Photo: Andrew Trahan / RM Sotheby's
“It’s just magnificent…This is a car to make your hair curl,” said five-time Le Mans champion Derek Bell about the Ferrari F40 during a test drive for Classic & Sports Car magazine in the mid-2000s.
Announced in mid-1987 at the Frankfurt Motor Show (where Enzo Ferrari made his last appearance for a new car reveal), the F40 was built to celebrate Ferrari’s 40th anniversary. The aggressive Pininfarina design was very well received and featured a tubular steel chassis frame, as well as 11 body panels made from a combination of Kevlar and carbon fiber.
It was the first production car to use mainly composite materials for the bodywork.
This not only helped reduce the weight of the car (as did the minimalist interior), but also improved the F40’s structural rigidity. As the last supercar from Maranello developed under Il Commendatore himself, it was produced from 1987 to 1992, with only 400 units initially planned. That number ended up actually being 1,311, almost five times as many units as the 288 GTO.
This rare example of purebred Italian engineering was originally owned by Microsoft co-founder and owner of the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and the NBA’s Portland Trailblazers, Paul Allen, for 13 years. Rocking the iconic Rosso Corsa paintwork, which is believed to be the original factory-applied paint, the car also features a highly-desirable option for the model, namely the custom leather luggage set by Schedoni.
It doesn’t take too long to observe the pristine condition of the car, which seems to be just fresh off the factory gates. With only 2,734 miles (3,821 km) displayed on the odometer (2,376 miles / 3,824 km noted at the time of cataloging for the listing), the car is now open to exploring new ownership possibilities, and at the time of writing is only days away from being offered at auction.
The car is number 18 out of the total 213 examples specified for the United States, as well as one in only around 90 units delivered to the U.S. in 1990. Powered by a mid-mounted 2.9-liter V8 engine producing 478 hp (485 ps) and 577 Nm (426 lb-ft) of torque, the car can potentially sprint from 0 to 62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in 4.1 seconds, as well as reach a top speed of 201 mph (324 km/h).
The interior features plastic-composite racing seats dressed in red cloth upholstery, a three-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel framing the instruments, drilled pedals, pull-strap door releases, along with a gated shifter. Although the windows are not electric, the car does have air conditioning.
Chassis no ZFFMN34A2L0085596 will be offered via RM Sotheby’s along with all the appropriate paperwork, and will be joining its little brother at the same auction in Florida, as it’s scheduled to go under the hammer on December 10, where it’s estimated to bring in at least $3 million.
It was the first production car to use mainly composite materials for the bodywork.
This not only helped reduce the weight of the car (as did the minimalist interior), but also improved the F40’s structural rigidity. As the last supercar from Maranello developed under Il Commendatore himself, it was produced from 1987 to 1992, with only 400 units initially planned. That number ended up actually being 1,311, almost five times as many units as the 288 GTO.
This rare example of purebred Italian engineering was originally owned by Microsoft co-founder and owner of the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and the NBA’s Portland Trailblazers, Paul Allen, for 13 years. Rocking the iconic Rosso Corsa paintwork, which is believed to be the original factory-applied paint, the car also features a highly-desirable option for the model, namely the custom leather luggage set by Schedoni.
It doesn’t take too long to observe the pristine condition of the car, which seems to be just fresh off the factory gates. With only 2,734 miles (3,821 km) displayed on the odometer (2,376 miles / 3,824 km noted at the time of cataloging for the listing), the car is now open to exploring new ownership possibilities, and at the time of writing is only days away from being offered at auction.
The car is number 18 out of the total 213 examples specified for the United States, as well as one in only around 90 units delivered to the U.S. in 1990. Powered by a mid-mounted 2.9-liter V8 engine producing 478 hp (485 ps) and 577 Nm (426 lb-ft) of torque, the car can potentially sprint from 0 to 62 mph (0 to 100 km/h) in 4.1 seconds, as well as reach a top speed of 201 mph (324 km/h).
The interior features plastic-composite racing seats dressed in red cloth upholstery, a three-spoke leather-wrapped steering wheel framing the instruments, drilled pedals, pull-strap door releases, along with a gated shifter. Although the windows are not electric, the car does have air conditioning.
Chassis no ZFFMN34A2L0085596 will be offered via RM Sotheby’s along with all the appropriate paperwork, and will be joining its little brother at the same auction in Florida, as it’s scheduled to go under the hammer on December 10, where it’s estimated to bring in at least $3 million.
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