Guide: Ferrari 348 tb Zagato Elaborazione
Background
Of Italy’s myriad coachbuilders, arguably the best known for unconventional and avant-garde designs has been Zagato.
The firm’s earliest bodies to grace Ferrari chassis emerged in the early 1950s. During this golden era for bespoke coachwork, Zagato created some of the most stunning designs to emerge from anywhere.
As the automotive industry moved towards series production, Zagato became most closely associated with Alfa Romeo and Lancia. However, the firm also manufactured now legendary models for the likes of Abarth, Aston Martin, Fiat and Porsche (among others).
The poor trading conditions of the 1970s subsequently took their toll and by the mid 1980s (when most manufacturers had taken body fabrication in-house), Zagato was perilously close to bankruptcy. Only a deal to produce a batch of special-bodied Aston Martin V8s saved the company from oblivion.
Contracts for the Maserati Karif and Alfa Romeo SZ followed as Zagato nursed its way back to financial health.
At the Geneva Motor Show in March 1991, Zagato unveiled a revamped iteration of Ferrari’s 348 tb.
The highly anticipated 348 had been launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September 1989. It was the latest of Ferrari’s mid-engined two-seat junior models and a successor to the much-loved Dino 246, 308 and 328.
Unlike those earlier cars, the 348 broke with tradition on account of its pressed steel monocoque construction (instead of a conventional tubular steel chassis).
As opposed to a complete rebody, the 348 tb Zagato Elaborazione offered potential customers the opportunity to acquire a heavily customised Ferrari albeit one not so drastically modified that type approval had to be expensively re-applied for.
Zagato anticipated a production run of 22 cars, all of which would retain standard 348 running gear under the skin.
Bodywork
Perhaps the most significant cosmetic alteration executed on this modern day Speciale was a new roof and upper rear fender skin.
The roof incorporated Zagato’s trademark Double Bubble treatment while the sail panels that swept back towards the tail were given more rounded corner at the trailing edge of the three quarter window. A bank of three GTO-style cooling vents were carved out from the back of the rear fenders.
Ahead of the left-hand bank of GTO vents was an exposed competition-style fuel filler cap instead of the standard car’s concealed unit.
Elsewhere, Zagato created a new front bumper assembly that could be configured with a plain central section or an oval panel that was home to a pair of fog lights (either exposed or mounted behind grilles). A large prancing horse emblem was often added as well.
New circular indicator and auxiliary driving lights were fitted on either side.
If a plain bumper was specified, the fog lights were relocated to a body coloured lower apron which sometimes came with a single re-shaped intake on the right-hand side or two standard-shaped intakes (one per side).
Further up, Zagato added a lightweight aluminium front lid from which a large pair of half NACA ducts were carved out to replace the single shallow intake used by the standard 348.
Down each flank, Pininfarina's trademark slatted door / rear fender intakes were deleted and replaced with a half-NACA duct like those on the front lid. Other new features included door buttons with a Z insignia, body coloured sills, new exterior mirrors and a Zagato Elaborazione script ahead of each rear wheel.
One of the most innovative features was a new engine cover with a clear glass screen (thus exposing the motor). To ensure sufficient cooling, a bank of vents was added on either side.
Further back was an electronic speed-sensitive spoiler that, when raised into the airflow, revealed a panel with Ferrari and Zagato graphics.
The tail fascia did away with Pininfarina’s full-width grille in favour of a new panel that contained a meshed central grille and a trio of circular lights on each side. The standard rear bumper was retained but a subtly re-profiled body coloured apron now housed a pair of slim rectangular reflectors.
The design was set off with a set of handsome split rim centre-lock OZ Racing alloy wheels.
Interior / Options
Zagato fitted each car with redesigned door panel trim and a fluted leather headliner.
Customers could go a step further if they wished and specify Sports seats with bigger bolsters and an embossed Zagato script, leather and alcantara suede upholstery, a Momo three-spoke steering wheel, an overhead console for the audio system and a three-inch rear view TV monitor.
The rest of the 348’s interior fixtures and fittings were carried over from the standard car.
The main instrument binnacle housed a 300kmh or 200mph speedo and a 10,000rpm rev counter. In between were smaller gauges for oil pressure and water temperature stacked one above the other. Additional read outs for oil temperature and fuel were located on the centre console.
All instrumentation was orange on black.
Air-conditioning, electric mirrors and electric windows were standard.
Chassis
As per the recently introduced Mondial T, the 348 had its engine longitudinally mounted whereas earlier series production V8 Ferraris had used a transverse layout. The 348’s steel monocoque had a 2450mm wheelbase which was 110mm longer than the outgoing 328.
The new arrangement enabled Ferrari to position the engine lower in the chassis. It also meant there was no longer any space for luggage at the back of the car. However, by re-locating the water radiators down each flank and fitting a tyre compressor instead of a spare wheel, load capacity underneath the front lid was dramatically increased.
The 348’s engine and gearbox were mounted on a steel subframe which could be dropped out of the car for easy maintenance.
Suspension was independent all round via double wishbones, coil springs and gas-filled Bilstein dampers. Anti-roll bars were installed at either end.
Brakes were ventilated discs and the ABS was controlled by a Teves Mk2 system.
A 95-litre fuel tank was located between the engine and passenger compartment.
Engine / Gearbox
The Tipo F119D engine was the same 3.4-litre V8 introduced on the Mondial t at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1989. This in turn was a development of the 90° V8 used by the 308 and 328.
As usual, the block and four valve DOHC heads were fabricated from light alloy. New equipment included Nikasil-coated cylinder liners and dry-sump lubrication.
Bore and stroke had both been increased compared to the outgoing 3.2-litre engine. Bore was taken from 83mm to 85mm and stroke was extended from 73.6mm to 75mm. This gave an overall displacement of 3405cc which represented a 220cc gain over the Ferrari 328.
Compression was upped from 9.8:1 to 10.4:1.
Bosch Motronic M2.5 replaced the old K-Jetronic system.
Peak output was 300bhp at 7200rpm and 238lb-ft at 4200rpm. This compared favourably to the previous model which produced 270bhp at 7000rpm and 224lb-ft at 5500rpm.
The gearbox was a new five speed unit mounted transversely hence the lower case ‘t’ in ‘tb’. A twin-plate clutch and limited-slip differential were installed.
Weight / Performance
Weight was officially unchanged at 1393kg.
Likewise, the 348 tb Zagato Elaborazione had a 171mph top speed and 0-62mph time of 5.5 seconds.
Production
Although Zagato had originally hoped to build 22 cars, only ten cars were ultimately built between 1991 and 1992, primarily as a result of the recessionary mood of the time.
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Zagato - https://www.zagato.it/
