1989 Ferrari 328 GTS

Details

Oldtimer Australia is delighted to offer for sale an Australian delivered, factory right hand drive, matching numbers 1989 Ferrari 328 GTS.

The service book confirms this car was delivered new on the 5^th July 1989 to its first owner in Gawler, a country town that is about 55km north of Adelaide in South Australia. The car was sold through Adelaide’s Ferrari dealer Prestige Car Sales. The car remained in Adelaide for the next nine years where it was regularly serviced by Prestige Car Sales and later Auto Studio in Stepney. In November 1998 the car was sold through Prestige Car Sales into Melbourne. The car’s then owner kept the car for the next 24 years. In his ownership, the car was regularly serviced by respected Ferrari specialists John Allen in Carlton, Victoria and Carl Jones Automotive in Batman, Victoria. There are invoices on file and entries in the service book which both confirm the current odometer reading is accurate.  The car was last serviced in February 2022. At that time the cam belts were replaced and the fluids were changed. At that time the odometer read 71,858 km. The current owner acquired the car in early 2022 and has used it sparingly in his 18 months of ownership.

Today the odometer reads 72,237 km.

The Ferrari 308 / 328 is one of the most recognisable sports cars on the planet. There’s no doubt that Thomas Magnum had something to with that, however, the Leonardo Fioravanti (Pininfarina) design is timeless and aged incredibly well.

The car we have on offer is a desirable 1989 model with convex dished wheels. It is somewhat of a time capsule and has aged very well. First impression of this car is really positive. When you walk around the car the paint generally appears to be in very good condition, particularly considering that it is approaching its 35^th birthday. It has retained a strong depth of colour and a nice gloss finish. When you look closer you will notice a few small defects in the paint, most noticeably a small touch up on the right front guard and a larger one on the right rear quarter panel just above the air intake. There are also several small stone chips visible on the front of the car. The bottom of the front spoiler has a few chips and there are some scrapes on the underside from the occasional run in with a speed bump. Aside from touch ups, the paint appears to be original.

The badges on any Ferrari are a feature and on this car they are all in very good condition. The same can be said for targa roof, which shows no sign of discolouration or any wear and tear. The glass is all in good condition. The side windows and rear window look to be original, however, the front windscreen has probably been replaced at some stage. The round tail lights on a 328 are typically Ferrari and the lenses are in good condition. The headlights and parking lights/indicator lenses present well, though if you look closely there is a tiny crack in the middle at the top on the right side parking light/indicator lens.

The wheels are the original wheels and are currently shod with Bridgestone Potenza S02 tyres on all four corners. The fronts are 205/50 R16, date stamped 3016 (week 30, 2016) and the rears are 225/55 ZR16, date stamped 2216 (week 22,2016). The wheels are in excellent condition with no signs of any curb rash.

The car arrived to us with its targa top off and after holistically taking in the car your eyes are drawn to the ‘crema’ upholstery. It is the most perfect colour combination with the rosso corso paint work and just brightens the cabin. Like the exterior of the car, first impressions of the interior are really positive. The seats are in very good condition and there are no cracks or tears in the leather, just some light wear on the right side bolster of the driver’s seat from the seat belt. A good leather doctor would be able to fix that. The door cards present well and so do the carpets. A really good indication as to how the previous owner(s) have looked after their car is the condition of the switches on the centre console and in the door. They are often missing or damaged from having had a hard life. The symbols are also often worn and hard to see. Fortunately on this car that is not the case. They present like new and appear to have hardly been used. We did notice the cigarette lighter is missing.

With a car like this it is all about the drive and we were genuinely excited to get this one out on the open road. A perfect Brisbane winter’s day greeted us for the morning of our test drive. It was cold, but the car started easily and almost immediately settled into a smooth idle. The engine sounds fantastic, but it is smooth and quite refined. The engine warms up slowly and after what seemed like an eternity (yes, we were a little impatient!) we were ready to go. Even before you select first gear you know you are in a Ferrari. There is something special about the shift gate. Out on the road this car is a real pleasure to drive. Like all Ferrari’s of this period the gearbox needs time to warm up properly, but once it has the gear changes are smooth and precise. The engine has loads of power on tap and it is incredibly responsive. The steering is direct and surprisingly light. The car handles exactly as one would expect and the brakes stop the car quickly and in a straight line when needed. All the instruments are in good condition and look to be in good working order.

All too soon our test drive comes to an end and sadly we have to return the car to our showroom where it is now eagerly awaiting its next owner.

This car has books, including a fully stamped service book, a spare wheel, a tool kit which looks like it has hardly been used, a jack, and the usually missing targa top cover.

This car has only travelled 500 km since its last service and cambelt change. Its current owner is looking to fund a business expansion and as a result this fabulous Ferrari 328 GTS is reluctantly offered for sale. It is ready for its next owner to use and enjoy.

Highlights:

• Australian delivered, factory right-hand drive, matching numbers example.
• Desirable 1989 model with convex dished wheels.
• Beautifully presented in the ‘right’ colour scheme.
• Books, including a fully stamped service book, history file, spare wheel, tools, jack, and targa top cover.

Price –

 

 

Background

Apple, Coca-Cola, McDonalds and Nike are brands recognisable the world over. So is Ferrari and interestingly the iconic Italian luxury sports car manufacturer was named ‘The World’s Strongest Brand’ in the 2019 Brand Finance Global 500 Report.

Founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1939 out of Alfa Romeo’s race division as Auto Avio Costruzioni the company built its first car in 1940. The Second World War halted Ferrari’s dream, which was finally realised in 1947, when the first car bearing his name, the Ferrari 125 S, was built. From that day on Ferrari race cars dominated the world over, winning race after race and many world championships in Formula One, sports car racing and endurance racing. Ferrari built exclusive sports cars for the road too, but in the early days, this was primarily to fund his motor racing!

The Cavallino Rampate or ‘prancing horse’ was the symbol chosen by Ferrari and like the ‘golden arches’ it is recognised by just about every man, woman and child on the planet!

The Ferrari road cars from the 1940’s and early to mid-1950’s were built in very small numbers and it was not until the introduction of the 250 series cars that production numbers increased. Almost 1,000 Ferrari 250 GTE’s were built from 1959 – 1963. The 250 series also produced some of the most special Ferraris ever built, including the Ferrari 250 LM, 250 SWB, 250 California Spider and of course the 250 GTO. The 250 series cars were superseded by the 275 series cars, the 330 series cars and later the 365 series cars. The nomenclature designated the cubic capacity of each cylinder. So a Ferrari 330 was powered by a 12 cylinder engine of 3967cc capacity.

Ferrari’s iconic Dino was first shown to the world as a prototype at the 1965 Paris Motor Show. The car morphed into the 206 GT of which only 150 cars were built from 1967 to 1969. In 1969 the 246 GT was released, which whilst a similar looking car in many ways was actually quite different. The car sat 3” taller than its predecessor and the body was now built from steel. Mechanically the ‘new car’ was powered by a 2418cc V6 engine. Enzo was keen to tackle Porsche head on and to do this he needed to increase production. The Dino was a hit and circa 4,000 of these cars (both the 246 GT and 246 GTS) were built from 1969 to 1974.

The Ferrari 308 GTB was introduced at the 1975 Paris Motor Show, essentially to replace the 246 Dino GT. The car was designed to fit between the top of the range 365 GT/4 Berlinetta Boxer and 2+2 308 GT/4. The car was released to critical acclaim and its sweeping Pininfarina design was admired by everyone who laid eyes on it. Originally the car was manufactured with a glass reinforced plastic (fibreglass) body to keep the weight down and it was powered by a three litre V8 engine with a dry sump. Only circa 800 fibreglass cars were built before Ferrari reverted to a more conventional steel body construction in 1977. Most markets also reverted to having a wet sump engine. In 1977 Ferrari introduced the 308 GTS, which was essentially the same car with a targa roof. The car was made famous through its appearance on the TV show Magnum PI. The model evolved into the 308 GTBi / 308 GTSi in 1980 when Bosch K-Jetronic mechanical fuel injection replaced the traditional Weber carburettors. Two years later the four valves per cylinder “Quattrovalvole” or “QV” was introduced. The 308 was an incredible success and circa 12,000 cars were built from 1975 to 1985 before the 328 was introduced.

The 328 GTB / GTS was essentially an updated version of the 308 with the same engine as its predecessor, but with an increased capacity of 3185 cc. The styling remained similar though its overall profile was somewhat ‘softer’ and the car featured colour coded front and rear bumpers. By mid-1988 ABS brakes were available and these cars were fitted with convex shaped wheels. Interestingly 328 GTS production out numbered 328 GTB production by a factor of five to one.

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