My '91 Ferrari 348 tS - 7 month update

[sameerrao]

It was 1984 when I saw my first Ferrari - it was a blood red TR with a single mirror. I was hooked to the brand then and there. It took me 22 years since to actually buy a Ferrari - that too a little sister of the TR.

I bought a 1991 348 TS today from Steve Harris Imports in Salt Lake City.It has just over 15000 miles on the clock. I am gonna drive it down to Houston on a 3 day cruise starting tomorrow.

Did the PPI and got compression numbers ranging between 174 and 178 on all cylinders and a lead down of <5%. With numbers like that purchasing the car was a no brainer. The only thing not working is the clock but who cares anyway.

The car looks pretty sweet though not concours quality for sure. But I love it to death! :)

Pictures of the car from the Steve harris website: http://www.steveharrisimports.com/more.phtml?method=lkup&firsthid=876&offset=0&qty=6&id=

I will try to post some of mine later including those of a super sweet 312PB at the dealership

I would like to thank Sean Harris and Michael Call for making the purchase process simple, painless and worryfree. I was in great hands throughout. I would wholeheartedly recommend this dealership to anyone!

TT, Give me a day or two to post the picture of the manual and stuff.

[TeflonTron]

Congrats. I think that in many ways the 348 is a more honest and pure car than the 355 was.

[sameerrao]

Here it is undergoing the leakdown test ...
http://img96.imageshack.us/img96/914/dsc7779kh1.th.jpg (http://img96.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7779kh1.jpg)http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/4190/dsc7782gd8.th.jpg (http://img209.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7782gd8.jpg)http://img167.imageshack.us/img167/7951/dsc7780ti4.th.jpg (http://img167.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7780ti4.jpg)
http://img182.imageshack.us/img182/6039/dsc7781cu1.th.jpg (http://img182.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7781cu1.jpg)

Afterwards I had some guys come in and install a clear bra to protect the front end from road debris
http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/2346/dsc7784gf5.th.jpg (http://img209.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7784gf5.jpg)

[TeflonTron]

Do you have any plans to mod her at all?

[sentra_dude]

UUUUhh Ohh!!! :shock: 8) Congrats man! I'm glad you finally found a nice 348! :D

This one looks to be in excellent condition, hope you have a fun 3 day drive! :good:

[sameerrao]

- Steering wheel spacer to bring the wheel a bit closer to me
- Improved shift gate for faster shifting
- Aluminium pedals

That's it for now ...

[RC45]

Congrats man.

We going driving Sunday morning early?

[sameerrao]

Next week man! I think I will be dead to the world this Sunday ... :)

[666fast]

Congrats!

I can't wait to be able to affor dmy dream car, the 355.

[sameerrao]

Cool! Work hard at it ...it will happen one day for sure.

[spanky]

Looks Great sam!!!!! 8) :good:

Cant wait to see more pictures of it

[sameerrao]

Some pics of a 312PB at the dealership

http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/7642/dsc7777dm4.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7777dm4.jpg)http://img180.imageshack.us/img180/1507/dsc7766lo4.th.jpg (http://img180.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7766lo4.jpg)http://img245.imageshack.us/img245/5551/dsc7769ly5.th.jpg (http://img245.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7769ly5.jpg)http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/571/dsc7772lf1.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7772lf1.jpg)
http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/6419/dsc7773ad7.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7773ad7.jpg)http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/995/dsc7774vz3.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7774vz3.jpg)http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/5348/dsc7775rq8.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7775rq8.jpg)http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/9185/dsc7776km3.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7776km3.jpg)

[RC45]

Why didn't you buy that? :P You could have used the 348 money as a down payment ;)

[sameerrao]

At $2mm+ a pop, I think I might have got a wheel or something in exchange for the 348... I did get to sit in it though. It was awesome!

Man those F1/Sportscar guys must have had tiny waist and butts - my 34" waist struggled its way in :)

[RC45]

Rental for 15 minutes? ;)

[novass]

Congrats! Looks nice and should provide a lot of fun for you in the future. Its nice to hear that your dream has come to fruition too. :D

[BADMIHAI]

Congrats on owning one of the less than 3000 of those beauties. 8) I wonder what the drive is gonna be like. Ferraris back then weren't renouned for their touring capabilities. :mrgreen:

[sentra_dude]

Is that 312 like the one Alain de Cadenet drove in the Ferrari Victory By Design?

[Caplax40]

Hey Sameer,

In the fourth photo you posted of the leakdown test, is that a 360 Challenge in the background?


Congrats on the car man!

[bmagni]

congrats and enjoy it !

[sameerrao]

Thanks guys for the good wishes .. I am really tired (sleep deprived this week) but elated.

Caplax - Yep - 360 Challenge needing quite a bit of maintenance

Mihai - I drove the car for about an hour today. The car has a stiff clutch and the non-assisted steering requires quite a bit of effort at low speed. Its a huge change from the Audi. But the steering loads up beautifully into the corners. The seats are quite comfy for a short trip. Tomorrow I will learn how things will pan out on a long trip

Sentra - Yep - Same car

[TT]

YEAH! So happy for you!! Like most ppl around here I am wondering why finally the Porsches will be replaced by a Ferrari (or maybe it will just sit alongside them, who knows). I hope my time will come soon, but hell, even reading about somebody else's best automotive day makes me proud!

[jorge]

congratulations sameerrao, IMO one of the most beautiful cars in the world :o

[pterps]

Congratulations Sameerrao, it's a beautifull car, enjoy it. And send us pics regularly!

[Zot09]

Congrats! You picked up a beautiful ride! I hope you have a fun and safe trip back down to Texas.

I plan to purchase my first Ferrari maybe a decade after I graduate from grad. school(2 years left of undergrad + 4 years grad + 10 year = 16 years). A F430 :D

[Erez]

Congrats! 8)
she is looking mighty fine 8)

as for mods.. one word, tubi ;) 8)

[Erez]

^ next month? :mrgreen:

[ARMAN]

Woooohooooo!!! Man I am SO happy for you Sameer! :P One of the best feelings/experiences of the lifetime - owning first Ferrari :twisted:
Looks like its in a very mint condition, cant wait for about thousand pics and some vids :P

Wishing you many many miles without any problems :wink:

...man i envy you Sameer :oops: :D :wink:

[TopGearNL]

Congrats Sameerrao!! Im really glad you found a good model in the end, lets hope you can enjoy it for many many miles!! :D

You were talking about spraying the black panels red? I asked my uncle about that since he has a car spray/repair shop and he said that it would have to be a precision job if you don't want to see the difference between the new red panels and the old ones. Maybe its better to respray the whole car then, but thats easy coming from me since I don't have to pay :oops: :wink: .

[Jabba]

Congratulations, my first Ferrari was a 348TS and therefore always the most special, a couple of things I had done to enhance its beauty was to replace the black horse on the back black grill with a nice silver one, and also a silver horse on the front grill, I also had the lower black skirting colour coded red to match the rest of the car.

I am going to change to change your yellow posting count horses to celebrate the occasion :wink:

EDIT : just seen that you have the silver horses fitted already :D

[stmoritzer]

COngratulation to your new ride, for sure cool to own a Ferrari!
Have fun :D

[Erez]

:oops: ditto :wink:

[TopGearNL]

^ next month? :mrgreen:

I wish! :D

LOL me too :D

If I win the Lottery Ill buy you all one 8)

[Erez]

8) same here 8)

[stradale]

Congratulations, Sameer!!! Looks like a 348 in excellent condition. I can't imagine what it must be like, waking up for the first time knowing that you have a Ferrari at your disposal any time you please...

I see that your car doesn't have the strakes across the rear lights. Are you planning on placing them back or don't you like the strakes? IMHO it looks a bit weird now, with the frames seemingly still in place.

Enjoy every minute of your first long trip! What a dream... :drool:

[ARMAN]

I see that your car doesn't have the strakes across the rear lights. Are you planning on placing them back or don't you like the strakes? IMHO it looks a bit weird now, with the frames seemingly still in place.

want to ask same, it looks a bit uncomplete without it 8)

[dingo]

Awesome mate, congrats.....if you want something then its possible wiht some effort and dedication.

I hope to join the Ferrari owners group at JW sooner rather than later, get rid of this rice-junk WRX. :P

[gis]

Congrats on the new car dude,fine looking car for sure.have fun ont he long drive,be safe and cant wait to hear about the roadtrip :D

[komotar]

:shock:

it's a beauty, dude, congrats!!!! Even I'm excited and I hope to one day go trough the emotions, you went trough, when you first got the keys in your hands...

[PATo355]

Looks gorgeous , congratulations , a dream come true :)

[sameerrao]

First of all, a collective thanks for all the good wishes. It means a lot to me coming from you guys. :D

Today, I started my roadtrip - I drove down from Salt Lake City to small town in Colorado called Durango. I took the time to visit the Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park which happened to be on my route.

http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/9022/dsc7793lf0.th.jpg (http://img228.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7793lf0.jpg)http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/2849/dsc7800oi5.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7800oi5.jpg)http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/4073/dsc7799mn9.th.jpg (http://img176.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7799mn9.jpg)http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/9090/dsc7797wi9.th.jpg (http://img165.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7797wi9.jpg)
http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/6824/dsc7798kq5.th.jpg (http://img168.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7798kq5.jpg)

http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/5769/dsc7802rh9.th.jpg (http://img166.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7802rh9.jpg)http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/1859/dsc7875xm2.th.jpg (http://img297.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7875xm2.jpg)http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/7421/dsc7877un3.th.jpg (http://img329.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7877un3.jpg)http://img297.imageshack.us/img297/7974/dsc7879vi8.th.jpg (http://img297.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7879vi8.jpg)

http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/9631/dsc7801oh2.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7801oh2.jpg)http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/7681/dsc7803so5.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7803so5.jpg)http://img165.imageshack.us/img165/2397/dsc7804xx6.th.jpg (http://img165.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7804xx6.jpg)

http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/7567/dsc7848ka9.th.jpg (http://img243.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7848ka9.jpg)http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/6835/dsc7817gd6.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7817gd6.jpg)http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/9913/dsc7819or9.th.jpg (http://img168.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7819or9.jpg)http://img170.imageshack.us/img170/3295/dsc7835cg7.th.jpg (http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7835cg7.jpg)
http://img176.imageshack.us/img176/2706/dsc7836pp3.th.jpg (http://img176.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7836pp3.jpg)http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/7434/dsc7837gf2.th.jpg (http://img168.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7837gf2.jpg)

I like this one the best.
http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/158/dsc7878kf9.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7878kf9.jpg)

I took quite a few pictures ... I will post them along with my driving impressions on Sunday

[sentra_dude]

Ohhh, finally some more pictures! :D 8) Can't wait to hear the driving impressions. It must be so cool to have your own Ferrari you can drive whenever you want! :P

[Daggernite]

sameerrao congatz on your Ferrari. I looks great, and the condition would look no better if you took these photos a decade ago, awesome stuff!! I must say I love the scenary and roads that run straight though them which it seems in your pics. Its the perfect way to get to know your new Ferrari, you must be so happy right now.

[novass]

Really nice photos! Cant wait to hear how your drive went. Did you go it alone?

Now that your driving a Ferrari, I guess we should call you "schumeerrao" :P

[Fleischmann]

Damn fine pics and a damn fine ride!! Congrats dude, the 348 is by far one of the best looking Ferrari's, the design hasn;t aged one bit. Flipping up the front lights and flooring this baby must be an amazing feeling. Needless to say, I envy you :D

[Erez]

:shock: thats some amazing photos! 8)

[RAMMIUS]

Congratulations for the beauty Sameer :P
I hope you`ll drive it long and hard, just like you suppose to drive a car like that :P

The pictures are incredible, nice skills.

[komotar]

the pics turned out great!

I love these the most!

http://img80.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7800oi5.jpg

http://img170.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7817gd6.jpg

http://img243.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7848ka9.jpg

[stmoritzer]

beautiful landscape to cruise in a F !
I have been there once, liked it very much!

Thanks for the nice pictures
How was it to drive such long distances in the 348 ?

[TopGearNL]

Great pics, great car!!

Love the pics, scenery is great, car is great --> photo of the month submission? :wink:

Love the shot where the lights are up!! :D

Take so much care of this baby Sameerrao! :P

[ARMAN]

Holy cow!!! :shock: Amasing scenery, top notch looking car... talk about an ultimate roadtrip - across America.. in Ferrari!!! :P
Man I am SO happy for you, you must be jumping all the time you are not in the car :D Cant wait for more pics and driving impressions :P

Thisone is the best IMO
http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/7567/dsc7848ka9.th.jpg (http://img243.imageshack.us/img243/7567/dsc7848ka9.jpg)

[taygunho]

Congrtas schumeerrao :D . I really envy you. Enjoy your new ride have lots of mile on it.

[TT]

Holy Lord if you didn't give us some great pics already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't forget the custom shot when you have a mom ;)

[dingo]

^ A custom shot with his mom? Please NO........!!

Awesome shots mate, what a way to get to know your new Ferrari. :D

[davide]

Awesome photographs mate!

The scenery is breathtaking and the car aint bad etiher... ;)
top notch, happy for you!

[Chaos in 1983!]

Congrats sameerrao!!! wow dude, you own a Ferrari!!! goddamit it must feel good to wake up and see it waiting in the garage.

The car looks to be in great condition, I love the 348, it is one of my favorite Ferraris, I'm a sucker for 80s and mid 90s Ferraris. I have to agree with dani, I also miss the grille over the rear lights, and I also think you should color code the black skirting, I never understood why Ferrari did this with some of it models.

Can't wait for the write up on your driving experience!!!

[Mr.Vercetti]

You got yourself a future classic there man. Many congratulations. I wish you many safe km's.

[sameerrao]

YEAH! So happy for you!! Like most ppl around here I am wondering why finally the Porsches will be replaced by a Ferrari (or maybe it will just sit alongside them, who knows). I hope my time will come soon, but hell, even reading about somebody else's best automotive day makes me proud!

Interesting ... this is was my anticipated sportscar route about a year and half back. I thought I would buy a 993 first and then a 993 Turbo a couple years later and then a Ferrari 355 about 5-8 years down the line if I am lucky. But when I joined Ferrarichat in 2004 and started reading about the Fcars, I got hooked. In a blink of an eye, Porsche vanished from the wish list and Ferrari became the one and only thing I wanted.

But dont worry dude, when you finally get your Ferrari you will have a wealth of sportscar experience to compare the Ferrari to and thus your experience will be so much richer. 8)

Congrats!
she is looking mighty fine

as for mods.. one word, tubi
One of my friends here has a 348 with a Tubi - it sounds amazing. Here is a soundclip of a 348 Tubi with hyperflow cats: YouTube.
The new X-OST by Maranello system is also very nice: YouTube.

The tubi option is the most expensive. Actually the stock exhaust sounds very nice. I am not in a big rush to buy an aftermarket exhaust unless I get a used one dirt cheap.

You were talking about spraying the black panels red? I asked my uncle about that since he has a car spray/repair shop and he said that it would have to be a precision job if you don't want to see the difference between the new red panels and the old ones. Maybe its better to respray the whole car then, but thats easy coming from me since I don't have to pay :oops: :wink: .

Its not that big a deal - lots of people have done it quite successfully here. I think you need to dilute the paint a bit to make look a little faded to match with the rest of the car. As for me, I think I will leave the bottom as-is - I have got used to it by now. Black is relatively maintenance free and also it makes the car look thinner. The red paint makes it look more modern for sure. :)

Congratulations, my first Ferrari was a 348TS and therefore always the most special, a couple of things I had done to enhance its beauty was to replace the black horse on the back black grill with a nice silver one, and also a silver horse on the front grill, I also had the lower black skirting colour coded red to match the rest of the car.

I am going to change to change your yellow posting count horses to celebrate the occasion :wink:

EDIT : just seen that you have the silver horses fitted already :D

Thanks for the red horses - looks superdistinctive. :)

Did you have a good time with your 348 - was it troublefree? Do you remember what model year 348 it was?

Awesome mate, congrats.....if you want something then its possible wiht some effort and dedication.

I hope to join the Ferrari owners group at JW sooner rather than later, get rid of this rice-junk WRX. :P

Keep the lovely WRX and add the Ferrari - it will be very interesting to have two completely different cars - trust me on that! 8)

Now that your driving a Ferrari, I guess we should call you "schumeerrao" :P

LOL! If I had 1/20th the driving skills of the great man, I would still be 50X better than what I am :oops:

Flipping up the front lights and flooring this baby must be an amazing feeling.
Exactly! Its hard to describe the feeling but amazing comes close. :)

I hope you`ll drive it long and hard, just like you suppose to drive a car like that :P
Yep - this car will be a driver and not a show car! :)

The car looks great Sameer - although I still miss the rear grill :? are you planning to install it... or will you let the babe as thi?:

I'll be honest with you - I am not a fan of the rear strakes. So it is not gonna happen. :) I will try and see if I can convert the rear to make it look like a Speciale. But I want to wait for some time and see how it goes. The rear looks fine in the flesh. :)

:shock:

it's a beauty, dude, congrats!!!! Even I'm excited and I hope to one day go trough the emotions, you went trough, when you first got the keys in your hands...

It has been an emotional rollercoaster as you can quite imagine to be. Lost of sleepless nights before buying it ... should I or should not ... is this car better or that car better ... can I afford it and so on :)

Holy Lord if you didn't give us some great pics already!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't forget the custom shot when you have a mom ;)

Crap I forgot to take one today ... TT man, I will take a pic of the key with car tomorrow :)

For now, I am posting a picture of the Ferrari key which for some wierd reason seems to fold halfway and also a shot of the road trip statistics so far - note that some of the speeds posted are totally fictitious :)
http://img296.imageshack.us/img296/2324/dsc7891ua1.th.jpg (http://img296.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7891ua1.jpg)http://img168.imageshack.us/img168/1936/dsc7888zi8.th.jpg (http://img168.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7888zi8.jpg)

22 years is not long for a dream come true, since for most people they never become true. Congratulations for a beautifull car. Enjoy the drive!
You are absolutely right ... I am humbled and proud to be able to achieve my dream.

[sameerrao]

Day 2: Durango, CO to Wichita Falls, TX

Today was a mega drive - I drove about 750 miles today. Sadly that didnt give me much time to take pictures ... took only about 5 :(

Tomorrow I will be finally getting to Houston and will put together my thoughts about the driving experience. :)

http://img151.imageshack.us/img151/7607/dsc7881pf0.th.jpg (http://img151.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7881pf0.jpg)http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/7226/dsc7882mp6.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7882mp6.jpg)http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/2944/dsc7883xl3.th.jpg (http://img80.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7883xl3.jpg)http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/729/dsc7884vi3.th.jpg (http://img177.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7884vi3.jpg)http://img166.imageshack.us/img166/4228/dsc7887jb9.th.jpg (http://img166.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7887jb9.jpg)

[RC45]

Tomorrow I will be finally getting to Houston and will put together my thoughts about the driving experience. :)

Sounds fantastic.. then rest up.. because I am trying organise a "Welcome Home Drive" for Sunday.. ;)

(I know you are probably going to chicken out for "reasons of exhaustion" - but this way you can't say I didn't try :P ;))

[novass]

...the Ferrari key which for some wierd reason seems to fold halfway

Ya I never understood why they did that :? I dont know if it was so your key ring could hang down or what they were thinking. Either way, it still has a prancing horse on it so it looks nicer than 90% of the other keys out there.

I think my favorite Ferrari key was the key they used for the 550s (not sure if they used the same for 575) and I believe the 355 used it as well.
http://img154.imageshack.us/img154/1747/pb240020fn5.th.jpg (http://img154.imageshack.us/my.php?image=pb240020fn5.jpg)
I got this blank from my previous employer to possibly use on my 510 when it was still a project in the works for shits and giggles and because there was no ignition when I got the thing anyway, I figured, what the hell :wink: :D

[Pehtren]

Congrats Sameerrao! This car is a beauty. You have to record the beautiful sound. So we can hear it too. :P

[nthfinity]

Day 2: Durango, CO to Wichita Falls, TX

Today was a mega drive - I drove about 750 miles today. Sadly that didnt give me much time to take pictures ... took only about 5 :(

Tomorrow I will be finally getting to Houston and will put together my thoughts about the driving experience. :)

great photos, and really nice to keep us up on your trip... i mean, isn't the internet cool? :)

BTW.... 750 miles, and 5 hours? 150 mph average? :twisted: :P

[Wutputt]

It's great to hear you found your Ferrari sooner as you would have though 1,5 months ago. It seems you really took your time in choosing the right 348: one in good condition and one of the better production years.

We all know this car is in good hands: it will be driven where it's made for. The fact you immediately took it on a long road trip really shows your passion for it. How many miles was your trip?

Congrats with your 348. I wish a lot of thrilling and safe miles in it ;)

btw the pics look great: nice landscape for a photoshoot!!

[RC45]

The fact you immediately took it on a long road trip really shows your passion for it. How many miles was your trip?

Lets hope when he adds up the miles it doesnt scare the "driver" in sameer away from regular drives ;)

20 x 300 mile weekends would be 6,000 miles a year (not counting daily driving and special road trips) would be more miles than some F-Cars get in 10 year ;)

Sameer - I am going to be nagging you to come driving as much as possible :P

[TopGearNL]

Nice Sameerrao for keeping us up on how your doing!

You must be enjoying every second! :D

Safe journey home mate, RC is planning allsorts of things so can't miss that :mrgreen:

[sameerrao]

Day 3: Wichita Falls to Houston: ~350 miles

http://img150.imageshack.us/img150/2932/dsc7892be9.th.jpg (http://img150.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7892be9.jpg)http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/8253/dsc7894hm0.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7894hm0.jpg)http://img91.imageshack.us/img91/484/dsc7895jv6.th.jpg (http://img91.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7895jv6.jpg)

Custom shot - baby is home!!! 8)
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/5729/dsc7897jk8.th.jpg (http://img171.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7897jk8.jpg)http://img86.imageshack.us/img86/4946/dsc7898us4.th.jpg (http://img86.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7898us4.jpg)

Tomorrow - I will post my driving impressions

[Caplax40]

Custom shot - baby is home!!! 8)
http://img171.imageshack.us/img171/5729/dsc7897jk8.th.jpg (http://img171.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7897jk8.jpg)Tomorrow - I will post my driving impressions

Ahhh we (and I'm sure there are others) had the same idea and had that "Every F1 Car" image printed onto a poster!! Good thinking Sameer!

[sameerrao]

Thanks - I took it to Kinko to get printed - it turned out to be a 180MB TIFF file - they had not seen sucha big file before :)

[ARMAN]

Wooohooo! Congratulations Sameer :P Now get to sleep you must be exhausted :D I see you did your homework and prepared the room for your baby :P
I bet you will come check on her few times this night and cannot believe it happend - Ferrari in you garage! Man I ENVY you badly :P :D

[sameerrao]

Wooohooo! Congratulations Sameer :P Now get to sleep you must be exhausted :D I see you did your homework and prepared the room for your baby :P
I bet you will come check on her few times this night and cannot believe it happend - Ferrari in you garage! Man I ENVY you badly :P :D

The garage was one of the first rooms (LOL) that was decorated when I bought the house in Feb ... it was kept in waiting for a suitable beauty to park alongside it

[sameerrao]

Day 2: Durango, CO to Wichita Falls, TX

Today was a mega drive - I drove about 750 miles today. Sadly that didnt give me much time to take pictures ... took only about 5 :(

Tomorrow I will be finally getting to Houston and will put together my thoughts about the driving experience. :)

great photos, and really nice to keep us up on your trip... i mean, isn't the internet cool? :)

BTW.... 750 miles, and 5 hours? 150 mph average? :twisted: :P
5 pics not hours :P

[ae86_16v]

Congratulations sameerrao!!!

Amazing pictures, it is always cool to see road trips with exotics :drool: .

Can't wait for an in depth review :D.

[TT]

Must have been so nice to shut the door closed once parked finally inside your garage :)

[pterps]

Must have been so nice to shut the door closed once parked finally inside your garage :)

It must feel much better, to open the garage door again, realising it's not a dream and taking it for a ride again :D

Welcome home Sameerrao, I am glad you brought your baby safe at home!

[TopGearNL]

Must have been so nice to shut the door closed once parked finally inside your garage :)

It must feel much better, to open the garage door again, realising it's not a dream and taking it for a ride again :D

Welcome home Sameerrao, I am glad you brought your baby safe at home!

Indeed!

Nice to see it parked inside your garage!! Take good care of your baby!! :D

[Mattk]

Congratulations on your new acquisition. It must feel great to be able to finally command a Ferrari, much less one of the best-looking models in the recent past.

[sameerrao]

Here is the much asked for driving impressions. I am using the 8) icon to signify the rating with 5 8) being the best

Performance:
Acceleration: 8)8)8).5
When I drove it first I thought the acceleration was pretty decent but not that special.

I did the initial road test in Salt Lake City, Utah which lies at altitude of 4250 ft. We went to a surrounding hill to see how the car handled - I felt that the car lacked torque and had to be dropped one or two gears to get the best out of it.

On the drive to Houston, we were descending most of the way - Texas is pretty flat - the car accelerated much better. Also the fuel was better in TX vs. Utah (93 vs 91 RON). Both these factors made a difference - the car seems to accelerate nicely here in Houston. The amazing sound makes it feel as if it accelerating a lot quicker than it really is :)

Of course, being 15 years old, I am under no illusions that it can compete with a modern car like a Mitsu Evo. But it will under no circumstances be embarrassed by a minivan :)

Flexibility: 8)8)8)8).5
Excellent - The engine is really flexible - you can start of in 2nd if you want and rarely need first unless you come to a complete stop. This is one of the main differences to a 328 which is relatively gutless (like a S2000 for instance) and needs to be rowed thru the gears to get some speed out of it. In the 348, third gear is good enough for pottering about in the city. The gear ratios seem to be very well chosen. In 5th gear for instance you can go from 40-170 mph (the latter speed is yet to be tested by me - I will do it one day on a suitable road)

Top Speed: 8)8)8)8)8)
This baby has got legs - I took it upto 129mph but there was a lot of throttle pedal travel still left - 160 mph seems possible for sure. It seems to be in its zone at 100-120mph - the engine is singing along nicely and the car seems to react very well to driver inputs.

Gear box: 8)8)8).5
lovely sound click-clack as you go thru the gears.

There is a learning curve involved here for sure for virtually everyone.

The dog leg first (to the left and bottom) was going to be big change to me as all the cars I have driven before had first gear to the left and top. So to prepare for this, I drove my Audi in this config all of last week - basically ignoring the actual first gear and treating second gear as first and then similarly for the higher gears :) This worked - I didnt miss a single shift nor go into reverse instead of first which would have been catastrophic :)

One caveat is that the gates makes the shifting a mite slower - I need to navigate through it slowly to be smooth. I am sure with time, I will be able to shift quicker but it is never going to be as fast as say a NSX, Elise or S2000.

The clutch is pretty heavy but precise with short travel like a sports car should be. I love it!!!

Steering: 8)8)8)8)8)
Fantastic. This is better in this car than all the other cars I have driven to date. Like the NSX it has no power assistance. This makes it a bit of pain when trying to park and manouvering at low speeds but the reward is that the steerimg feel is amazing.

Once you are above 20 mph, the high effort goes away. At high speeds, the weight of the steering gave me a sense of stability. My Audi gets annoyingly light at high speeds - not a nice feeling. The Boxster was the same. The steering telegraphs the bumps without any kickback like the Boxster.

It is scalpel sharp - you move the wheel x degrees, the car moves just that much and no more. There is no slop anywhere.

Ride: 8)8)8)8)
On the smoother roads of Utah and Colorado, the car shrugged away the minor bumps and drove like a sports sedan. But in the trash roads of Texas it was a bit stiff. Also I think the short wheelbase makes it pogo sticking on concrete expansion joints on some of the road .

But this a sports car and must be judged as that and not a Lexus. I need to experiment with tire pressures to find the sweet spot of ride and handling

Handling: 8)8)8)8)8)
This is the best feature of the car. With superb steering and great suspension, it is inevitable that the handling will be good. Despite it being 15 years old, I feel that this car will keep up or beat any S2000, NSX. It is stable and has a lot of grip - I was treating it with kid gloves but found that the limits are real high.

The mid engine config makes it eager to enter corners with precision. I coundnt detect any understeer. The tail stayed put despite some provocation from me. Another thing that is superb is the all-round visibility - you get a panoramic view to the front and sides (the A pillars are slim, the hood drops low) - this makes it easier to see into and through corners.

Some of the mag road tests I read criticized the 348 for being twitchy at the limit and evil handling. The point to note is that the journos had tested the 89-90 models which had a relatively narrow track and alignment specs that made the rear very sensitive to throttle inputs - particularly backing off on the throttle while in the corner.

From model build 89300 onwards, the rear track was widened, the rear suspension was differently sprung. In addition new alignment specs were provided. This really transformed the car. For my part, I tried to back of the throttle in the middle of the corner - the car didnt seem to care at all. It handles fantastic.

There is very little perceptible body roll. The car's attitude stays level. The 328 tends to lean quite a bit. The 348 engine is a couple inches lower down to improve the CoG. It is a veritable gokart.

Of course modern sports cars can beat it in outright cornering thanks to better, bigger rubber but in terms of feel, the old girl is priceless. She wants you to go into corners 5mph faster than you believed was possible :)

Engine sound: 8)8)8)8)8)
Really awesome. The engine has more octaves and tunes in her than Madonna ;) In most other cars there is basically one sound but as you accelerate the pitch changes but that's about it.

In this car it sounds quite different at various RPMs - you can hear the intake roar, the belts whirring, the pops and bangs on the overrun and the basic engine note changes from a deep rumble at low rpm to a scream to a different kind of scream to finally a woman screaming bloody murder at 7000rpm. And this is with the stock exhaust - I wonder how much more orgasmic it will sound with a tubi :)

It is loud for sure - I was shifting by sound and realized I was changing up at 3000 rpm - there was 4500 more revs left. A friend told me that he could hear my car 30 seconds before he saw me arrive. This was in my subdivision, where I kept the revs low and was puttering around in 3rd trying to be inconspicuous. Fat chance! :lol:

In all the 25+ hours of driving I must have used the stereo for about an hour or so - the rest of time I was being treated to a marvellous soundtrack from the rear :)

Design: 8)8)8)8)
The 348 is on the dividing line that delineates the old school Ferraris from new ones. The 355 onwards are lot more modern in design with emphasis on function over form. The 328 and earlier are old school with emphasis purely on form. The 348 looks pretty modern - most of the normal folks that I met on my roadtrip were bowled over when they learnt that the car was 15 years old and not 3-4 years as they originally thought.

Sure it doesnt have the smooth features of the 328 or 355. But the looks are perfectly in sync with the character of the car. The car is butch (heavy steering, clutch, etc) and the looks scream the same. I love it :)

Fit and Finish: 8)8)
Guido and the boys at the factory spent all their time on the engine and rushed thru the build aspect. The fit and finish is poor. The shutlines are not very precise.

The 328 was much better is this respect. The 355 is lousy in this regard too. The 360 onwards are superb.

Comfort + Room: 8)8)8)8)
There is lots of room inside - a 6 footer can fit behind the wheel pretty well. The floorwell is tight though. The pedals are offset but not as much as say a 328 or a Testarossa where you need to pretty much sit sideways :). After 10 hours plus of driving, I can say that the driving position is pretty good. The wheel needs to be a bit closer though if you are taller than 6 feet to make it easier to get in and get a better driving position.

There is decent amount of space for oddments inside the car. The luggage bay up front can hold a couple of small bags - a normal sized suitcase wont fit. It has about half the carrying space of a Z06 or Boxster

Fun to drive: 8)8)8)8)8)
It is a ton of fun - the engine sound, telepathic steering and handling makes the car a hoot to drive. I am real proud to own one. And it is a Ferrari which surely means something :)

Price/Maintenance: 8)8)8)
The car is real value for money - 50k seems too cheap for what you get. But the negative is that the car is expensive to service - about 20% more than a 328 but it is much cheaper than a 355. Buy the car and keep 6k in the bank account and you should be fine for 4-5 years. Remember you do not loose much money in depreciation as the car is on the bottom of the price curve - so maintenance is the only real cost.

[sentra_dude]

WOW! Great write-up sameerrao! I think the best on JW! :D

It really makes me want to get a Ferrari, even though its way, way out of my price range hahaha. I'm so glad your Ferrari has lived up to and exceeded your expectations, which I'm sure were pretty darn high to begin with!

On the maintenance/ownership cost aspect, I read an interesting argument from one Ferrari owner on FChat. He claimed as long as you don't have something major break, an older Ferrari like the 348 is actually cheaper to own than other sportscars in a similar price range (if you own it for a few years). Since the Ferrari really doesn't lose any value the only ownership costs are insurance and maintenance, whereas on other sportscars you might face a loss of $15K (or more unfortunately) in depreciation. I'm not sure if I believe it, as I'd imagine insurance and servicing the Ferrari are quite a bit more than on most cars, but its a nice thought. :P 8)

[komotar]

wow, I was eating up every word of the impressions :D

Thx for a very good in depth report.

It looks like not many things is wrong with the car and I hope it stays that way.

Thx for making my morning a littlw bit less dreary 8)

[RC45]

Hope the marriage is as great as the honeymoon ;)

[Erez]

great pictures 8) i'm sure it was a nice trip 8)
..she sure looks home in your garage :wink:
congrats again!

[novass]

Nice write up, its great to see your enjoying the car! :D

[Mattk]

Nice write up. If your posts are any indication, you seem to be having fun with this car.

[sameerrao]

Hope the marriage is as great as the honeymoon ;)

fingers crossed :)

[RC45]

Hope the marriage is as great as the honeymoon ;)

fingers crossed :)

You wanna go for a drive today ;)

I mean it's only a little rain hehehe

[TopGearNL]

Fantastic write up Sameerrao, read every word with pleasure! :D

[sameerrao]

WOW! Great write-up sameerrao! I think the best on JW! :D

It really makes me want to get a Ferrari, even though its way, way out of my price range hahaha. I'm so glad your Ferrari has lived up to and exceeded your expectations, which I'm sure were pretty darn high to begin with!

On the maintenance/ownership cost aspect, I read an interesting argument from one Ferrari owner on FChat. He claimed as long as you don't have something major break, an older Ferrari like the 348 is actually cheaper to own than other sportscars in a similar price range (if you own it for a few years). Since the Ferrari really doesn't lose any value the only ownership costs are insurance and maintenance, whereas on other sportscars you might face a loss of $15K (or more unfortunately) in depreciation. I'm not sure if I believe it, as I'd imagine insurance and servicing the Ferrari are quite a bit more than on most cars, but its a nice thought. :P 8)

Actually I got a pleasant surprise today - I got a quote for $290 for 6 months insurance for the 348. So looks like insurance is going be pretty cheap. I was expecting it to be double that. :D

Servicing is going to be expensive - no doubt about it. All you can do is find a nice car with good records and a recent major service and you should be okay on the big ticket items. You will still need to spend money on fixing minor/medium items like recharging the a/c units, alternators, distributors, etc.

Take my Audi as a comparison - I think its market value today is $24000 approximately. I paid $38000 for it 5 years back and have spent about $2000 in maintenance in total. So my total expense to date is $16000 including depreciation.

On a Ferrari 348 you can it buy it for say $50000 and sell it for say $48000 in 5 years. You will spend $6000-8000 in servicing. Insurance will be the same believe it or not. So the total cost on the 348 is <$10000. The Ferrari is cheaper than a new Audi.

I made an expensive mistake in buying a new car. Will never do that again - have learnt my lesson.

I think new Porsches and new 12 cylinder Ferraris are the worst money pits - the amount you lose in depreciation is stunning. A 550 Maranello costs $225K new in 2001 and is now avaialble for $120K - that is $100K lost in the car :shock: A 996 GT2 cost $190K and sells for $120K - that is $70k lost.

A C5 Z06 would be a great buy at say $25-30K because all the depreciation is done. Same with a 993 Porker. The new Z06 will eventually depreciate to the C5 levels and the guys paying premium for the cars are going to cry when it comes to sell the car 5 years down the line

[saadie]

fecking awsome ... congrats Sameer !!!! 8) 8) 8)

take good care of her .... shes your new baby :P :P

[sentra_dude]

WOW! Great write-up sameerrao! I think the best on JW! :D

It really makes me want to get a Ferrari, even though its way, way out of my price range hahaha. I'm so glad your Ferrari has lived up to and exceeded your expectations, which I'm sure were pretty darn high to begin with!

On the maintenance/ownership cost aspect, I read an interesting argument from one Ferrari owner on FChat. He claimed as long as you don't have something major break, an older Ferrari like the 348 is actually cheaper to own than other sportscars in a similar price range (if you own it for a few years). Since the Ferrari really doesn't lose any value the only ownership costs are insurance and maintenance, whereas on other sportscars you might face a loss of $15K (or more unfortunately) in depreciation. I'm not sure if I believe it, as I'd imagine insurance and servicing the Ferrari are quite a bit more than on most cars, but its a nice thought. :P 8)

Actually I got a pleasant surprise today - I got a quote for $290 for 6 months insurance for the 348. So looks like insurance is going be pretty cheap. I was expecting it to be double that. :D

Servicing is going to be expensive - no doubt about it. All you can do is find a nice car with good records and a recent major service and you should be okay on the big ticket items. You will still need to spend money on fixing minor/medium items like recharging the a/c units, alternators, distributors, etc.

Take my Audi as a comparison - I think its market value today is $24000 approximately. I paid $38000 for it 5 years back and have spent about $2000 in maintenance in total. So my total expense to date is $16000 including depreciation.

On a Ferrari 348 you can it buy it for say $50000 and sell it for say $48000 in 5 years. You will spend $6000-8000 in servicing. Insurance will be the same believe it or not. So the total cost on the 348 is <$10000. The Ferrari is cheaper than a new Audi.

I made an expensive mistake in buying a new car. Will never do that again - have learnt my lesson.

I think new Porsches and new 12 cylinder Ferraris are the worst money pits - the amount you lose in depreciation is stunning. A 550 Maranello costs $225K new in 2001 and is now avaialble for $120K - that is $100K lost in the car :shock: A 996 GT2 cost $190K and sells for $120K - that is $70k lost.

A C5 Z06 would be a great buy at say $25-30K because all the depreciation is done. Same with a 993 Porker. The new Z06 will eventually depreciate to the C5 levels and the guys paying premium for the cars are going to cry when it comes to sell the car 5 years down the line

For those reasons alone I don't think I'll ever buy a new car, much less a brand new sports-car. Even buying a car that is only 1 or 2 years old saves an amazing amount of money, and while you are taking a chance that someone messed up the car, as long as you are careful its not too bad. Anyways though, glad you have found the sweet-spot, so to speak, in depreciation for the 348! :D 8)

[TopGearNL]

/\/\ Indeed, thats very interesting!!

There's a 355 for sale for about 45000 euro's not bad, though I wish I had the money, Im 42000 Euros short LOL :mrgreen:

But what I mean is that its in the same price range as an Audi, Subaru, Bmw etc. so why buy that?

[sameerrao]

Well you do need to budget having a normal car alongside a Ferrari - you cant really have a Ferrari as your only car due to questionable reliability and long servicing lead times.

But anyone spending $50K on a new M3 as their second car has a lot of nice choices on the used car front.

[RC45]

Who you going to entrust the service of your new baby to?

Surely not the local mafia?

[sameerrao]

There is a good independent in Houston - a guy I know sends his Dinos and TRs to him - so he should be able to look after my humble 348. Also there is a good dealer in Dallas and San Antonio. Ferrari of Houston costs approximately 1.5X more than the independents

[sameerrao]

Great write up Sameer - you seem really pasionate about your car... same as TT with his porkers :wink:

Now it would be great if you could only copy-paste this review, add the pics of your roadtrip, and post them in the Car Reviews section :wink:

Actually, that's the best review I've ever read about the 348! :P :D

Roger that! Will do it this weekend. I have some new pics to post as well. I wrote the review in a bit of a rush - so I will read it again and add anything else that I have missed (E.g braking, light quality ... ). I will also put some car specs and other such general info as well.

Wait till TT posts a review of his dolls - then you will know what true passion is all about :lol:

[Wutputt]

Great driving impressions, Sameer! My eyes were glued to the screen when I was reading them :)

[davide]

Nice write up! Seems such a nice car :)

*waiting eagerly for more pictures* :lol:

[dutchmasterflex]

Great write up.. you can really feel your excitement just by reading your impressions.

Not surprised by the ratings, it would be damn hard to rate your first ferrari poorly :P

So will this just be your road cruiser? or do you plan on abusing your new baby on the track as well?

[ARMAN]

Engine sound: 8)8)8)8)8)
Really awesome. The engine has more octaves and tunes in her than Madonna ;) In most other cars there is basically one sound but as you accelerate the pitch changes but that's about it.

In this car it sounds quite different at various RPMs - you can hear the intake roar, the belts whirring, the pops and bangs on the overrun and the basic engine note changes from a deep rumble at low rpm to a scream to a different kind of scream to finally a woman screaming bloody murder at 7000rpm. And this is with the stock exhaust - I wonder how much more orgasmic it will sound with a tubi :)

It is loud for sure - I was shifting by sound and realized I was changing up at 3000 rpm - there was 4500 more revs left. A friend told me that he could hear my car 30 seconds before he saw me arrive. This was in my subdivision, where I kept the revs low and was puttering around in 3rd trying to be inconspicuous. Fat chance! :lol:

In all the 25+ hours of driving I must have used the stereo for about an hour or so - the rest of time I was being treated to a marvellous soundtrack from the rear :)

well now I(we) want to hear it!!! :drool: c'mon stop teasing us and make some video! :P :twisted:

Awsome write up, I always thought its better to buy a 911(or other exotic) than a dumb fully equiped Skoda or any other car. Well as TGNL now its time to save coins :P
Family friend was selling 993 turbo last year for idiotically small amount of money(25-30k $), I am 100% sure he didnt totrured her and he didint really care how much he get from the sale as he is filthy rich - 16 cars :shock: Maybe he didnt sell it yet dont know :oops:

[sameerrao]

So will this just be your road cruiser? or do you plan on abusing your new baby on the track as well?

Road cruiser - I can't afford to have a track car with all the added maintenance expense that entails. However I heard from the FCA chief here that Ferrari of Houston is going to hold a track day at MSR with instructors and stuff in March and April - I will love to try my hand around at easy speeds just to see how she performs on the track. By then I would have 3 months driving experience on her - so it should nice! :)

Today I took the Audi to work and all I could think about was why I didnt take the Ferrari. :lol: Tomorrow I am going to take the Ferrari. I think I will alternate between the two unless the weather is atrocious and I dont want to mess up the Ferrari.

[RC45]

If the weather is good are we on for Sunday early morning?

We can do a little back road blasting but then take turns videoing each other's cars at a few strategic bends and straightaways and I will be sure we have at least one other car so we can do moving still photos as well.

[sameerrao]

Sure - around 8-8:30am if that's not too late - I have to attend a party in Sugarland on Sat night which will run late. Or Sat morning is fine too ...

[novass]

There is a good independent in Houston - a guy I know sends his Dinos and TRs to him - so he should be able to look after my humble 348. Also there is a good dealer in Dallas and San Antonio. Ferrari of Houston costs approximately 1.5X more than the independents

Parts for Ferraris can add up quick, very quick. Just make sure you check out how much they charge you for parts vs. the dealer. Im almost certain that any independent shop in this country will be getting their parts from Maranello/T. Rutlands in Georgia. I know they have to make some money on the parts, just double check that they arent making a whole lot on them.

Of course I am just a little biased due to my experiance as a Parts Manager for an independent Ferrari shop, but some of the differences between what we paid and how much we sold for, were pretty high.


Wait till TT posts a review of his dolls - then you will know what true passion is all about Laughing

LMFAO!!!

[TransAm]

Awesome car, great write up too. Well done Sameer!

[sameerrao]

Whassup T/A?

How is good old England treating you? Did you post some pics of your 330d? Torquey engine right?

[ashsimmonds]

pap348 from fchat put the XOST exhaust on his car today, got an extra 18 ponies at the wheels, not to mention lost 11kg or something, plus the noise....

http://aussieexotics.com/2006/12/20/paps-ferrari-348-on-the-dyno-stock-vs-xost-exhaust

[sameerrao]

I saw that

[stmoritzer]

...
...

Today I took the Audi to work and all I could think about was why I didnt take the Ferrari. :lol: Tomorrow I am going to take the Ferrari. ..


:lol: :good:

I finally had time to read your post.
Congrats again to your new ride and thanks a lot for the detailed report, way better than journalists doing a review :wink:

[sameerrao]

New pedals installed yesterday - an XMas gift from my brother - looks good huh?

Old look:
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/2703/dsc7972vl2.th.jpg (http://img184.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc7972vl2.jpg)

New look:
http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/9803/dsc8098lk6.th.jpg (http://img184.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc8098lk6.jpg)http://img184.imageshack.us/img184/2961/dsc8100hu2.th.jpg (http://img184.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc8100hu2.jpg)

[Max Power]

those are some sharp looking pedals 8)

[MartijnGizmo]

Wow, you've got a Ferrari. How cool is that? 8)

[ARMAN]

Nice pedals Sameer :P

[Wutputt]

They look far better compared to the old black one.

[novass]

Very nice! :D

[TopGearNL]

Great improvement Sameer, looks stunning! :D

[sameerrao]

Next year my Christmas gift to you will be a rear grille... :wink: :mrgreen: :P j/k

Save your money for your future TdF 355 :)

I wouldnt mind a Tubi or X-OST next Christmas. Work your magic Dani Claus :)

[sameerrao]

Videos up!!!

YouTube

[ARMAN]

Wooohoooo! http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/4386/yea1bl7.gif (http://www.imageshack.us) beautiful :love: you need to get yourself Tubi Sameer :twisted:

Was that a short weel spin in 2nd gear when you drove up from the side of the road? :P

[sameerrao]

Thanks - it was actually the rear wheels coming off the ground on a bump there :)

It was me/bro's first video experience - so give me tips on making it better next time. Need to figure out how to pan better with the vcam :)

[ViperASR]

wow, sounds like your having fun with your car. Deff needs a tubi exaust though :twisted:

[sameerrao]

Tubi you say ... I am quite broke now ... need to save the $$$$ for any potential problems.

Maybe I can set up a fund "Donate to help Sameer buy a tubi" ... with the cheap bastard lurkers refusing to contribute to Jabba, I should have enough money in 2096 to be able to buy the tubi :lol:

[sameerrao]

New mod added - +450hp at the crank guaranteed. Lap times dropped by 30 secs/lap. Fan base grew by the millions.

Can you spot it?
http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/7731/dsc8465iu6.th.jpg (http://img50.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc8465iu6.jpg)http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/9109/dsc8462by3.th.jpg (http://img50.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc8462by3.jpg)http://img50.imageshack.us/img50/7112/dsc8461ma9.th.jpg (http://img50.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc8461ma9.jpg)

Strange side effects though - My chin grew an inch. Also, for some reason, I call anyone with the name Jacques Villeneuve "Whiney Bitch" ;)

[subhir]

Congrats Sam!! It looks awesome.

[sentra_dude]

Haha, awesome plate! 8)

[sameerrao]

Thanks :)

[acmarttin]

Love the plate, dude!

Although...I cannot tell a lie. My favorite license plate on Ferrari was one I spotted on a 360 Spider in Illinois.

It said "NICE VAN"

[Firdosh7747]

the vid was great really happy for you someday i hope i'll get an exotic car

[Zot09]

Haha that is freakin' awesome!

[stmoritzer]

LOL

[ARMAN]

LOL :lol: talk about Shumi fan! :mrgreen:

[ViperASR]

:shock: wow, thats gotta make it at least as fast as the 430 :lol:

[TopGearNL]

Nice to hear Sameer! :D

Now don't blow the engine!

Would love to hear a Tubi under that!

[RC45]

Now when we go driving like maniacs through the woods, all the cop will remember is "There was a Ferrari with a vanity plate - he thinks he is Schummy"... and the rest of us can remain anonymous and make a getaway ;)

[TopGearNL]

/\/\ LOL!

[sameerrao]

Now when we go driving like maniacs through the woods, all the cop will remember is "There was a Ferrari with a vanity plate - he thinks he is Schummy"... and the rest of us can remain anonymous and make a getaway ;)

I will carry a sign on top "The Silver Vette made me do it .."

For sake of parity, you need to re-install that racing exhaust back again. :)

[RC45]

Now when we go driving like maniacs through the woods, all the cop will remember is "There was a Ferrari with a vanity plate - he thinks he is Schummy"... and the rest of us can remain anonymous and make a getaway ;)

I will carry a sign on top "The Silver Vette made me do it .."

For sake of parity, you need to re-install that racing exhaust back again. :)

Hmmm.. you may have point ;)

[MartijnGizmo]

Wow, you really went all out on the mods!

[sameerrao]

Actually my idea won't work - the noise from your exhaust will wake up all the cops in the neighbourhood and all they will see is the red car. :)

The Schumacher plate will fly under the radar in the Deep South - if it was Dale Earnhardt Jr., I would be in lot of trouble :lol:

[Stoopie]

Awesome plates :D

[sameerrao]

Wow, you really went all out on the mods!

Nothing (caveat: under $100) is too good for my baby :lol:

[sivsk]

Sameerrao, i just got back from a trip checked out the forum saw your new baby!!!

An awesome car, a fantastic example of how a 348 should be, that has been well looked after, and is going to be in your hands too, your write ups are great!!! Enjoy every minute you have with the 348, you deserve it!!!!

[sameerrao]

Thanks :)

[sameerrao]

Time for an update methinks ....

I have now owned Sophia for nearly seven months. We have both covered 4,000 fun filled miles so far. Probably more than most owners put in their cars in a year and half. :D

I have taken her on long cross-country journeys, a track day event, rain (Yes, Ferraris do not melt in the rain) and more fun stuff. I feel I have gotten a better idea on how to drive the car. Still learning to be smooth and fast though - fun challenge in a true driver's car :). The handling is still amazing - in terms of feel if not ultimate grip. The brakes are strong and well capable of arresting speeds. All-round visibility is great. there is nothing I can think as a negative that would prevent me from recommending it to others.

All thru this she has been an absolute trooper - starting on the key and getting on with the program. The music from the rear always sounds good. FYI, I have the Spider exhaust in my car which is lighter than the normal one and is a bit less restrictive. It sounds pretty good IMO - I am not in a terrible hurry to upgrade the cats and exhaust. Need to save the $$$$ now.

So far the upgrade/maintenance/repair expenses have been:
- $2 for some glue to re-stick the interior rear view mirror that loosened up.
- ~$250 for oil change (11 quarts of Redline 5W40 and 5 quarts of Redline 75-90NS gearbox oil)
- New aluminium (note not aluminum as the folks here seem to think ;) ) pedals - cost $free - gift from bro :)
- lots of 93 octane gas - not tracking fuel mileage - really pointless - this is supposed to be a fun car. ;)
- $20 for a battery tender - well worth its weight in Au
- ~$500 for a set of 4 tires - good to go for another 10K miles I believe :)

I need to refresh the a/c refrigerant - its needed now.

Some recent pics :)
http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/8121/dsc9486jd8.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9486jd8.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/2074/dsc9497oi0.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9497oi0.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/1585/dsc9523vh0.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9523vh0.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/5674/dsc9503sf1.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9503sf1.jpg)

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/7505/dsc9506uu8.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9506uu8.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/952/dsc9530gr3.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9530gr3.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/3687/dsc9507jq3.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9507jq3.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/2306/dsc9499vd4.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9499vd4.jpg)

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/7347/dsc9528qc5.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9528qc5.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/115/dsc9510id1.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9510id1.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/2889/dsc9524uk2.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9524uk2.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/1058/dsc9511wl4.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9511wl4.jpg)

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/8991/dsc9522ct4.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9522ct4.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/8663/dsc9529zb4.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9529zb4.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/2862/dsc9500kf3.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9500kf3.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/1548/dsc9498qb5.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9498qb5.jpg)

http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/5796/dsc9501qv1.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9501qv1.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/6043/dsc9515ah5.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9515ah5.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/1411/dsc9485ck3.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9485ck3.jpg)http://img149.imageshack.us/img149/2363/dsc9488tz7.th.jpg (http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=dsc9488tz7.jpg)

[acmarttin]

That's awesome, Sameer! I'm actually a bit surprised how low your maintainance costs have been. I have to admit, looking at the pics of Sophia have really turned my opinion of the 348 line in general. It's really quite a pretty car to look at. I hope you two have many more happy journeys together! 8)

[blinkmeat]

i'd put new rims on her ... other than that I'm envious as hell :wink:

[RC45]

Nice to see you are enjoying her.

It is rather an irony.. since getting Sophia... you have put more miles on your sports car... than I have on mine ;)

When I get my car back in about 4 weeks or so, we must get together for nice country fun run again.

:)

[sameerrao]

^^ I will look for a strong and long bungie cord.

And I have put more miles on the 348 than on the Audi :shock:

[Zot09]

Glad to hear everything is going great with the 348, she really is a beauty! Stay safe.

[sentra_dude]

Thanks for the update, glad to hear that you are enjoying your Ferrari. :D

[ARMAN]

Beautiful pics as always :P Nice to see she's no garage queen ;)

Man its an ultimate dream to wake up, walk down to the garage all sleepy scratching your nuts, open the door, look at your Ferrari, giggle, close the door. F*ckin awsome :D

[silentm]

it's a pleasure to hear your enjoying your baby :)

the 348 is one of my favorite Ferraris, i have a model of it and it is jsut so beautiful

[dutchmasterflex]

You hear that RC45 wants to swap that V12 for a LS7?? :lol:

[sameerrao]

^^ Yep, we were talking about it sometime back. In eed to keep my garage locked up. Who know what's going to happen to the poor car when I am on vacation - Hit the throttle as usual and holy fuck what just happened here - triple digits in a blink of an eye :)

And it is a V8 for V8 swap BTW ;)

[RC45]

^^^ and remember, it won't stop pulling till it reaches redline at 7100rpm.. so you better hold on ;)

[dutchmasterflex]

As crazy as that sounds, it would be great to see it happen.

348 V8 makes a lot more sense than what I was thinking. Must be the lack of sleep today :oops:

[pitfield]

Lovely car!

Where are the grills over the back lights?

Do you use only 93 octane fuel.
The minimum we have here is 95 and you can get 103

[ZfrkS62]

awesome to see you enjoying your new girlfriend. Just watch that famed Redhead temper :wink:

I'm kind of sad that you didn't have her when i was in Houston for the fun run a couple years back. If you did, the Yoda would have been happily sitting in front of your house instead of bringing up the rear :lol:

RC, just PM me when you want to make that swap. I'll buy my plane ticket right away :twisted: :wink:

[TopGearNL]

Glad to hear you are still enjoying your baby :wink:

Sounds to me that the Ferrari Virus is very dangerous :lol:

[sameerrao]

Lovely car!

Where are the grills over the back lights?

Do you use only 93 octane fuel.
The minimum we have here is 95 and you can get 103

The slats were removed by the past owner to make it resemble a Speciale (a limited run 348). I may add a rear spacer and remove the grill remnants completely to complete the look. :)

93 octane is the highest grade of fuel you get here in the US in typical gas stations. It is possible to get 104 and 110 octane at race tracks and other special places.

The octane ratings are different in the US and ROW. 93 octane here corresponds to 98/99 octane in Europe.

[TopGearNL]

^^ That would be 95 Octane here right? :P

[sameerrao]

^^ I thing the 89 octane here may relate better to 95 in Europe.

I found the fuel octane to make a big difference to me. On my epic trip from Utah to Houston, I was on 90 octane in new Mexico and Southern Colorado. Even with an octane booster the engine seemed sluggish. Outside Dallas (TX) I got my first chance at getting 93 octane. It made a big difference. The engine was purring and revving like a mofo. :)

That's the sad part of California - lovely roads to drive, fantastic cars, rich people but lousy fuel - can't get higher than 91 octane (US) there. :mrgreen: