Ferrari 348
1989–1995 · Ferrari 348 — Sports Car, V8, designed by Leonardo Fioravanti.
The Story
Launched at the 1989 Frankfurt show, the 348 (Type F119) replaced the much-loved 328 and carried Maranello’s V8 line into the 1990s. It was, famously, the last V8 road car developed under Enzo Ferrari’s direction before his 1988 death and put into production posthumously, giving it a ‘bridge’ status all its own. Pininfarina (the final design iteration credited to Leonardo Fioravanti) dressed it in scaled-down Testarossa cues: the straked ‘cheese-grater’ side intakes flanking the doors and the rectangular tail treatment, signalling clearly that this was the junior member of a family headed by the flat-12 flagship.
Under the skin the 348 made a real engineering break from the 308/328. Where those cars mounted the engine transversely, the 348 adopted a LONGITUDINALLY-mounted 3.4-litre quad-cam, 32-valve V8 mated to a transverse gearbox — a layout signposted by the ‘t’ in the 348 tb (Berlinetta coupe) and 348 ts (targa) names, shared with the contemporary Mondial t. Early cars made ~300 PS and ran to ~171 mph. In 1993 the open 348 Spider arrived alongside revised GTB/GTS ‘Series 2’ cars with up to ~320 PS, a stiffer structure and reworked suspension.
Why it matters: the 348 is the direct conceptual and mechanical ancestor of the F355 — the car that fixed its flaws and became a 1990s icon. The 348’s reputation has always been mixed (period testers praised its drama and pace but flagged tricky at-the-limit handling, and it spent years as the ‘cheap Ferrari’). That same reputation is now the collector opportunity.
The Numbers
Benchmarked against its class
Each dial ranks this car within its Sports Car class — fuller means higher, and the tick marks the class midpoint.
Signature Colors
The Designer
Leonardo Fioravanti
Engineer-turned-stylist; rose to MD of Pininfarina Studi e Ricerche. The defining hand behind Ferrari road shapes from the late-1960s to mid-1980s.
Studio Motors POV
The 348 has long been dismissed as the awkward ‘junior’ Ferrari, but that’s exactly why it’s the smart-money entry into mid-engined, Enzo-era V8 Maranello — analog drama, gated manual and Testarossa looks for a fraction of an F355. A clean Series 2 GTB or Spider is one of the last genuinely undervalued prancing horses.
The Engine
Ferrari V8 (308–360)
Lineage
Where it sits in the bloodline
Market & Value
Values on cars like this move monthly. Our brokers price from real transactions.
What Reviewers Said About 348
Worth Knowing About the 348
3 Things You Didn’t Know
- • The 348 switched to a LONGITUDINALLY-mounted engine with a transverse gearbox — the opposite of the 308/328's transverse-engine layout — and the 't' in 348 tb / 348 ts literally advertises that transverse-gearbox design (a lineage Ferrari traced to its 312T F1 cars).
- • Those side strakes are deliberately scaled-down Testarossa 'cheese-grater' intakes that also functionally channel air to the side-mounted radiators.
- • The 1993 348 Spider was Ferrari's first series-production open two-seater since the Daytona Spider roughly two decades earlier, reopening the convertible chapter for the V8 line.
5 Fast Facts
- • ~8,844 built across all variants (2,894 tb; 4,228 ts; 252 GTB; 137 GTS; plus Spider, US Serie Speciale, 50 GT Competizione).
- • 3.4L (3,405cc) longitudinal V8, quad-cam, 32-valve.
- • ~300 PS at 7,200 rpm on early cars; revised 1993 GTB/GTS/Spider up to ~320 PS.
- • Top speed ~171 mph (~275 km/h).
- • Produced 1989–1995; replaced the 328 and was itself replaced by the F355.
Provenance
Owners & what to look for
Famous Owners
None verified. The widely cited Agnelli ‘open Ferrari’ one-off is a 1986 Testarossa Spider (built to mark his 20 years as Fiat president), NOT a 348 — so no special 348 is attributed to Gianni Agnelli. No other individually documented, citable celebrity 348 owner was found in marque/auction sources.
Studio Buyer’s Brief
Body style: tb (coupe) vs ts (removable targa) on early cars; the later GTB (fixed coupe), GTS (targa) and Spider (full convertible) are the ‘Series 2’ cars with stiffer structure, revised suspension and more power. Early vs Series 2: post-1993 GTB/GTS/Spider cars are generally the more sorted, more desirable buys; very early cars carry the period handling reputation. Still one of the more attainable mid-engined V8 Ferraris — roughly $50k–$110k+, with Spiders and clean Series 2 cars at the upper end and the rare GT Competizione far above. Prioritise Ferrari Classiche eligibility, matching numbers and full service history; this is a timing-belt V8, so confirm a recent major service (belts + tensioners).
Full Specifications
- Make / Model
- Ferrari 348
- Class
- Sports Car
- Production years
- 1989–1995
- Units built
- ~8,844 all variants (tb 2,894 + ts 4,228 + GTB 252 + GTS 137 + Spider 1,090 + 50 Competizione)
- Variants
- 348 ts (targa), 348 Spider
- Engine layout
- Mid
- Engine
- V8
- Engine family
- Ferrari V8 (308–360)
- Displacement
- 3405 cc (3.4 L)
- Power
- 316 hp
- Torque
- 238 lb-ft
- 0–60 mph
- 5.4 s
- Top speed
- 174 mph
- Power-to-weight
- 227 hp/tonne · 9.7 lb/hp
- Transmission
- 5-speed manual transaxle
- Drivetrain
- RWD (longitudinal mid V8, transverse gearbox) · Petrol
- Curb weight
- 3071 lb
Questions
348 FAQ
What does 348 mean, and what are the Ferrari 348’s key specifications?
The 348 encodes 3.4 litres and 8 cylinders — the V8 displaces 3,405cc and produces approximately 300 hp at 7,200 rpm. Ferrari offered the 348 in three configurations: the 348 tb (berlinetta coupe) and 348 ts (targa) from 1989, and the fully open 348 Spider from 1993. The 348 reaches 62 mph in approximately 5.6 seconds with a top speed of approximately 171 mph (275 km/h).
What was technically new about the Ferrari 348?
The 348 was technically new in Ferrari’s V8 line via its longitudinal engine / transverse gearbox layout (versus the transverse-engine 308/328), a stiffer chassis, and higher-output 3.4L V8 (300+ hp). Note the 348 Spider was not the first fully open-top production Ferrari V8 road car since the Dino GTS — the V8 Mondial Cabriolet preceded it. The 348 Spider is Ferrari’s first proper V8 spider in the 328 lineage.
How does the Ferrari 348 compare to the 328 GTB / GTS it replaced?
The 348 raises displacement from 3.2 to 3.4 litres and output from approximately 270 to approximately 300 hp, and adopts a longitudinal engine-gearbox layout in place of the 328’s transverse mounting. The 348 also grew in size — notably wider than the 328 — and adopted side-strake styling influenced by the Testarossa, giving it a more imposing visual presence than the trimmer 328.
What is a Ferrari 348 worth today?
348 market: Hagerty shows a good 1994 348 ts around $90K; Classic.com shows standard tb/ts variants trading modestly, while Serie Speciale (~100 built) and Challenge cars command real premiums. Recent upper-end sales have exceeded older $30K-$60K bands often quoted for base cars.
Can you source a Ferrari 348 through Studio Motors?
Yes. The 348 tb, ts, and Spider represent Ferrari’s mid-engine V8 lineage at the transition point between the 308/328 era and the acclaimed F355 — a technically evolved model with 300 hp and a fully open Spider option.
The Ferrari Lineup
Explore every Ferrari
250 Europa / Europa GT ’53250 GT Berlinetta 'Tour de France' (TdF) ’56250 GT Coupe 'Boano' / 'Ellena' ’56250 Testa Rossa (TR) ’57250 GT California Spider LWB ’57250 GT Cabriolet ’57250 GT Coupe (Pininfarina) ’58250 GT Berlinetta SWB ’59250 GT Berlinetta 'Interim' ’59
250 GT California Spider SWB ’60250 GTE 2+2 ’60250 GTO ’62250 GT Lusso (GT/L) ’62330 America ’63275 GTB ’64365 GTB/4 Daytona ’68Dino 246 GT ’69
365 GT4 BB / 512 BB ’73308 GTB / GTS ’75
288 GTO ’84Testarossa ’84328 GTB / GTS ’85F40 ’87348 ’89
F355 ’94F50 ’95550 Maranello ’96360 Modena ’99
575M Maranello ’02Enzo ’02360 Challenge Stradale ’03612 Scaglietti ’04F430 ’04599 GTB Fiorano ’06430 Scuderia ’07California ’08458 Italia ’09
599 GTO ’10F12berlinetta ’12LaFerrari ’13458 Speciale ’13F12tdf ’15488 GTB ’15GTC4Lusso ’16812 Superfast ’17Portofino M ’17488 Pista ’18Monza SP1 / SP2 ’18F8 Tributo ’19SF90 Stradale ’19Roma ’19
812 Competizione ’21296 GTB ’21Purosangue ’22Daytona SP3 ’22SF90 XX Stradale ’2312Cilindri ’24F80 ’24296 Speciale ’25
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