Is Ferrari's Iconic Testarossa Truly Terrible To Drive?
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- čas přidán 23. 08. 2023
- Ferrari's Testarossa has long been one of the most famous supercars of the 80s.. but those in the know seemed to think it didn't handle and wasn't exciting enough to drive. Today I take it out and see if it is a bad as legend has it.
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As a child of the 80's I'm not seeing where all the hate for the styling is coming from. It's absolutely gorgeous in my opinion.
Young people these days are literally stupid. Anyway, back in 1986, this was my first ever Matchbox car with laser wheels. It was a glorious-looking car! Now we have the Puro-Nissangue-Juke or whatever it is.
Looks better than everything they make today
The styling is of its time,and like most 80s designs,it doesn't age well !
@@jbphilly1234 If that's your opinion, fair enough. I certainly don't agree.
It is not an ugly car. But me, born in the late 70s, child in the 80s, always thought that it also was not pretty. Its V12 predecessors and also its successor 550 are just gorgeous, but the 512 series never pushed my buttons.
It simply screams 80s and I really do not like the design of the 80s very much.
Never heard that the testarossa was terrible to drive, i heard it was more of a GT car and the countach was terrible to drive but felt more thrilling.
You've not heard it because no one ever says it.
In fact they have a great rep at anything bar 10/10ths
Testarossa isn’t a great car to drive, although it looks great. The Countach on the other hand is all looks and was an awful car to drive. I knew someone who had one, it was rubbish he said but like lots of cars we love them.😂
@@studio-flash I drove a Countach, not too hard, and Jeremy Clarkson had it right - it had the feeling that it was trying to kill you. Never drove a Testarossa, but the few Ferraris I have driven were a mixed bag. The 308 was about the best to just drive. None of them compare to the contemporary Lotus Esprit, which was an absolute joy to drive - on those rare occasions it was running.
Easy to drive if you are wearing white espadrilles with no socks and called Crockett.
He DID SAY 80s. Character Sonny Crockett (Don Johnson), TV show Miami Vice."
Essential for any serious police work.
Short answer NO, its fantastic but the 512TR is GOD MODE. Had both and both were 100% reliable. Never let me down ever. Such amazing cars.
Yes. I kept my 512
My Testarossa did let me down once, when I let it run out of gas. 🤷♂️ 😊
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Several comments on your review. The engine is in actuality a flattened 180 degree V12, not a 120 degree V12 as stated.
I have extensively driven the earlier progenitor 512 BBi with the earlier 2 valve per cylinder DOHC version of the flat twelve engine, and then later additionally have driven the Testarossa, both on race tracks during Porsche Club Driving School events, so I agree with you about what is a seemingly paradoxical more rearward bias surprisingly atypical for a true mid-engined car caused by the 512BBi and Testarossa higher center of gravity by the elevated crankshaft, and additionally accentuated by the back four cylinders of the flat twelve being actually behind the rear wheel axle line placement.
In effect the higher center of gravity and the more rearward engine positioning above the transaxle, make the both the Testarossa and the 512BBi, function more like a true rear engined car, much like the 911 Porsche, but noticeably heavier in feel. So to drive at speed, much like a true rear engined car such as the air cooled 911, brake before the curve, going back on throttle in and through the curve, thus giving more weigh transfer planting of the rear tires when in the curve. So if you drive the 512BBi and Testarossa like a "big" heavy classic semi-trailing arm rear suspension air cooled 911, then these Flat Twelve Ferraris become quite satisfying to drive briskly. The only downside of both the Boxer and the Testarossa are the marginal brakes relative to their weight, with fade occurring typically after multiple deep braking applications, very unlike the superb, never fading, braking typical of Porsche 911's of the same era. On a race tracks, like Mid-Ohio or Nelson Ledges, you had to plan your allowance of deep braking, keeping track of the number of deep applications, trying to limit the onset of inevitable fade. These fade characteristics never were evident on the street. Allowing for their era typical under-braked characteristics, I found both of the flat twelve Ferraris very enjoyable to drive.
A friend has a Testarossa and a 512TR, both of them he has already driven almost 200000km without the slightest pity, he uses them like normal cars, he never had a problem and he loves the cars!!
Good to hear that!!
@@Number27 I've had both TR and 512TR and they were totally reliable. Better than my Porsche 993 4S by a mile!
Came here to say something like this. I have a relative who's had a Testarossa ('86 monospecchio) for 20+ years at this point and it's been shockingly little trouble. He's of course done a few things (some ignition modules, it's had belt jobs which are non-trivial, and fixed the HVAC controls once) but probably less than most people would do on a Honda in the same time frame (ofc with far fewer miles).
Is he the dude Ive seen towing one behind the other on Instagram? The Towsterossa?? All I can say is that's just greedy xD
@@Number27 I recall the first time I saw a Testarossa, back in the 1980s. A little old man was driving it, so wrinkled he looked like my scrotum, so tiny he could barely look over the steering wheel. A sad example of how most of the people who can afford a Ferrari are on the wrong side of 60.
One of the most stylish & beautiful car ever made in my opinion, screaming Miami Vice vibes from the 80s...along with the DeTomaso Pantera GTS.
What ever it's minor flaws may be, it looks and sounds fabulous. 😎
I got the chance to drive one once. The only thing I found a little disconcerting, was just how heavy the clutch was. Other than that, I found it lovely to drive.
Must have been broken or have used an aftermarket clutch, as the clutch on Testarossa is super easy to operate.
I just started watching 4th Season Miami Vice, and although later seasons are a bit mixed batch, it is always so great to see that Testarossa.
I have always loved how it looks. Old Ferrari's always have a sweet spot in heart.
Btw. You made my birthday a bit special with this video. Thanks!
Great video. I have a 1990 Testarossa. Yes, I agree with all of your points. If you look at the Ferrari sales brochures, is it a GT not a Sports car - not a race track in sight. The weight distribution is the interesting thing as I had mine up to 255-260 km per hour and coming out of a corner it did want to drift to the outside. But then, so did the Porsche 911 "Widowmakers". I have driven my Testarossa on 4 - 5 hour road trips. And can simply say, not a more enjoyable car to be in.
I've been a classic car nut since I was a boy (b.1991) and have never heard anyone say the Testarossa was bad to drive. Plenty of people said that about the Countach because it was very rough and agricultural, but the Testarossa was seen as a much less harsh and exhausing beast to handle by the standards of the day.
What I love about your videos, as this one shows very well, are the details you show that no one else does. As a big car nut I thought I knew the Testarossa well enough, but I now have more than doubled my knowledge of it. It's the weird little details and imperfect angles. Things that make me feel like I'm there.
Oh the memories of Miami Vice! Excellent critique of the car as always Jack! 👍🏻
One odd little thing about this car: It was powered by a 180 degree V12. It is horizontally opposed but it is NOT a boxer engine. This is due to the crankshaft design which has six throws.
Be funny if you passed Harry Metcalf coming back in his Testarossa along that stretch of road. Nice car, one of my favourite.
That map reading light was taken straight out of a Fiat Uno😂
Youre right!!!
@@Number27 Mt 512TR has so many uno parts its hilarious. Radio, window switches, map reading light ect ect
One of my neighbors has had one for nearly 30 years now. Sadly, it hasn't left the garage in about 10...
Help him to restored
🤨 shame…
that needs a new owner who's willing to do what it takes to get it going again cos guaranteed whatever issue took it off the road 10 years ago has now been joined by 20 others from sitting that long. cars hate sitting still.
That's sad. i like it when people use the cars for what they were build. Like Harry from Harry's Garage who drove from UK to the Sahara with his testgarossa.
Oh the memories! Oh the style! Oh, Miami Vice!
Be still my heart...
Greetings from the Netherlands
Oh Jack, man that engine note is so sweet! I should have it as a ring tone!
Always loved the Testarossa ever since Crockett rocked up with one in Miami Vice
My first Ferrari was a Testarossa , an ex Greypaul Motors demo. It quite frankly disappointed me in many ways but made me a Ferrari enthusiast in others. I always thought the gear shift, the fabled gated gearshift was poor (and I had a sorted Alfa GTV6 at the time), the engine didn`t until right up the rev range sound that great (again beaten by the Busso V6) and the car always felt heavy and large. Our family`s nickname for it was "Fat Arse". It did however possess tremendous traction out of corners, was controllable on the throttle and the engine had a very flat band of torque. Just for fun I`d put it in top gear at 30mph and let it roll along without protest. The aerodynamics were pretty good too in that you could maintain 160mph along an undulating bumpy road and it remained perfectly stable. Doing all my own maintenance I always found it reasonable to work on too. Overall still glad I owned one.
Ha, ha My ex called me 'fat arse' and I didn't deserve it - Nor does the Testarossa!
😸😸 Honestly I don't have a fat arse!
I was similarly unimpressed with the "6-on-the-floor" gated change (in my 456M GT), and only appreciated the sound when following someone else driving - cabin sound sensibly muted. Overall, found Ferraris perhaps more exciting but less engaging to drive than any of my Lotus efforts - so an education for me that less is more.
I love mine. I agree with everything you said. Especially about exhaust. I have a tubi. 2nd gear synchro is terrible, that was the case in all TRs. Mine is the same, forget 2nd gear when cold, but it’s super stiff from 1st or 3rd. Throttle input when up or downshift will help the synco however.
Same comments here. Try Redline transmission oil. It helped my 2nd gear shift quite a bit.
The shifter is also very sensitive to adjustment, and easy to adjust yourself if you can get under the car. Fiddling with it brought further improvements on my car.
Can't recognize that. My Testa shifts butter smooth in all gears. It takes time to set it up and few dealers are able to or rather, care to. There should not be an issue with the 2nd gear synch either.
@@AB-80X It's like the heavy clutch people complain about. Solution: Good mechanic.
The "Testarossa" name pays homage to the famed 1957 World Sportscar Championship-winning 250 Testa Rossa sports racing car. Testa Rossa, which literally means "red head" in Italian, refers to the red-painted cam covers sported by both cars' 12-cylinder engines.
I've driven only a few but the gearchange was typical of 80s Ferraris, you change from the shoulder rather than the wrist, but it should be precise and accurate. In one sequence you seem to be driving with the lever in neutral, which implies all is not well with the linkage!
60:40 back to front will indeed feel like there's a lot of weight at the back! But back in the day when most cars weren't so wide the thing you felt initially was the worry about just how much extra width was invisible behind you.
But overall you're dead right; the TR was a touring GT, not an agile sports car. The torque of that engine is immense and made it a very relaxing car to cover distance.
They shift sweetly when fully warmed up, which takes some time.
Nonsense.
If they are set up properly, there's zero issues and they are very smooth and easy to shift.
@@AB-80X They should indeed be smooth and easy. But from driving and owning a fair selection of V8s and V12s, from the '70s to the '00s, none of them had a change that was exactly finger light. Firm and mechanical yes, and that was part of the charm. All the control weights were well matched.
That sound is just lovely. The moment you turn it on, I got goosebumps. The live sound must be something else.
Sonny Crockett (Miami Vice) first sees his new Testarossa in "Stone's War".
James "Sonny" Crockett drove a white 1986 Ferrari Testarossa, following the destruction of his Daytona Spyder by a Stinger missile fired by Eddie Kaye, an illegal arms dealer. The Testarossa was given to him by his boss, Castillo, in "Stone's War," Oct. 6, 1986. It was when I first fell in love with the Testarossa.
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Sonny had a scene driving the Daytona b-lls out with Devo, "Going Under" blarring. IT WAS EPIC.
It wasn't a real Daytona. It was a replica. corvette-based if i remember correctly. Also the legend goes Enzo Ferrari was furious about a fake-ferrari in such a popular show. he offered them genuine ones (2 testarrossas) but insisted the fake car had to be destroyed. the testarossas in the show were original black. they were repainted white because it was better for filming in often dark scenes.
@vornamenachname5589 ///
Thank you for sharing the information. As I said, they blowed (blew) up some facsimile of the Daytona (Corvette) on the show. Crime to blow up a real Ferrari. Although Real Ones have been accidentally wrecked making some movies.
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One thing about Ferrari is their vehement protection of name, trademark, likeness, & LICENSED swag & product. Really bumps the cost of those items way up.
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BTW, the DEVO, "Going Under" scene is still super Bad@$&.
Love a Testarossa. As a child in the 80s I was taken out in a black demonstrator at Maranello Concessionaires in Egham after we just went to see the cars, great memories. Then add in Miami Vice and Test Drive on the Amiga 500
And perhaps it's most important feature was the ability to turn heads and get parked in front of fancy restaurants ... which it most certainly does. And better than anything made in the last 25 years at least.
Jack, your soooo real about classic cars! Toptastic dude! Keep going & all riveting as always! Rx 🙏🏽👍🏽❤️
Thank you 🙌 !!
Great review, maybe not one of Ferrari’s greatest handlers but certainly a looker!.
PS got to compliment you on your video making, as someone that’s toying with the idea of starting a bike channel I now know how hard it is to speak into a camera without constant “Erms” and “Errs”!, top work 👍
OK, Jack... I had one of these for abut 6 months, when they'd gotten cheap (which didn't last very long). Never came to grips with the styling, especially compared with my old BB (which I kept for several years), but the interior had more room and the A/C was MUCH better. Alas, the car did not fit well on our narrow lanes here in NZ. But I'd gotten it just after the major servicing was done, so it didn't bankrupt me (ask about that cost before buying one of these). The handling was not so bad as proclaimed in the enthusiast press, until you got near the limit of adhesion, at which time it got nasty and clumsy (not a welcoming combination). However, I never did get over the cheapness of the switchgear, which looked straight out of a mid-level Fiat, and the orange/yellow instruments were just plain ugly. But I made a bit of money on it...and it's the last newer Ferrari I will ever own. I prefer cars whose mechanicals I understand and can work on myself! Good video, though.
A Kiwi with a Prancing Horse?
Good on yer mate! 🇳🇿
Jack. Another brilliantly informative video. You are on another level.
I remember in 1988 Kings Road Chelsea seeing a 10 hour old testarossa with the new Aug plates and being amazed by its beauty.
It's an Autostrada or Autobahn Cruiser. You could make the scene in Monte Carlo, too.
I remember seeing one of these in the Paris showroom in 1990 on a trip to Europe with a couple high school buddies. The beautiful girl in the showroom in a red sweater and black leather miniskirt humored us as we made awkward small talk with her and knelt down behind the Testarossa and marveled at how it was all black mesh designed to evacuate heat. The showroom had the Testarossa, and a historic model, but I can't remember what it was. Coincidentally, the Lamborghini showroom was on the other end of that block and all they had in it was a red (or was it white? or yellow?) Countach, and I think the girl in that showroom had a yellow sweater and a black leather miniskirt.
I can't visualize the supercars for the black leather miniskirts.
This is a dream car, and poster car, for many a Gen-Xer. And those of us who are from the US, know that it was used in one of the greatest TV shows ever made, Miami Vice. This Testarossa would also be much better in left hand drive, as I'm not left handed, and live in the US. Thanks.
I have one. It's awesome and beautiful. When I park it I come back everytime with multiple people taking pictures of it. Once, 10 people - I took a picture of them taking pictures. And, drives like a missile.
I love it, my friend that had several Alfa Romeo's and a Lamborghini Espada, called the sides "cheese graters" I like it, and the Mondial coupe. But I'm old, and have a 1986 Alfa Spider Veloce, Greeting from St Louis MO USA!
Bloody sensational! Was always a Countach boy/teenager/man, still am, but I love the Testarossa too. Used to be a Ferrari dealer near my bus stop (in Melbourne) back in the latter part of the 80's and we would always wander over for a look. It wasn't the Countach no, but it was still great and I remember the smell of the thing, brings back such great memories.
BTW this review is almost a carbon copy of the many Lexus LC 500 reviews going back 5 years ago. AT first it was looked at Lexus's answer to a Porsche 911..but this it wasn't (and isn't), it was of course a hugely capable GT car and when the penny dropped, many reviewers changed their tune by the end of the drive proclaiming its no razor sharp scalpal like the 911 but one of the worlds best GT's.
The Ferrari Testrossa is a car that perfectly characterises the 'exesses' of the 1980s and was a very good fit for the then extravagant and overindulgent US market. On its debut I considered the car to be crass and a somewhat blundering design, however I have now grown to like it's excessive styling cues which 'scream' 1980s.
Loved the dropping hippo animation. Nice video Jack. Cool engine noise.
Any Ferrari has compromises or flaws but oh my god that engine is to die for. The sweetest sounding mill going
F40. 288GTO and then the Testarossa is my ultimate favorite Ferrari's. Timeless cars. Thanks again Jack. GREETINGS FROM SOUTH AFRICA
What a beautiful 80s icon! 😍😎 Flaws and all... The Content keeps getting better and better! Loved the detailed and informative description of the design of the Testarossa. 👌
Thank you Jack Sir and keep up the great work🙂✌
That tiny foot-well stopped me from driving one a few years back... I was handed the keys and told "Go on, you can take her for a spin".... But not with my size 13 extra extra wide feet I couldn't. That was so disappointing. 😞
Richard the owner here. I have G-width size 13 feet and honestly, it’s ok. You just need to wear the right shoes (and sometimes tilt your foot a bit) 😂
@@richardheeks7481 The work-boots I was wearing probably had something to do with it as well, LOL.
What's your daily driver?
A dump truck?! 🚚
Another good video Jack, my poster car (from that shop Athena) back in the 80s...what a soundtrack 👍
A great review with very practical down to earth information on a real icon. Probably the most discouraging thing in the Testarossa is the fact that cambelt replacement needs the engine being extracted and this is due also rather frequently !
She's a beauty...but high maintenance.
I had an ‘89. The exhaust note did not sound like the one in the video. Stock exhaust was much more subdued. YES, it’s a GT car! Designed to drive all day at 160 mph on the autostrada. High speed handling was excellent. Low speed had heavy under steering tendencies. The car was very reliable. The 512TR is the one to have. FORZA FERRARI !!!
Hello Number 27! Another excellent review.. and I couldn't agree with you more! Yes, the Testarossa was given a negative write up by Car Magazine when they eventually received the first RHD to road test. Years before that likewise with the F40 comparing it to the 959. Back to today, 2023, I belive not only has it aged gracefully but is also fine value for money. Now Ferrari are churning out models and numbers that were unheard of before.. making them, for me, less special. Lastly, that first UK bound Testarossa (B842 MPB?) was later bought by a car rental company. A friend of mine rented it for months and I was fortunate enough to be a passenger a few times. My very first impression - after putting on my seatbelt and facing forward was: "Wow! You can actually see perfectly well out of it!" An epic Fioravanti design and an engine to die for. Thanks again Number 27.
Jack, that car makes you genuinely happy. You should buy it.
For me the Testarossa, is one of the nicest Ferrari's, and truly Iconic.
The Sound also, I always remember seeing/hearing a Testarossa, doing some fast laps, on Zandvoort!
That V12 sounded like Formula 1
I reckon it drinks as good as it sounds..
It's art to look at, U can park it in a living room, I would.. !
If I had the money, I would buy 2, and get 1 restomodified. with power brakes and Clutch, and a 5G-Tronic, with a J-Gate 🤔!
I bet that would change a lot, when handling those 1700Kgs.
I would love, to see U driving/reviewing a X308 Daimler Super V8, and compare it with the XJR.
Since U recently recommended the X308 XJR.
Thank You, for another nice Video & Greetings All!
Well Jack, I don't like the styling as much as a 308 but I'd be happy to have one parked in my garage anyway. It's red, it's a Faz, it sounds right, so yeah, I could live with it. Good review, thanks.
Id change the lubricant in the gearbox to something that is modern and synthetic. Oh, lock your door😊
The suspension issue, that can be tuned out with modern shocks and springs that don't take away from the look of originality.
It was in the Sega Outrun game and in Miami Vice, and those are the only two criteria I care about making me want one 😂 let's be honest though: MOST 1980s cars were flawed!!
As a teenager I spent a long time studying the testarossa and countach try to pick a favourite. Finally chose the testarossa and been a Ferrari fan ever since. Only got into f1 due to becoming a Ferrari fan over that car. Oh the prancing horse had broke my heart a good few times over the years. But the Shumi days were just glorious
The mirror was there for the passanger to put on lipstick. If you had this in the 1980s you didnt stay single for a long.
Great video jack and what a great car. For me this was a bedroom wall poster car, with the Countach. It's always compared with the Lambo but as you have alluded to they weren't really "type" rivals even though they are perceived as such.
The elephant in the room is of course you should have knocked on Harry's door and said pleeeease can I borrow both his teatarossa and Countach,as well as "borrowing" "his" road !!
I think the teatarossa is lovely, the strakes down the sides created many lookalikes I think there was a Tr7 or MR2 bodykit with strakes, never mind stuff for Escorts and Astra's if my memory is correct, obviously they did stand out but the "Carlos Fandango"(see CZcams "Hamlet" cigars and a Ford Anglia for younger viewers)wheels needed to fill the arches didn't really suit what ford or vauxhall had in mind in the drawing board😂😂.
The testarossa will always be synonymous with Miami Vice for me , and the way in which Michael Mann filmed it, but also the sound of the V12 bouncing off the buildings made it fantastic. I think the car you tested sounded brilliant, in fact Jack it's the best engine audio I've heard on the channel. When I win the lottery 😂 it will be a hard choice between a Testarossa and Countach, do I wanna drive round like Don Johnson in pastels or do I cram mysen into a Countach?(no cannonballer Spandex jumpsuit mind 😂) Decisions decisions! As a suggestion could you do a part 2/3 with the 512TR to compare ie the one without strakes , and fixed headlights (just to see what it's like) , as whilst I prefer strakes it would be good to see what Maranello did for the facelift. Great video as ever jack, would love to get my Focus on the road and take it on Harry's road one day! Best wishes , Ben 🇬🇧🇺🇦🚌🚐🇮🇹
Like so many now-classic cars, ultimate performance is almost irrelevant now. The high CofG issue was only ever relevnt to misbehaving journos on launches. As a classic, style, practicality, maintainability and feelgood facotor are what counts.
Context is everything - especially in hindsight. Great video and I really, really want your job - ha!
the Testarossa is the epitome of the 80s, the Testarossa is the 80s, exaggerated in aesthetics, liked it or not, it was the fashion of ostentation that dominated. The subsequent TR and F512 M were much improved in handling. Nice review
Great video - I always wondered what they were actually like to drive. As a boy, I was a huge fan of the Countach and, perhaps a bit less, of the Testarossa. Without ever having any prospect of driving either, so it was all aesthetics, really.
Picky point: in your on-screen correction at 11:14, you mean "moment of inertia", not "movement".
I had two in the early 1990s. Great cars, but definitely Grand Touring cars. What surprised me, relative to the other sports cars I owned such as the Porsches and even the Ferrari 348s of that era, was the massively wide tires of the TR had relatively little grip at take off. I don't think I have ever owned a car that was as easy to spin the rear tires on. Otherwise, lovely car. I still have a full luggage set from one of them if anyone is looking for a set.
Actually the rear the tires aren’t even that wide, the Corvette ZR1 had wider tires.
maybe testarossa did not have a limited slip differential? 288 gto had that (40% locking tuned, if I remember correctly).
Good observations as always. Thanks!
Absaloutly brilliant video jack ❤👍what a beautiful car absaloutly awesome love it brilliant
Takes me back to my childhood, if you were a car fan in the 80s you had a poster of one of these, or of a Countach. I had a Countach personally, although by all accounts they are absolutely awful to drive. The Testarossa absolutely looks of it's time, but still good today IMO, and the sports exhaust on that one makes it sound really sweet too.
As much as I love the Boxer, the obvious choice would be the Testarossa, more refined, easier to work on, easier to live with and such iconic styling!! Nice review!!
Don't get where you are coming from with this initial opinion Jack. The Testarossa was and is an amazing car to drive, it can do everything. My old man bought a 3 year old one in 1991 having owned a 911 Turbo previously. He did almost 30k miles in it over 5 years and loved it - great GT, amazing looks and what a sound, good luggage space too and running costs were no more than the 911. It never broke down and if he wasn't a 75 year old now with a dodgy knee having watched this video with me with a tear in his eye he'd have another! He can't remember exactly but he had no issues with the gear change but he did change the gearbox oil on all his Ferraris to a brand he unfortunately can't rememeber...top info I know...!
To me this still looks wonderful, seems only yesterday I saw one for the first time... I'm not a Ferrari nut, but this is a lovely shape - but I'd still prefer an old Lotus!
Great, great quality Mr 27, as I keep saying, this is simply becoming the finest drivers channel.
PS I'm half Italian too, my pop was Sicilian, from Syracuse. He was flogging a beaten up old Panda around the town last time I saw him.
Poor lil' guy. 🐼
As always, thank you for this brilliant review.,JACK !
Absolutely not!!!! the only problems arise when parking the car in the parking mall and the frequent change of the distribition belt. (each big service - pending on your style of driving). On the highway and in the mountains it drives glorious! Twelve cylinders singing and sufficient horses to go onward.
We lived next door to a house that a guy rented just to keep his Testa Rossa in most Sunday's he would arrive and start it up. Eventually, I plucked up courage and went round to ask him about it. He said I could go out in it with him, off we went and he said, you may have read about me, I bought it from Nigel Mansel sports cars and got caught at North of a hundred within a mile of the garage on my way home, nice sedate drive until we came to a hill and he floored it, police never set speed traps going up hill he said😂😂
Great story!!
Number 27, according the the Ferrari Museum (Enzo Ferrari museum), this is indeed a boxer engine, with flat 12 cylinders in 180 degrees (not 120 as you mentioned in the video). Anyway keep up the great work and videos!
I think Jack misspoke when he said it was a 120 degree V12. I believe he intended to say it was a 180 degree V12. “It uses one crank journal per pair of cylinders, which technically makes it a V12 - even in spite of the fact that it doesn’t actually form a “V” shape but rather a straight, horizontal one.”
I think that makes a flat 12, rather than a v12. A boxer has a crank pin for each cylinder, whereas a V or a flat engine has a pair of cylinders sharing each crank pin. In a way a flat engine is a 180 degree V but it’s not really a V if the banks aren’t in a V, is it? 😂
It is commonly called a flat 12 or 180 degree V, to differentiate it from a boxer, which also has cylinders arranged horizontally but configured to fire in a way that resembles two people boxing.
Edit: BTW, as has been noted many times the last few years, this is why the nickname “berlinetta boxer” is a misunderstanding of the history of the BB.
I drove one 20 years ago, and I found it surprisingly well behaved. The only thing that annoyed me was the width and poor rear view as I (on my very first encounter - the female owner wasn't going to embarres herself) had to back it out of a long narrow driveway with 100 people watching me. All went well and I got to drive it the rest of the day :)
Sounds like a nice reward for a little stressful scrutiny. 🏎
I had one. Installed electric power steering from ez power steering in Holland. Still kicking myself because I sold it. It was magnificent in all fields👍
Older Lamborghini and Ferrari cars are so crappy vehicles that you almost feel sorry for the guy at the steering wheel when you see one of those fancy money pits passing by on the road. Thinking, what is the next disaster waiting to happen for him: Blown headgasket, failing ignition system, fire in the engine bay, warped brake discs, or clutch burned out again, just to mention a few examples. When I was younger I was so fasinated by these things but now they irritates me in a way.
I drove one once back when I was a CPA (car parking attendant).
Great vlog ! The roads you drive in this seem very similar to Harry's Garage ??
I always loved the Testarossa its wider rear and that amazing engine noise!
Nice thing: When hearing the exhaust 'noise', Google Subtitles says: 'music'.
It alway does that but in this case it's just true!
I recognise Harry's left hander up the hill. Must be the Cotswolds?
I got to drive one once and the pedal placement was kinda weird, the clutch seemed really close to the break pedal and the pedals were on the small side. I had to take care to not hit the breaks when going for the clutch. Beautiful car though, can’t believe I got to drive one.
Surprisingly clean and cool interior in an 80s kind of way. “Moment of inertia” I think is the right term from my physics days.
I can just imagine what Ferrari engineers were saying when US law makers were afraid some dummy would get sucked into an intake...lol
That answers a question why, back in the 80's I had a race with one of those along one of the windiest country roads in SA, Lobethal to Wistow, I was driving my
120hp heavily worked Cooper S (a proper Mini) and the Testarossa could not escape me, right through the full 360 bends of that road, in the middle of the night it was one of the most
memorable drives I had back then. Nobody at that time believed he was trying 100%, but I saw him drifting out of tight bends enough times to know he was giving it everything he dared to.
It was also a first for me, I never could have passed him but I beat plenty of others in those days with many cars making similar power including a 911 wide body who sadly met a bad end, although with no injuries beyond the ego...
Hell, I drove Carmack's twin turbo Testarossa once and even it was fine to drive. Super handling, insane power (1198 bhp) and great brakes. One hilarious little note is that once inside, its interior was obviously where the Fiero's designers copied the interior from.
The Testarossa is my Euromillions car, hands down.
BTW, is the engine really a 120 degree V12? Surely it's 180 degrees?
Correct - I think he just misspoke. Also it's Moment of Inertia, not Movement...
Great video 😊
A lovely beast that defined an era. Terrific engine sound. You mention the Countach...a side by side with this would be interesting.
Crockett never complained .. this car is iconic !!
Never had one or driven one, but have always loved the looks, one of my favourites
I can imagine being at the Pearly Gates…
“So how did you die?”
“I got sucked down the side intake of a Testarossa”
And the United States regulators prevented that doleful dialog from occurring. Moreover, that timeless styling flourish (side strakes) wouldn't have happened without the fingers of governmental bureaucracy snapping into action.
The testarossa is only "terrible" by modern exotic standards. Back then it was a joy to drive, much more so than any other exotic (especially the countach). Cars back then were designed to look good first, have humans be comfortable while driving a distant 5th or 6th on the list of things you needed in an exotic car.
No matter how much you might like the way it looks, consult anyone on a thing called "maintenance". Required engine-out service for cam belts is $6,000-$10,000 and needs doing every 5 years mileage notwithstanding or more often if driven.
Italian cars of that era had crazy switch placements. The last Alfa I owned, a Milano, had them scattered like this car, it was one of the annoyances that finally turned me away from Alfas, cars that I had owned for over thirty years. That and their habit of rusting with a vengeance. Entertaining to drive though.
Lancia were notorious rust buckets.
Back in the 80s a chap who live near Dartmouth had one nice car 😮
Anyone who watches Harry's Garage knows how much Harry loves his and the amazing trip he took a few years back... NOTHING WRONG with these.. Wish I had one..
On a trip to Palm Springs California 1988 I saw a burgundy metallic Testarossa in traffic. It’s I believe the most beautiful car I’ve ever seen.
@@DesignIsDestiny
This one was medium dark red metallic.
Hated the styling then, appreciate it now. It's actually improved with age.
The induction sound recorded from this Testarossa, is better than any other Testarossa, TR, or M that I found in youtube. Was there anything special about the intake in this car? sounded like it had carbs.
Great summary Jack. When I was younger I always preferred the 288 GTO (as an ex-308 owner you probably agree...) and felt the looks of the Testarossa were a bit contrived. BTW I think it's the "moment of inertia" if I remember my physics!
Sounds great, though; the exhaust note is perfect.