Liberty Walk has a thing about the Ferrari F40. After they modded one in ways that can't be described, they got their hands on the Autozam AZ-1 kei car and turned it into an F40 wannabe.
The Japanese tuning house has revealed its latest contraption creation. it's the Autozam AZ-1 with Ferrari F40 vibes. Discontinued three decades ago, the Autozam AZ-1 was designed and built by Mazda under its Autozam brand starting in 1992. It only stayed two years in production
Powered by a Suzuki-sourced engine with a displacement of only 657 cc, it came with 63 horsepower (64 metric horsepower) and 63 lb-ft (85 Nm) of torque delivered to the rear wheels via a five-speed manual transmission. So, putting a body kit onto this miniature car to make it look like a Ferrari is not something that many would have thought of. Enter Liberty Walk.
The original car measured 129.7 inches (3,295 millimeters) in length, 54.9 inches (1,395 millimeters) in width, and 45.3 inches (1,150 millimeters) in height, sporting a wheelbase of 88.0 inches (2,235 millimeters), all packed in 1,587 pounds (720 kilograms).
The design of the model was supervised by Toshiko Hirai, who was also responsible for the MX-5 Miata. The first setback he and the team had to deal with the very low budget. But they eventually nailed it.
It just arrived on the Japanese market at a very bad time, when the recession had already hit the economy, and Mazda had to cut production short after a total of 4,392 units sold.
Photo: Liberty Walk
The tuning experts at Liberty Walk had to cut a bit, widen a bit more, and weld it all under a bright white paint.
The LB40 kit includes headlight covers, front canards, side skirts, door panels, and rear fenders. A massive rear wing and an air diffuser are also on the menu. All of them are made of a mix of fiber-reinforced plastic and carbon fiber, all available for – are you sitting down? – $22,660.
Wait, there is more! If you want the forged wheels, which are 16 inches on the front axle and 17 inches at the rear, you'll have to pay $14,300 more. That's how much you'd pay for the top-of-the-line Toyota Camry XSE with a V6 engine, for instance, or a top-ranging Mazda MX-5 Miata.
LB also worked on the cabin and fitted in red Sparco seats with four-point racing harnesses. There is also a flat-bottomed Sparco steering wheel wrapped in Alcantara.
As aggressive as this former kei car looks, Liberty Walk did not interfere with the engine. So this Ferrari F40 wannabe still sports the 63 horsepower that it left the factory with. Meanwhile, the real deal sports 691 horsepower (700 metric horsepower). That's quite a gap there!
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