"Joe," she said, "you're a nice dude. I'm going to tell you how you can have a Ferrari." Then Ms. Godmother laid out the plan. Not all Ferraris have six-figure price tags, she explained. In fact, Ferraris can be downright affordable. The current market value of some of the most popular models ever, the 308 series from 1975 through 1985, is in the $25,000 to $40,000 range. The cost of a nice, but prosaic, sedan.

"Yeah, but what about maintenance?" Joe asked.

"Well, yes, that can "knock the wind out of your love handles," said Ms. Godmother. "About five grand every 30,000 miles. But look at it this way. A 15-year-old Ferrari isn't going to be your daily driver. You'll probably put 6000 miles of weekend use on it in a year's time. Amortized over five years, that's a thousand bucks a year. Beer and pretzel money.

"As for insurance," she continued, "with two or more vehicles you qualify for a multi-car discount. And the Ferrari can be listed 'for pleasure use only'--what Ferrari isn't?" Thanks to Ms. Godmother, Joe saw that owning a Ferrari isn't an impossible dream. You, too, can live out our little fable. Just read on.

308 Selection

There was a 308 GT4, body by Bertone, that appeared in the early Seventies. But the first of the Pininfarina-styled 308s, the subjects of this Used Car Classic, came along in 1975. This 308 GTB - "B" for "berlinetta" - didn't reach the U.S. market until 1976. It was joined in our market by the GTS for 1978. The difference between the two is a removable targa top; the "S" stands for "spyder," the traditional Italian designation for an open car. Unlike the GT4 with its two rear jump seats, the GTB and GTS are strictly 2-seaters.

If you come across an early GTB with a body that seems to be made of plastic, don't worry - you're not hallucinating. Ferrari built some 700 fiberglass 308s over a three-year period, though they were available in the U.S. only for 1976. European versions of the glass cars had dry-sump engines with hotter cams and other performance-oriented modifications; none of these dry-sump cars, however, were officially marketed in this country. Though the glass cars now have a certain cachet with collectors, they weren't particularly popular at the time. It seems Ferrari buyers didn't want an Italian rendition of the Corvette, and all subsequent 308s were steel-bodied.

The 308s built from 1975 through 1979 have engines with four lovely downdraft Weber carburetors. By 1980 Ferrari was forced to part with tradition and switch to fuel injection, a Bosch K-Jetronic system, thanks to onerous U.S. emissions regulations. Not only did the cars lose the delicious-sounding roar that Webers make during acceleration, but also they lost performance. Nevertheless, the fuel injection did give improved driveability - no flat spots or protracted warm-up procedures - and more effective emissions control, These cars were officially designated the 308 GTBi and 308 GTSi.

Hit by charges that the 308 no longer delivered supercar performance - any number of other lesser performance cars would leave the GTBi or GTSi in their wake - Ferrari swapped the 2-valve heads for 4-valve versions in the summer of 1983. The GTBi and GTSi Quattrovalvole, "QV" for short, once again had the performance expected of a Ferrari. The 308 continued in production through the 1985 model year, until replaced by the 328 GTB and GTS.

So which edition should you pick? For some help with this question we turned to Garry Roberts of Garry Roberts & Co., an independent Ferrari sales, service and restoration company in Costa Mesa, California. The 308s to own are the 1983-1985 QVs. The power is up and the niggling problems are down. But then, the prices of the QVs are up there too. The 308s to avoid are the 1980-1982 injected models. "Just plain slow," says Roberts. That leaves the third bunch, the 1975-1979 carbureted 308s, as the most traditional cars and perhaps the best values among the 308 series. Roberts points our that the earliest carbureted cars were a little quicker than the later ones, because of less stringent tuning for emissions control. But he wouldn't pay a premium for a plastic-bodied 308. "For my dollar, there is no advantage to them," he says. Roberts also cautions prospective 308 owners to avoid cars that weren't originally built to U.S. specifications, the so-called gray-market cars that were imported in considerable numbers during the Eighties. Gray-market cars are in special disfavor in California because of new, draconian emissons-testing rules being phased in during 1996 and 1997. Even a U.S.-spec multi-carbureted 308 may have a difficult time passing California's strict new smog tests if it isn't tuned to perfection. And history shows that as California goes, with regard to emissions testing, so eventually go other states. Something to keep in mind.

Because a shabby Ferrari represents an unparalleled opporunity for personal bankruptcy given its high repair costs, what matters most in your search for a 308 is condition. Buy a U.S.-spec car that's received tender loving care all its life, and you won't go far wrong no matter the year or the model.

Buyer's Checklist
Look for a vehicle that comes with a complete set of repair receipts so you can judge its service history and verify its odometer mileage reading. Be sure to have the car inspected by a Ferrari specialist before you buv; he should look for problems common to all old cars - low compression, poorly repaired collision damage and so on. But, as with any marque, Ferraris have their own peculiarities. For some insights into these, we turned to Adam Cox and Dayal Dindral, service technicians with Ferrari of San Francisco (actually located in Mill Valley), one of two factory-owned service and sales facilities in the U.S.; to Michael Rozenstraten, owner of independent Ferrari Service of Costa Mesa; as well as to Garry Roberts.

1. Be wary of low-mileage cars. First, it's easy to disconnect the speedometer on 308s so that the odometer won't record the true mileage. But even if the mileage shown is accurate, a Ferrari that spends its life sitting without regular use is an unhappy car. Everything from hydraulic systems to rubber suspension pieces, from shock absorbers to gaskets and seals, will deteriorate, perish or freeze up without use. And because Ferraris tend to be weekend playthings, there are plenty of low-mileage cars around. "A car with exceptionally low mileage makes a nice show car, but that's about it," says Cox. The best 308 is one that has received both moderate use and regular service. A well-maintained 308 with 100,000 miles or more can still be a very strong car and a good buy.

2. Check the car's records to see that the prescribed service has been performed. The engine oil and filter shouId be changed every 3000 miles or six months. The factory specifies additional service procedures every 15,000 miles; this service will include a tune-up and a valve adjustment. The 30,000-mile (or 60,000-. or 90,000-mile service and so on) is the big one: the standard procedure for this service calls for removing and reinstalling the engine, according to Rozenstraten. The 30,000-mile service will often include a valve adjustment plus replacement of the water pump, the two timing belts, ignition parts, the clutch linings, various seals and hoses.

Obviously alI this is an expensive proposition, which owners too often skip. "We see a lot of people who can afford to buy these cars, but who can't afford to service them," says Dindral. But ignoring Ferrari's prescribed service intervals can have catastrophic consequences for an owner's financial well-being. For instance, if the timing belts aren't replaced every 30,000 miles or five years, they may break and allow pistons to crash into valves, necessitating an engine rebuild - something no faint-hearted enthusiast of moderate means would ever want to face.

3. Inspect the emissions-control equipment. This is of particular concern in California and in other states with strict smog-test rules. These 308s came with a variety of emissions-control equipment. Until 1978, they were saddled with a thermal reactor and twin air-injection pumps. From 1978 on, they had twin catalytic converters. And all carbureted cars had dual-point ignitions. During your pre-purchase inspection, make certain the appropriate equipment for the car is in place and operating correctly. When these 308s were young and the emissions inspection rules were more lenient, many owners removed the thermal reactors, gutted the catalytic converters or replaced everything with European exhaust systems. But retrofitting this emissions-control equipment is costly. And keep in mind that getting all those Webers properly adjusted and running in synch on the early 308s is an arduous task requiring large doses of experience, patience and concentration. "I come in on Sunday to do the carbs," says Rozenstraten. On the other hand, once properly set up, they'll stay that way for a long time.

4. Look for rust. It wasn't until 1980 that Ferrari offered any kind of warranty against corrosion because until then, the cars carried virtually no rust- proofing. Early 308s, even ones that live in sun-kissed California, may have rusty doors. Quarter panels are another favorite haunt of the tinworm. And keep in mind, adds Roberts, that the fiberglass-bodied cars still have steel rocker panels, yet another common area for rust.

5. Check for electrical problems. Cox and Dindral advise you to note the operation of the twin electric radiator cooling fans as the engine idles. A fan that runs slowly could indicate a bad fuse box - a common 308 trouble spot. And if the turn signals only work when you rev up the engine, the charging system may be failing. Overall, 308s - carbureted cars in particular - seem to have weak electrical systems. Fuse boxes melt. Power window lifts, never speedy to begin with, become agonizingly slow. And the electric motors that raise the headlights are prone to fail. And on fuel-injected cars, the electronic ignition control units may go berzerk; they sit in the trunk where they can get soaked if water seeps through leaky taillight seals. Though all these electrical gremlins are annoying, they aren't generally horrifically expensive to correct.

6. Don't expect too much. Yes, Ferraris are very expensive when new. And yes, they are exotic. But Ferrari has often been slow to adopt features that we take for granted even on lesser cars. The lack of rustproofing is one example. And Ferrari didn't give the 308s grease fittings in their suspensions; after 50,000 miles many 308s will need every moving part in their suspensions renewed. Nor do they have the comforts of a luxury car. "People expect them to be like their Lexus," says Cox. They're not.

7. Once you buy a 308, find a good mechanic. Then listen to his wise counsel. And give him a thank-you present. Though in most instances you'll want to use genuine-issue Ferrari parts, the savvy mechanic knows that a set of Repco brake pads ($45 a set) works just as well as Ferrari pads ($180 a set), that an electric radiator fan switch from a VW Rabbit ($10) is the equal of a Ferrari switch ($63) or that the electric mirror switch from a BMW 7-Series ($26) is the same one Ferrari uses (at $70). A good mechanic can make your dream of owning a Ferrari a little more affordable.

Contributions to this FAQ by: Steve Jenkins, Peter Bohr (Road & Track)