This 1995 Ferrari F355 Berlinetta Was a One-Owner Car Until Recently

European carmakers were under the threat of the Far East in the early 1990s. Japan was rolling out light, emotional sports cars and exporting them to the Old Continent. Honda's mid-engined NSX was indeed a bullet that the European car market did not exactly have the right armor for.

But then Ferrari came up with the F355 Berlinetta as a replacement for the outgoing 348. It came as the last Ferrari to be built in Maranello. It instantly became a motorized superstar. A landmark. An icon. A car kids had posters with on their bedroom walls. Their favorite in video games. A collectors' darling. The F355 Berlinetta was so much of the 1990s as the disco ball. Minus the kitsch and the loud music, of course.

Almost three decades after it saw the light today, the F355 Berlinetta still stands as one of the brand's landmark models. Unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 1994, it came with increased power of the new five-valve per cylinder V8 engine, in the company of an exceptional chassis and electronically controlled suspension.

The design was the result of the Italian automaker's partnership with Pininfarina. Carrozzeria's Maurizio Corbi seems to have used all the right pencils to draw the Berlinetta. The car that came out of his hands was robust, yet had that ballerina silhouette and had just the right proportions. The wedge shape, the pop-up headlights, the air intakes in all the right places, the elongated hood made it the car kids would today use as a screensaver on their PCs.

Much of that design finds an explanation in the fact that the F355 Berlinetta prototypes spent a total of 1,300 hours in the wind tunnel. Ferrari knew that aerodynamics and downforce were the engine’s trusted helpers. It was the V8 engine that Ferrari took from 3.4 to 3.5 liters, making it significantly more potent.

Designed by the Italian engineer Paolo Martinelli, the head of the Scuderia Ferrari engine department, the 3.5-liter Tipo F129B V8 had Formula One DNA and had to pull 2,976 pounds (1,350 kilograms). It generated 375 horsepower (380 PS) and 268 lb-ft (363 Nm) of torque. It red-lined at 9,000 rpm and made the Ferrari hit a top speed of 183 mph (295 kph). 4.7 seconds it needed to go from 0 to 62 mph (0-100 kph).

The F355 Berlinetta had the highest specific power per liter of any production car to that point. Ferrari connected the six-speed manual gearbox to this power plant, a joy for those who loved the raw driving style.

The car got an independent electronically controlled front and rear suspension, which featured unequal length wishbones, coil-over shock absorbers, and anti-roll bars. The suspension could switch between Comfort and Sport settings. The F355 Berlinetta also featured assisted steering.

The figures and facts are valid for this example right here as well. We are dealing with a car which has had a single owner since the moment it drove through the Maranello factory gate, finished in Argento over Nero. That happens once in a blue moon.

28 years later, the odometer reads just 13,294 kilometers (8,261 miles), and the car still retains its matching-numbers chassis, gearbox, and engine, which provides it with the exclusivity factor that collectors are looking for. Ferrari built 11,273 units between 1994 and 1999. The '90s virtually died with it.

But one which defied time has recently sold it to only the second owner. Its story began in early 1995, when the first owner placed an order with Ferrari Suisse and took delivery of his car, chassis number 101231, on May 3, 1995. He had specced it the right way, with a body in Argento (Silver) over a Nero (Black) interior, with leather covering the seats and dashboard. He was the only owner since the car left the Maranello production center.

He used it rarely but was persistent in putting it in motion every once in a while to make sure everything ran properly. He also serviced it by the book and always fixed issues that came up. The model received stamped inspections from Modena Cars SA in 2012, 2013, 2015, and 2018. Furthermore, the factory data listed on the accompanying Ferrari Warranty Card is the proof that the Ferrari F355 Berlinetta retains its matching-numbers chassis, gearbox, and engine.

The Ferrari F355 Berlinetta went under the hammer with RM Sotheby's in Saint Moritz, Switzerland, and sold for CHF 186,300, which translates into $207,540. The price included a set of Ferrari manuals of the car that was perfectly preserved.