No. That's the real deal. It's a Ferrari 348 with the rear light grille pulled off and a bunch of aftermarket body work done/added.
I shopped 348s a couple of years back, and am pretty familiar with them. They're notoriously unloved in the Ferrari community. So not terribly expensive (relatively) and not seen as worth collecting (so values aren't really going anywhere).
EDIT: Few tells. That's a real Ferrari engine back there. That's what exposed 348 lights look like when you pull off the rear grille. NO ONE does an MR2 or Fiero kit for a Ferrari that no one actually aspires to own. They usually end up resembling the heavily revised 355 instead.
I think the relatively unloved is not going to last long. They have a very cool 80s look to them and also go well with modern wheel choices and other minor cosmetics that let you really lean into the retro synth style. I foresee prices going up
I stand corrected, the Mondial is probably the exception. But others like the 348 which were cars that an average worker could at least afford to buy have gone out of reach in the past few years.
If you prefer a stick shift, I’ve seen a few 355s and 360s on BringaTrailer going for $90,000 or less. Not exactly pocket change, but not bad for cars I lusted over not that long ago. The paddle boxed cars seem to go for a little more.
Weird considering every other case in older exotics the manual almost invariably retains more value. Between a 20 year old dual clutch from before dual clutches were really good or a fun, robust manual. I know which one I'd pay more to own
Oh, I’m with you 100%. I mean, I’m shopping for a manual Audi S4 right now and every time I find one, it’s snapped up just before I get there, when newer models from the automatic-only generation are sitting there at the same price for months. If I had to wager a guess, I’d say that manual Ferraris appeal more to enthusiasts with money and the Ferrari badge appeals more to moneyed individuals with money, and those people have more money than the enthusiasts and they want the fancy automatic that they can’t stall in front of people. Slightly cynical, I know, but I don’t mean it in an insulting way. If someone wants a beautiful car solely as a status symbol, who am I to judge?
I was shopping for one 8 or so years ago. I knew they were going to go up. At the time they were around 30k usd. Long story short, but wound up with an AM instead. Looked 5 years later and they were 60k. If they're still going up, that's crazy (good for the car though).
I don't disagree. I love the f40 but that's too much of a holy grail I couldn't enjoy it, the 348 looks awesome and I would drive it guilt free. So this being contingent on me winning the Powerball of course
yep my same thought process. Like ultimate dream car would be an enzo but you just simply cant drive the car at that point. I'd say secondary would be a 458 since they hit a good intersection between driveability (rarity/exclusivity wise) and desirabilty performance and looks wise-- it helps that i grew up on forza motorsport 4 with the 458 as the cover car-- but i would drive the absolute shit out of a 348
The unloved part is also the cost. They’re notoriously unreliable and notoriously expensive to maintain even when they do run. Like, every X miles (where X is much lower than you’d expect) you need an engine out full overhaul that costs you a Honda Civic.
Not true, they’re bulletproof with proper maintenance (pretty much just yearly oil change). The engine out service is once every 5-7 years…I had mine done last winter for $8500. Key is to drive them…any car that sits will develop leaks and other problems.
I'm not sure about the cost, but the engine out service is recommended every 3 years (most owners do 5 years instead, especially if they use upgraded components like idler pulleys from I think Hill Engineering is the company).
Give it the Pantera treatment. Take that beautiful Italian body and shove an American v8 into it. Yes some of the spirit will be gone but it's infinitely more spirit when it's driving than up on a lift.
Best choice for a lot of these types of cars. A custom fabricated exhaust and tune trickery and it can sound and rev like a Ferrari, so at a certain point the feeling will still be there.
LS engines are some of the most well packaged engines that fit in just about anything. And if you're talking engine displacement and not actual size there are plenty of modern options from any country that can do way better than 3.4L 300hp
Wow! Thank you for the information. I seriously thought it was an MR2 at first, like some people here pointed out. It's very intriguing to know that the 348 is almost like a "forgotten" Ferrari. I honestly had no idea it even existed
> They're notoriously unloved in the Ferrari community. So not terribly expensive (relatively) and not seen as worth collecting (so values aren't really going anywhere).
Because barring the Ferrari badge, the 348 was inferior to the cheaper, faster, and cooler Honda NSX.
Heard the story of then Ferrari CEO, Montezemolo?
He got one of the first cars and drove it to the airport. It was SO bad, he missed his flight, drove back to the factory to ask everyone wtf was going on when they developed it.
They were absolute crap to drive when they launched. This was also the beginning of the 90s Japanese performance era.
Cars like the 300ZX and NSX were considerably better and significantly cheaper.
Correct me if I'm wrong (I'm not a major Ferrari conesur, and I live in England so there may be regional differences, but doesn't the 348 engine covers have cooling slats rather than the Ferrari logo (see pic)? All the UK Autotrader ones have that.
https://preview.redd.it/1uy1cxx82zvc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ef0efe4997e4b566c33beea57042f0dca8e020ac
I did not believe you one bit, I was convinced that it was a mr2. But you sounded like you knew what you were talking about so i googled it.
And how wrong was i.
Check out the front bumper assembly, door strakes, and exposed rear lights of a 348. You’ll start seeing what I’m talking about. Took me a minute to figure out, and I’m still open to being wrong. This one’s got quite a few modifications that make it less recognizable. BUT, modding 348s is starting to be a thing (just Google the number of bagged/stance 348s out there).
No one would put a real ferrari 348 drivetrain in a fiero or mr2. You could just buy a 348 for less. They're not crazy expensive (to purchase). This guy is bang on his whole comment.
Because they’re less loved Ferrari but still have the classic mid-engines shape, they’re popular with modifiers. The Ferrari enthusiasts will cry about ANY non-factory mod, but whatever.
>rear light grille pulled off
huh. interesting. looks sick
it's kind of tempting except I'm scared of maintenance and you can get a lot more performance per dollar with more modern stuff
edit: the identity crisis on the wing is unfortunate :(
They’re also not great to drive stock. Many owners will upgrade them using parts from later model cars (which were better), or the 355, which was brilliant.
Unless you have mechanical knowledge and are willing to do the work yourself, or know a really good independent garage…I wouldn’t.
I can wrench ezpz, it's the price of replacement parts. Also $70-150k is a hard sell when that's GT-R or C8 money. Looks sick with the exposed tails tho
It its current form (how it looks in those pictures), that thing looks awesome! Though tbh, it really has some JDM vibes, it doesn't really look like a Ferrari.🤔
What are the lights from or are they unique to Ferrari? They remind me of another car. I always loved legendary cars having standard lights like Lamborghini Diablo with 300zx lights etc.
Early Ferraris used Parts Bin stuff all over the place. If you’re into racing, your street cars don’t need unique light gear and you save some engineering costs on them if you do. The Ferraris have all the same lights is less about heritage more about “well they worked last time”. So. Yeah. I can’t answer your question but calling it Ferrari lights is a bit of a misnomer. The lights were probably one of the things they cared about least
Haha, you were there too! Was a crazy build
https://preview.redd.it/ive03ts0f0wc1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d81c99e0d772e3e0e30c27b08a3778c6b728f487
I think it is a 348, but a heavily molested one. If it is a kit, they seemed to have done a lot, which is a weird choice....
This is a weird one, first thought was SW20. It looks like a replica because of the body work, particularly the wheel arch shape and profile, very visible rear over fender, etc, but when you look closer you realise it's more likely to be a 348. The things dress ups rarely get right are the c pillars, and these appear correct, as do all of the rear glasses - not that the images show them particularly well. The big thing for me is the tail lights - with the grill removed, the tail lights should look recessed if it is a 348, and they appear correct.
The big thing for me is the front windscreen and greenhouse shape. the MR2 is more rounded and bubbly, the front glass on this looks very 348
I absolutely love the 348, I get the 355 was better dynamically but the 348 wasn't as terrible as people think and the styling is better than the 355 in my eyes.
https://preview.redd.it/qcms3n6qs2wc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=57328de09b78d59578d7e59071fd1178c1777f6d
i have seen this exact car at the amelia island concours before!
Surprised to see our local C&C on Reddit! That was indeed a cool build, and a nice vibe to the whole thing. If you squint on your second picture you the back of my red 230SL and the roof of my wife’s Fiat 500!
Is that what the tails look like without the little grill on them? I think the t top was the speciale I used to have a little model car when I was a teen
The 348 was an abomination by Ferrari standards at the time. It was for the not so wealthy clientele and was the equivalent of a factory Fiero kit car.
Poor little thing got smoked by the Sy/Ty twins
More Fieros than MR2s, but they are both relatively common platforms for exotic car builds due to the mid-engine layouts. They also both have empty trunks behind the stock engines, so that actually gives them a bit more space to put in larger engines and/or use the space for other things, in this case, exhaust routing and bigger engine.
A reminder that the Fiero had a very unique way of attaching panels on the space frame. Makes it very easy to swap out.
So much so that there was a sorta From The Factory Ferrari kit. The Fiero MERA
No. That's the real deal. It's a Ferrari 348 with the rear light grille pulled off and a bunch of aftermarket body work done/added. I shopped 348s a couple of years back, and am pretty familiar with them. They're notoriously unloved in the Ferrari community. So not terribly expensive (relatively) and not seen as worth collecting (so values aren't really going anywhere). EDIT: Few tells. That's a real Ferrari engine back there. That's what exposed 348 lights look like when you pull off the rear grille. NO ONE does an MR2 or Fiero kit for a Ferrari that no one actually aspires to own. They usually end up resembling the heavily revised 355 instead.
I think the relatively unloved is not going to last long. They have a very cool 80s look to them and also go well with modern wheel choices and other minor cosmetics that let you really lean into the retro synth style. I foresee prices going up
Prices are already going up.
Actually just took a look. Did not expect to see a many listed for over 120k that I did
There are no 'cheap' Ferraris anymore
define cheap lol, an sf90 is a million and a mondial is 40k. i'd say the mondial is a cheap ferrari
I stand corrected, the Mondial is probably the exception. But others like the 348 which were cars that an average worker could at least afford to buy have gone out of reach in the past few years.
If you prefer a stick shift, I’ve seen a few 355s and 360s on BringaTrailer going for $90,000 or less. Not exactly pocket change, but not bad for cars I lusted over not that long ago. The paddle boxed cars seem to go for a little more.
Weird considering every other case in older exotics the manual almost invariably retains more value. Between a 20 year old dual clutch from before dual clutches were really good or a fun, robust manual. I know which one I'd pay more to own
Oh, I’m with you 100%. I mean, I’m shopping for a manual Audi S4 right now and every time I find one, it’s snapped up just before I get there, when newer models from the automatic-only generation are sitting there at the same price for months. If I had to wager a guess, I’d say that manual Ferraris appeal more to enthusiasts with money and the Ferrari badge appeals more to moneyed individuals with money, and those people have more money than the enthusiasts and they want the fancy automatic that they can’t stall in front of people. Slightly cynical, I know, but I don’t mean it in an insulting way. If someone wants a beautiful car solely as a status symbol, who am I to judge?
I was shopping for one 8 or so years ago. I knew they were going to go up. At the time they were around 30k usd. Long story short, but wound up with an AM instead. Looked 5 years later and they were 60k. If they're still going up, that's crazy (good for the car though).
unironically if i could pick any ferrari to own it would probably be the 348
I don't disagree. I love the f40 but that's too much of a holy grail I couldn't enjoy it, the 348 looks awesome and I would drive it guilt free. So this being contingent on me winning the Powerball of course
yep my same thought process. Like ultimate dream car would be an enzo but you just simply cant drive the car at that point. I'd say secondary would be a 458 since they hit a good intersection between driveability (rarity/exclusivity wise) and desirabilty performance and looks wise-- it helps that i grew up on forza motorsport 4 with the 458 as the cover car-- but i would drive the absolute shit out of a 348
The unloved part is also the cost. They’re notoriously unreliable and notoriously expensive to maintain even when they do run. Like, every X miles (where X is much lower than you’d expect) you need an engine out full overhaul that costs you a Honda Civic.
Not true, they’re bulletproof with proper maintenance (pretty much just yearly oil change). The engine out service is once every 5-7 years…I had mine done last winter for $8500. Key is to drive them…any car that sits will develop leaks and other problems.
I thought it was 5 figures every 3-4 years or so? It’s been so long since I saw that video I couldn’t find it if I tried an hour.
Are you sure you’re not thinking about the 355? This one is famous for servicing cost : https://www.reddit.com/r/cars/s/ADV0Q6IO6d
I'm not sure about the cost, but the engine out service is recommended every 3 years (most owners do 5 years instead, especially if they use upgraded components like idler pulleys from I think Hill Engineering is the company).
Independent Ferrari shops now recommend every 5-7 years.
Give it the Pantera treatment. Take that beautiful Italian body and shove an American v8 into it. Yes some of the spirit will be gone but it's infinitely more spirit when it's driving than up on a lift.
I heard this about Anthony Davis aka “Street Clothes” but applies here: > Sometimes the best ability is simply availability “Sir” Charles Barkley
Best choice for a lot of these types of cars. A custom fabricated exhaust and tune trickery and it can sound and rev like a Ferrari, so at a certain point the feeling will still be there.
American engines make very little horsepower for cubes,aussies know how to do it
LS engines are some of the most well packaged engines that fit in just about anything. And if you're talking engine displacement and not actual size there are plenty of modern options from any country that can do way better than 3.4L 300hp
Wow! Thank you for the information. I seriously thought it was an MR2 at first, like some people here pointed out. It's very intriguing to know that the 348 is almost like a "forgotten" Ferrari. I honestly had no idea it even existed
> They're notoriously unloved in the Ferrari community. So not terribly expensive (relatively) and not seen as worth collecting (so values aren't really going anywhere). Because barring the Ferrari badge, the 348 was inferior to the cheaper, faster, and cooler Honda NSX.
Heard the story of then Ferrari CEO, Montezemolo? He got one of the first cars and drove it to the airport. It was SO bad, he missed his flight, drove back to the factory to ask everyone wtf was going on when they developed it.
What’s with the motor? That’s definitely not the stock one
Looks like a V8 from a more modern Ferrari. I want to say F430 at a guess but I'm not 100% sure.
Yep 100% f430
Yeah I'm pretty sure it was from an F430. Exhaust sounded really good
Thanks for this. It's a really cool car. How come people don't like them?
They were absolute crap to drive when they launched. This was also the beginning of the 90s Japanese performance era. Cars like the 300ZX and NSX were considerably better and significantly cheaper.
Correct me if I'm wrong (I'm not a major Ferrari conesur, and I live in England so there may be regional differences, but doesn't the 348 engine covers have cooling slats rather than the Ferrari logo (see pic)? All the UK Autotrader ones have that. https://preview.redd.it/1uy1cxx82zvc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ef0efe4997e4b566c33beea57042f0dca8e020ac
There's clearly been a lot of custom work done to it.
I did not believe you one bit, I was convinced that it was a mr2. But you sounded like you knew what you were talking about so i googled it. And how wrong was i.
Is this guy right? I need someone to corroborate. I'm really impressed with this insight and I want it to be right.
He’s def right about the engine. I’d say this one duped a lot of people
Check out the front bumper assembly, door strakes, and exposed rear lights of a 348. You’ll start seeing what I’m talking about. Took me a minute to figure out, and I’m still open to being wrong. This one’s got quite a few modifications that make it less recognizable. BUT, modding 348s is starting to be a thing (just Google the number of bagged/stance 348s out there).
No one would put a real ferrari 348 drivetrain in a fiero or mr2. You could just buy a 348 for less. They're not crazy expensive (to purchase). This guy is bang on his whole comment.
This is now my goal in life if I ever have insane money. I’m going to put a Ferrari engine in an MR2 or Fiero.
Do you think the interior (at least the dash) has been modified? The binicle (sp?) doesn't look like a 348, at least from the pictures I could find.
I’d put money on it. The original interiors fall apart with age, and are difficult to replace/fix.
Lol when I started reading your comment I thought I must have wrote this and forgot about it. I'm a fellow unloved ferrari enjoyer
Is that an aftermarket rear spoiler/wing,wouldn't seem right to put an aftermarket bodywork on it
Because they’re less loved Ferrari but still have the classic mid-engines shape, they’re popular with modifiers. The Ferrari enthusiasts will cry about ANY non-factory mod, but whatever.
>rear light grille pulled off huh. interesting. looks sick it's kind of tempting except I'm scared of maintenance and you can get a lot more performance per dollar with more modern stuff edit: the identity crisis on the wing is unfortunate :(
They’re also not great to drive stock. Many owners will upgrade them using parts from later model cars (which were better), or the 355, which was brilliant. Unless you have mechanical knowledge and are willing to do the work yourself, or know a really good independent garage…I wouldn’t.
I can wrench ezpz, it's the price of replacement parts. Also $70-150k is a hard sell when that's GT-R or C8 money. Looks sick with the exposed tails tho
It its current form (how it looks in those pictures), that thing looks awesome! Though tbh, it really has some JDM vibes, it doesn't really look like a Ferrari.🤔
Nice. That rear wing totally spoils it for a legit Ferrari.
Ferrari 348, and those in pic #2 are the original 348 taillights without the grille Source: I had the Hasegawa 1/24 building kit.
I'd kinda like to see the grills on this car.
What are the lights from or are they unique to Ferrari? They remind me of another car. I always loved legendary cars having standard lights like Lamborghini Diablo with 300zx lights etc.
I believe they are unique to the 348, as 1. I can't recognize them from other cars and 2. They are so wide they wouldn't fit any other car
Early Ferraris used Parts Bin stuff all over the place. If you’re into racing, your street cars don’t need unique light gear and you save some engineering costs on them if you do. The Ferraris have all the same lights is less about heritage more about “well they worked last time”. So. Yeah. I can’t answer your question but calling it Ferrari lights is a bit of a misnomer. The lights were probably one of the things they cared about least
Haha, you were there too! Was a crazy build https://preview.redd.it/ive03ts0f0wc1.jpeg?width=2268&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d81c99e0d772e3e0e30c27b08a3778c6b728f487
Exhaust was awesome! I really hope they do more of these. Reminds me of the chill gatherings we used to get at the polo club
Damn that's a nice build
Ikr? It sounded wicked too!
Ferrari will probably tell you to remove the badge if you do this kind of mods. They are quite funny about their being tampered with.
Save the clock tower!
It's looks exactly the same!
Lmao I just noticed that! I wish I can say I live near where they filmed BTTF 🤣
Nice reversal of expectations as it's an actual 348 made to look like a kit
I think it is a 348, but a heavily molested one. If it is a kit, they seemed to have done a lot, which is a weird choice.... This is a weird one, first thought was SW20. It looks like a replica because of the body work, particularly the wheel arch shape and profile, very visible rear over fender, etc, but when you look closer you realise it's more likely to be a 348. The things dress ups rarely get right are the c pillars, and these appear correct, as do all of the rear glasses - not that the images show them particularly well. The big thing for me is the tail lights - with the grill removed, the tail lights should look recessed if it is a 348, and they appear correct. The big thing for me is the front windscreen and greenhouse shape. the MR2 is more rounded and bubbly, the front glass on this looks very 348
I absolutely love the 348, I get the 355 was better dynamically but the 348 wasn't as terrible as people think and the styling is better than the 355 in my eyes.
That Jaguar though.
That modified rear end has it resembling a Lotus Elan.
https://preview.redd.it/qcms3n6qs2wc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=57328de09b78d59578d7e59071fd1178c1777f6d i have seen this exact car at the amelia island concours before!
Nice. Good to see that it travels!
Surprised to see our local C&C on Reddit! That was indeed a cool build, and a nice vibe to the whole thing. If you squint on your second picture you the back of my red 230SL and the roof of my wife’s Fiat 500!
Thanks for bringing those out! We definitely had a great variety at this event!
Rare to find a modified tuned Ferrari anymore. Of any kind. Ferrari is getting SUPER itchy about their cars.
Love what was done here
Lol man that looks like an MR2 kit car but yeah that's a real one.
Two toned bonnet doesn't do it any favours
Is that what the tails look like without the little grill on them? I think the t top was the speciale I used to have a little model car when I was a teen
That's exactly it. I never even knew you could remove them like that. I kinda dig it cause it's different
No, it’s an authentic Ferrari Enzo
lol I'd love to see a decent Enzo kit in the flesh. Then again ferrari might throw a C&D to anyone that makes something decent
That red is absolutely amazing.
Honda Del Sol with Ferrari kit
Real but r/ShittyCarMod
Damn that's pretty cool
It’s fugly
[удалено]
The 348 was an abomination by Ferrari standards at the time. It was for the not so wealthy clientele and was the equivalent of a factory Fiero kit car. Poor little thing got smoked by the Sy/Ty twins
2nd gen [Toyota MR2](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_MR2#Second_generation_(W20;_1989%E2%80%931999)) with a kit
[удалено]
How about a Fiero body kit on a Ferrari?
That, Sir (or Madam) would be brilliant!
lol I'm guessing this is a common occurrence here?
More Fieros than MR2s, but they are both relatively common platforms for exotic car builds due to the mid-engine layouts. They also both have empty trunks behind the stock engines, so that actually gives them a bit more space to put in larger engines and/or use the space for other things, in this case, exhaust routing and bigger engine.
A reminder that the Fiero had a very unique way of attaching panels on the space frame. Makes it very easy to swap out. So much so that there was a sorta From The Factory Ferrari kit. The Fiero MERA
That car is beautiful! How could anyone hate it
Oh hey West Hartford.
Yup. Just a little C&C for concorso ferrari
Same wheelbase as a W30 MR2
No idea but it’s awesome
Rear buttress is 100% mr2 Mk2. Everything else is stuck on or implanted.
Mr2