Out with the S2000, in with the... Ferrari...

Congrats and enjoy!

The 308/328 is on my short list of cars I will own, have come close several times, but not yet. I probably would have kept the S2K (I do miss mine), but I am a roadster guy.

You are getting a Magnum reference..... I'm a child of the 70's...and early 80's and I credit Magnum (as well as the Lotus from The Spy Who Loved Me) for my obsession with certain cars.

Good luck with her.
 
Definitely getting a Magnum reference. And definitely love the early Bond cars, as well... Lotus, Aston, in particular.
 
I guess the flat plane crank is evident in the 308/328. That is cool. I knew about flat plane cranks in F cars, but it never occurred to me those cars would be that way...

Speaking about 308's, am I the only one that also likes it's predecessor, I think the Dino GT4?

Last thing: how "grouchy" do you feel 2nd gear to be when below op temp, or at least first few shifts of the day? You know, nursing the shifts is a Ferrari kind of thing to do... maybe a PITA, but kind of an "exotics" thing.
 
Speaking about 308's, am I the only one that also likes it's predecessor, I think the Dino GT4?

Last thing: how "grouchy" do you feel 2nd gear to be when below op temp, or at least first few shifts of the day? You know, nursing the shifts is a Ferrari kind of thing to do... maybe a PITA, but kind of an "exotics" thing.
I love the Dino GT4. I seriously considered one. They're supposed to be fantastic cars, and maybe even better drivers than the 308. And it can (at least in theory) hold my family, which would be rad.

To be honest, the transmission isn't great in this car so far, and 2nd gear sucks the most. I think the shifter bushings need to be replaced or perhaps there's an alignment issue. I also need to replace the fluid, no idea what is in there now. I really hope I can work it out!
 
Nice car to cruise on the weekends. 👍

If I could do all the maintenance myself I wouldn’t mind a 512 Testarossa.
 
Nice car to cruise on the weekends. 👍

If I could do all the maintenance myself I wouldn’t mind a 512 Testarossa.

My NSX though the door of a 512TR. Kinda goofy, but how often do you get that chance?

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I love the Dino GT4. I seriously considered one. They're supposed to be fantastic cars, and maybe even better drivers than the 308. And it can (at least in theory) hold my family, which would be rad.

To be honest, the transmission isn't great in this car so far, and 2nd gear sucks the most. I think the shifter bushings need to be replaced or perhaps there's an alignment issue. I also need to replace the fluid, no idea what is in there now. I really hope I can work it out!
I found in the dregs of my harddrive the attached pdf... which is of the 308GT4 gearbox... the secondary shaft. It labels 1a (prima), 2a (seconda), etc... the "speed" gears. I rather suspect the gearbox for the 308/328 is similar or the same. I would have thought that the development costs would be spread beyond just the production of the 308GT4.

I thought the synchro's were of the ZF type, i.e. with the replaceable dog-teeth... but no, they appear to me to be of the Borg Warner style. I say that because if you have a dodgy 2nd gear, then the second-gear "speed-gear" may need replacing if the synchro dog-teeth are sufficiently nicked. Also, the synchro sleeve would have to be replaced, again contingent on the degree of nicking. Finally, of course, the brass synchro ring would need replacement.

I don't think the work is particularly hard, as in requiring a mega hydraulic press (and/or special jigs), but I do think the speed-gear is spendy, along with the synchro sleeve.

Like I say, nurse it to temp!
 

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  • Ferrari - Tavola23 - Ruotisimi Albero Secondario Cambio.pdf
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I would bet dollars to donuts that your F car needs a GL4 transaxle lubricant. I want to add the following graphic, as regards the choice of that lubricant, and how it results in the feel of the shifting. And I mention that there is no nirvana, so to speak, in the choice of manual transmission (or transaxle) lubricants... Some "grouchiness" may simply be a fact of life for some transmissions versus others (Ferrari's are simply that way, I am told)... and in the interest of long-term transaxle life expectancy, protection of the main gear teeth, final drive teeth, focusing on shift feel and potentially varying too far from the OEM recommended SAE weight is (in my humble opinion) simply wrong. Bear in mind that the SAE spec for gearbox oils has changed about three times over the time it has been in use (I think)... and the ranges of viscosities for a given rating have actually changed...

Sorry for the small size of the attached graphic...
 

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  • 1 - Shift Feel vs Oil Quality - What VW Says.JPG
    1 - Shift Feel vs Oil Quality - What VW Says.JPG
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Red Line 75W-90NS seems to be one of the go-to fluids among those that know the 308, which is good, because it is also my go-to fluid. So that's what I'll run.
 
I decided that between the S2000, NSX, and SC400, I had too many reliable, fun cars and I needed to spice things up a bit with some Italian style. I've been lusting after Ferrari 308s for a long time and finally decided I should take a look for one earlier this year. Unfortunately, car market what it is, I just couldn't pull the trigger; everything I found was $80K+ and that's just a lot of money to spend on a car.

I enjoy a good BaT auction as much as anyone, and 308s pop up there pretty regularly. One popped up in early July[1], no reserve. It was not real well presented. I didn't think much of it until the day the auction ended. A buddy of mine jokingly asked me if I was going to be bidding; I said no, of course, there aren't any deals on BaT and I wasn't really looking for 308s anymore. But I pulled the auction up and the car was sitting pretty low, so I thought, "I'll pay attention to this..." And so I did, and ultimately I decided that I'd throw out one strong bid. And that bid ended up winning the auction!!!

The car arrived yesterday. I think it's in pretty decent shape. It needs a timing belt, but that's a pretty easy bit of work on these cars. It's got a few electrical issues to sort out, but again that's usually not real hard on these. The 308 community is amazing and there really isn't much that isn't well known and well discussed, which is great.

Looking forward to doing some maintenance on it and then enjoying it. I'll be putting M1 0W-40 in the engine and Red Line 75W-90NS in the transmission, since this is BITOG and I'm sure people will wonder :) The oil filter on these is kind of interesting. There is a "stand pipe" in the middle that allows it to be removed without spilling much oil. I'll be using a Baldwin B253.

I sold the S2000; my wife assured me that I didn't need to, but it just made sense. It's a wonderful car, but I just didn't drive it much. And I don't think having a 308 in the mix will encourage me to drive it more. Someone else is enjoying it now!

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P.S. Please, no Magnum references... I've already heard about 10,000 of them!!! JK, go for it, really!

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[1] https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1985-ferrari-308-gts-quattrovalvole-13/
Oil must be changed
 
Lovely car. Maintenance should be fun. But as others have suggested I'd be looking for a European bumper kit.

PS There are worse things than growing a mustache.

I've had a mustache since I was 18 or so... :)

And as mentioned, I believe, at some point after maintenance items have been resolved, etc, I'll be ordering this kit: https://macarbon.com/component/virtuemart/ferrari-308-bumper-reducer-detail?Itemid=718

It's quite Euro bumpers, but it's a lot easier and cheaper.
 
I've had mine since I was 20 or so. I don't recognize myself without it (and I don't like the way I look without it either). And my wife insists I keep it too.
Yeah, I've shaved it a few times over the years just to see... I don't like it.
 
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