Ferrari is one of the most famous car brands in the world and probably the most famous of all time. The Prancing Horse has been making cars since 1940 and was a racing team before that and is known for some of the most famous and iconic cars ever. There is of course the Ferrari Enzo, named after the legendary company founder and often regarded as one of the best Ferraris of all time. Then there’s the 250 GTO, the world’s most expensive car, one of which is privately sold for $ 70 million. Then there’s the F40, a car that seemed to be redefining what it was like to be a supercar and possibly the greatest car in the company’s history.
The thing is, however, there are many other cars Ferrari has produced that also deserve credit, with some perhaps not getting quite the attention they deserve. It is questionable whether such a car, the Ferrari F50, deserves a lot more attention than it actually gets. Only 349 were produced from 1995 to 1997, and it always seems to be overshadowed by the F40. But there’s a strong argument that the F50 is a car that deserves a lot of praise.
Development and origins
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As the name suggests, the F50 was the successor to the legendary F40 and was part of the “Halo Ferrari Series”. This was supposed to represent the best that Ferrari’s F1 technology could do in a street car of the time, and should be more of a purist car without the fancy gadgets that make a car easier to drive. Back then, the F50 was all about delivering a raw and as pure driving experience as possible.
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For this purpose, Ferrari built the car without power steering, power braking and ABS. In terms of proximity to a Formula 1 car, at the time this was the Ferrari road car that was closest to being a Grand Prix car. Much of the car’s aerodynamics and construction resembled that of the stunning 1989 Ferrari F1 car, especially when the rear quarter was opened up and the monocoque chassis was fully flaunted. Because so few were also made, the car is the second-oldest Ferrari Halo car ever, rarer than the F40.
The mighty power plant
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As one might expect from Ferrari, they didn’t hold back in the power department either. In order to get as close as possible to the Formula 1 car, the engine used was developed from the 3.5 liter V12 that was used in the Ferrari 641 Grand Prix car in 1990. The F50’s engine was a 4.7-liter Tipo F130B naturally aspirated 60-valve V12 that produced one of the best soundtracks ever heard on a Ferrari, and that was mated to a six-speed manual transmission.
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The powerful V12 engine developed around 512 hp, which was certainly a lot of power for a car from the mid-1990s. This was quite a performance increase over the F40. The F40 was powered by a Tip F120A V8 engine with twin turbo charging and developed 477 hp in European specifications, so the F50 was definitely ahead of the game. Some might even argue that when you look at the two cars, the F50 is actually more pleasing to the eye and has a sleeker design thanks to the F1 references it inherited. But Ferrari wanted to get more out of the F50.
The F50 GT edition
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Ferrari wanted to continue the motorsport theme dictated by the Ferrari F40 LM, a racing version of the F40 developed for GT racing, for example in the GTO category of the IMSA series. To that end, Ferrari developed the F50 GT or GT1, which is set to compete in the BPR Global GT series against cars like the McLaren F1 GTR. The series collapsed shortly after development began, however, and Ferrari abandoned the project after being dissatisfied with the FIA about admitting homologation vehicles like the Porsche 911 GT1 to a new FIA World Championship. Lack of funding was also a reason for the cancellation of the project, and only three F50 GT were built. None of the three completed cars ever raced.
An overlooked classic
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The F40 rightly gets a lot of praise. It’s a fast, iconic and fascinating car, and as the last car personally approved by Enzo Ferrari, it holds a special place in Ferrari history. It received rave reviews, with releases like Autocar saying it could enjoy its almost F1-like performance, and design genius Gordon Murray said its lack of weight is what makes it so exciting. But the F50 has certainly taken F1 performance to another level, with a screaming V12 and a rarity factor that few Ferraris can really match. Perhaps the fact that it doesn’t get all of its predecessor’s attention is a good thing, as the F50 may know that those in the know can appreciate how good a car a car was.
Sources: Robb Report, Drive My, Classic & Sports Car, Car Scoops, Forza Mag, Evo
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About the author
Henry Kelsall
(1444 articles published)
From JDM cars to WWII machines. Has worked at HotCars since autumn 2018.
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