New year's classic: Ferrari F40
Monday January 01, 2007
Launched in 1987, 20 years ago already, the twin-turbocharged Ferrari F40 was guaranteed classic status from the moment the Maranello firm revealed it. Developed from the 288 GTO Evoluzione, this mid-engined racer-for-the-road set new benchmarks for performance at the time. Built to celebrate Ferrari's 40th anniversary (hence the F40 name), it was designed to have maximum impact.
Like the Ferrari 288 GTO before it, it featured a longitudinally mounted mid-engine V8. The dramatic Pininfarina-penned shape was a far cry from the elegant lines of the 288 GTO. Whilst details of the GTO could be seen around the mid-section, and especially tthe roof line, where the the GTO was deliberately styled to resemble the contemporary Ferrari 308 GTB QV, the F40 seemed to have been styled only to intimidate. The plexiglass rear panel, covering the engine, was at once beautiful and purposeful. It allowed the engine to be exhibited in all its glory, whilst the ventilation holes hinted at the need for it to let the heat out rapidly. The black meshed rear with centrally-mounted exhausts added to the visual menace of this car. Then there's the massive, full-width raised spoiler, in case the observer had not yet got the message.
With a dry weight of a scant 1100 kg, thanks to the use of Kevlar, and the twin IHI turbochargers helping the little V8 produce 478 PS, the F40 was always going to go like stink. The standing quarter-mile was dispatched in 11.6 seconds, the kilometre in 21 seconds dead, and the F40 would run on to 324 km/h. Doubtless with more suitable gearing a lot more top end would have been available, especially with a fairly slippery 0.34 drag coefficient.
The dry sump Ferrari F120 engine was very oversquare, with an 89 mm bore and 69.5 mm stroke, giving a total swept volume of just 2936 cc. Twin overhead camshafts and 4 valve cylinder heads (and of course, those massive IHI turbos) helped the diminutive V8 produce 478 PS at 7000 rpm, and 575 Nm at 4000 rpm. A 5 speed manual 'box was employed to transmit the power through the enormous (for the time) 335/35 ZR 17 tyres.
Just over 1330 examples of this fantastic and brutal Ferrari were built, and it was just about the mid-point of a long line of extraordinary performance cars from Ferrari, starting with the Ferrari 250 GTO, and including today's Enzo. It also has the distinction of being the last turbocharged road-going Ferrari, but perhaps only for a while.
Like the Ferrari 288 GTO before it, it featured a longitudinally mounted mid-engine V8. The dramatic Pininfarina-penned shape was a far cry from the elegant lines of the 288 GTO. Whilst details of the GTO could be seen around the mid-section, and especially tthe roof line, where the the GTO was deliberately styled to resemble the contemporary Ferrari 308 GTB QV, the F40 seemed to have been styled only to intimidate. The plexiglass rear panel, covering the engine, was at once beautiful and purposeful. It allowed the engine to be exhibited in all its glory, whilst the ventilation holes hinted at the need for it to let the heat out rapidly. The black meshed rear with centrally-mounted exhausts added to the visual menace of this car. Then there's the massive, full-width raised spoiler, in case the observer had not yet got the message.
With a dry weight of a scant 1100 kg, thanks to the use of Kevlar, and the twin IHI turbochargers helping the little V8 produce 478 PS, the F40 was always going to go like stink. The standing quarter-mile was dispatched in 11.6 seconds, the kilometre in 21 seconds dead, and the F40 would run on to 324 km/h. Doubtless with more suitable gearing a lot more top end would have been available, especially with a fairly slippery 0.34 drag coefficient.
The dry sump Ferrari F120 engine was very oversquare, with an 89 mm bore and 69.5 mm stroke, giving a total swept volume of just 2936 cc. Twin overhead camshafts and 4 valve cylinder heads (and of course, those massive IHI turbos) helped the diminutive V8 produce 478 PS at 7000 rpm, and 575 Nm at 4000 rpm. A 5 speed manual 'box was employed to transmit the power through the enormous (for the time) 335/35 ZR 17 tyres.
Just over 1330 examples of this fantastic and brutal Ferrari were built, and it was just about the mid-point of a long line of extraordinary performance cars from Ferrari, starting with the Ferrari 250 GTO, and including today's Enzo. It also has the distinction of being the last turbocharged road-going Ferrari, but perhaps only for a while.
