In 1999, Ferrari considered their much-loved and hugely accomplished 355 ready for replacing, a bold move as many thought it the marques best junior supercar ever. The 360 adopted new materials and construction methods and Ferrari designed the 355's successor from scratch. The firm's desire to be back at the forefront of racing with its successful endurance and F1 programmes at the time had also filtered its way down to the street cars. The design was revolutionary for example making extensive use of exotic lightweight materials throughout, the 360's construction has resulted in the frame weighing 28% less than the outgoing 355, structural rigidity having been increased by an amazing 40%. With Ferrari wanting the interior to be more spacious, the wheelbase was stretched by 150mm, width rising by 15mm, the need to accomodate a set of golf clubs having been a pre-requisite. Ferrari paid particular attention to improving underbody aerodynamics and thus the 360 boasts a completely flat bottom with two prominent diffusers clearly visible from the rear.
The 360's Tipo F131B engine produced a staggering 400bhp at 8500rpm from just 3586cc! This resulted in an extremely impressive 0-60 time requiring just 4.4 seconds and a 186mph top speed. It came as no surprise when Turin styling house Pininfarina, who have a long-standing association with Ferrari, were chosen to create the bodywork and interior. Notable features from what is a very modern design are the gaping air intakes for the front-mounted radiators and those 250 LM-esque engine-cooling ducts mounted atop the rear wings. Thanks to a great deal of time in the wind tunnel, Pininfarina produced an exceptionally clean profile without need for additional wings, flares or blisters. One of the other striking features on the 360 Modena is a large glass rear screen that proudly displays the engine in all its glory. Introduced at the Geneva Salon in March 1999, the Modena unsurprisingly swelled Ferrari's order books and a two year backlog was on the cards within weeks.
The model stayed in production until 2004 when the F430 was introduced. Curiously, Ferrari decided to drop the Modena tag for the 360 Spider. The fully retractable electric hood takes under 30 seconds to be raised or lowered. Mini roll hoops form part of a full width panel that electro-hydraulically opens to hide all evidence of the hood when lowered leaving a clean "spider" form reminiscent of a 60's. Mechanically, the Spider is unchanged from the Modena.
This example offered for sale by DK Engineering is presented in the stunning combination of Nero with Crema and Nero Leather inside as well as the optional Electric Daytona seats. First delivered in April 2001 this F1 example has covered 26,000 miles in total. The current owner has had the car for four years and has undertaken meticulous maintenance with both DK Engineering and Maranello Egham. The car is complete with an excellent wallet of service invoices and MOTs which confirm the cars mileage and condition. Most recently the car was given an annual service by DK in April 2011 (Cambelts replaced in June 2010). The car is available immediately and is in a superb condition having just received a professional detail both inside and out.
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