Pros & Cons of a 1980-1982 308

The power on the the 80-82 cars made me give them a miss. Then there is the injection vs the carbs. I believe also the chassis was changed a couple of years before vs the glass and early steel cars, not sure if that added weight, etc, or impacted the handling. In the end, what are you looking for in the car? If it is going to shows, the 80-82 car will offer great value, so buy a minter. If you'd like to drive the car, the QV or an earlier carbed car is going to offer more power and/or a different experience. Drive a few and decide that way.

 

Ferrari didn't start using rust-proofing until MY 1984. Just a thought.


Joe

 

Sodium filled valves, metric wheels, two cats instead of one, less rust treatment...

Forget the power part. Under 100mph the 2Vi, 4V and 78-79 USA carbed cars are very close. No difference in top speed to speak of - somewhere no one goes anyway.

Personally, I love them. Buy on condition always. If you find a good 2Vi, buy it and take care of it, you will be happy.

 

A 2V GTBi is actually a pretty rare car, less than 500 made from 80-82.

Pro: Don't let the "down on power" BS cloud your judgement. Thats one of the first things most people say as a con and it's almost comical. It has enough power and makes some great sounds for what you want to do with a 35 year old "classic" car. I'm sure a 1983 QV is blazingly fast!

Pro: 2V's are IMO one of the best looking of the 308 series

Pro: A good car to cut your teeth on if you do some DIY stuff

Con: It really does have a classic car feel with the antiquated HVAC system, flimsy feeling switches, mirrors and such. But that can be a Pro if thats (classic) what you are looking for.

Con: Sadly fellow Ferrari owners tend to unfairly look down their nose at the model range just because they can or are unsecure in their own personal universe. I'm sure the car can hold it's own against a 246 and several other models from the years past, yet somehow 246's went from unloved to royalty and no one there seems to care about it's "lack" of performance

 

With no disrespect intended to the Original poster but your question could be easily answered by a thread search....this has been talked about as many times as the timing belt issue!!!!

In short... the 2valve injected cars are down on power, no rustproofing, sodium filled valves that need to be replaced(they break!!) and when they were new many had an oil burning issue and Ferrari replaced lots of engines under warranty....

The plus side......sexy looks(its a 308 after all) many 2vi cars drive great and the "missing" horsepower is only really noticeable on a race track!

On U.S.A market cars the 2vi emission controls are problematic(more so than a QV)

At the end of the day it's purely a personal decision but IMHO the QV models are slightly superior for not a lot of $$$ more...

Good luck with your search....

Kimbo

 

If it's in amazing original condition I would think pretty hard about going for it because great condition 308s (of any variant) are getting hard to find. That said, in the current market it should be priced less the carb or QV cars in the same condition.

 

I have a 1980 GTSI. I am totally in love with the car in every way. Don't buy into the BS about the 2V being down in power! Its an awesome car.

My buddy has a 328 which has a full 70HP more than my car, and although I can definitely feel the extra power, it's nothing to get excited over. My wife's Nissan Murano will easily beat both to 100mph.

The 80-82 308's still have the old school switches instead of the ugly 328 rocker panels so the 308 interior still has the vintage look.

The bumpers are ugly but you can buy Euro Bumpers or push yours in.

If you want to get a nice performance boost buy 16" wheels and modern tires, install a Tubi Muffler and remove the Cats and air pump while your at it.

Buy it and don't look back!

 

Oh, I can't believe I almost forgot this: there is one mechanical issue with those cars, many were oil burners. The 2Vi motors had ring issues. Most did and some were worse than others. Many motors were replaced under warranty and even some of THOSE burned oil.

In the end (as in over 30 years of evidence now) it really didn't make out to be that big of a deal. Expect an extra quart about every 700 miles (no kidding) and you should be fine. That car has made it this far hasn't it?

Here is a little trick: pull the tag off and look behind it. As a general rule, people don't remove the tag when they wash their car so if it is a little extra greasy behind it, it may be one of "those".

But in the end, don't worry about it. Just watch the oil level and enjoy it.

 

In my opinion, the best

 

I have driven every engine variant of the 308 with the exception of a dry sump. There is not a big difference in performance and a properly driven 2Vi will beat a Novice driver in a carbed or QV car.

So My pro and Con list

Pro
Bosch fuel injection is easy to live with and does not need to be adjusted

Pro
Best value/price point of the 308 GTB series

Pro
These cars are appreciating

Pro
Any B car is much more rare than a S

Con
Sodium valves should be replaced if they have not

Con
Digiplex ignition especially the US version has a weak program

Con
TRX tires are expensive

 

Yes....not cheap. Nothing ever is on a Ferrari.

Labour rates/parts in the U.S.A make it around $5k IIRC?

The car you are looking at will undoubtedly need a suspension rebuild if not all ready done....as well. Don't start me on timing belts.


There is no such thing as a cheap Ferrari....even the old ones! Lots of people can afford to buy 308's...maintaining them is the problem.


Have we killed your enthusiasm yet...L.O.L?

 

Please replace and update all the rubber fuel hoses. You don't want to lose the car to a fire. These cars were not built for ethanol in the fuel and it and time have killed your hoses.

 

Another biggie is to replace your garbage fusebox with Birdmans box which you can do yourself in an hour.

I haven't blown a fuse in 5 years

 

I have a '82 gtb, and love it. As mentioned there are plenty of threads discussing and comparing the 2vi to all other 308 variations. I agree on almost everything that has been mentioned above... Read up, test drive and make a decision...if your handy with the spanners these are great car to work on and nothing looks better then a 308gtb!

-Dave

 

Fuel hose, rotten bushings, old timing belts - this is ANY old car stuff. You know that.

All 308's had issues with the quality of the fuse blocks 30+ years later. Buying a QV will not spare you that easy to fix area.

 

I have had an 82 for the past five years and have never needed to touch it once the service was brought up to date. The power difference is a BS point of argument not to be an issue. As far as looks it has a much better balanced front end than 328. The injection system is simple enough to work on. You would not be disapointed ! Lost

PS you have to sort out the BS from the facts

 

I don't think all sodium valves should be rushed to the dealership for replacement. You can bend valves on a QV too...so should we switch to timing chains? Now if the car is an oil burner and you are doing the heads, by all means update the seats and swap the valves to stainless. And BTW, the carb cars have the same valves as the 2vi cars. I think it would be better to say watch them more closely...maintain the clearances and the cooling system of the car whether carb or i car.

Pros...
1. Best paint scheme of the earlier cars with body colored radiator vents, blacked out canopy with the S, body colored rockers...looks cleaner, more pure, less chopped up
2. Best interior which later QV cars inherited with the updated console and seat pattern as well as door cards.
3. Electronic ignition and easy starting and really very bullet proof...BTW you can swap the US ignition boxes for euros with more advance and bring the power up some more...cost neutral once you sell your old ones.
4. Less expensive up front so better ROI when you consider enjoyment out of any of the 308 series will be identical....the smile on your face will be the same
5. Less expensive to rebuild engine compared to a QV
6. very similar performance to a 78-79 carb cars which were also suffering with twin cats, less aggressive cams, and dealing with emissions

Cons...
1. The stigma hierarchy that will always have an i car in the Ferrari circles trail behind in their eyes in value...although a 82 GTSi with very low mileage sold recently for over 80K USD.
2. Some cars were oil burners
3. Prior to late 84, the 308s were not galvanized...so check for rust on any 2v (carb or injected) or early QV.
4. least powerful of the series, however the only real difference will be found in your wallet and not on the street.
5. carb cars sound the sweetest with their induction roar of the quad carbs.
6. TRX tires and wheels..tires expensive to replace or you can swap to reproduction wheels and new modern tires for less money.

In the end they are all sweet cars. Buy on condition, condition, and condition. Forget model year. If you want to know my sweet spot, its an 83 euro GTS or GTB QV as it has the better paint scheme of the early cars, the QV interior, euro setup including bumpers, grill, exhaust surround, engine lid, and nose, and the four valve motor. Its all aesthetics to me as the cars are rolling art. I personally ended up with a 82 GTSi as I loved the Azzurro color against the tan interior and wanted to take the roof off and enjoy the symphony behind me.

$$ hierarchy:

Top of the heap is an early glass cars
Euro > US on all versions
Dry Sump > Wet sump (these were early cars)
right now GTB > GTS
77 > 83-85 > 78-79 > 80-82

 

Not all 80-82 i's had metric wheels. My 1980 GTS has 14" Campagnolos.

 

I know. Some even have been changed out by previous owners.

My point really is to just at least take a look.

If it's me, knowing what I know about these things and I was trying to decide between two similarly priced cars - all else being equal - the metric wheels will be a deal killer if the other didn't have them.