Ferrari Mailing List: Re: 400i manual

[JAshburne (JAshburne]

Hi Rodney:
 
I've owned a 1983 400i 5 speed for the last 10 years and it is a hugely  
underappreciated Ferrari mainly because of its 2+2 seating.  Compared to  the 2 
seaters, they are considered big and heavy but that has to be put into  
perspective.  They are about the same size as a Camaro and they are  positively 
dwarfed in size when parked next to a modern Toyota Camry.
 
None of the series was ever officially imported into the U.S., so every one  
that is here legally had to be brought in as a gray market car and federalized 
 for EPA and DOT exemptions.
 
Out of 1,308 total 400i production from 1979-Feb 1985, 884 were automatics  
and 424 were 5 speeds.  The earlier 400 carbed series had 355 autos and 145  5 
speeds for a total of 501 cars.  The 412 series had 306 autos and 270 5  
speeds for a total run of 576.  
 
So total 5 speed production for all three models spanning nearly 15 years  
was 839 cars.  Dave Stacey on FChat tracks these even more than I do and he  
says that he thinks there are fewer than 40 400i 5 speeds currently in the  U.S.
 
The automatic is a GM TH-400 3 speed box which is considered to be a strong  
box and reasonably well suited to the wide torque range of the V-12 engine in  
the 400/400i/412.  I drove one when I was looking at cars and decided that  I 
liked the 5 speed better.
 
I also drove Ben Kao's 1983 400i 5 speed since he was selling it in  1998 
when I was looking.  It was a very nice car painted a nice dark  Rosso Nearco 
(s/n 48741) with a black interior and a brand new Tubi exhaust  but I passed on 
it because his asking price was pretty high ($46K) at the  time.  Ben ended up 
selling the car a couple of years later for less than  half of his original 
asking price to Monty Meersma, who used to be on the  FList.  Monty replaced 
the 
self-leveling rear suspension with a coil over  shock system and then sold it 
to Tom Gehring in Minnesota, another old  FLister.  I believe Brian Buxton 
assisted Monty in the sale to Tom.  I  saw Tom and his 400i when he drove it 
down for the U.S. Grand Prix at Indy in  2002.  I don't know if he still has it.
 
They are great cars and if you have the means, I highly recommend picking  
one up.
 
John
 
 
 
 
 
 
In a message dated 12/3/2008 5:50:44 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,  
ltwacko [at] aol.com writes:

Are  there any stateside 400/400i/412's stateside that are manual?  I have  
always been intrigued but only come across the automatics.  If I read  
correctly, all the autoboxes are GM 3-speeds?  Can they be upgraded,  swapped 
or 
improved?  Could a vette 6-speed be dropped in?  Of  course anything can be 
done 
with the right amount of money but if it's a GM  part, the possibilities seem 
enticing.  Even a better autobox makes sense  to make better use of the 
powerplant.

Rodney
Hey, I'm in trouble  already.  Why not get into  more?
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