waiting with baited breath for the release of the new 348, well, when I saw one, I just loved it, a fine balance between classic and modern(for the time) lines of which Pininfarina was so good at...and they configured it like a F1 car, longitudinal engine with the gearbox and suspension behind in its own sub frame, I was/am very attracted to this layout...... Fast forward to 1997, my bosses son had a job at the local Ferrari dealer here in Auckland NZ, and he arranged for me on my birthday to accompany the head mechanic on a test drive in a 348TS. So we went for an extended test drive and you know, I just loved it, since then I have wanted a 348 and all the time thinking it was something that would always be out of my reach. Well, it was until a few weeks ago when one came up for sale. Here it is!! I got it for a very good price, its a fine example, everything works!! Its tight, it drives very well!! Its a LHD Euro spec. I have tried to limit the driving, its done 48,000km so really needs to get in for its major which is happening next week. But I have got out there and gone for a few decent drives in it, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience!! But of course there is always something that comes up, and since this one had been sitting for the last 5 years, and traveling only 150km in that time, it was no surprise to find the Thrust bearing decided to start leaking, and of course the triple seals were also toast and there was some oil which leaked onto the clutch plate. Interesting, it looked like the clutch had been done recently, it has the single plate AP clutch. I ordered all the seals from Ricambi, pulled the clutch out, replaced all the seals, and to my delight, I could see the clutch plate had very little wear on it, the flywheel and pressure plate show signs of slipping because of the oil, but no damage, so I de-glazed, used the Brake Clean product on the plate, and de-glazed that, popped the clutch back in and bled her up, job done!! I now have a nice grabby clutch, and no leaks!! A very cheap fix!! couple of hundred bucks and we're on the road again....I considered the Hills engineering thrust bearing, but I think I will wait until I need to replace the clutch, at which time I'll re-pack the flywheel. I was a Auto Mechanic in a previous life, so I like to do as much work as practical on my cars, I have found so far, that the 348 is pretty nice to work on, although, I do not have the room to do the Major engine out service here at home, so I'll get the Ferrari Service place to do it....they are a bunch of pretty decent guys. This car has these nice BBS wheels which I really like, I think they really suit the car, they are 18"... It also has a KSG Exhaust which sounds fantastic, local to me is a tunnel, so of course, it has become tradition to tunnel blast for maximum effect!! Nothing like the sound of a Ferrari Flat Plane V8 at over 7,000 in a tunnel!! Here's a few pictures... Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Those wheels look great, something I would like to have on my 348. I think you should have replaced the clutch disc. The leaking oil (and/or brake fluid) will soak deep into the friction material and, no matter how well you degrease the plate, the oil deep inside will bleed-out to the surface after some time. I once tried to salvage a contaminated ("wet" looking surface) clutch disc by cleaning, and even immersing, it in solvents. Initially, the surface would look "dry" but, after a few hours, I could see wet (oily) patches appearing on the disc surface and it would eventually become "wet" again. Tried the degreasing cycle a number of times but the plate kept "weeping" again.
I am not really a fan of the factory wheels, I have a friend who has a 348TS with similar BBS, I think its a great look.... Yes indeed that is the case when there is oil on clutch linings, I would normally replace, but luckily I caught it in time, it really wasn't bad, the linings were not soaked, there had been minimal amount on there, just enough for it to not immediately grab after changing gear, I think I caught it just in time. I cleaned the plate up, and there was no oil rising to the surface like I have seen before, I had it sitting in the sun all day, it was as dry as a bone.....Worth a shot, the clutch is so easy to change on these cars I thought it was worth the effort.
I didn't realise Kiwi's were allowed to drive LHD cars. Does it depend on the age of the car? Anyway, looks amazing. Good luck with the major!
Nice and welcome, wheels are cool, I'd maybe run some spacers to fill them out a bit. Enjoy it! Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
It is a great place to love, some of the best driving roads in the world, great scenery, you don't have to go far to get to breathtaking views.....hopefully when this C19 shenanigans is over you can make it down this way.
Just be careful with adding spacers to the front wheels. This is what happened to my wheel arch with 10 mm spacers to the standard wheels while very slowly going over a speed bump with the steering turned somewhat to one side. This happened twice until I removed the spacers. At least one more member here experienced the same issue. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Right, thanks for that, and this damage was with the factory rims too..... Hmmmm....I might just leave them if that's the case....
If you can gently roll the fenders you'll have zero issues. I'm lower with fenders rolled and zero rubbing lock to lock Image Unavailable, Please Login Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk
With the 10 mm spacers at the front, I had no rubbing lock to lock either. It was only when the left wheels was on top of the speed bump, and the right already over the bump, and I had the steering turned to the left somewhat. The bump pushed the left wheel up sufficiently to contact the lip of the arch. I did roll the arch lip somewhat further up/in after the first incident but it happened again (and my suspension is not set to the lowest, probably about mid). So, I removed the 10 mm spacer at the front and kept the 25 mm at the back. The reason why, after the second incident, I did go for rolling the lips of the front arches further was, according to what I have read, the fact that 25 mm at the back and no spacers at the front provide the best high speed stability. 10 mm spacers at the front just give you better look at the expense of some high speed stability.
Heavier springs can help too because they dial down the wheel travel for some bumps. I found heavier front spring made my 348 racecar faster too. Some more negative camber dials out the poke too, also good for racecars.
My wife will be there for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Lake Tapuo. I'm probably not going to go with her, but maybe I'll get to NZ someday.
When is the Ironman happening? Our borders are closed at present, only returning residents admitted. Hopefully this all doesn't last too long and our lives can get back to normal...
You can count on it I canceled my China, Italy vacation and looks like China and New Zealand are the short list. I have a connection at Courtesy Motorcycles in Manawatu to get a proper bike to ride.
Kia ora, Kev! Ran across your thread by chance. Congrats on your purchase. I looked at ROSSO1 when it was located in Penrose. It's a beautiful specimen. That car + this forum will be a match made in heaven for you!
Thanks man, yeah its a pretty nice example, I have the engine out of it at the moment, doing the major service plus a few other bits and pieces to it.... Wont be long before its back on the road, at which time it will get used, I didn't buy it to keep it locked up in the garage, so some great cruising times ahead!!
Lovely car mate...Did you know you’ve got yourself one of only 252 348GTB’s ever made? Drive her in good health and keep her nice, she’s a rare and appreciating piece of rolling art.
Unfortunately its not a GTB despite the badge on the back, not sure why or how that is there. The manufacturing date on the F119G engine is October 1992. I think its in the system here in NZ as a 1993 as that was when it was first registered, not when it was manufactured. It doesn't have a F119H engine. But its all good, its still a very nice car and its getting the love it deserves right now...