Ferrari

I took this photo at the Ferrari Racing Day at Silverstone at the weekend
and can't remember which car it was

Thanks in advance,
James

360 Modena.


"James" <> wrote in message
news:_hibi.240$
>I took this photo at the Ferrari Racing Day at Silverstone at the weekend
>and can't remember which car it was
>
> Thanks in advance,
> James
>

James" <> wrote in message
news:466df063$0$4735$

> 360 Modena.

You're talking to yourself, there James. First sign of madness, etc.

Nice pic. What camera do you have?


-Paul
--

Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.

"Paul Duffin" <> wrote in message
news:n2rbi.106237$ ...
> James" <> wrote in message
> news:466df063$0$4735$
>
>> 360 Modena.
>
> You're talking to yourself, there James. First sign of madness, etc.
>
> Nice pic. What camera do you have?
>
>
> -Paul
> --
>
> Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.
>

Thanks Paul, and to the other James for pointing out what my photo was.

My camera's a bog standard Fujifilm Finepix S3000 Zoom.

Cheers,
James

P.S. Sorry Paul for replying directly to you first time around - I've had a
long day...!

Make that the next sign of madness. The purchase of three Ferraris over the
past 10 years were the first signs...

Actually, I thought it might look a bit odd when I replied to the other
James.

James
(aka, giallo355...which, actually, should be updated to giallo360 now)

"Paul Duffin" <> wrote in message
news:n2rbi.106237$ ...
> James" <> wrote in message
> news:466df063$0$4735$
>
>> 360 Modena.
>
> You're talking to yourself, there James. First sign of madness, etc.
>
> Nice pic. What camera do you have?
>
>
> -Paul
> --
>
> Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.
>

"James" <> wrote in message
news:46788a1c$0$8039$
> Make that the next sign of madness. The purchase of three Ferraris over
> the past 10 years were the first signs...

So, daring to bring this group around to its (theoretical, at least)
subject.

Hey James, howabout letting us know what it's like 'moving up' the marque?

Is each car so much better than the last? are there things that you miss
from your previous cars?
which did you/do you enjoy most?

....and kindly send me some pics, I'll put 'em on my site in my forthcoming
'toys' section (yes, for long time groupers, it's coming back!)

-Paul
(308GTS qv for 12 years now... and not sure if my wife will ever let me
change it.)
--

Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.

Paul Duffin wrote:
> ...and kindly send me some pics, I'll put 'em on my site in my
forthcoming
> 'toys' section (yes, for long time groupers, it's coming back!)

I'll believe that when I see it...

T308

Well, my ~10 year adventure with Ferrari's has has some ups & downs. Here's
a brief history:

The 348 years....
In late '97, I was able to convince my wife that I needed to upgrade from my
'70 Plymouth AAR Cuda to an Italian car. I came across a white/tan '92
348tb with about ~11K miles for a "reasonable" price. "Reasonable" is in
quotes as I've learned that one must recalibrate their definition of
"reasonable" when dealing with any aspect (purchase, maintenance, etc.) of a
Ferrari. All in all it was a decent car over the ~2.5yrs that I owned it.
I put about 7K miles on it, many at the track (TWS - Texas World Speedway).
During this time, I was also "fortunate" enough to pay for tires, several
oil changes, timing belt change, ECU replacement, and, unfortunately, some
bodywork to the front valence. They say that Ferrari's have low ground
clearance. I proved that this car, with ~5 inches of ground clearance, was
incapable of clearing an ~6" diameter stone at ~40 mph. Very unpleasant
sound...

Highlights: Popped my Ferrari cherry with this car.
Lowlights: Electrical system "gremlins", unstable at high speeds (>140mph)
& somewhat underpowered. Also, Ferrari's just shouldn't be painted white...

The 355 years...
In early '00, I came across a yellow/black '95 F355 with ~9.6K miles on the
odometer while getting my 348 serviced at the dealership. This was a
fantastic example with the carbon fiber racing seats. I simply had to have
it! My wife was in a similar disposition regarding having another child.
The deal was made right there in my saleman's office -- I got the car
(traded-in the 348) AND another son out of the deal (that's what I call a
"win - win")! During the 7yrs that I owned it I put about ~12K miles on the
odometer. As with the 348, many of these were logged at TWS whilst
chasing-down 360's & such. I had the pleasure of shelling out $$$ for
numerous oil changes, 2 sets of Pirelli's, timing belts, CV joint boots,
shocks, brakes, etc. This was not the worst of it, however...

It still pains me to speak of this, but, I'm finding this somewhat
theraputic...

On a fateful Friday afternoon, August 13, 2004, I attempted a U-turn on a
roadway near my house. For whatever reason, a VW Jetta decided to magically
appear as I was ~halfway thru my U-turn. The resulting sights & sounds were
the most unpleasant yet. In retrospect, no one was injured and the car only
suffered cosmetic damage to the front valence, right fender & hood (bonnet)
damage. Nevertheless, my insurance company & I shelled-out an enormous sum
of $$$ to Ferraro of Houston for repairs. When it returned to home, after
~6 months, it was better than new! I must say, if you ever "aerodynamically
alter" your Ferrari, FoH has a first-clhostinghostinghosting repair facility.

Highlights: Absolutely stunning design. Gorgeous body-lines that look
quite modern (until it sits next to a 360 or 430). 385 beautiful ponies
with a fantastic 6spd. Stable up to ~175mph (I seemed to have lost my
"attachments" after hitting that mark on the speedo...). Letting my middle
son's cub scout troop climb all over it.
Lowlights: See paragraph above. Oh yeah, maintenance costs and feeling
like a "fish in a fish bowl" while driving a fly yellow car. Sitting in the
phostinghostinghostingenger's seat at ~140mph at TWS with my 18yr old son at the wheel...

The 360 years...uh, months...
After owning the 355 for ~7yrs, I was beginning to tire of it (the grhostinghostinghosting is
always greener...) and it would often go weeks without being driven. Such a
fine automobile should be exercised regularly, so I decided it was time for
it to find a new home. In Mar'07 I located a meticulously maintained 6-spd
yellow/black '00 360 with ~19K miles. As with the 355 years ago, a simple
test-drive and hearing that lovely Tubi had me drooling. After some
haggling with the dealer (it had been on their lot for several months --
advantage: me), we were able to reach an amenable trade-in for mine &
purchase price for theirs. In the ~3 months since buying it, I've already
clocked ~2K miles on the odo. I simply can't avoid driving it with the
windows down to hear it. Only word of caution - 3rd gear and a
fully-depressed throttle should only be attempted while in a straight line
unless one is wearing Depends!

Highlights: Absolutely everything about it.
Lowlights: None yet.

Well, that's my "brief" history with this fabulous marque. I must say that
I've been quite fortunate to own these wonderful machines over the years.
Hopefully I will be able to do so for many years to come.

Regards,
James (aka, giallo355)


"Paul Duffin" <> wrote in message
news:Nlqei.107291$ ...
> "James" <> wrote in message
> news:46788a1c$0$8039$
>> Make that the next sign of madness. The purchase of three Ferraris over
>> the past 10 years were the first signs...
>
> So, daring to bring this group around to its (theoretical, at least)
> subject.
>
> Hey James, howabout letting us know what it's like 'moving up' the marque?
>
> Is each car so much better than the last? are there things that you miss
> from your previous cars?
> which did you/do you enjoy most?
>
> ...and kindly send me some pics, I'll put 'em on my site in my forthcoming
> 'toys' section (yes, for long time groupers, it's coming back!)
>
> -Paul
> (308GTS qv for 12 years now... and not sure if my wife will ever let me
> change it.)
> --
>
> Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.
>
>

"Tifosi 308" <> wrote

> I'll believe that when I see it...
>
> T308

Up your bum.

Of course you could send me a few pics as well, that would make it even more
likely to happen.

-MCPD
--

Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.

"James" <> wrote

> Well, my ~10 year adventure with Ferrari's has has some ups & downs.
> Here's a brief history:

Thanks, James... a few questions.
> The 348 years....
> Lowlights: Electrical system "gremlins", unstable at high speeds
> (>140mph)

In what way was it unstable? I've had my 308 at an indicated 155mph a few
times and it always feels pretty well planted - of course I'm only going in
a (fairly) straight line.

> & somewhat underpowered.

Compared to?

Also, Ferrari's just shouldn't be painted white...

True!

> The 355 years...

Did you never suffer the exhaust manifold problem? I thought track days
would be likely to acelerate that.

> The 360 years...uh, months...
> Only word of caution - 3rd gear and a fully-depressed throttle should
> only be attempted while in a straight line unless one is wearing Depends!

Wearing what?

> Highlights: Absolutely everything about it.

What about it are the main improvements over the 355? particulalrly in terms
of handling - you use it on the track, but I'm wondering whether in street
driving, you would be so far within the envelope of both car's abilities
that you would not be aware of any significant difference, IYSWIM.

-Paul
--

Vanity, vanity, vanity.... oh, and some a.a.f. stuff.