Ferrari 360

It’s finally time for me to write about my favourite Ferrari of all time. For those of you who have been following my previous write-ups such as ‘Ferrari 308’ you would have guessed it right, it’s none other than the Ferrari 360. The Ferrari 360 was the successor to the Ferrari F355 and had a production run from 1999 up to 2005 and there were around 17,000 units built in it’s various specifications. 

Two of the common models produced were the 360 Modena which was a hardtop coupe and then there was the 360 Spider which was a convertible. All models were two-seater models. As to most of the Ferrari’s ever built, the Ferrari 360 was a rear mid-engined car. It was powered by a 3.6 litre V8 engine which generated up to 400 bhp. It came with two transmission variants of which one was the 6 speed manual and the other was the F1 electro-hydraulic manual which gives the driver the F1 feel.

Towards the end of the Ferrari 360 production, there was a limited edition model built which was called the Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale. There were slightly more than 1,000 units built and this was a car built with track usage in mind of which many of the interior luxury was stripped off as well as lightening exterior parts such as bumpers, etc ,etc.. Even the brakes used were Brembo carbon ceramic brakes. With all this lightening, the weight of the car was reduced by more than 100kgs. It is definitely not a Ferrari for you if you are looking for all that luxury refinements.

I’ve personally not got too close to a Ferrari 360 before. Earlier, all I could afford was just admiring it from far and also just walking past it without being able to actually feel the car. Haha.. I actually dream to have one by time I hit 40, I’m sure most of you guys would know what I mean. Well, just recently someone known to me actually gave me the chance to feel the car and as a bonus, it happened to be the limited edition Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale. I was actually getting more that I had ever dreamed off. It was a dream come true for me, though I didn’t have the chance to feel the car on the road or go for a drive or even hear the Challenge Stradale roar as the owner was not around but there was that satisfaction inside me. The photos in this write-up are of the Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale. So sit back and enjoy.

As for the sound of the Ferrari 360 Challenge Stradale, here’s a video of it’s roar.

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Mercedes-Benz SL R107 / C107

Probably one of the most common SLs on the road, the Mercedes-Benz R107/C107 is still an eye-catcher even till this day. All those of you who were born in the 70s and 80s would remember the TV serial ‘Dallas’, and this model was one of the stars of the show. The automobile star was a Mercedes-Benz 450 SL and was none other than Bobby Ewing’s car although the car featured there was the American spec(pic below) version which included the bigger bumpers and the round headlights among others.

There were two variations available for this model, namely the Cabriolet(pic above) and the Coupe(pic below). The cabriolets were known as the SL and used the chassis code of R107 and the coupes on the other hand were known as the SLC and carried the chassis code C107. Most cabriolets also came with a detachable hard top. Production ran from 1972 right up to 1989 with approximately 300,000 units being built which included cabriolets and coupes. Common on many Mercedes two door models, they always came with the bigger engines. There were only two 6 cylinder engines available, namely the 2.8 litre and the 3.0 litre, but there were a number of V8 engines available, namely the 3.5 litre, 3.8 litre, 4.2 litre, 4.5 litre, 5.0 litre and the rare 5.6 litre. 

There are a number of well kept examples running around. I’ve personally driven a 380 SL several years back which came with the 3.8 litre V8 engine and the torque on that engine was really impressive for it’s age. For those wanting to own one, it’s really worth it as the price for these models have been on the rise steadily so if you get one at a good price chances are it’ll be a good investment. As for the price of the cabriolet models they range from about RM 70,000 and above for decently kept ones but do expect to pay premium if they are in mint condition but if you don’t mind the coupes, they sell for about RM 55,000 and above depending on the condition of course. Just a piece of advice in case you are looking for one, get one with the V8 engine as this car runs better on the V8s. 

 Mercedes-Benz SLC Coupe

 Mercedes-Benz SL Cabriolet (American spec)

Mercedes-Benz 500K Roadster

One of the marvels Mercedes-Benz built in the 1930s was this car I’m writing about now, the Mercedes-Benz 500K Roadster also known as the W29. The Mercedes 500K was certainly a one of it’s kind automobile to be produced back in the day when automobile technology was still in it’s infancy stage. The ‘500’ is to denote it’s 5.0 litre 8 cylinder engine and the ‘K’ stands for ‘Kompressor’ in German which means supercharger. Mercedes-Benz was always known to over-engineer their cars and that’s what made their cars ahead of it’s time.

This particular model was a relatively unknown model in current times but that was until a Malaysian collector decided to purchase, restore and bring back one. It is believed that there are currently only 3 units around the world from it’s original production number of less than 400 units. This car was basically stripped to the bone and had almost entirely new components manufactured and fitted according to it’s original factory specifications by it’s restorer in Germany hence it’s excellent condition. It had gone through a two-year documented restoration process which cost around RM 1 million.

I first saw this beauty at an auto show in 2010 and the most recent being a few months back at the 'Private Treaty Sales 2014 # 2' and I must say when it came to detail it did not look as good as it was four years ago when it was in immaculate condition but nevertheless it look fantastic. It also has a matching license plate to go with the model of the car. As for the design and era of the car, I have a friend who said it reminded her of those old cars for the movie ‘Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’, if you are an oldie you would know this movie... :)

Coming to it’s value, this particular 500K was once said to be valued at RM 24 million.. hhmmm.. If you were thinking of getting one, you got to make sure you have that sort of financing. Well below are some recent shots of the car taken by Jon at the recent sale, so do sit back and be amazed by this marvel of engineering by Mercedes-Benz.

Jaguar XJ40

Many Jaguar enthusiasts will not call this particular model a true Jaguar. If you’re a Jaguar enthusiast I’m sure you know the model that I’m talking about is the Jaguar XJ40. The XJ40 featured many characteristics that were actually quite far from the classic Jaguar identity such as the square headlamps for the Daimler and Sovereign models (the low spec XJ6 models came with round lights) and not to mention it’s design itself which was quite boxy though it still maintained it’s sleekness. The XJ40 came in Jaguar as well as Daimler variants. The production years were from late 1986 up to 1994.

Being the model that succeeded the popular Jaguar Series III, the XJ40 certainly had a lot to live up to. It was initially introduced with a 2.9 litre and a 3.6 litre engine codenamed the AJ6 (it was a different design compared to the classic XK engines) and later they were replaced by the 3.2 litre and the 4 litre engines respectively. All these engines were inline six engines but there was also a rare 6 litre V12 engine available. I’ve personally driven a 4 litre and I must say it’s probably the best engine for the XJ40 as it has that ‘Jaguar’ roar whereas the other engines are a little underpowered.

As for the interior, the initial models right up to 1990 came with a digital display dashboard but was later changed to analogue meters as the digital displays were failure prone and were indeed very pricey to replace. Basically if you want to purchase one, it’s got to be done with a lot of care as many of these models tend to be not well maintained as this car is definitely not for the faint-hearted. The best models to purchase are the post-1990 models where it’s new parent company had done lost of quality improvements. Even my opposite neighbour who owns an ‘87 Sovereign has given up on the car after spending tonnes of money on it and now the car is literally sleeping being protected by a cover.

On a personal note, this is a car I don’t mind owning but of course if possible I’d like the Daimler variant. In Malaysia, you’ll be able to get good cars just below the RM 20k mark with some homework of course. And not forgetting, as an owner you need to maintain the car as well as pay the high road tax if it does not already qualify for the Classic road tax. Like I said, Jaguars are not for the faint-hearted.

 Below are three videos on the Jaguar XJ40 developments:

Mercedes-Benz W111 Sedan

For our first write up for the month of June though a little delayed as the last week was quite a hectic week for me, I would like to talk about the Mercedes-Benz W111 Sedan. I’ll be talking particularly about the W111 sedan as there were coupes as well as the cabriolets sharing the same chassis code. The most distinct design of the W111 has to the rear fintail also known as ‘Heckflosse’ in German.

When you see a Mercedes-Benz with the fintail, chances are it’s a W110, W111 or the ultra rare W112. The W110s were basically the E-Class of it’s time and the W111s were the S-Class of it’s time and you can make out the difference by looking at it’s headlights. The W110s had a single round light and the W111s had a long vertical headlight which was similar to it’s successor, the W108s. The W112s instead were the luxury models known as the 300SE which came with the big 3 litre inline 6 engine. In total, there were more than 300,000 units of the W111s built which also included the coupes and cabriolets.

Being the S-Class of it’s time, the W111 Sedans certainly has a lot of refinements the high-end cars of those days had. There were three different models available, namely the 220b, 220Sb and the 220SEb, of course the 220SEb being the Bosch fuel injected models. All the models came with an optional automatic transmission and there were different trimmings on them to differentiate between models.

There are quite a number of these cars in Malaysia but unfortunately most of them are in really bad shape as the body is a very rust prone one. I’ve personally seen a workshop with at least 3 rotting away as the owners have either lost interest as it’s too expensive to do up or it was just too bad to begin with. 

The shots below is a 220S here in Malaysia belonging to a friend of mine. It's certainly one of the better examples of a Mercedes-Benz W111 Sedan.