All enthusiasts of Ferrari is familiar with the 348. But not everyone knows that it carries with it a rather tasty anecdote, told by Luca di Montezemolo himself, former president of the Prancing Horse marque.
It's 1991, just after the soccer World Cup in Italy. Montezemolo, pleased with the success of the event, decided to treat himself to a brand-new yellow Ferrari 348. Except that one day, while driving his beauty in Rome, he was humiliated: stopped at a traffic light, he was literally dropped for the first 30-40 meters by... a black Golf GTi. The most piquant comment from the Volkswagen driver was: "Hey Montezemolo, this one's much better!
Years later, at the presentation of the sublime 458 Italia in 2009, he tells the story to the press: "I'll never forget it! Afterwards, I called a meeting without telling anyone at Ferrari. They proudly showed me a slide touting the 348 as 'best in class' in acceleration. I let them talk, then said: 'Guys, tough luck, I'm actually a customer of this crappy car. It makes a lot of noise, but it doesn't move!
To add insult to injury, Montezemolo even invited Niki Lauda to test the 348. The Austrian legend's verdict? Exactly the same: a magnificent coupé, but terribly sluggish for a Ferrari.
Of course, some purists disputed the story: on paper, the 348 accelerated from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.6 seconds, compared with 8.3 for the Golf GTi of the time. Unless you'd come across a prepared Golf, it's hard to believe it could compete on the whole straight. But it doesn't matter: what's important is that this phrase has gained a cult following, and that it alone symbolizes the high standards that Montezemolo sought to re-establish at Ferrari as soon as he arrived.
Nevertheless, the Ferrari 348 remains a pivotal car: the last Ferrari born in the Enzo era, it produced almost 9,000 units between 1989 and 1994, before being replaced by the much sharper 355.
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