Ferrari 308 and 328 history and versions
The Ferrari 308 GTB was unveiled at the 1975 Paris Motor Show. Styled by Pininfarina, it carries a 3-litre V8 mounted transversely amidships, with twin overhead camshafts per bank driven by belts. The 308 GTS, with its removable roof panel, followed in 1977.
The first 308 GTBs have glassfibre bodies — the ‘vetroresina’ cars — before the switch to steel in 1977. The 328, launched in 1985, raises capacity to 3.2 litres and gains body-coloured bumpers; it was built until 1989, when the 348 took over.
- 308 GTB and GTS carburettor cars (1975–1980): four twin-choke Weber carburettors;
- 308 GTBi and GTSi (1980–1982): Bosch K-Jetronic injection;
- 308 Quattrovalvole (1982–1985): four-valve cylinder heads;
- 328 GTB and GTS (1985–1989): 3.2 litres with four valves per cylinder, ABS late in production;
- 208 GTB and GTS: 2-litre versions intended mainly for the Italian market, including a 208 Turbo.
What about the 308 GT4?
The Dino 308 GT4 of 1973, a 2+2 styled by Bertone, introduced this transverse V8. It is a different car, with a longer wheelbase and angular lines, but much of what follows — the engine and its belts above all — applies to it too.
Ferrari 308 and 328 common problems
By Ferrari standards these cars are easy to understand, but they are now several decades old. The points to check are well documented:
- the cambelts and their tensioners, whose last change should be proven by an invoice;
- rust on steel bodies: door bottoms, sills, wheel arches, front panel, base of the windscreen;
- on vetroresina cars, the tubular steel chassis, which can rust beneath bodywork that looks sound;
- electrics: fuse box and corroded connections, earths, pop-up headlamp motors, fans;
- fuelling: balancing the Webers, or cold starting and fuel pressure on K-Jetronic cars;
- the gated gearbox, whose second gear often baulks when cold, and the clutch;
- cooling, with a front radiator linked to the engine by long pipes.
Ferrari 308 and 328 cambelt change
On both the 308 and the 328, each bank of cylinders has its own toothed belt. Because the engine is transverse, the timing sits at the side of the car, and the belts are usually changed with the engine in place — a key difference from the 348 or the F355.
The job still demands precision: timing marks checked, tensioners replaced or checked with their bearings, oil seals dealt with if they weep, tension set, and the engine turned by hand before it is first started. The interval follows the manufacturer’s programme, by time as well as mileage, and a car resting in a garage is no exception. Details are on our Ferrari cambelt service page.
Servicing a Ferrari 308 or 328 today
A 308 or 328 is serviced to the original programme, adapted to how the car is really used: a car that only comes out a few days a year needs as much attention to its fluids, hoses and tyres as one that is driven regularly. Webers are adjusted and balanced with the proper tools; K-Jetronic injection is checked by its pressures and its behaviour from cold.
The gearbox and clutch are judged on the road: biting point, gear changes, release-bearing noise. Routine work is covered on our Ferrari servicing page, and clutch replacement on our Ferrari clutch page.
Ferrari 308 restoration: steel, glassfibre and wiring
A vetroresina 308 is not restored like a steel one. Glassfibre is repaired by laminating, primer and paint call for suitable products, and the originality of these sought-after cars means keeping as much of the original body as possible. On a steel shell, restoration means stripping to bare metal, treating corroded areas and rebuilding the protection before paint.
The wiring loom often deserves an overall overhaul rather than one repair after another: connections cleaned or remade, earths checked, relays replaced. Seats, panels, carpets and dashboard leather are re-trimmed in our workshop. The full approach is described in Ferrari restoration.
What our workshop does for a 308 or 328
Opened in Mougins in 2017, our independent workshop handles servicing, cambelts, clutches, bodywork, trim and full restoration of these V8s. For these models we describe our method rather than a finished project: the car inspected before any estimate, an itemised estimate, photographs of the key stages, and a detailed invoice that becomes part of the service history.
To place these berlinettas in the range, see our Ferrari page and that of their twelve-cylinder big sister, the Ferrari Testarossa. A first opinion is possible from photographs: request an estimate.