Yes , I think once you have ridden all well most of the boy racer genes in yourself , absolute performance drops down the pecking order of what makes a great car to drive .
Factor in U.K. roads in terms of speed traps , pot holes , gen congestion, social responsibility etc etc then performance dilutes further .
It’s an age thing too .
Iam just over 60 .
I was 25 when I got my 911 a G60 . Ragged it to death when my mates had XR3 s and GTI s in the late 80 s .
At that age absolute performance was king bcz you could meter it out , unleash it .
Mid 30 s I had a Testarossa my first F car and yes I did see 185 mph and sure it was straight line quick .
It couldn’t handle , had heavy steering and was physically massive to daily unlike the diminutive 911 G60 .
2002 I had a F360 F1 ( traded the Testarossa) …wanted to be like Schumacher he had flappy paddles going round in circles on the TV most Sundays .
Various F owner events early noughties I though I had the dogs wedding tackle the lated thing from Marenello.
Never really bonded with it always felt it was a technological tour d force and I was just a passenger at the whim of all the ECU s and various nannies doing all the work . Bit like a chimp holding the steering wheel .
Went through ( as well as to compliment) various other sporty 2 nd and 3 rd cars looking for “ that feeling “
Renault sport spider , Alfas , to name a few .
Retired and bought a Dino GT 4 @ auction thinking a plaything do er upper with a prancing horse badge .
It’s a 208 . Always liked the Gandini penned Bertone style .
By now old enough and I think wise enough to cut through journalistic and social media opinionated BS on cars .
You get the age where you don’t care what the “ herd “ think inc cars .
What a revelation driving the GT4 ! Where has this been all my life ? Light nimble responsive chassis loverly engine etc etc .
Being a 2.0 L well down in absolute performance at the “ camshaft arms “ bar room bragging = who cares ?
I fancied another F car a bit more luxurious, but still analog. Also with investment potential.
Needed to be a cabriolet.
Didn’t want any elecrotwackery shackling me to main dealers evey time a dash light comes on .
Didn’t fancy a depreciation new ish 488 or 458 ..aside similiar to Testarossa they are wide cars in terms of using everyday .
Disappointed with the 360 and whole flappy paddle experience.
The GT4 reconnected me with gated Ferraris . Who cares about cog swapping speed in real life driving ?
Took a deep dive into a 355 Spider , but put off by the unreliability of the hood mechanism and it’s 1/2 way nudge to electrotwackery….you know adjustable dampers the motronic 5.2 and it’s size . It’s a few inches all round bigger than a 348 .
Didn’t really want a 328 or 308 as too close to the Dino .
348 SP …..so few in the U.K. and as the guy said in the vid it’s just you and ABS .
I have a 2.9 boxster as well it’s a kinda yard stick .The 348 SP had a far more supple , comfortable ride bags more charm .
Pretty similar performance wise FWIW ? The Ferrari edges it at the mid to top end . It looses out on slower cog swapping which is part of the appeal as the guy in the vid pointed out .
I think there are 67 348 s on the DVLA reg of which 17 or so U.K. Spiders of which 3 or 4 Giallio .
Ferrari manufactured more F40 s than 348 SP s worldwide .
Not why after 35 yrs or so the bar room guys in the “ cam shaft arms “ keep perpetuating Luca MdZ s throw away remark ? When 348s come up in conversation?
Realise theses days young lads coming through do “ monthly’s “ change cars frequently and absolute performance + electrotwackery, tech on board , Nurmberg ring times and influencers pull there buying strings . Plus they don’t want any DIY maintenance as they can’t do any . They are wholly reliant on the main dealers .
This leaves huge gaps in the near and true classic F market , aging F market .
348 s are rare bread and connoisseurs drivers cars .
The guy in the vid was spot on .