Rare Rides: The Very Rare Ferrari 348 Zagato Elaborazione, a Mouthful From 1990
By our count, Rare Rides has discussed Italian coach builder Zagato’s works on exactly two occasions. Both those times, boxy red coupes filled the screens of our millions of dear readers.
Today, Zagato surfaces once more, this time on a car which is certainly not boxy or red. It’s a very yellow Ferrari 348, with additional Zagato passion and flair.
Shortly before his death, company founder Enzo Ferrari managed the development of one more mid-engine V8 car. The sports car in question was the Nineties successor of the angular Eighties 328, called the 348.
The company commissioned Pininfarina for the design, which was full of smooth surfaces and side intake strakes like on the Testarossa. The 3.4-liter V8 engine was larger than the 3.2L found in the old 328, producing 300 horsepower and 238 lb-ft of torque. Power shifted through the only transmission available: a five-speed manual.
By the time the 348 debuted at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 1989, Enzo Ferrari was deceased. However, journalists around the globe were impressed with Enzo’s last offering. The 348 was pitted against (and defeated) the other new mid-engine sports car of the period, the Acura NSX. The car’s sound, character, and overall dynamic excellence were praised to the hilt.
A volume model, the 348 was replicated 8,844 times before its replacement by the F355 for 1996. Ferrari made several special variants, as it was wont to do, but Zagato also decided to give it a go.
From the start, it was intended as a limited offering, with a planned build of 22 cars. The Elaborazione package consisted of cosmetic modifications on top of a 348 TB. But “cosmetic” might be a bit of an understatement here. Zagato lowered the roof of the 348 and added a double bubble to the sheet metal. The midship engine cover was replaced by a piece of glass to be a bit more showy. Other notable changes included a new bumper at the front which was sans grille, bigger intakes (with no strakes) at the sides, and triple lights at the rear. The factory wheels were replaced by O.Z. Racing five-spokes. To top it all off, Zagato re-trimmed the interior in luxurious suede.
Though 22 examples were planned, only 10 made it out of House Zagato. Today’s Rare Ride had a single owner who apparently didn’t want to drive it, putting only 12,000 miles on the clock. This one also owns the distinction of being Zagato’s show car at the 1991 Geneva Motor Show. It comes up for sale at Sotheby’s Villa Erba auction on May 25th, and expects to bring around $200,000.
[Images: RM Sotheby’s]
Interested in lots of cars and their various historical contexts. Started writing articles for TTAC in late 2016, when my first posts were QOTDs. From there I started a few new series like Rare Rides, Buy/Drive/Burn, Abandoned History, and most recently Rare Rides Icons. Operating from a home base in Cincinnati, Ohio, a relative auto journalist dead zone. Many of my articles are prompted by something I'll see on social media that sparks my interest and causes me to research. Finding articles and information from the early days of the internet and beyond that covers the little details lost to time: trim packages, color and wheel choices, interior fabrics. Beyond those, I'm fascinated by automotive industry experiments, both failures and successes. Lately I've taken an interest in AI, and generating "what if" type images for car models long dead. Reincarnating a modern Toyota Paseo, Lincoln Mark IX, or Isuzu Trooper through a text prompt is fun. Fun to post them on Twitter too, and watch people overreact. To that end, the social media I use most is Twitter, @CoreyLewis86. I also contribute pieces for Forbes Wheels and Forbes Home.
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At least this isn't tumblr and we got to see the picture. A guy who posts pictures of rare cars, and only cars, had several photos flagged. One photo, of a 1952 Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 with bodywork by Carrozzeria Boneschi, was flagged and the poster couldn't appeal it.
Hey Corey, we all know how much you love kitschy special editions, where’s your article/thoughts on the Kona Iron Man edition?