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Sep 16, 2023

Ferrari F355 Tested: A V

This fast, feral, glamorous new car puts Ferrari back on the most-wanted list.

This fast, feral, glamorous new car puts Ferrari back on the most-wanted list.

No Ferrari F355 owner in his right mind would drive one of these art treasures in the wintry conditions we experienced while the car was in Ann Arbor, but what could we do? New Ferraris do not come our way often, and we don't pick the dates. So we ended up stabbing a flaming-red F355 through snow flurries and road-salt spray, cringing at these abuses as our admiration for the car's capabilities grew.

The F355 is Ferrari's replacement for the 348, and although it's based on that car's layout, it is a generation ahead of the 348 in every way. Still, there's no mistaking it for anything other than a red car from Maranello when you first approach it. After hunting for the door handle (it's hidden under the intake duct) and opening the door, the impression is heightened. On the other side of a wide, flat doorsill is a low, leather-wrapped seat and, in front of it, a handsome three-spoked wheel with a big yellow prancing-horse badge sitting atop an airbag. Alongside the seat is the traditional metal gearshift maze—now with seven slots—sprouting a polished steel shaft with an alloy ball at its peak.

You vault the sill, twist into the seat, and slide your feet down to shiny metal pedals offset slightly to the center of the car. A hoarse bark greets the starter, then the engine settles to a deep, resonant idle. Prods at the pedal send the revs soaring, and you hear the twang of an unconstricted exhaust system and the whiz of a small, responsive V-8. Five valves serve each cylinder, but they're operated by belt-driven cams and hydraulic tappets; as a result, the valvetrain is unexpectedly quiet.

A tachometer redlined at 8500 rpm suggests a peaky engine and a dull, off-song response to the throttle at low revs, but that isn't the case. In fact, the F355 pulls willingly almost from idle, with no snatching or shuffle. It'll run easily with traffic at under 4000 rpm, accelerating steadily and acting as well mannered as a kid's pony. The only impediment to gracious around-town cruising is a throttle pedal with some initial stiction in the movement. This makes smooth shifting more difficult than it need be. A pity, now that the car's transmission oil is warmed by an engine‑coolant heat-exchanger, and the shifter moves easily almost from the start.

With a more predictable throttle action, you would be able to add the precise amount of power needed to produce seamless shifts. If we owned an F355, we'd massage the linkage immediately. Naturally, it's less of a problem on the open road, where sixth gear offers enough response to pass other cars even when using only the first half of the tachometer. Of course, you can also clack the lever down a cog or two and flash by so fast that other drivers will think someone repainted the Starship Enterprise.

Because the Ferrari engine has a 180-degree crankshaft, (which produces equal firing intervals on each cylinder bank for best exhaust timing), its firing order is more like two straight-fours than the four V-twins of the typical arrangement. So it sounds more like a demented four-cylinder motorcycle than a NASCAR stocker at high speed. It also puts 375 horsepower to the ground in a convincing display of power. From a standing start, if you can balance the powertrain on the knife-edge between tire smoke and clutch smoke, 60 mph can be reached in 4.5 seconds. That makes it faster than a 405-horsepower 5.7-liter ZR-1 Corvette (4.7 seconds).

VEHICLE TYPE: mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door coupe

PRICE AS TESTED: $136,500

ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 40-valve V-8, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection

Displacement: 213 cu in, 3496 ccPower: 375 hp @ 8250 rpmTorque: 268 lb-ft @ 6000 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 6-speed manual

DIMENSIONS: Wheelbase: 96.5 inLength: 167.3 inWidth: 74.8 in Height: 46.1 inCurb weight: 3268 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS:Zero to 60 mph: 4.5 secZero to 100 mph: 11.2 secZero to 130 mph: 19.1 secRolling start, 5-60 mph: 5.5 secTop gear, 30-50 mph: 7.9 secTop gear, 50-70 mph: 8.2 secStanding ¼-mile: 13.0 sec @ 110 mphTop speed (redline limited): 179 mphBraking, 70-0 mph: 156 ftRoadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.98 g

FUEL ECONOMY:EPA city/highway driving: 10/15 mpgC/D observed: 14 mpg

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