My latest Ferrari.

[Darren65]

so we decided to strip and rebuild the four webers

Here we go!……..

[richkaz]

Stunning looking example. Well done that man !!!

[yoda]

Hi Mike - what a stunning car and already in such good condition. I am sure it will be even better once you have been through it.

Looking forward to hearing about the driving experience!

Regards

Feroz

[Mike]

After the service work was done I made an effort to take a few decent pictures of the car, we're not talking Jamie Lipman here, I can only dream of being that good
with cars, but just wanted to try and show the lines and curves of the car which I think are pretty special. Brooklands is very close to me so took it down there.

[one-two]

They really are lovely cars and that looks like a very good example. Great pics - no surprise there! Best wishes, Robert

[Mike]

The next step was to bring the paintwork up to scratch so I left it with my mates at Unit 24 in Camberley who had done the artwork to the Martini car.

Although pretty original, the car had obviously had some paintwork here and there over the years and there were a couple of areas that hadn't been
finished very well. The good news was that it was all in the lacquer, so apart from a few chip repairs it was just a little flattening to those areas and
some re-lacquering, then a good machine polish all over to even up the finish.

To answer Davep's question on the electrics, I have to say from previous experience that the Italian reputation is pretty justified, the thing here of
course is that with a 'Vetroresina' (fibreglass) body you can have the odd added earthing problem as well.

[jamie]

Hnnnggg. It's gorgeous.

Reminds me of this (I know nothing about Ferraris, but they look similar)... http://jameslipman.com/Ferrari365-GT4-BB-Daytona-chase

[Mike]

Before finishing off the thread with some observations of the driving and ownership experience, thought I'd share a few detail pictures of the car.

[72911E]

V.Nice Mike.

Interested to hear how you compare it to a 246.

[DustyM]

Looks great Mike, I doubt you would have found a better RHD example. Well Bought.

[Mike]

Interested to hear how you compare it to a 246.

That's easy, comparing it to a 911 now that's going to be the tricky one.

I had my 246 for nearly 10 years and while they are to me one of the most beautiful looking cars ever, it is I have to say a car to look at rather
than have great fun driving. I may be a little biased of course as I'm nearly 6'2" but as I said earlier in the thread it's a little on the small side in
the cabin, head room was just about ok but minimal leg room. It's the classic Italianate driving position, the long arms short legs problem so
with legs like mine your knees are wrapped around the steering wheel. Oh, and the seats aren't very supportive either.

It's only 195hp and I think that might be a little optimistic as well. Like all Ferrari's it loves to rev but it doesn't seem to be going anywhere
when it does. And as for going round corners, I remember us watching one race at CLM in 06 and boy was it struggling round the bends, and
that was obviously properly set up. Cross country B roads it's at it's best, when you always feel you're going a little faster than you actually are.

It was a fantastic car to own though as I get just as much enjoyment from opening the garage door and admiring those lines and tinkering with
them as driving. From the rear three quarter it's just stunning with those lumps and bumps over the wheel arches, hard to beat that design.

The 308 GTB was next in the lineage if you skip the Bertone designed GT4, and they addressed the problems of power with their new V8 which
in it's early guise of dry sump and weber carbs is fantastic. The interior is much improved with a larger airy cabin and great leg room, and the
suspension is far more stable so the car feels much more comfortable at high speeds with a wonderful light steering. HTH's

I'm building up to to the 911 comparison!

[richkaz]

Mike did you take the pictures ? they are very nice and the car is a true beauty.
I would imagine that the driving experience would be similar to a V8 Lambo , but one thing
that would concern me a little from your interior pics is that I cannot spot a reverse gear lock out ?
My old Jalpa and Urraco both had them fitted ( the Jalpa as standard ).Without it a missed shift down
to 2nd for a sharp bend might end up in a very noisy and expensive place ?
Richard

[Mike]

Hi Richard, yep my snaps I'm afraid. As for a reverse lock out, on a Ferrari box reverse is on a lower plane in
the gate, so with first being a dogleg to the bottom left, reverse is left and to the top. As you move through
neutral to the left you have to push down with some force before you can move the lever up to enter the gear.

Hope that makes sense, Mike

[Mike]

Last bit of detail I promise. The wing mirror on the 308 is a beautiful piece of design complete with it's little sticker. Really surprised when I was looking at close
ups of Niki Lauda's Ferrari 312 from 1976, the year of the battle with James Hunt as featured in the film 'Rush'. Same year as my car, but didn't expect that!

[Lightweight_911]

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