Long-Term Road Tests
1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
June 18, 2008
After a heated bidding war on Ebay, our Ferrari 308 finally sold for an even $30,000. Alex from Texas was the lucky winner, but as excited as he was about the purchase, he was smart enough to know that a 1,000 mile road trip in June wasn't the best way to enjoy the Ferrari's charms.
He sent a truck to pick it up today and we were sad to see it go. Although not everyone on staff fell in love with the Magnum-mobile, it won over more than a few doubters during its year of service in the long-term fleet. We'll have a full wrap up later, but for now, this is your last look at our 308 in California.
Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ 53,986 miles
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- Posted by: Ed Hellwig June 18, 2008, 2:59 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
June 3, 2008
Our 1984 Ferrari 308 GTS Quattrovalvole is now up for auction on Ebay. We've enjoyed it for a year now and loved (almost) every minute of it. Don't miss your chance to own a clean example of an iconic car.
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- Posted by: Ed Hellwig June 3, 2008, 4:10 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
May 30, 2008
After months of performing full-body prostrations in front of their desks, the gods of the long-term fleet finally relented last night and gave me the keys to our soon-to-be-sold Ferrari. First impression: Magnum P.I. was riding low. An Integra coupe towered over me when I pulled alongside it, as did a 997 911 Turbo...
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- Posted by: SadButTrue May 30, 2008, 12:05 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
May 12, 2008
It's already a known fact that I love driving our 308. Yeah, it's not the most comfortable way to travel, and parallel parking with the manual steering takes more time and muscle than I'm used to. But to me, this is driving distilled to its essence. Hell, I was even moved to write a little poetry about it in one of my posts: http://66.160.188.111/.eea5723.
On a less romantic topic, I felt it was time for a fuel mileage update:
-- Best tank to date: 19.82
-- Worst tank to date: 8.95
-- Lifetime average: 13.9 mpg.
EPA's numbers for a 1985 308 (same car as our '84) -- revised using their more accurate, current methodology -- stand at 9 city / 15 highway / 11 combined. So we're beating their combined figure by almost 3 mpg!
John DiPietro, Automotive Editor @ 53, 828 miles.
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- Posted by: John DiPietro May 12, 2008, 10:15 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
May 5, 2008
I won't soon forget last night's drive in our Ferrari 308 GTSi. I was in a good mood, the 308 had a full tank of gas (I'd made sure of it the day before, twisting and turning the pump every which way to ensure a complete fill), and the night was refreshingly cool. We went for a drive up the coast.
Traffic was light, but the Ferrari got noticed anyway, mainly by an aggressive guy in a 997 911. Obviously, I'd have had no chance of keeping up if he laid into the throttle, but he hung around, no doubt enjoying the car's body lines and the happy sounds it makes following a properly executed heel-and-toe downshift. And that gets at one of things I like about this car: Smooth shifts are all your doing. You're not relying on fancy electronics to help you out.
Later, after the 911 had gone, I let the engine rev to its 7,800-rpm redline before shifting up. I know this isn't a quick car by today's standards, but there's still a definite sense of speed. And the sounds, of course, are one of a kind. The powerband is special, too. There aren't many engines left on production cars that peak like this -- the V8 feels something like the inline six in our E46 M3 but takes a more meandering path.
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- Posted by: Erin Riches May 5, 2008, 4:04 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
May 1, 2008
And were you to buy our 1984 Ferrari 308, you, too, would know the pleasure of staring at it through a window while eating pizza. Just by association, this not especially well-cared-for, base Mini Cooper looks like something I might want to drive.
I've been driving the Ferrari around town this week and learned something about myself in the process. Obviously, you don't buy a 25-year-old car if reliable transportation is the goal. But probably the biggest reason I haven't warmed more to the 308 is that I'm always in too much of a hurry. I never allow enough time to get places. And this means I become impatient with the Ferrari when I have to squat down to unlock its doors or muscle its steering in a tight parking lot. If I ever want to own an old car, a serious change in attitude and lifestyle will be necessary.
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- Posted by: Erin Riches May 1, 2008, 1:34 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
April 30, 2008
In six weeks our 12-month test of a 24 year old Ferrari 308 will be over. And that means only one thing: Our 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole is for sale.
If you remember we paid $28,000 for it and have laid out $5,000 in repairs and mechanical upgrades. If you want to buy it, email me at Insideline.editor@edmunds.com...
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April 28, 2008
A few weeks ago, I misplaced my beloved Quicksilver sunglasses, probably the nicest pair I have ever owned. A couple days later, my beloved neighbor Susan lent me the above pair of DKNY shades. And they ROCK. They have a slight red/pink tint that give the world a look of perennial sunset. Things are sharper, as with all good shades, but a tiny bit redder. And because I love them so much, Susan let me keep 'em...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd April 28, 2008, 3:34 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
April 24, 2008
Since it's Earth Month, I figure I should share a "recycling" story. When we bought our 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole it came with these snazzy sheepskin seat covers. But the covers were then promptly ejected from the car and lived in our supply closet for many moons until Managing Editor Donna DeRosa and I decided to make good use of them. We put them on our desk chairs to make sitting at our desks a little cozier...
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- Posted by: Caroline Pardilla April 24, 2008, 4:59 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
April 14, 2008
The above photo illustrates the only way to drive a 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi: top down. It is so much a part of the whole Ferrari Southern California mystique, and in my mind, the only way to go. And practically speaking, I'm 6'1, so my head rubs against the roof and it feels a bit claustrophobic with the top on.
But so much a part of West Los Angeles driving is about the sun, the wind, the smell of the ocean...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd April 14, 2008, 11:19 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
April 7, 2008
Yesterday, I met up with a friend of mine who owns a 1983 Porsche 911SC. We headed into the Sierras on one of my favored Central California roads to drive a classic Ferrari and Porsche on a beautiful Sunday afternoon.
It sure beat mowing the lawn.
Some basic comparison specs, brief driving impressions and more pictures follow after the jump.
Brent Romans, Senior Automotive Editor @ 52,997 miles
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- Posted by: Brent Romans April 7, 2008, 9:45 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
April 3, 2008
What's it like living with a Ferrari 308? I got the full experience yesterday in just 60 minutes.
3:45 p.m.: I've gone to my garage to get something. There's the Ferrari. It looks fantastic in a way that no new, $30,000 car ever could. "Drive me," it whispers. Well, I guess I could shirk out on doing work and run an errand or two...
3:50 p.m.: I've grabbed the keys. Just a quick check of the car before I go. Hmm. There's puddle of fluid under the engine that wasn't there yesterday. Oh, and look, there's a fresh drip, too. Fantastic! I whisper a curse at the Ferrari.
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- Posted by: Brent Romans April 3, 2008, 11:54 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
April 1, 2008
Last night I had a little fun with our long-term 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi, at the expense of Vehicle Testing Coordinator Mike Schmidt. You see, I'm kind of a big fella, and pretty furry, so Mike likes to call me "bear."
Well, the joke's on him. Last night I had the keys to our Ferrari, so I broke into the zoo and stole a large grizzly. And let me tell you, the scratches were WORTH IT! The Ferrari was fantastic...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd April 1, 2008, 11:00 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
March 31, 2008
Our Ferrari 308 made its longest one-way trip yet last week since we've owned it: 250 miles of freeway driving. It made it just fine. I emailed Scott Oldham after arrival and he wrote back, "Told you. Runs like a Camry."
The actual driving experience, however, was all Ferrari 308. And this isn't necessarily a good thing.
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- Posted by: Brent Romans March 31, 2008, 11:41 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
March 24, 2008
As my colleague Doug has relayed to y'all, our 308 is running fantastic. It fires up with a single key twist, the power delivery is smooth and linear and with temps in the mid-80s I ran the A/C (when I wasn't driving al fresco with the top off) with no threat of the engine overheating. It's well sorted, in the zone, running clean.
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- Posted by: John DiPietro March 24, 2008, 4:02 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
March 18, 2008
The title of this blog post is somewhat misleading. Mostly because it's so one-sided. Because I LOVE this car. It's gorgeous and classically styled, it sounds absolutely fantastic, it turns heads, it corners flat. It's just such a pleasure to drive, and it makes me want to drive.
This weekend really finally felt like summer despite being mid-March, the kind of weather that reminds me why I love living in So Cal. It was absolutely beautiful, and I spent Saturday driving up the Pacific Coast Highway to have lunch with a buddy and then just to DRIVE.
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd March 18, 2008, 12:38 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
March 10, 2008
Eeny, meeny, miny moe...
Another tough day in sunny So Cal. Should I take the 1984 Ferrari 308 or the 2008 Nissan GT-R? As much as I love our Ferrari, on most days that black GT-R supplied to us by www.jspecconnect.com would be my choice...
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March 3, 2008
I used to live in Venice Beach. I have a T-shirt with an image of Miles Davis on it, and for some reason, the shirt always attracted the oddballs. The nut jobs would always engage me in conversation when I wore that shirt. Not any other shirt...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd March 3, 2008, 4:00 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
February 22, 2008
So, I have to admit, I've never driven our long-term Ferrari 308. And I haven't really had much of an inclination to do so. 1) I live 250 miles away from the office; 2) I keep long-term cars for two weeks; 3) If it breaks down, it's going to be one expensive tow back to FX Performance; and 4) I look nothing like Tom Selleck.
But others on staff have been bugging me to drive it. And a friend of mine owns a 1984 Porsche 911SC, so it'd be fun to have a real Against All Odds.
So yesterday I was ready to take the keys. But then our master car wrangler, Mike, pointed out one important detail: It was supposed to rain.
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- Posted by: Brent Romans February 22, 2008, 3:21 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
February 21, 2008
After snaking the Ferrari 308 from Caroline over the weekend, the first place I headed was the Rock Store in Malibu. It was packed on Sunday, with so many rows of bikes lining the street I had barely had room to park the Ferrari. Saw a Ducati Desmosedici RR, a couple hundred Harley’s and Jay Leno. The Ferrari ran perfectly the whole day, so good, in fact, that I took it for another drive on Monday.
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- Posted by: Ed Hellwig February 21, 2008, 11:01 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
February 14, 2008
Quick recap: A rock put a big hole in our Ferrari's right front turn signal lens. It worked but looked a bit trailer trashy. This was right after the Ferrari cost us a wad of cash for an ignition system rebuild so we were feeling cheap and said we weren't going to fix it. Nor were we going to repair the horn that had become inoperable...
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February 11, 2008
For the last couple weeks I have had some lower-back issues that have kept me out of our long-term Ferrari 308, which is akin to getting into a kayak or bathtub. This weekend, bright with So Cal sunshine, I was feeling good enough to drive it again, and my love continues to grow. I'm over the whole, "Oh my god. I'm driving a Ferrari!!!" Now I just appreciate it as a spectacular car...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd February 11, 2008, 5:47 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
January 28, 2008
Which would you pick?
After time spent behind the wheel of this red 2008 Pontiac G8 GT I know which one I'd choose. But which would you drive home? Stupid question? Not really. A 2008 Pontiac G8 GT will soon be joining our long-term fleet, which means this tough choice will become a daily event around here...
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January 22, 2008
This weekend I spent an hour making our 1984 Ferrari 308 not broken. And I did it for two reasons:
1) You, the Inside Line reader, guilted me into it. You said we were falling into the trap of deferred maintenace and you were right.
2) I became sick and tired of my fellow Inside Line staff members laying into the car for small, easily fixed imperfections like a loose gear shift knob...
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January 18, 2008
Yes, I can admit it. I. Don't. Get. It. I really don't understand the appeal of our 1984 Ferrari 308. Is it like how label fiends lust after $200 jeans -- just for the label or just to say they own $200 jeans? And, yes, I admit that "Driving a Ferrari" was on my list of to-dos before I die. But when you're given a laundry list of how you're supposed to DRIVE a car that should tell you right there that something's not right. Here's what I was told.
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- Posted by: Caroline Pardilla January 18, 2008, 11:30 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
January 14, 2008
I have really taken a shine to our long-term 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi. Shocking, I know. But the important part is, I'm no longer intimidated by it. Yes, it's a cop magnet...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd January 14, 2008, 12:53 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
January 11, 2008
First of all, all you people posting in the Ferrari blog have got to lighten up. All the "No, you don't get it, let me enlighten you" talk is a little much, don't ya think?
So I've been reluctant to take the Ferrari home. What, with all the unexpected, inconvenient, and expensive trips to the shop, and all. Even so, I've been reading with interest all my colleagues' fawning "they-don't-make-'em-like-they-used-to" praise and wanted to experience all the rolling, red, masterpiece had to offer.
I asked Signore Schmidt if he thought it was healthy enough for my mostly-freeway trip home and he said it was.
After his well-rehearsed "Always [fill in the blank], but Never..." brief, I rolled out. There are many details of my drive that helped my come to the realization that they, indeed, don't build them like they used to, but that's because if they did, Ferrari would have gone broke. This car is awful by today's standards.
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- Posted by: Chris Walton January 11, 2008, 1:21 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
January 10, 2008
As I have aged, I have learned to enjoy the full aspect of certain acts. Not just the act itself, but the anticipation, the excitement, the build-up: As I'm towel-drying my hair in the morning, ready to head into the office, and thinking, "There's a freakin' Ferrari parked in my garage." And then the last couple seconds, as the garage opens and I get that first glimpse of that magnificent red beast, and then my eyes fall upon the form.
And I soak in that low, menacing sports car shape, the four individual round taillights. And then I bend my tall body into the low cabin and for a second, anticipate the sound of the engine...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd January 10, 2008, 12:18 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
January 7, 2008
This blog post is dedicated to the dissenters -- those of you who feel compelled to continue with the never-ending cost/benefit analysis of our long-term Ferrari 308.
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- Posted by: Dark Helmet January 7, 2008, 11:19 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
January 4, 2008
I've been reading your comments on the Ferrari's more recent blog entries. And I've got to tell ya, you guys are harsh. Where's the love gone? So what if the car has had a few problems. If you didn't think a 1984 Ferrari 308 would need some fixing after being driven daily by 20 idiot automotive journalists, chances are good you went to school on the short bus...
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January 3, 2008
Our Ferrari 308 is officially back. This past weekend the Ferrari and I rebonded. I drove the little Italian about 150 miles, with trips ranging from a 90 mile romp through the Malibu hills to a take-out run down to the local pizzaria. And I'm happy to report that those were 150 trouble-free miles...
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December 18, 2007
As you can see from this unevenly lit photo, I love how the 308's cockpit looks with late-afternoon sunlight pouring into it. I spent the post-op weekend with the car and took my longest drive in it to date -- about 80 miles.
The more I drove, the more I relaxed and the more at home I felt in the Ferrari's reclined, knees-up, offset driving position. It's hardly ergonomic by modern standards, but the low cowl and sweeping views are hard to resist. The leather-wrapped grip of the Momo steering wheel has long since ceased to look or feel like real leather (it's slick like plastic), but the shape of the wheel felt just right in my hands.
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- Posted by: Erin Riches December 18, 2007, 4:40 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
December 17, 2007
Our 1984 Ferrari 308 has been discharged from the intensive care unit at FX Performance. Final tally: $2,373.69. Here's how it breaks down.
Antonio and the gang replaced one of the car's two engine modules with a rebuilt one...
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December 6, 2007
I was driving in this morning on PCH, not really thinking about our disabled long-term Ferrari 308. Then I saw this black beauty cruising next to me in morning rush hour. Not sure of the exact year, but it was one of the cleanest 400i models I've ever seen. The paint was flawless, the wheels sparkled and the exhaust note was pure audio pornography...
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- Posted by: Karl Brauer December 6, 2007, 6:56 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
November 30, 2007
As you can see from these photos our 1984 Ferrari 308 is still in sickbay. According to Antonio at FX Performance, our shop of choice, our car's two ignition boxes took a dump. This took a few days to diagnose and now we're waiting for parts. Cha ching...
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November 26, 2007
I need to make a slight adjustment to my post from this morning. When I left my house the car was running as described earlier -- great! But a few blocks from the Edmunds offices I pulled up to a stop light, waited for it to change (with the engine idling fine the whole time) and then tried to pull away when the light turned green. "Vroommmmmmm--clup-clup-clup." My initial thought was a simple lack of throttle (though I've never stalled it before...). So I turn the key, and while the engine spins quickly it...won't...quite...catch. "Come on -- I can still save this and look only mildy stupid in my Ferrari..." runs through my head as the inevitable honks begin and people start driving around me, but the engine won't fire.
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- Posted by: Karl Brauer November 26, 2007, 1:45 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
This was my first time in the long-term Ferrari 308 since August, when it was hard to start and lacking in low RPM power. But after some repair/tuning work with our local exotic-car mechanic I'd been hearing tales of fun and frolic in the lively Italian. With a long holiday weekend ahead of me it seemed like the perfect time to re-try our red exotic.
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- Posted by: Karl Brauer November 26, 2007, 8:16 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
November 19, 2007
Last week I had a 250 mile day in our 1984 Ferrari 308 and I can tell you the car is running better than ever. The drive was from my Los Angeles home up to Willow Springs International Raceway 125 miles northeast in Lancaster and then back. And here's the best part, my trip up was at sunrise and my trip home was well after dark. Which means I hit no traffic and enjoyed cool temperatures. The Ferrari was happy...
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November 13, 2007
I took the Ferrari for a weekend for the first time (cue "Oh Yeah" song from Ferris Bueller's Day Off) -- "chook, chook, chook-ah-chook-AHHHH!" Yeah, I know it's a 250 GT California Spider in the movie, but let me have my fun here! Anyhoo, I had Sunday and Monday (a holiday for us) slated for Ferrari seat time (I planned to ride my new Harley on Saturday.) It was to be a gearhead's dream weekend!
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- Posted by: John DiPietro November 13, 2007, 3:21 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
November 5, 2007
It's lonely being exotic. And such is the life of a 23 year old Italian sports car. This is how our 1984 Ferrari 308 spent its weekend. Apparently everyone on staff needed a car that was more comfortable or more reliable or more convenient or more spacious or more practical this weekend...
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October 29, 2007
Any weekend that our long-term Ferrari 308 is available, I grab it. I love to drive it, it sounds great, and I'm really getting to know it.
But all the reasons that it's great are all of the reasons that it's a pain also. I am 6'1, and picked up my friend for a drive up the PCH...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd October 29, 2007, 12:14 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
October 19, 2007
Welcome to the 1980s. This morning I was humming along in our 1984 Ferrari 308 when this Porsche 911 of similar vintage pulled alongside. We danced for a while, but parted company at the next interchange. It was fun, and it reminded me of something...
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October 18, 2007
Early this morning it occured to me that you guys haven't gotten a good look at the very effective defroster of our 1984 Ferrari 308. In case you're dense, that's me with an old towel.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 49,908 miles
October 15, 2007
Handed the keys to the Ferrari on Friday, I was given instructions and clarity. Wash the car. But hand wash it, because the engine is exposed to the elements and you don't want to get water on it. The drive home was easy and the 308 proved very comfortable in rush-hour traffic. On the way out that night, I started to remove the T-top to accommodate my freakish cranium, and noticed a mild drizzle...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd October 15, 2007, 12:34 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
October 9, 2007
Well, I finally got my chance to drive a Ferrari. It took 40 long years (my lifetime) to fulfill that dream, but it was well worth it. We had a day off work, there wasn't a cloud in the stunning blue sky, PCH was relatively free, and the weather was in the 80s. These are the days that a bright-red Ferrari is designed for...
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- Posted by: Doug Lyoyd October 9, 2007, 10:40 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
October 1, 2007
This past Friday, Senior Copy Editor Doug Lloyd finally got his wish and I gave him the walkthrough on operating our Long Term Ferrari 308.
A few tips and tricks and we were on the road, me at the helm. I mention the car has no power steering and the load is very heavy at low speeds. When the steering effort finally lightens enough to be fun, you run into the problem of the 20+ year old brakes; they may have managed a very respectable 123 feet on our full test, but that was under the careful guidance of a trained test driver...
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- Posted by: Mike Magrath October 1, 2007, 10:29 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
September 28, 2007
Yeterday I met an old friend for lunch. He's as into cars as anybody and always owns interesting stuff. But I hadn't seen him for a while and didn't know what he's driving these days. Whatever it way, I figured I'd take our Ferrari 308 and blow his socks off.
Well, it didn't quite go according to plan...
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September 19, 2007
I've decided that the Ferrari likes to be wooed. If you whisper sweet nothings to it and take it out to play, it will behave just fine. If you are in a hurry and trying to get somewhere, it doesn't want to cooperate.
I just spent four days with the beauty as my only car...
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- Posted by: Donna Derosa September 19, 2007, 4:58 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
September 16, 2007
When we bought our 1984 Ferrari 308 back in June, we said we were going to use it like a real car. Well, what's more real than airport duty?
Last Sunday I loaded up the 308 with myself and quite a large suitcase. Destination? The Parking Spot parking lot just outside Los Angeles International Airport...
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September 4, 2007
These $3.00 gas prices and Prius Fever are starting to rot the brains of normally good people. The guy didn't want to know how fast our 1984 Ferrari 308 was or how much it cost, instead he was fixated on it's fuel mileage. It's a Ferrari for God's sake, who gives a flying flock about its fuel mileage?
He did. "How many gallons per mile?" he joked as he peered in the window...
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August 31, 2007
After two days and $1,188.39 spent with our beloved Antonio at FX Performance, our 1984 Ferrari 308 is back on the road and running better than ever.
Here's where our money went; $489.35 for a new fuel pump, $252.00 for a new fuel accumulator, $51.62 for a new fuel filter, $330.00 for three hours labor and $65.52 to Uncle Sam.
And to prove our hot start problem is gone, we stopped at a local Shell to fill the Ferrari's tank--something we've been afraid to do for more than a week for fear of being left stranded. The new fuel system has also eliminated the off-idle stumble we've recently reported on, but we haven't lost that top end surge of power we've come to enjoy...
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August 29, 2007
We've lived with the Ferrari's hot start problem long enough. Antonio at FX Performance, our now trusted mechanic, says our Ferrari 308 has a fuel pressure problem and probably needs a new fuel pump. Estimate? $1,000...
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August 21, 2007
In the last blog entry on our new old Ferrari 308 I told you guys that the car wouldn't start. It would crank but wouldn't fire.
Now, since we had the fuel injection adjusted, the car doesn't quite fire up as effortlessly as before, but it does run better and it makes more top end power, so we've decided to live with the inconveinence. The trick is to turn the key to the on position, wait a few seconds for the fuel pressure to build and then turn the key while flooring the throttle...
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August 20, 2007
Last week I put our 1984 Ferrari 308 through the ringer. I drove it from our office in Santa Monica 150 miles north to Bakersfield and back. On the hottest day of the year. Temperatures ranged from 95 degrees to 105 degrees...
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August 9, 2007
Even though I did not drive the Ferrari this weekend, I couldn't resist posting this photo.
I had an east-coast friend in town who wanted to do the Hollywood thing. So we cruised Sunset and Hollywood Boulevards and spotted this famous star on the Walk of Fame.
Sorry for the uneven lighting...
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- Posted by: Donna Derosa August 9, 2007, 1:42 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
August 6, 2007
When your mid-engine, V8 exotic gets sidelined during an owner's rally your options are pretty limited. You can bail out on the fun, cry in your latte and tell yourself "Well, there's always next year," or you can hop into your spare mid-engine, V8 exotic and keep on motoring.
We didn't plan on switching from the Ford GT to the Ferrari 308 halfway through the Ford GT Owner's Rally, but a leaking shock had the GT's rear-end crashing over minor bumps with increasing volume. By Friday night it was clear that continued use would potentially spread the carnage beyond a dead shock to a cracked spindle and/or crushed wheel bearing (to say nothing of the car's four-wheel alignment). It was time to bench the blue-oval exotic.
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July 30, 2007
So after Oldham gave the 308 a clean bill of health, I decided to take it for it a spin. Sure enough, it smelled fine and didn't overheat, but the engine didn't feel quite right. There was a slight stumble just off idle that wasn't there before, so I called our new friend Antonio to ask him what was up.
He wasn't surprised at the new glitch. "It was running lean before so I made it a little richer. So now, it's not so good between 1,200 and 1,500rpm, but after that it's much better. Nothing to worry about." He made it sound so normal, so I didn't argue.
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- Posted by: Ed Hellwig July 30, 2007, 11:04 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 26, 2007
After two days in the shop our new old Ferrari 308 is back on the road with a clean bill of health and a sump full of new oil. Total cost: $654.50.
But don't blame the car, blame Dan Edmunds, our Director of Vehicle Testing. After a nightmarish two days with the 308 Dan returned with complaints (and blog entries) detailing a starting problem, severe oil and coolant leaks, and who could forget "The smell of fuel is all encompassing. A Prius could *cough, wheeze* run off of the fumes in the cockpit." But Antonio found none of it...
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July 23, 2007
After reporting the mysterious leak coming from beneath our 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi, I stated that it had been "kicked to the curb." Some took issue with that course of action.
In the very short term (minutes) that was the only thing to do to avoid an even-bigger stain on my driveway. Of course we planned to get it looked at. But with a car like this, there are procedures...
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- Posted by: Dan Edmunds July 23, 2007, 7:58 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 18, 2007
Alternate titles of this post were:
Magnum P.U.
Remember when...
I've been trying really hard to "get" the Ferrari 308 GTSi. I've been warned not to be too logical and to consider the year in which it was made. Why? We're allegedly trying to experience what owning a used one would be like - using today's money for the purchase and maintenance.
And I've never been a fan of celebrity. If I saw
insert celeb name here at the next table at a restaurant I wouldn't do anything. That's been proven and I've got witnesses. I don't want any ball-player's or race driver's autograph, and I don't give Porsches, Ferraris and BMWs any slack merely because of their badges.
With that in mind, my two-day stint in the 308 tells me that a used Ferrari ain't what it's cracked up to be. And from what I can see, I'm not so sure that this one would have lived up to its own hype when it was new.
Cases in point:
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- Posted by: Dan Edmunds July 18, 2007, 6:08 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 17, 2007
Because so many of you are reading the Ferrari posts with great interest in the hopes that our little experiment will pan out and you will soon be plunking down $28K on your own hunk of macho man metal, I thought it best to warn you of one of the side effects.
The more you drive the Ferrari 308 GTSi, the more you look like Magnum P.I.
No joke. Here is photographic evidence of Scott Oldham's transformation...
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- Posted by: Michelle Magoffin July 17, 2007, 2:24 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
The 308 has prompted quite a few philosophical car-guy discussions here in the office. For some, driving it has been the realization of a childhood fantasy. For others, the car's "quirks" are not so endearing. Various staffers' opinions lie somewhere between the two...
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- Posted by: Jay Kavanagh July 17, 2007, 9:37 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 16, 2007
Since we bought the Ferrari six weeks ago, we've driven it nearly 2000 miles. But as we feared, maintenance costs are killing us. So far we've spent $15.95 on two quarts of Mobil 1, $11.95 for a fancy keyfob and $23.98 on new wiper blades.
If this keeps up we'll be driving our 308 to the soup kitchen...
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July 13, 2007
The other day made our first real hands-on repair to our new old Ferrari. And in the process I discovered the Italian beauty is made of nuts and bolts like any other car. This discovery was quite disappointing in a way, kind of like cutting Derek Jeter and realizing he bleeds like the rest of us. But it was also liberating...
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July 12, 2007
In 1984, when our 308 was still a young stud, wowing its first owner, I was hired to write an episode of "Miami Vice." The show hadn't even aired yet but in the "dailies" (daily footage of the show being filmed in Miami) I saw footage of two cool young guys tear-assing around in a Ferrari Daytona Spyder 365 GTS/4 (and later a Testarossa). I was young then too, and in the dreams that only movies can fuel, I saw myself driving a Ferrari, ripping up in front of exotic nightclubs and vaulting over the door. One problem with that dream -- at that time I was driving my grandmother's lime green 1968 Rambler Classic.
Cut to 24 years later when this whore-house red 308 landed in our fleet...
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- Posted by: Philip Reed July 12, 2007, 7:58 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 10, 2007
In a modern-day supercar you might think twice about a right-before-close run to Whole Foods, particularly if your nearest location has a steep ramp in and out, and tight parking aisles within, as mine does. But since our 308 is from a different era, there's no worrying about a low-hanging front splitter catching on any concrete blocks. Nor is its body particularly wide and apt to attract door dings. As you can see from this hurriedly snapped (and thus mediocre) photo, it wasn't a particularly busy night at the grocery store, but just knowing that our long-termer would be able to defend itself gave me peace of mind...
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- Posted by: Erin Riches July 10, 2007, 10:23 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 6, 2007
When we bought the Ferrari everyone wanted to drive it. But I knew the car would soon weed out the staff members that find old car, even old Ferraris, to be old. And not old in a good way. Just old...
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July 5, 2007
I just went out for a spin in the Ferrari and this is what my face looked like when I came back -- completely flushed and exhilarated and with a permanent smile.
The steering that seems so tight in the parking garage feels just right when out on the open road. And you can't beat the noise from the engine. I know, I know, we'll get sound clips for you soon...
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- Posted by: Donna Derosa July 5, 2007, 4:07 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 3, 2007
Sweetie, can you say Ferrari?
Good girl!
Judging by this picture I've raised my daughter right so far.
For all the 308's high and low points, it's worth mentioning that I've never driven a car home that brought out so many of the neighborhood's men, women and children. Some wanted a ride - most just wanted to look. Who can blame them, it's a beautiful car...
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- Posted by: Brian Moody July 3, 2007, 10:55 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
July 2, 2007
See that? That's a 205/55 tire on a 16x7 wheel. Pretty much unheard of these days on any sports car. These days, sidewall heights are shrinking away to nothing, seemingly limited only by the fact that they have to have some tread depth...
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- Posted by: Jay Kavanagh July 2, 2007, 4:51 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
June 28, 2007
Growing up reading car magazines, there was always an air of hushed reverence associated with anything bearing the prancing horse badge.
Let's put the B.S. aside. What's this thing really like to drive?
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- Posted by: Jay Kavanagh June 28, 2007, 9:24 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
June 27, 2007
Last weekend I was at a Mazda dealership in City of Industry, Calif., when a red Ferrari 308 GTS buzzed into the parking lot. After confirming that it wasn't Brian Moody driving ours (nor Tom Selleck), I figured this was a golden opportunity to ask a "fellow" owner about his experiences with a 308. His was a 1978 GTS, one of the first imported into the United States. It's not a GTSi Quattrovalvole like our 1984 version, and it takes a keen eye (certainly not mine) to spot other differences like a lack of gas shocks that prop up the engine cover and no black vinyl spoiler. He bought his in the early 1980s for more than $40,000 and has kept it in excellent condition inside a garage ever since. Like so many folks who have automotive toys, he doesn't get to drive it as much as he'd like...
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Driving the Ferrari 308, I'm struck by the car's simplicity. The lines, the shifter, the seats are all so simple yet elegant.
In a world of generic sedans and crossovers that attempt to be all things to all people, the Ferrari is a refreshing reminder that cars are machines. The 308's engine virtually begs you to take it to redline with each shift and it's clearly happiest in the upper reaches of the power band...
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- Posted by: Brian Moody June 27, 2007, 8:17 AM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
June 25, 2007
Somehow the keys to the 308 ended up in my pocket at the end of the day on Friday. I could only think of one thing: Ferris Bueller's Day Off.
It wasn't only the parking lot attendants airborne in the 250GT that came to mind, but the 80s in general. Boom boxes and breakdancers...
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June 20, 2007
Last week, before the photo shoot on our new old Ferrari, I stopped into a store in Malibu, California called Automotive Legends of Malibu to pick up a new key fob for our new old Ferrari. The store is one of these Ferrari/Porsche trinket huts. A fun place to kill an hour, and the best place I know if you need to pick up a Ferrari hat or Porsche pencil holder. I also figured they would have a key fob for us, plus it was on the way to the famous Rock Store, our chosen location for the photo shoot...
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I drove it for a few minutes with Scott by my side for moral support. I was nervous even though Scott kept telling me it is easy to drive.
The seating position is very low, lower than most cars on the road. My head was level with SUV tires...
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- Posted by: Donna Derosa June 20, 2007, 12:07 PM
- Categories: 1984 Ferrari 308 GTSi Quattrovalvole
June 19, 2007
So far I've logged the most miles in our new old Ferrari 308. I've been behind the wheel for nearly 300 miles and I'm proud to say I've received more "Yo Magnums" to date than any other member of the editorial staff. My count is up to 3, including one from my four-year old daughter. I've also gotten a couple of Rick and TC comments but I'm not counting those...
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