Finished: Fujimi Ferrari F355 Berlinetta

This was a fun one! This was a "holy grail" for me, I finally found one and wanted to build it like a car I saw at the Concorso Italiano a couple years ago. The white body/gray interior colors really set it off, and the custom rims were a very nice touch. Yes, Mercedes colors on a Ferrari work very nicely.

I removed the engine cover to help assemble it...it was two pieces for some strange reason. The red plastic...ugh.
http://images.fotki.com/v9/photos/1/10258/17860/GotEngine-vi.jpg

The side scoops were separate, and needed a lot of careful puttying to smooth into the body correctly. Very tedious work!
http://images.fotki.com/v4/photos/1/10258/17860/F355puttyjob2-vi.jpg

The red plastic gave me fits...turned the Tamiya white primer pink. I ended up switching to Testors/Boyds high-gloss white enamel for this one. Rims are Aoshima AVS 5's, with separate trim rings used to widen the rears. I used the F355 tires from the kit.

This is the photo of the car that inspired my model:
http://images2.fotki.com/v16/photos/1/10258/17860/F355inspiration-vi.jpg

http://images2.fotki.com/v16/photos/1/10258/17860/F355front-vi.jpg
http://images2.fotki.com/v17/photos/1/10258/17860/F355side-vi.jpg
http://images2.fotki.com/v17/photos/1/10258/17860/F355rear2-vi.jpg

I tried a rear spoiler on it. It's from a Monogram Lotus Esprit, it fits the lines perfectly but it fails to improve the look of the car...in fact it looks like a Fiero, so that means it detracts from the appearance IMHO! So it'll be remembered in pictures and left off the car.
http://images2.fotki.com/v17/photos/1/10258/17860/F355spoilerfront-vi.jpg
http://images2.fotki.com/v17/photos/1/10258/17860/F355spoilerrear-vi.jpg

oh my, nice work..love the rims, thats sexy!

:eek2:

The car looks awsome ;) but not with the wing :finger:

Outstanding as always :cool: :cool: ...looks good in white

Great to see another great model from you!:sun:

THAT Is my favorite ferrari of all time, and yours looks GREAT!

one word : nice:D

Looks great I love those Ferraris. I can't believe you actually got one, how much was it? Most go for alot on Ebay.

Awesome job. It's always nice seeing a good Ferrari model. Especially a rare Fujimi F355.

WOW!! you've done a beautiful job on the Ferrari! the rims are just perfect. it looks exactly like the picture that inspired it. awesome work

Bob, this is one amazing model! :eek:

Yep it's got craftmanship written all over it !
Also the rims do it justice, overall a great looking model

Ciao Olivier

great model, looks really nice in white

Good job...love the white on the 355...by the way...don't you think the front wheels are a bit to the back and the rear wheels are a bit to the front???

Sensational!

I agree about the wing. Nice to experiment but it makes the rear end look like a Nissan or something... not that here is anything wrong with that!

Wow, it looks very nice in white~

Lovely… :eek:

Awesome!!!

Originally posted by bibendumz
Good job...love the white on the 355...by the way...don't you think the front wheels are a bit to the back and the rear wheels are a bit to the front???

Thanks. The wheels don't sit perfectly in the centers...the chassis fit is awful, and this is as good as it's going to get! This whole kit was riddled w/poor fitting parts. As much as I'd love having another F355 (GTS or Spyder), unless Tamiya does it I will never touch another one of these!

Originally posted by Lowriders4Life
Looks great I love those Ferraris. I can't believe you actually got one, how much was it? Most go for alot on Ebay.

Yes, they do go for big $$. Usually $50-$100 US. I actually was given this kit by someone very generous who wasn't going to build it and knew it was at the top of my list of models I wanted. I'm trying to figure out something cool to send him for his generosity, since he's refused payment for it!

That really is a beautiful model Bob!:cool:

ASTONISHING WORK! one of the best models I´ve seen here.

Beautiful!

Did u cut the side windows out urself or did the kit come like that? For some reason models without side windows reminds me of diecasts :)

p.s. if you want a wing, try a bigger one... I've seen 355's around with a gigantic wing at the back... I wish I had some pics to show you...

Very nice work! The rims are almost identical to the ones in the pic! :)
When you said "trim rings" what exactly do you mean, where can i get a set of them? stolen from other wheel kits?!? :confused:

PS: don't you guys find the F355 looks super dated now compared to all the 360 Modena's floating round?!?!... no offence to zoom-zoom, great build! :)

Originally posted by crab
Beautiful!

Did u cut the side windows out urself or did the kit come like that? For some reason models without side windows reminds me of diecasts :)

p.s. if you want a wing, try a bigger one... I've seen 355's around with a gigantic wing at the back... I wish I had some pics to show you...

Thanks, yes I did cut out the side windows because they fit like crap! And now it's easier to see the interior detail. Without the huge door gaps from opening doors, it doesn't look at all like a diecast to me.

The other glass fit crappy too, the taillights don't go far enough out, the chassis fit is horrendous, the interior bucket sits a bit low...this is probably one of Fujimi's worst efforts. It took a lot of work/tricks to make it appear decent. Out of the box it is very disappointing. If I had just paid $100 for it, like they usually go for, I'd be kind of pissed...but it's the only F355 going unless you want to triple the workload and mess around w/the Maisto diecast model.

I'll pass on a larger wing! I'll save that urge for a box-stock F40. This one looks great without a wing.;)

Originally posted by MaxSE
Very nice work! The rims are almost identical to the ones in the pic! :)
When you said "trim rings" what exactly do you mean, where can i get a set of them? stolen from other wheel kits?!? :confused:

PS: don't you guys find the F355 looks super dated now compared to all the 360 Modena's floating round?!?!... no offence to zoom-zoom, great build! :)

Thanks for the comments!

I actually have the exact rims the real car had, a set made by Pegasus. I was going to use them, but these looked even better when I tried them. The trim rings were indeed borrowed from another wheel set. I'm going to use my friend's lathe to make a few sets of aluminum trim rings for the odd occasion I want to widen a factory rim.

I still like the F355 styling a lot, to me it's relatively timeless as a good design, in a similar way the original 308's still look really good to me. The Modena should look a lot more modern, it's a much newer and far more sophisticated car. To me the F355 really looks great, and is a thousand times better looking than the very boring 348 from which it is derived. Notice when the Americans mess with an existing car that the restyle usually isn't as good as the original. The Italians usually refine the look to be better over time, as seen w/the F355 vs. 348, 512 TR vs. Testarossa, 575M vs. 550M, and almost every Countach and Diablo. I'm wishing for future variations of the Murcielago which to me is too tame and I don't like the side scoops. No matter, Lamborghini will undoubtedly address these issues if past history is any indication.

PS: don't you guys find the F355 looks super dated now compared to all the 360 Modena's floating round?!?!...

Yes, the 355 looks bulky and boxy now, not to mention unimaginative. I still like some elements of it though.:)

looks great!! yeah it's alittle dated, but i still like it though:D

Couldn't see the pics for the last two days, but I'm glad I remembered to go back and look again!

Great work!! :D Fine example of automotive excellence!! :coolguy: