Watch the Ferrari 499P Modificata and 296 Challenge Do Their Thing at the Mugello Circuit

Rather than displaying it to a handful of wealthy peeps, the Prancing Horse of Maranello demonstrated the 499P Modificata at the historic Mugello circuit alongside its lesser cousin. Based on the 296 GT3 racecar, the 296 Challenge is the ninth model in the Challenge series.

Other than the exterior paint color and Ferrari badging, what do these vehicles have in common? As you can tell from the video below, the 499P Modificata and 296 Challenge both rock twin-turbocharged V6 engines.

Italy’s best-known automotive brand rolled out its first six-cylinder lump in 1954 in the form of a 3.0L straight-six. Three years later, the Dino project came to fruition with the V6-engined 156 F2. The company’s first six-cylinder production vehicle was the Dino 206 GT, a two-door berlinetta produced in a little over 150 examples.

The 296, however, is the first-ever Ferrari to sport a six-cylinder. Originally believed to revive the Dino nameplate as a nod to Enzo’s late son Alfredo, the 296 indirectly replaces the F8 Tributo in the automaker’s lineup with the world’s most powerful series-production V6. The rear-drive supercar makes 819 horsepower at full chatter, of which 654 come from the internal combustion engine.

Clearly more shouty than the production model, the 296 Challenge doesn’t feature hybrid assistance. The same stands true for the 296 GT3, although the Challenge is a bit punchier. Officially rated at 700 ps (make that 690 hp), the Challenge will make its racing debut in 2024 in the European and North American Ferrari Challenge series.

The 499P Modificata is all-wheel drive, for it retains the front-mounted electric motor of the racing car. Under FIA-ACO regulations, the system cannot be pushed higher than 640 kW (that would be 870 ps or 858 hp). Fed by an 800-volt battery developed with the Scuderia’s experience from the world of Formula 1, the electric motor develops 200 kW (nearly 272 ps or 268 hp) in max attack mode.

A different animal from the 296 Challenge in many respects, the 499P Modificata inaugurates the Ferrari Sport Prototipi Clienti program that will run alongside the F1 Clienti program. Simply put, well-to-do people will be able to experience full-on racecars while Ferrari takes care of logistics, maintenance, and track-side assistance.

By well-to-do customers, think people who don’t mind paying €5.1 million before taxes ($5.4 million at current exchange rates). Ferrari didn’t say how many will be produced, but we do know that it’s a strictly limited-run affair. By comparison, the Maranello-based automaker produced 40 examples of the LaFerrari FXX-K.