Initially, the two versions available were the Ferrari 348 TB (targa berlinetta) and the Ferrari 348 TS (targa spyder). Both were equipped with a V8 engine derived from the one used in the Ferrari 328, now with 3,405 cm3 engine displacement. They also adopted the same five-speed manual gearbox located across the board.
A successful design criterion was to use two rear side radiators leaving the front side, just as in the Ferrari Testarossa (from which the design of the side air intakes was imitated). This alternative has several advantages such as the simplification of the engine cooling system plus the possibility to avoid raising the temperature in the interior by the hot fluid traveling from the engine to the front radiator.
The disadvantage of air intakes in the doors was that it demanded that the doors were very wide, so getting in or out of the vehicle was tedious. Another detail to mention is that the car had to be widened to accommodate those radiators, so it was (aesthetically) too wide for its short total dimension.
In the conductive aspect, the Ferrari 348 had a big problem: maneuverability in curves. The car had a great tendency to turn tail. Track tests showed that many more modest sportsmen such as the Honda NSX or Lotus Esprit had superior stability to manage their power.
In 1993 Ferrari tried to improve maneuverability by optimizing various details. The revamped Ferrari 348 GTB and Ferrari 348 GTS had more power in the same V8 and the rear track 2.5 cm wider. The improvement was slight. The major changes would come in 1994 when the Italian house introduced the replacement of 348: the new Ferrari F355 Berlinetta.
Top speed: 280 km/h
Brakes: assisted ventilated discs + abs
© Adrián Blanco 2006 — Prohibited the total or partial reproduction of text and/or images without explicit written consent of the author. —
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