1993 Ferrari 348 TS

A genuine UK-market, right-hand-drive car supplied by Maranello in Egham in May 1993, this delightful Ferrari 348TS is finished in Giallo Fly, making it much more interesting and distinctive than the more usual red.

One of the very last 348s to be made, which means it benefits from many factory updates including a relocated battery and colour-coded Targa roof, the car’s overall condition is excellent, a state of affairs due in no small part to a series of fastidious owners who have comprehensively documented its service and maintenance history over the years.

In the care of its owner for the past five years, it is showing just 47,000 miles on the odometer. In need of only minor cosmetic titivating, it is being offered with a very sensible guide price despite being one of the very nicest examples we’ve seen in a long time.

Our photographer barely deployed even a fraction of his considerable talent to take this stunning set of shots; after all, few cars are as effortlessly elegant as a Giallo Fly Ferrari 348.

And it’s not just the colour, because the bodywork itself is very good. The panel gaps are tight and even, and the flanks are straight and true. There is no damage whatsoever, just pristine panels and a glossy, even finish to the paint. It is utterly stunning and scores a solid nine out of ten, with only a small area of discolouration on the driver’s door to detract from the way it presents.

The removeable targa roof is in great shape and really does offer the best of all worlds, giving the full open-air experience when the weather allows, and the security and snugness of a fixed-head coupe when it doesn’t.

The five-spoke, 17-inch alloy wheels are in good shape, being free of scuffs, marks and other damage bar for a couple of kerbing marks to the nearside rear. They’re shod with matching Pirelli P-Zero tyres too, all of which have plenty of tread as they were only fitted in June 2018 at 43,014 miles.

As we will never tire of explaining, our experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly. Their presence does not, of course, preclude the need for a thorough inspection - something the vendor would welcome, by the way – but do give you a shortcut into their attitude towards maintenance.

Work to do is limited to fettling bits of the wheelarch lips, the base of the windscreen on the nearside, and the middle of the offside sill, all of which are starting to develop a little surface rust. The paint at the base of the two buttresses has cracked a little too, which enthusiasts will know is very common and only cosmetic.

None of it is not bad and all could be caught very easily, but it will need doing sooner rather than later. Yellow is an easy colour to match, so we think the necessary localized repairs would cost around a grand, depending on the new owner’s fastidiousness.

Look, can we just skip the usual bumf about the condition of the interior and just point you towards that iconic gearlever, gearknob, and metal gate combo? Utterly gorgeous – and with a dog-leg first gear for the win - details like this are why we all covet a Ferrari.

But, to stop the boss whinging, I’ll list the 348’s many other good points too, attributes that include the refreshed and re-Connolised black leather interior and a professionally treated dashboard that eliminated the 348’s notorious stickiness.

Very simple in design, the interior is purposeful without being stark, sporting without being garish. It’s a masterclass in understated design and this example’s interior wears its years lightly, with barely any wear at all: carpets, door cards, dashboard, seats, and trim are all barely marked and a testament to the car’s obvious gentle use over the past quarter of a century.

In fact, the only significant mark we can find apart from some scuffing to the driver’s interior door handle and black sill protector, is some minor colour loss to a few small areas of the driver’s seat. Barely there at all, it would be a very easy flaw to live with, or a cheap and easy fix if you couldn’t.

Keys Motorsport Silverstone fitted the 348 with four new brake discs and pads in August 2019 while it was undertaking the car’s annual service. It also took the opportunity to replace the clutch thrust bearing seal. The bill came to just over £2,500.

This follows on from more than £5,600-worth of work by the same firm in August 2015 that included refreshing and re-Connolising the interior, painting the targa roof, servicing and charging the air-conditioning system, and changing the camshaft drive belts and seals.

Other notable invoices from the same form include an annual service in 2016 (£834), and a cambelt service and four new Pirelli P-Zero tyres in 2018 (£3,000).

The vendor has previously owned a Ferrari 456, and says he prefers the 348 for road use thanks to its more accessible performance. It’s a “fantastic drive” he tells us, and is free of the sort of niggling, repetitive faults he suffered on his 456: “The 348 not only has had fewer faults than the 456, but when you fix them they stay fixed. It’s an incredibly robust car.”

The boss has driven it (of course he has…) and reports that it is “strong, and drives very well.”

The engine bay is neat and clean but could do with being detailed to bring it up to the same condition as the rest of the car, and while the underside is solid, a day spent with a wire brush and some underseal would do wonders to preserve it in the longer-term.

The Ferrari is fitted with a Tracker security system.

The Ferrari’s MOT certificate expires at the end of July 2020. The car comes with a number of expired MOT certificates plus a sheaf of invoices and bills from the likes of HR Owen, Graypaul, Carrs of Exeter, Lancaster of Colchester, DK Engineering, and Keys Motorsport Silverstone to confirm the work that has been done to it over the years. It also has, of course, its well-stamped service history booklet and the original owner’s handbook and tan leather wallet.

Also present is the original tool kit, complete with lift out compartments and a tan leather case to keep it all in.

Please visit the documents section of the gallery of this listing where you will find photos of this and other paperwork to support our claim that this car has been maintained to the very highest standard.

If you’d like to inspect the car prior to placing a bid – something we would encourage – then please use the Contact Seller button to arrange an appointment.

NB. We know that many of you will be limiting your social exposure over the coming days and weeks, so if you’d rather not come to see the car in person, please give us a call and we can shoot a personal video of the car honing in on any areas you’d like us to concentrate on.

Or, even better, why not contact us with your mobile number and we can set up a WhatsApp video call? You get to direct us in real-time, giving you a virtual personal viewing experience while maintaining the lockdown. We like to call it ‘The Market’s 2020 Vision’…

Many classic car enthusiasts are coming to appreciate the benefits of running a modern classic, not least because they offer the sort of safety, reliability, performance and driving dynamics that we’ve all come to appreciate in our daily drivers, while still being sufficiently analogue to be easy to repair and to keep us interested.

And, even after all these years, the Ferrari 348 still stands comparison with some of the greatest supercars ever built. As Henry Catchpole wrote in Evo magazine in 2015: “[it is] instantly obvious this car has some of the best steering, possibly the best, that I have ever sat behind.”

But, if you’re going to splash out on a Ferrari it needs to be the right one – and this is most definitely a ‘right one’. With an impeccable service and maintenance record, it is in need of nothing other than some minor cosmetic paintwork.

And, that unusual colour should help maintain its value well too; with the price of good 348s having dropped a little in the past year, now is a great time to buy.

With the very best cars being advertised for £70,000, this one’s estimate of £40,000 to £48,000 acknowledges the need for some minor preventative bodywork – and that while its odometer reading of just 47,000 miles is low, the market seems to value ultra-low mileage trailer queens over the sort of better-maintained, regularly exercised cars that would undoubtedly prove to be nicer to both own and drive.

Still, their loss could be your gain because we can’t think of a better, or safer, way to spend that sort of money…

Viewing is always encouraged, and this particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.

If needed, please remember we have a network of trusted suppliers we work with regularly and can recommend: Classic & Sportscar Finance for purchase-financing, Footman James for classic car insurance Thames Valley Car Storage for storing your car and AnyVan for transporting it.

BORING, but IMPORTANT: Please note that whilst we at The Market always aim to offer the most descriptive and transparent auction listings available, we cannot claim they are perfect analyses of any of the vehicles for sale. We offer far greater opportunity for bidders to view, or arrange inspections for each vehicle thoroughly prior to bidding than traditional auctions, and we never stop encouraging bidders to take advantage of this. We do take a good look at the vehicles delivered to our premises for sale, but this only results in our unbiased personal observations, not those of a qualified inspector or other professional, or the result of a long test drive.

Additionally, please note that most of the videos on our site have been recorded using simple cameras which often result in 'average' sound quality; in particular, engines and exhausts notes can sound a little different to how they are in reality.

Please note that this is sold as seen and that, as is normal for used goods bought at auction, the Sale of Goods Act 1979 does not apply. See our FAQs for more info, and feel free to inspect any vehicle as much as you wish.