Ferrari Mailing List: Re: 1989 348 Sales Price

[Alexander Ishii (alexishii]

Personally, I've always had a soft spot in my heart for the 348.   It was
the first of a new era/architecture of V8 cars, and predictably, had a lot
of problems.  That said (and unlike the 328), it was noticeably faster than
a 308, and it "held the line" during the time when Honda and the press were
making so much noise about the NSX.

Appearance wise, I still have the AutoWeek cover from the Frankfurt launch,
and the car looked great there.  I often liken it to looking like a "running
shoe" very streamlined and athletic.  If it were not for the fake front
grill, I would have no qualms about its body work.

Finally, I think all of the car's difficulties taught Ferrari some important
lessons; need for better quality, benefits of special models, benefits of
syder models, etc... that helped them be more successful in later years.

Regarding the car that sold for a high price, if it really did happen to be
one of the "better than the norm" examples that Clyde cites, then it would
make sense that it would go for a lot; as we have been discussing, such
examples are harder to find, and hence more valuable.

I've test-driven a couple of 348s, and will say, that I can imagine a
potential buyer liking the car a lot more than a 308 or 328.   Once bitten
by the bug, I don't think it is that hard to convince one's self that (based
on a PPI) a particular example has already had all the bugs shaken out of
it...

Not claiming that the 348 is not fraught, just pointing out that I think it
has its good points as well...

    Cheers,
    Alex
    Nero Metallic QV