Considering a 308, what will £40K buy ?
Discussion
After 12 years of driving various cars featuring the prancing horse from Stuttgart, I'm considering going to the darkside. The new metal holds little interest for me, so my attention is focused on what I consider to be the best looking Ferrari built in the last 40 years, that being the 308 GTB 
(The 328 holds little attraction for me).
Will have £40K to spend, would consider a carb, i or quattrovalve model. What kind of example will £40k get me of the above models ?
I believe the carb models are becoming sought after, the i models less so. Is the QV well regarded as the last of the line ?
"Investment potential" isn't the primary reason for purchase, I'm looking for a car that's iconic and fun to drive without massive running costs.
Many thanks in advance.
(The 328 holds little attraction for me). Will have £40K to spend, would consider a carb, i or quattrovalve model. What kind of example will £40k get me of the above models ?
I believe the carb models are becoming sought after, the i models less so. Is the QV well regarded as the last of the line ?
"Investment potential" isn't the primary reason for purchase, I'm looking for a car that's iconic and fun to drive without massive running costs.
Many thanks in advance.
Behemoth said:
SlippyDiff, I would get the best condition of whatever you find on sale. Clear evidence of recent use (last 3 years) and maintenance (not just "service") is far more important than full history from birth, owner's manuals and original toolkit.
A fully fettled i is going to be way more fun to drive than a scraggy carb. Any performance differences are marginal after 30+ years & all you'd really have are some bar bragging rights.
If you find one for sale, you should be able to find a first class QV for £40K if there are any for sale. I would keep a £5K reserve for fixing things up post purchase. £30K should get you a near perfect i right now.
But be careful, because all cars this age need something, no matter what the seller tells you. An honest seller will give you their list of what's queuing up to be done next. If they don't have one, then they either don't really know their car or are leaving you to find out.
Don't worry too much about it, though. The cars are wonderfully mechanical and simple. Last of an era.
All sounds good, added to which I can rattle spanners if required. Should've mentioned that as a 964 RS driver, left hand drive isn't an issue for me either.A fully fettled i is going to be way more fun to drive than a scraggy carb. Any performance differences are marginal after 30+ years & all you'd really have are some bar bragging rights.
If you find one for sale, you should be able to find a first class QV for £40K if there are any for sale. I would keep a £5K reserve for fixing things up post purchase. £30K should get you a near perfect i right now.
But be careful, because all cars this age need something, no matter what the seller tells you. An honest seller will give you their list of what's queuing up to be done next. If they don't have one, then they either don't really know their car or are leaving you to find out.
Don't worry too much about it, though. The cars are wonderfully mechanical and simple. Last of an era.
Would really appreciate a list of the top five individuals you guys would recommend to carry out a PP inspection. I'm Midlands based, but that doesn't mean the inspector needs to be. On the basis LHD cars will definitely be considered, someone happy to travel to Europe would be good too !
Behemoth said:
Geoff at Shiltech in Loughborough without a doubt. He will also likely know many of the cars "at large" in central England.
My 308's LHD by the way. I wouldn't change, the pedals are offset properly and I've always preferred LHD manuals.
Thank you for that, will contact Geoff for a chat. The LHD "thing" is no different with early 911's, I dislike relationship between the seat/pedals in the RHD air-cooled cars immensely.My 308's LHD by the way. I wouldn't change, the pedals are offset properly and I've always preferred LHD manuals.
Where are you based ?
JaseB said:
Excellent. Good find ! Just as well I'll be happy with a LHD car. As others have said, there's not much choice in the UK currently. Is the lack of cars a seasonal thing ? and thus there'll be more cars on the market come Spring ?What's the view on cars imported from the USA, they clearly have ugly repeaters/running lights, bulky 5mph bumpers and frankly hideous looking exhaust shields, but apart from the running lights, are these easily/cheaply removed/replaced with European items ?
Early 911's imported from the US tend to have far less corrosion issues, does the same apply to the 308 ?
Behemoth said:
Mine's a US car. You can switch the lights and bumpers and exhaust covering without much difficulty. I haven't done my lights yet (it's on the list, parts are easy to find) but I did replace the exhaust cover. You can improve the bumpers both ends massively with a very easy modification that pushes them in. Or you can switch over to readily available fibreglass remanufactured replacements.
The corrosion on these cars is very rarely a structural issue. The 308's not a monocoque and its tubular chassis sections are huge. Plus, the floorpan is fibreglass across the range. And some is ally (eg front lid). So you're only left with rot on the skin to worry about. It's usually in better condition in a sunny climate car but after 30+ years, I wouldn't bank on it. I did a bare metal on mine a few years back and I got new metal patched into a few areas. Later models have some galvanising, but again after 30+ years I wouldn't be making it a major decision point.
Slippydiff, I'm in Notts btw.
Should've checked your profile The corrosion on these cars is very rarely a structural issue. The 308's not a monocoque and its tubular chassis sections are huge. Plus, the floorpan is fibreglass across the range. And some is ally (eg front lid). So you're only left with rot on the skin to worry about. It's usually in better condition in a sunny climate car but after 30+ years, I wouldn't bank on it. I did a bare metal on mine a few years back and I got new metal patched into a few areas. Later models have some galvanising, but again after 30+ years I wouldn't be making it a major decision point.
Slippydiff, I'm in Notts btw.
Yep, as I understand it the chassis itself may get scabby, but rarely corrodes too badly (too many hours spent studying the many hundreds of photos of the 308 Group 4 build on MAT's website......)
As I understand it the problem areas for corrosion seem to be doors, the bolt on ? sills and the rear lower section of the front wings.
rubystone said:
You'll guess that I owned a 964RS and a 308 QV and now own a Vetro. Clearly the 308 is not a patch on the RS. Scuttle shake in the GTS, dull steering, sluggish until you hit 7500 rpm and awful dynamically. Uncomfortable seats and iffy electrics. Corrosion takes hold in the lower triangular panels below the front clip line at the base of the front wings and they also rot around the rear...above the rear clip line.
So a ton of negatives. But boy are they pretty cars. Just don't expect it to resemble a Porsche in any way whatsoever. Drive one first and see whether you think you might fall in love with it.
Currently have a much modified Mk1 996 GT3 (Manthey K400, Ohlins, six pot fronts and Alcons all round, Cup rear toe links CS cage etc etc) and a rather special garage queen 964 RS. So a ton of negatives. But boy are they pretty cars. Just don't expect it to resemble a Porsche in any way whatsoever. Drive one first and see whether you think you might fall in love with it.
The RS isn't going anywhere anytime soon, this will be a replacement for the GT3, and most definitely not a concours garage queen (neither is the GT3)
I'm not looking for a concours 308 GTB (thinking a QV) but it'll need to be tidy cosmetically, the oily bits I'm happy to replace/update (or more likely upgrade ....)
Behemoth said:
I don't think the two cars bear meaningful comparison. For a fairer head to head you'd have to line up with the 308's two very exotic specials: the Michelotto Group B & the 288GTO. Even then, the RS was a 90s car.
Indeed, two very different cars. The RS was pilloried by the press when it was launched, too stiff, too uncompromising blah blah blah. The reality of it is they're nothing like as bad as the press made out, and twenty two years on, get one on the right road and they're one of the most intoxicating, tactile and engaging cars Porsche have made to date. Not the fastest by a long chalk, but great fun to drive.As for comparing an RS with a Michelotto Group B car, I'd say something like a 964 3.8 RS Clubsport would be a better/closer comparison.
A standard 308 GTB carb or QV would be more closely matched with the likes of a 3.2 Carrera CS.
johnnyreggae said:
Half an LHD fiberglass car http://www.classicdriver.com/de/car/ferrari/308-gt...
Which half ? A newbie question 
Despite proclaiming on a 360 thread that perhaps the 308 might be a bit too old school for me, I've found a LHD '85 308 GTB QV that ticks a lot of boxes.
Having studied the images the vendor has sent me, I noticed theseitems monstrosities either side of the rear bumper :
I've never noticed them before, and they don't appear to feature on what I'd term a "pure" european spec car :
What are they ? (apart from fugly) and were they only fitted to cars destined for certain markets ? (or are they an i or QV only fitment)
Many thanks in advance
Despite proclaiming on a 360 thread that perhaps the 308 might be a bit too old school for me, I've found a LHD '85 308 GTB QV that ticks a lot of boxes.
Having studied the images the vendor has sent me, I noticed these
I've never noticed them before, and they don't appear to feature on what I'd term a "pure" european spec car :
What are they ? (apart from fugly) and were they only fitted to cars destined for certain markets ? (or are they an i or QV only fitment)
Many thanks in advance
Behemoth said:
Not just QV, but injected cars, too. If you're very bothered, it can be swapped out with some bracketry fiddling and a fibreglass replacement for about £250 from eg Superperformance. The quality of the rest of the car is far more important than alterable cosmetic minutiae, imho. I'd be more upset by the silly wing shields.
Yep, I would be bothered I guess all these "little cosmetic bits" start adding up. But I agree the basic car needs to have corrosion free panels, decent service history, a bill for a recent clutch would be good too.This car has had it's front end painted (there's obvious overspray evident on the satin black paint inside the front lid itself) I'm guessing there are few original paint cars out there ?
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