21 Sep Turn Up The Dial
It’s about time a Ferrari received a proper photoshoot upon gaining entry to the hallowed halls of Fluid MotorUnion.
Simply put, it’s a gorgeous car. This 1986 Mondial is a 3.2 cabriolet, which received a 3.2L motor that grew in both bore and stroke between this model and the previous year’s Mondials. While 280 horsepower may not seem like much now, back then it was a decent chunk of change. And for a 2+2, it’s going to need that extra power to haul around 4 people as they head to their Aspen ski trip, or wherever else you go in a Ferrari with 3 other people. As one would expect, and as one might hope, we’re staring at an example Mondial clad in a color as Italian as Enzo himself, Rosso Corsa. Everything but the radio is kept stock, and truth be told, who really wants to choose between AM, FM, and cassette on a radio that was built before your humble narrator’s sister was born? Otherwise, this is a fantastic recreation of what one would expect to see parked in a minty-fresh garage at the turn of the 90’s. The paint is free of imperfection, the interior carpets are OEM, and even the valve stem caps are still retained! But enough of our gushing, let’s get to the pictures.
Even in the mid-80’s, Momo was still killin’ it with some spartan (from a design standpoint) wheels that still retain their good looks well past their manufacture date.
Look at the second light from the bottom, on the stack of idiot lights in the middle of the gauges. That’s right, it’s a “Slow Down” light. Which, given that this is a Ferrari, means that light is on from the second the car is started.
Gated shifter and a dogleg pattern? We’re drooling. Two relics of a past era that should have never left. Not to mention the existence of a fully manual transmission in a Ferrari.
If only these lights existed on current cars, without having to involve complicated touchscreen theatrics that add nothing more than weight and cost. Plus, it gives the passenger a great reason to start ragging on you, and if there’s anything that forces a hand, it’s public mockery.
Without the risk of sounding like total fanboys, it was a good time pulling the Mondial out from under its Ferrari car cover and drive it twenty feet for some pictures. The future owner of the Mondial is one lucky guy, that’s for sure.
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