36 or 430?

[Lofty999]

Thinking of taking the plunge,as per title,which is better?Positive and negative issues for both would be appreciated .At present l drive a noble m12 and never driven a Ferrari.Any views greatly appreciated.

[johnnyreggae]

Check out the buyers guide here and voicey's superb resource site

[Nano2nd]

430 is better in every way (as you'd expect with a later generation of car) except possibly the noise, 360 sounds epic! some people will tell you the 360 is better looking, but they'd be wrong

[Fuoco]

Nano2nd said:

430 is better in every way (as you'd expect with a later generation of car) except possibly the noise, 360 sounds epic! some people will tell you the 360 is better looking, but they'd be wrong

No offence to fans of the 430 but here are my personal thoughts, 360 has better proportions, it was the design Pininferina came up with taking inspiration from classics like the Dino, it's an absolutely wonderful piece of art. They then modified it with a bigger engine more power requiring bigger vents hence the butt is too tall. The headlamps are too small for the huge air intakes at the front, of course taste is purely personal. Of course the 430 is faster but then again other newer cars are faster than it. However a gorgeous design is just timeless, and i think the 360 just gets better with age. 20 years from now....

[cgt2]

The 360 sounds far better than the 430, this is an important part of the Ferrari charisma.

430 is an improvement in other areas, but one of my key criteria was always noise when I owned them and the biggest disappointment for me on the 430.

[Armen]

F430 sounds awesome to me so does the 360 in a different way. The F430 barks and shouts. The 360 is more about singing I think.

Both cars look great but I have a preference for the more agressive style of the F430. Plus, technically it is a much better car.

Anyway, you can't go wrong either way.

[Frrair]

I went out for a drive in my 360 coupe today.

Fab throttle response, slick handling, strong brakes and fab manual gearbox. I really enjoyed an hour's whizz in a car I have had nearly 5 years.

I am sure there might be better (RablingLambo) others will tell you what they are every day of the week but hey it was fun and that is all that really matters.

I am sure you won't go wrong with either, but my choice would be 360 because I am still a little bit in love with it.

For perspective i have never driven a 430 so perhaps I am just in blissful ignorance but i like where I am.

Still like a go in a F40 though as that is my ultimate dream......

[mwstewart]

Test drive one of each and see what you like.

[roygarth]

Noise - 360
Aesthetics - 360
Dynamics - 430

So 2-1 to the 360.

That's it, next!

[petrolpat]

Maybe just me but the 360 front headlight let the car down. Seen many red cars where the inside of the lights fade as well.

Also 430 does not require cam belt service.

[Cerberaherts]

petrolpat said:

Maybe just me but the 360 front headlight let the car down. Seen many red cars where the inside of the lights fade as well.

Also 430 does not require cam belt service.

There is often a big thing made of this, but to be honest a cam belt change costs between £500-£700, and is every three years, so not a big consideration? You could say the same about the poor exhaust manifolds and brackets on the 430 which would cost you far more!!

[Fuoco]

petrolpat said:

Maybe just me but the 360 front headlight let the car down. Seen many red cars where the inside of the lights fade as well.

Also 430 does not require cam belt service.

I think the headlamps give it presence and the cam belts are changed via a panel behind the seats. Someone in the know told me once that really 3 years is best practice but he knows of many owners doing them at 5 years with no issues however honest £500- £700 every 3 years is just peanuts to spend on a car that gives back so much

[yzr500]

ive owned a manual 360 coupe for just over a year now great drive+sound but a 430f1 is my next car on the radar

[davek_964]

I've never been drawn to 430s. Not sure why but I suspect it's because they don't look that visually different to me, so it wouldn't be enough of a change - although being a newer car, I'm sure it's improved in many ways.

I have considered changing my 360 recently though, partly because I had an investment mature (investment may be the wrong word since I'm not sure I got back much more than I paid in!) and that was always planned to fund a car update. Unfortunately, my tastes have got more expensive since I made that plan, so if I did change, I'd want a 458 or 12C.

But here's the thing. I spend plenty of time justifying the fact that I could fund the upgrade and browsing classifieds - especially over the winter when I've not been using the 360 much. But this week, I've used the 360 a few times including over the weekend - and when I drive it, I still think it's superb. 458 and 12C look better, but the 360 has useable power and I don't actually want much more and the drive is fabulous. All thoughts of replacing it - especially at an extra cost of £60k+ - disappear every time I use it. Can't say better than that.

[MrBarry123]

For me, the 360 is a more attractive car than the 430, without a doubt. The shape of the 360 is gorgeous, compared with the 430 which has always looked a bit awkward to me.

I can absolutely believe the 430 running rings around the 360 dynamically though.

[Dave R D]

Owned a 360 for 3 years. Epic car after driving around in Maserati's for a few years.
Had a F430 for a few weeks, much nicer to drive then my 360.
I would buy one, but the price has gone up so much, decided to buy a Mclaren 12c for just a little more.

[LondonSW7]

On the cambelts (360) vs timing chains (F430) topic - it seems everybody assumes the F430 is cheaper to maintain in this respect because it doesn't need cambelt changes. However, what it does need, apparently, is a check of the timing chains every 43k miles, which a well-known official dealer told me has a book time of 23 hours and a quoted cost of £4k... That pays for a lot of cambelt changes on a 360...

[voicey]

Lofty999 said:

Thinking of taking the plunge,as per title,which is better?Positive and negative issues for both would be appreciated .At present l drive a noble m12 and never driven a Ferrari.Any views greatly appreciated.

Drive both and make your own mind up! £ for £, I think the 430 has more to offer but everyone is different (as you can see from the different responses above).

[Mike Brown]

As said earlier 360 ,spider personally, but agree the 360 is so rounded it's very much the Dino, just look at the side view with those air intakes its Dino. Look at the back especially with challenge grille, it's old school classic ferrari.

Also it's still appreciating and I believe it will surpass the 430, manual way to go imho, cam belts no trouble , had mine three years and not one fault or let down, if I were to change it which is highly unlikely I would go 458 spider, not 430.

The 430 is to clunky, bitty looking, having said that it's still a very nice looking car, but it's not worth the premium it seems to be attracting, just my humble and no offence to my friends who 430,s, Mike