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Trev450
Original Poster
2,390 posts
41 months
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I've been reading up on the pro's and con's of F355 ownership and the biggest concern I have is that of rust. Most guides make reference to the C pillar and how corrosion is quite common where the buttress joins the wing, but how much of a problem is this? If it was to occur and was repaired professionally, is it likely to return again at some point? Some other guides also refer to the sills and rear wheel arches as being susceptable to rust. I would very much welcome the opinions of owners/past owners as to how much of a problem this is, as I would not want to spend good money on a car that was going to require major bodywork to be undertaken.
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jdw1234
4,301 posts
84 months
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The butress rust is not normal rust, but a chemical reaction between the metals. No big issue to fix in the scheme of things. These guys will fix it... http://www.walkersport.co.uk/ferrari-accessories.h......even better, buy a spider! Rust on sill is the crappy original sill plates not the car - just replace with carbon. Not sure about wheel arch - my guess would be it is due to stone chipping. You need to get the front end of a car like that redone every few years anyway if you are driving it properly.
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MrFreight
106 posts
18 months
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The most common "Corrosion" area on the 355 is indeed the bottom of the roof buttress where it meets the top of the Rear wing - As already mentioned this is a chemical reaction caused by Steel/Aluminium - It is also to be found on the 348 for the same reason.
This "Corrosion" was quite common on relatively new cars when both models were current.
Other than that check the usual "Normal" points - any area susceptable to chipping rear of front W/Arches and the like. On The GTS look for any water ingress in the footwells (Wet Carpet syndrome).
MF
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phib
2,497 posts
128 months
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Having looked at 23 ofnthese before buying mine I would say rust is quite an issue, however most of the rust I saw ( on spiders) was through poor repairs.
Loads of rust on the front wings / sills/ coach line was my worst complaint
Phib
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Cactussed
4,320 posts
82 months
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I'd actually say that rust is not really an issue per se. For a start, most of these cars are not driven on salty roads, so don't get too exposed.
The buttresses generally crack where they meet the bodywork, due to design. Most people get them repaired and painted every 3 years or so (depending on use) so you would expect to see paint on the rear three quarters and/or budget for it every so often. Welding the seam fizes it but its a bit of a bugger to do and will need painting after.
Rusty sill covers are common, but these are just stuck on over the fiber glass sills, so its not structural. you can either try and get the old ones off and refurb them or replace with carbon ones. They're not structural so not really a problem.
You should expect to see a little rust around the inside of the arches (where the metal meets th eplastic arch liner) as stones chip the paint. Again, you can sort this yourself easily (rub it back, mask off and rattle can them with hammerite) or pay someone to fix it. It should only be minor surface corrosion and nothing structural.
Front end is 'glass so shouldn't be any issues there. The underside of the car is covered by the undertray so again, should not be a problem area.
The biggest potential area (IMHO) is the engine subframe, as this is just box steel and isn't covered. Before buying, I'd be going around with a torch and giving the base of all the engine cradle uprights a good poke/tap to see if they are solid. Expect to see some surface corrosion (its a 20yo car) but anyhting more than that, beware. You can fix it, but its a hassle.
If that checks out, then rust in other areas is likely to indicate a poor repair job (IMHO).
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Trev450
Original Poster
2,390 posts
41 months
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Thanks for the positive feedback - its put my mind at rest to some extent. I am quite prepared to have the front area and wheel arches repainted every now and again as a result of stone chips, but not prepared to start replacing panels due to serious corrosion. From what has been said so far, however, they appear to be pretty robust given the average age. Definately now going to remain on my list as a potential next purchase.
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slippery
9,396 posts
108 months
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phib said: Having looked at 23 ofnthese before buying mine I would say rust is quite an issue, however most of the rust I saw ( on spiders) was through poor repairs.
Loads of rust on the front wings / sills/ coach line was my worst complaint
Phib
I am amazed at the number of people who manage to find the time and self control to look at over 20 examples before buying. I know it's sensible not to buy the first one you see, but if I even got into double figures my patience would be running out! Hats off to you!  Out of interest, did you dismiss 22 of the 23 cars as unsuitable, or had some of them been sold by the time you had decided you had seen enough? You must have racked up some serious hours and miles!
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phib
2,497 posts
128 months
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No looked at all 23, to 12 ,months and probably 3000/4000 miles and loads of time !!
Didn't want my first Ferrari to be a dissapointment or bad experience as I had had to wait from aged 5 when I decided to start saving to 32 when I bought it !!
Has not disappointed in any way car has been faultless and is still in perfect condition ( it does live in an air chamber on a battery conditioner in a heated garage though and the previous owner was just as fussy as me hi Chris !! )
Now probably going to sell this spring as I am hardly using it and it would need to go into long term storage in the summer ( which it may do) due to a house move.
The only thing putting me off selling as I know I probably wouldn't fine as perfect a red / creme rhd manual spider again !!
As for the other 22 ropey service history, crashed, clocked most had a story or two when you got under the skin of them dealers / private individuals have a very different view of perfect to mine !!!!
Phib
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slippery
9,396 posts
108 months
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phib said: No looked at all 23, to 12 ,months and probably 3000/4000 miles and loads of time !!
Didn't want my first Ferrari to be a dissapointment or bad experience as I had had to wait from aged 5 when I decided to start saving to 32 when I bought it !!
Has not disappointed in any way car has been faultless and is still in perfect condition ( it does live in an air chamber on a battery conditioner in a heated garage though and the previous owner was just as fussy as me hi Chris !! )
Now probably going to sell this spring as I am hardly using it and it would need to go into long term storage in the summer ( which it may do) due to a house move.
The only thing putting me off selling as I know I probably wouldn't fine as perfect a red / creme rhd manual spider again !!
As for the other 22 ropey service history, crashed, clocked most had a story or two when you got under the skin of them dealers / private individuals have a very different view of perfect to mine !!!!
Phib Crikey! So if I think I could be in the right position in about 18 months, I'd best start the search! 
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cydaps
35 posts
114 months
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Wow, that's some serious research there, I take my hat off to you. I'm struggling not to buy after just 5 or 6 viewings of cars... Seen a few ropey ones, but a couple of nice cars. One is very nice but small patch of rust near the rear wheel arch along the black shadow line. It's a small bobbling of paint and still firm to the touch so I guess a good bodywork centre could put that right?
Interior wear is interesting, the bolsters definitely take a hit with getting in and out and if someone's worn jeans the little copper rivets and the sewn on pockets tend to eat bolsters. Otherwise just slightly shiny leather and the dreaded sticky plastic is what I've seen on most 30 to 40k cars.
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fesuvious
3,949 posts
110 months
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I saw 'a few'. All from dealers; I got so depressed, rusty arches, bubbling buttresses, and sills that looked like a badly afflicted teenagers face. Don't lose hope though, here is what I found (private sale)  The buttresses were done @3 years ago, this is them, today  And the sills / arches yes yes, I hate the wheels too, as soon as I wear the tyres out the originals are going straight back on (already refurbished)     I bought privately, no independant inspection, just viewed the history and spoke to AE Performance in Cheshire who looked after the car. I was depressed and gutted after trawling dealers, I went to see this one as a private sale 'just because' - and never looked back. The arches and sills are original.
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phib
2,497 posts
128 months
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And this is what the interior of the car should look like if its looked after ( 39k on original seats, never refurbed )  Phib
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fesuvious
3,949 posts
110 months
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THREAD HIJACK;
Are 'chips away' a sensible option to deal with two stonechips?
Any recommendations? I'm in the Midlands
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2ky
139 posts
72 months
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Would you let this guy.............  ...give you a Vasectomy?
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Cactussed
4,320 posts
82 months
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Its a stone chip on a car. Chips away will be fine.
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carspath
223 posts
46 months
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i looked at about 10 355's over a 4 month period in 2006 ---- both at independents and main dealers.
some of these cars were perfectly nice , but i didn't want to rush into a major purchase without gaining the experience that comes with first examining a few cars (i looked at 12 cars in detail over a 3 year before taking the plunge into my 1 previous owner countach QV through the then UK main dealer---so this 355 purchase was very quick for me )
the first privately advertised car that i saw, was a very early (1994) red with black interior berlinetta (obviously manual )----apparently the 8th car to be brought in by maranellos for the kate bush family
the car had had 4 previous owners, and had already done 39,000 miles
it was beautifully presented by its then owner, and he seemed genuinely enthusiastic and knowledgeable
the car had been serviced by its last 3 owners ,over a period of about 6-7 years, at bob houghtons
i rang through to their service manager, who knew the car well, and was kind enough to spend time answering all my queries
on the basis that he had serviced the car within the last 3 months and 800 miles, i bought the car without an inspection or a warranty
since then the car has been through (among other things)2 cam belt services
the major expense , other than the cambelt services, has been that the manifolds on each side have had to be replaced (one side at each of the engine out services)
mike lister at QV LONDON is confident about the longevity of these replacement manifolds---so i'm keeping my fingers crossed
the radiator thermosat switch also died about 3 months after i bought the car, but i suspect an inspection would not have picked this up
there was no rust on the car when i bought it, and mike said there was none when he serviced it a couple of months ago( i specifically asked him about the engine cradle)
the car is the national motor museum 355 reference example, so i try to look after it well , and it is kept in a dehumidified garage
i also ask mike , each time he sees the car whether there is any sign of the valve guides going, as it is now at 51,000+/- miles, and each time he says that they are fine, and that if they were going to go, they would have done so in the first 20,000 or so miles
the points that i suppose i am trying to make ( some of which were new to me ):
-you can get a decent car privately
-buy on condition
-an old car is not necessarily a bad car
-a high mileage car is not necessarily a bad car
-do your homework before taking the plunge
-find a decent indy
-a large number of previous owners (and i found this really difficult to accept,until i got this 355)is not necessarily a reason for dismissing a car----just make sure that her previous lovers have been besotted by her
-rust is not necessarily an issue ,even on older high mileage cars---just make sure that it has been loved
these cars are no longer the fastest, but IMHO they are still among the most beautiful, and are still very much a pleasure to drive
do go for one if you can
i would love to put some pictures up, but am rather technically challenged---please google "national motor museum photographic library" and then type in "ferrari 355" to see photos of the car
these picture were taken circa 2007-8, when the car had done approx 44k !!!
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fesuvious
3,949 posts
110 months
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great post, I'd just add two things; When you buy a car privately, you should be judging the owner as much as the car. When I went to see mine, the garage door lifted....floor - red carpet, walls, white, Ferrari posters and motifs all over the place, and the 355 was sat in her car cover...and the radiator was on!!! Buy the owner, as well as the car! Secondly, this whole 'number of owners' thing. The fascination with low owners doesn't make sense to me. I'm 34, I've owned over 100 cars, so as you can imagine I don't keep a car long (get bored)* but in that short space of time I'll work on the car, and replace any parts... I've seen cars with 10 owners in ten years - and they are nigh on perfect. I once bought a Discovery with one owner last seven years and FSH - It was pure, s  te. Those out there obsessive over the number of former keepers and who choose which car to view based upon the answer - are ignorant, and very, very naive. *this F355 isn't getting sold not ever though!
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phib
2,497 posts
128 months
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fesuvious said: great post, I'd just add two things; When you buy a car privately, you should be judging the owner as much as the car. When I went to see mine, the garage door lifted....floor - red carpet, walls, white, Ferrari posters and motifs all over the place, and the 355 was sat in her car cover...and the radiator was on!!! Buy the owner, as well as the car! Secondly, this whole 'number of owners' thing. The fascination with low owners doesn't make sense to me. I'm 34, I've owned over 100 cars, so as you can imagine I don't keep a car long (get bored)* but in that short space of time I'll work on the car, and replace any parts... I've seen cars with 10 owners in ten years - and they are nigh on perfect. I once bought a Discovery with one owner last seven years and FSH - It was pure, s te. Those out there obsessive over the number of former keepers and who choose which car to view based upon the answer - are ignorant, and very, very naive. *this F355 isn't getting sold not ever though!So true i bought mine from chris355 on here, his garage was completely minimalistic and absolutely perfect, when I opend the car the carpets on the car were had stripes on ( from the hoover) them as I would stripe my lawn !! Almost to neat to sit in ! Knew pretty instantly it was the car of me Phib
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baptist
545 posts
125 months
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Dont limit yourself to checking just bodywork, the engine compartment can suffer quite badly as well.
These are getting on a bit now, so really need a good checking over.
Amazing car the 355, just loved mine.
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Trev450
Original Poster
2,390 posts
41 months
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Nice to see my thread resurrected and that there is still some very good advice being given.
Fesuvious - your car looks absolutely prestine.
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