Drake’s 2018 ‘Aubrey & the Three Migos Tour’ presented some impressive stages and props: a basketball court, light-up drones and the rapper’s 2015 Giallo Modena Ferrari LaFerrari – not on stage, but flying over the crowd.
Hip-hop might not be my favourite music genre, but if there’s a Ferrari involved, I will happily sit through some videos. In early 2018, Drake bought a Ferrari LaFerrari, with just 321 miles on the clock and left an estimated $3.5 million at Fusion Luxury Motors in Los Angeles. Besides showing it off on Instagram and in the music video for ‘‘I’m Upset’’ video, he wanted to take it a step further, so creative director Willo Perron got to work.
‘YELLOW FERRARI LIKE PIKACHU’
Thanks to a video of NYC-based INSIDER, we now know how it all worked. Perron commissioned an inflatable replica of the LaFerrari in Spain. Although the details are impressive, it’s essentially a giant inflatable balloon. Gear Factor, a Hong-Kong based company specialized in flying solutions during live events, created a drone out of the LaFerrari and controlled it behind the scenes.
Once Drake started the song ‘‘Yes Indeed’’ featuring Lil Baby, the LaFerrari appeared and flew around the whole venue. The main reason why the production team wanted to have all of those impressive stages and props was to involve the crowd. They needed to create a big, interactive experience for such large arenas. Even the spectators in the back got a close glimpse of the LaFerrari.
To make sure the LaFerrari would last from August till November, the car was slightly smaller than the real thing. This way it was easier to move it around without damaging it.
Drake certainly took showing off a precious hypercar to a whole new level.
Are you tired of the cold weather, just like us? Enjoy this one-of-one Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Beach Car by Felber and Michelotto while we wait for summer to arrive.
The urge to drive a Prancing Horse off-road isn’t new. Ferrari announced the Purosangue, the marque’s first SUV last year, and I earlier explained why Ferrari participated in rally championships. Today, we are taking a look at the unique Ferrari 365 GTC/4 Beach Car by Felber.
The building of the beach car started in 1972 when Swiss car manufacture Willy Felber received an enquiry for a shooting brake version of the Ferrari 365 GTC/4. The car was made in collaboration with Giovanni Michelotti, who, among other activities, converted street Ferrari into rally Ferraris and racing Ferraris. The chassis and driving technology remained the same, but the car received a whole new body, sporting a tailgate with a separately opening rear window, finish in a brown paint job with white roof.
The car was first shown at the 1976 Geneva Motor Show. Story goes, they dismantled the body after they received an inquiry for a 365 Beach Car. The body, without doors and roof and cut down sill, was placed onto the Shooting Brake’s chassis and presented again a year later in a white paint job. Sadly, there’s little information available about the car.
The engine, chassis and suspension remained the same, meaning the Colombo V12 pushed out about 335 bhp. The car currently resides in Switzerland and has been repainted in a gold paint job.
Willy Felber was no stranger to odd coach-building. It all began in 1974 with the FF, standing for Felber Ferrari. The car was based on a damaged Ferrari 330 GTC and was inspired by the 125 S and 166. Michelotti made a copy of the car and this was the first time the two worked together on a project.
The Ferrari SP3JC and SP38 Deborah are the latest creations of the Ferrari Special Project department, but let’s take a look at how they took on things in the 1980s.
The Ferrari Testarossa was introduced at the 1984 Paris Motor Show as the successor of the BB 512i. Ferrari entered a new era of design with this car: the long side ‘egg slicers’, the triangle-shaped body and the rear-strakes – supposedly protect the lights – quickly became the car’s most recognizable features.
The Ferrari Testarossa Spider and its many cool features
Ferrari never planned to build an open-top version of the Testarossa, but when Fiat Chairman Gianni Agnelli came knocking on the factory’s door, the designers went back to the drawing board. According to Ferrari archives, they started off with a normal Testarossa on 27 February 1986. Only four months later, the car was finished and delivered to Agnelli in Turin, with his personalised number plate ‘TO 00000G’, just in time to celebrate his 20 years as the president of Fiat.
Ferrari did not just take the roof off an existing Testarossa to then hand it over to Agnelli. The floor was strengthened, and an electrically operated frame was installed to support the soft top. Agnelli couldn’t drive manual cars all day long. Ferrari found a solution and installed a button which he could press if he wanted to drive in automatic mode. That made this particular car the only Testarossa with an automatic gearbox.
Traditional red wasn’t for Agnelli. Instead, he ordered the car in Argento Nürburgring, as ‘AG’ is the periodic table’s symbol for silver which also happens to be the first two letters of his last name. To make it a bit more outstanding, blue pin stripes were added across the side windows and lower black sills, and the interior was finished in dark blue leather.
After showing the Spider off during a party in 1991, Agnelli’s close friend fell in love with the car and bought it from him. This owner enjoyed the car until 2016, when it sold during a Retromobile Auction for a whopping €1.210.080.
The car is currently in the hands of Ferrari fanatic Ronald Stern. As he mentioned during an interview with TOFM, Stern was looking for a truly unique one-off car. He met Leonardo Fioravanti in Maranello when it was in for the Classische Certification: ‘’It was a privilege to have the man who oversaw its creation explain the various things they’d originally done to engineer and reinforce the car’s chassis.’’ Piero Ferrari personally handed over the certification when the car was delivered to Stern’s home in London.
Aftermarket Ferrari Testarossa Spiders
Many Ferrari clients noticed the Testarossa Spider and wanted one of their own. Ferrari declined every inquiry simply because the structure of the roof would be too hard to put into mass production. Luckily, for those that wished one, aftermarket companies such as Pavesi, Lorentz and Koenig converted a handful of Testarossas into open-top roadsters.
Which classic Ferrari would you like in Spider variant?
Luigi Chinetti with his NART Ferrari 512 BB/LM (#35527)
1954. Burger King opens their first restaurant in Miami, West Germany beats Hungary at the FIFA World Cup and Ferrari officially starts selling cars in the United States. Things have never been the same ever since.
Enzo Ferrari – reportedly – never left the country, though he wanted to offer his race and road cars across the big pond. He appointed Luigi Chinetti as the American importer, and this is his story…
Meet Luigi Chinetti
If there’s one name you should remember today, it’s Luigi Chinetti. Chinetti was an Italian racing driver who immigrated to the United States during the Second World War. In total, he competed in twelve 24 hours of Le Mans, won three of them, and took first prize twice at the 24 hours of Spa Francorchamps. He also knew his way around the business of selling cars. It’s what you might call the perfect resume for working with the great Enzo Ferrari.
Chinetti was born in a small town north of Milan in 1901. He quickly became interested in cars and got his first job in the automotive industry at the age of 16. He worked for Alfa Romeo as a mechanic and worked his way up to a sales position in their Paris dealership. It was during this time with Alfa Romeo that Chinetti and Enzo first met.
Chinetti was interested in racing as well, so he developed his skills on the side. His first big appearance was at the 1932 24 hours of Le Mans. Together with his co-driver Raymond Sommer, he managed to win the endurance race in an Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 LM. In 1958, Chinetti founded the North American Racing Team (NART). We’ll save that story for another time, because it’s one you don’t want to miss.
His work as Ferrari importer
During the Second World War, Chinetti moved to the United States, but in December 1946 he flew back to Modena to meet with Enzo Ferrari. At this time, Enzo was thinking about starting a company and Chinetti recommended to build race (and eventually road) cars. When Enzo asked how he would sell exclusive cars, Chinetti promised to take care of that. Enzo agreed. Chinetti had world-class racing abilities and his selling skills were even better; Ferrari could not have gained a better representative.
Enzo and Chinetti sat down with a few other executives to set up a plan to sell race cars to privateers. To finance the production, they would eventually introduce road cars. In 1948, just a year after the introduction of the first Ferrari, Chinetti sold his first Ferrari, the 1948 166 MM Barchetta (s/n 0002M), to California radio executive Tommy Lee.
In the early years of his importing career, most of the sales Chinetti made were kept secret to protect the privacy of his clients. In 1954, he officially emerged as the U.S. importer for Ferrari.
Ferrari and Chinetti became a great team
Chinetti opened his first dealership in Manhattan and eventually moved to Greenwich, Connecticut. This business remains open, owned by Miller Motorcars – a Ferrari-Maserati dealership.
The American market was growing every year and offered great potential for Ferrari, so much so that they started producing cars solely for the U.S. market. The first one in this range was the 340 America (1950–1952). This front-engine V12 grand tourer produced about 197 bhp. Ferrari only build 23 units with different types of bodyworks: 11 by Vignale, 8 by Touring and 4 by Ghia.
The America series also included the 342 (1952) and 375 America (1953–1954), the 410 (1955–1959) and 400 Superamerica (1959–1964), the 500 Superfast (1964–1966) and the 365 California (1966–1967). One of the most icon Ferraris, the 250 GT California Spyder, was the work of Chinetti and West Coast representative John Von Neumann. Both thought there would be a big potential in an open-top car for wealthy clients in California. They were right: the original price was around $13,000, but its current price is in the $15-$20 million range.
NART Spyder
Another icon was the 1967 Ferrari 275 GTS/4 NART Spyder. Chinetti talked to Sergio Scaglietti and Enzo about the idea of a successor to the 250 GT California Spyder. The NART moniker, referring to his racing team, was never part of the official name. Still, Ferrari fitted the car with a NART badge, as seen on the picture above.
Throughout the years, several memorable models were produced with the U.S. market in mind: 333 SP, 575 Superamerica, California and the F60 America. The latter is the one that celebrates all of the successes Ferrari had there since 1954.
There is so much more to talk about when it comes to Chinetti, so stay tuned. The impact he had on Ferrari’’s legacy is indescribable. The U.S. market remains their most profitable market to date.
Giorgetto Giugiaro. You might never heard of him, but he is one of the most influential car designers in history. Named Car Designer of the Century in 1999, it comes as no surprise that Ferrari allowed Giugiaro to create a one-of-one car to mark the 50th anniversary of his career.
Giugiaro was born on 7 August 1938 in Garessio, Italy. He quickly developed a serious passion for art and ultimately studied art and technical design in Turin. Before one of his teachers told him that his skills would be more suitable in the automobile industry, he had little interest in car design. Without this professor, it’s possible that Giugiaro would never have become the best car designer ever.
Although it’s nearly impossible to pick one “best” car designer, Giugiaro’s contributions to the automotive industry are well-documented and significant. He worked on over 120 cars and is perhaps best known for the DeLorean DMC-12 and the Volkswagen Golf Mk1. Among other car manufacturers, he worked for Ferrari, Lamborghini, Alfa Romeo, DMC, BMW, Aston Martin and Bugatti.
Designing his very own car
We need to go back to the 2004 Paris Motor Show where Giugiaro had just finished a conversation with Luca di Montezemolo, President and CEO of Ferrari at the time. Montezemolo gave him permission to create a one-of-one car and they decided to use the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti as the basis. As long as the car would be recognizable as a Ferrari, he received the team’s full blessing. The name of the car was created from his initials (Giorgetto Giugiaro) and the number 50, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of his design career.
Giugiaro was very motivated and excited to start this project, so he immediately worked on 1:10 scale sketches. Those sketches were turned into a 1:1 scale model using the Italdesign-Giugiaro VR Design Center in April 2005. Just two months later, a working prototype was finished. Back then, it was a revolutionary design and it would not surprise us one bit if Pininfarina took inspiration from the car when designing the Ferrari FF.
‘’I wanted to make a Ferrari for myself that I could use with my family”
That was Giugiaro’s goal, so he did. Most of the interior design elements are similar to the Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, but the outside completely changed. The body is around 10 cm (4’’) shorter and received a differently shaped front, sides and rear. Some tiny updates made a big impact, such as the smaller head-lights, fog lights and front grille. The car looks a lot more balanced than the 612 Scaglietti from the side, mainly because of its sportier design. The roofline changed as well; whereas the 612 makes a big dive into its trunk, the GG50 is a bit curvier and reminds one of Alfa Romeo’s 8C. The back is more balanced as the rear lights and exhaust tips line up perfectly.
As mentioned before, the inside remained fairly unchanged. The steering wheel was replaced with a design reminiscent of old Ferrari single-seaters. Other unique elements include the dashboard and mid-console, which features a Pioneer satellite navigation system, and the rear seats can be folded down to create a space measuring 140 cm (55.1’’).
As this car was purely developed for design purposes, its engine and transmission stayed the same. This means you can find the same 5.7-L V12 under the hood as the 612 Scaglietti pushing about 540 bhp through the 6-speed sequential gearbox.
Ferrari is known for being very forward-thinking and experimental. The Ferrari 408 4RM is the perfect example because it was the marque’s first four-wheel drive car. Ferrari produced this concept in the late 1980s and implemented a similar system into the 2011 Ferrari FF.
The same goes for this, the Ferrari Pinin – a one-off concept car that was designed by Pininfarina to celebrate their 50th anniversary in 1980. Sergio Pininfarina dreamed of designing a car that could compete with the likes of the Maserati Quattroporte and Jaguar XJ. He started with a 400 GT chassis and didn’t include an engine because it was created purely to show their design abilities. Instead, the design team fitted a mock-up version of the flat-12 that powered the 400 GT. The classy outside was complemented with a classy inside: tobacco-coloured Connolly Leather. The Ferrari Pinin was unveiled at the 1980 Turin Auto Show by Sergio Pininfarina himself.
It almost went into production
Enzo Ferrari liked it so much that he discussed the possibility of putting it into production. The feedback received from a United States tour was positive, but Enzo soon realized he had to compete with car manufacturers such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Four-door cars were a speciality of those manufacturers and Ferrari only had experience with two-door sports and race cars, which are not suited for daily driving. Enzo was aware he didn’t have the expertise to build a car suited for daily driving, so he dropped his production plans and this remains the only one ever built.
Several times sold throughout the years
After the tour, the Ferrari Pinin was sold to Jacques Swaters. Swaters was a racing driver from Belgium, the former team owner of Ecurie Francorchamps and a businessman. You might recognize his last name. Ferrari introduced Blu Swaters as a shade of blue at the same time the Ferrari 456 was unveiled in 1992. Swaters had the car until 2008, when RM Sotheby’s sold it for €176.000 during their Ferrari auction called Leggenda E Passione.
The new owners – Oral Engineering – were challenged to make the car a running vehicle. They reached out to Mauro Forghieri, an Italian engineer who worked with Scuderia Ferrari in the 1960s and 1970s. As mentioned before, the only purpose of this car was to show off Pininfarina’s design prowess, so in order to incorporate a working engine, the chassis had to undergo a major strength upgrade. They fitted the car with an original 400 GT flat-12 and gearbox and it made its first run in March 2010. Later that year, it was put up for sale later that year but failed to reach the guide price of £480.000 – £550.000.
One of the best car designs
Sergio Pininfarina passed away in July 2012 and Ferrari wanted to pay tribute to his excellent work and contribution to Ferrari’s heritage. Several iconic Pininfarina designs were displayed at the Maranello Ferrari Museum, including the Pinin, 250 LM, 360 Barchetta and 330 GTC Speciale, among many others.
During a factory auction, the car was sold to an anonymous buyer. Anthony Nobles, businessman and Ferrari collector from California, was intrigued by the car’s design and spent several years tracking down the car. He managed to purchase it in 2017 and it still remains in his possession.
Did you developed a weakness for the incredible Ferrari Pinin during this article? Or do you just don’t get this design?
Timossi-Ferrari ‘Arno XI’ Racing Hydroplane and Ferrari Portofino
Over the past few years, Ferrari has made big strides in performance improvement. Just look at the development of front-engine V12 cars. The 2006 599 GTB had 612 bhp and the 2012 F12berlinetta produced 730 bhp – an increase of 118 bhp in just 6 years. While doing the math, I wanted to find out how long it took them to get 600 bhp in their latest Grand Tourer, the Portofino. Here’s the timeline…
1953 – Timossi-Ferrari ‘Arno XI’ Racing Hydroplane (600 bhp)
Achille Castoldi, an Italian speedboat racer, aspired to break the World Speed Record on water back in the early 1950s. He got in touch with Formula 1 drivers Alberto Ascari and Luigi Villoresi and they managed to persuade Enzo Ferrari to offer a 4.5-L V12 engine for Castoldi’s boat. This was the same engine Ferrari used in the 1950 Ferrari 375 F1 – the car that gave Scuderia Ferrari their first ever Grand Prix victory.
The standard engine produced roughly 335 bhp, so Castoldi had to increase the power to make it competitive on water. He attached twin superchargers and twin four-choke carburettors to make the 600 bhp power output reality. On 15 October 1953, he set a new World Speed Record on water: 241.708 km/h (150.190 mph). This remains the record for an 800 kg boat to this day.
1969 – Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Speciale (620 bhp)
Filippo Sapino, designer at Ghia for over three decades, might be most remembered by this 1969 Ferrari 512S Berlinetta Speciale, which he designed during his short tenure at Pininfarina. Ferrari placed a 6.0-L V12 from a 612 Can-Am in the back. Sadly, it was a block placed for the sake of having a filled engine bay. The car wasn’t able to move itself; it was purely used to introduce a new design language further developed in the 1970s. Still though, a great thought to have access to over 600 bhp with your right foot in such a ‘’wedge’’ car.
1970 – Ferrari 512M (610 bhp)
From 1953 to 1992, the FIA ran the World Sportscar Championship. Notable races in this Championship were the 24 Hours of Daytona and 1000 km of the Nürburgring. The 512M, an upgraded version of the Ferrari 512S, debuted at the 1970 1000 km of Zeltweg. Ferrari also entered the 1971 Championship with the 512M. The car was powered by a 5.0-L V12 producing 610 bhp.
1983 – Ferrari 126 C3 (591 bhp)
The first Formula 1 car in this list is the 1983 Ferrari 126 C3. Scuderia Ferrari is the oldest surviving Formula 1 team, having competed in every championship since the 1950 season. The heritage of Ferrari in the highest racing championship is noticeable when you wander through its history. It all started in 1950 with the 275 F1 with 300 bhp and now we have the SF71H with over 1000 bhp.
The Ferrari 126 C3 was introduced at the 1983 British Grand Prix with Patrick Tambay behind the wheel. René Arnoux got to drive the car at the next race, which was the German Grand Prix that he managed to win. He also won the Canadian and Dutch Grand Prix of that year. Tambay finished first in the Italian Grand Prix. The 1.5-L V6 produced a total output of 591 bhp at 10500 rpm.
2003 – Ferrari 575 GTC (597 bhp)
The Ferrari 575 GTC was a development of the 550 GTS. The 550 GTS was a very successful competitor in the GT Championships and Ferrari wanted to offer such a car to close customers. The car featured a 6.0-L V12 pushing out 597 bhp, and is one of the best-sounding engines ever to appear in a race car.
2017 – Ferrari Portofino (591 bhp)
This is the fun part, where you realize how far Ferrari has come. From 600 bhp in a custom boat, Formula 1 cars, concept cars and race cars, the same power output ended up in their current grand tourer, a car that is used to comfortably get from A to B. This list shows how quick the progress of cars can be and it also shows why I personally love Ferrari. They may not aspire to be the best in the market, nor to be the fastest, but they aspire to better themselves with every new car they introduce. Ferrari clearly uses Enzo’s ‘’I don’t sell cars, I sell engines’’ philosophy, since numerous engines have won several awards in their respective categories.
One of the marketing expressions for the Ferrari Portofino read: ‘’This is the Ferrari you drive back to your summer or weekend villa, top down, with a cigar in one hand, your family and a grin on your face as you think about how sweet life is.’’. It shows how radically our perception of 600 bhp has changed throughout the years.
Ferrari F40 Competizione by Charlie Capnerhurst Barker
The Ferrari F40 (1987) is undoubtedly one of the most legendary cars ever built, and it was the ultimate goodbye from Enzo Ferrari before passing away in 1988. Surprisingly, Ferrari didn’t build the car to compete in racing. Only when the French importer proposed it, Ferrari started considering it. In this article we will give you an insight into all race versions of the Ferrari F40.
In 1982, the FIA launched the Group B series—a rally championship without a single sign of humanized rules. Aerodynamic rally cars with ridiculously powerful engines were let loose on tight dirt tracks. The FIA announced a Group B Circuit Series in 1984 and Ferrari wanted to join, but they had to build 200 examples of the 288 GTO to homologate the version that was intended for racing. By the time they finished building the required road and racing cars (288 GTO Evoluzione), the Group B was discontinued because it was too dangerous. Ferrari eventually built and sold 272 units of the 288 GTO, but were left with six Evoluziones.
By the latter half of the ’80s, Enzo Ferrari was getting older and decided he wanted to shock the world one more time by building an extreme road car. Pininfarina designer Leonardo Fioravanti, who also designed the 288 GTO, used the Evoluzione as a base model for this upcoming road car. After a development period of just 13 months, the Ferrari F40 was revealed at the 1987 Frankfurt Motor Show just in time for Ferrari’s 40th anniversary—hence the name F40. Upon its unveiling, Ferrari’s latest creation left the whole room speechless.
The main purpose of the Ferrari F40 was to be the fastest and most exiting car on public roads. Initially, Ferrari wanted to sell 400 examples, but demand was so high (over 3,000 people showed interest) that they more than tripled production to 1,311 units.
These are all the race versions of the Ferrari F40
Every owner must’ve felt the same about driving the F40: It was a very expensive go-kart with an amazing amount of grip—two vital qualities a race car must have. So when Daniel Marin (manager at the French dealership Charles Pozzi) and others proposed a race version to Ferrari, the company started making plans.
1994 Ferrari F40 LM
The F40 road car was still in production, so Ferrari searched for an external company who knew what they were doing. Michelotto and Ferrari collaborated on many areas before, so it was an easy pick. Michelotto started out with a standard F40 and modified it to a fire-spitting racing car. Modifications were an engine upgrade to 780 bhp, a weight reduction of 200 kg (440 lb), racing suspension, a fully adjustable wing with gurney flap, bigger intercoolers and wastegates in the turbochargers. More air vents and an extensive rear diffuser were also added. The interior was even more stripped-out and featured a futuristic digital dashboard.
The LM was initially built for the FIA GT Championship, but it was eventually designated for the Le Mans. Sadly, the Le Mans rules changed so it could not compete. The F40 LM went off to the United States to compete in the IMSA Series. IMSA version had a black or red window net, mandatory US specific rear bumper, air extractors on the front fenders and was equipped with 5-spoke O.Z Racing rims w/ the old O.Z logo, occasionally with a turbo fan cover on the front and rear rims similar to the Mazda 787B.
It had to gain some weight and give up pressure from the turbochargers, otherwise it would have beaten the whole field. Especially at the time, its figures were out of this world: it could reach 100 km/h (62 mph) from standstill in just 3 seconds and had a recorded top speed of 369 km/h (229 mph)!
In 1989 the F40 had the stock pop-up headlight configuration and only in 1990 did we see the big single line on the LM and GTE and sometimes they had covers for aero and weight purposes.
Michelotto converted 19 F40’s into LM spec race cars, but several private racing teams wanted an LM as well which resulted in an additional 27 LM spec race cars. These were not assembled by Michelotto.
LM version could have:
Front canards for high-downforce races or not for high-speed ones
Window or Ddoor mounted rear-view mirror
Have or not a rear bumper
Three different steering wheels; 2 different models of MOMO steering wheel, one in red and another one in black. Both with the Ferrari logo in the centre and a Black OMP one without Ferrari logo.
A digital dashboard
5-spoke Speedline Corse in silver or black
BBS E88 for practice and testing like all Michelotto built Ferraris since the F40 use
In 1996 only one F40 LM was still racing, having all others been swapped out for the faster F40 GTE, so the only LM to receive 1996 aero update only changed its rear wing and rear diffuser but kept the rest of the bodywork in LM spec.
1989 Ferrari F40 Competizione
Ferrari received 10 more requests from clients who were interested in getting an F40 LM. Those people didn’t necessarily want to race them, so after two had been built, Ferrari changed the name from LM to F40 Competizione because they felt the LM tag was too restrictive and not entirely applicable to the purpose of the Competizione. Most Competiziones ended up in private collections and were more of a collector’s item than a competition race car. The yellow example pictured above is from 1993.
To distinguish the F40 Competizione from the remaining three, you have to make sure the headlights are covered. The front bumper is slightly different from the F40 LM and the Competiziones are often non-sponsored examples, like the example pictured above.
1991 Ferrari F40 GT
Michelotto turned seven road going F40s into racing versions known as the F40 GT. The F40 GT is not as crazy as the LM, but that was done so it could compete in the Italian GT Championship. The body was lighter, with 17-inch magnesium wheels, bigger brakes, a race exhaust and better cooling system. The upgraded engine produced 560 bhp, up from the standard 478. The F40 GT debuted in the 1993 Italian Supercar Championship and finished in sixth place overall. Driver Vittorio Colombo managed to win the 1994 season.
The first one pictured is the Monte Shell F40 GT and is the most successful race F40 ever.
The F40 GT might be the easiest one to distinguish from the others because it’s visually the closest to the road-going F40. It’s often stickered up with all sorts of sponsors and has almost no additional aero.
1995 Ferrari F40 GTE
The F40 GT proved to be a good racing car, so Michelotto converted seven more F40s for the BPR Global GT Series. These cars were called the F40 GTE. One of them started life as an LM, one of them as a GT and the remaining five as road-going examples. The GTE was an evolution of the GT and packed a whopping 620 bhp. Sadly, there were a lot of reliability issues which prevented the GTE from reaching the same status as the GT.
To recognize the F40 GTE you have to take a careful look at the rear wing, as you can see on the picture both sides of the spoiler are thin and the actual spoiler is made out of carbon. Apart from that, we could not find any other points of differences.
Updates include:
A more powerful engine up from 3.0-L to 3.5-L in 1995 and 3.6-L in 1996 and 1997
We recently received some questions of the F40 Barchetta which let us decide to do some research and combine it all in an easy-to-read article. Please note there are many different stories about the F40 Barchetta so we’ll simplify the most common one.
1987
Ferrari got many complains in the 80s about their cars being too soft and too comfortable. The goal – which led to the F40 – was to build a true racing car for the streets without any luxurious options or electronic gadgets. Pininfarina went to work and created a brilliant automobile which was named after 40 years of Ferrari: F40. The car got its power from a twin-turbocharged V8 which produced around 480 bhp. This engine is still notorious for its turbo lag so you can’t be mad at Enzo Ferrari of what he said during the first test drive: ‘’This car is so fast it will make you sh*t your pants.’’. Which basically concludes both Pininfarina and Ferrari succeeded in their pursuit to better their products and satisfy their clients.
1988
At first, the F40 wasn’t supposed to compete in any championships whatsoever, but as with all companies the client is king so Ferrari did what buyers asked them to do. Michelotto – long-time Ferrari GT and prototype developer – started a project which eventually resulted in the F40 LM. It had a complete reworked chassis, an updated suspension system and carbon parts like the front splitter and rear diffuser. Even the remarkable wing was replaced by an adjustable one to create more downforce. Although it has the same engine as the F40, the twin-turbocharged V8 in the F40 LM produced around 700 bhp which to this date is still a massive expansion.
1989
When the F40 LM was ready to race it debuted in the IMSA GT: a North American racing series. It appeared at the start without official Ferrari licenses because the parent company Fiat commanded Ferrari to focus on the Formula 1 rather than other racing series. The F40 LM with chassis number #79890 entered the championship via the French Ferrari club. Even though being forced to race with engine restrictors, Frenchman Jean Alesi was able to finish as third in the one-hour Laguna Seca race. The next race, at Del Mar, was less successful. Former F1 driver Jean-Pierre Jabouille failed to finish because of mechanical complications.
1990
Although Jabouille finished second during the race at Road America (Wisconsin), the F40 LM wasn’t strong enough to compete with the other cars. It didn’t fulfil most expectations as well and those reasons led to the decision to quite racing in the F40 LM. The #79890 F40 LM was put into storage…
1993
…until three years later when Belgian billionaire Jean Blaton bought the car. Blaton used to race in the 1950s and 1960s and wore the nickname Jean Beurlys. Beurlys appeared fifteen times at the starting line of the 24h of Le Mans with the third place in the 1965 race as the best result. Beurlys knew he got something special and rare when he bought one of the two F40 LM’s which competed in the IMSA GT, but he wasn’t satisfied. His wish was to build something outrageous, something that was never done before. To get the process going Beurlys got in touch with Tony Gillet: a former Belgium racing driver and founder of Gillet Cars. Gillet got the request to redesign the unique F40 LM and transform it into something uncommon…
Results
…the drastic changes resulted in a so called Barchetta: an Italian roofless car. The whole roof structure was removed and a manual push-rod suspension – just like the Corse Clienti cars – was installed. The recognizable triple-exhaust turned into a modified system which exited just before the rear wheels. Gillet built a one-off steel roll cage for the F40 Barchetta for safety reasons and a little windshield was placed just in front of the passengers to protect them from stone chips. To make it even more extreme the engine restrictors were removed which added an additional 60 horsepower resulting in an engine output of 760 bhp. The F40 Barchetta is capable of reaching a 100 km/h from standstill in just over 3 seconds. Top speed is said to be around 370 km/h.
Refused by Ferrari
Ferrari never gave permission to transform the car to what it still is to this date. They forced the owners to remove all original Ferrari badges. This is most likely the reason why the one-off didn’t reached the estimated $195,000 at an auction back in 2005.
It’s unclear who the current owner of the F40 Barchetta is. Dutch Ferrari specialist Forza Service had the car in their garage back in 2012 for a full revision. Click here to check out their website and some pictures of the process. The latest appearance of the car just a couple of days ago at the circuit of Assen, didn’t end successfully: it crashed into a wooden boarding just before parking its rear end in a set of tire piles due cold tires. Some pictures of the aftermath were kindly lend to us by Arjan van der Heide.
We hope you enjoyed the time line we made of the F40 Barchetta. Please note there are several stories about the F40 Barchetta. We tried to simplify the most told one. About which Ferrari would you like to read a similar layout-article? Please reach out to us!
Ferrari Lifestyle | ROSSO 