Since there's quite an impressive thing as an entrance-level supercar, the
Ferrari 360 fills the bill. Picking up where the F355 other side off, the stunning Pininfarina-designed Italian had curves in all the right places and underpinnings gleaned from advanced racing machines. Yet it was just on the cusp of the sell-the-house-and-live-in-the-car price range. Introduced in 1999, the 360 yielded to its F430 successor in 2005. Available first as a Modena coupe and later as a Spider convertible, the
360 was built on an aluminum space-frame that was considerably more rigid than that of the earlier 355.
A double-wishbone suspension system that allowed for relatively easy adjustment was indicative of the car’s serious performance intent. The engine of
Ferrari 360 was a midship dual-overhead-cam, five-valve-per-cylinder 3.6-litre V-8 that melodiously delivered 400 horsepower at a top-of-the-scale 8500 RPM.Performance was in keeping with the advertised horsepower figure. Zero to 60 came in just over four seconds and the Ferrari 360 could tickle the 180 mph mark.
Virtually no one was disappointed by the car’s appearance. The soft, smooth contours of the body swept back gracefully from the large front air intakes, wrapping smartly back to quad exhaust pipes. Inside, the 360 was richer than many Ferraris that had preceded it with lots of leather and finely detailed controls and instruments. The
Ferrari 360 was a raceworthy machine in the tradition of other mid-engine
Ferraris, and it helped set the stage for the 430 that followed.
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