Ferrari F50 1995, Itália
Fotografia
The Ferrari F50 was intended as an early celebration of the marque’s
50th anniversary. What bowed under the bright lights of the 1996 Geneva Motor
Show was the culmination of everything the automaker had learned over its five
decades of existence. The F50’s 512-horsepower V-12 stretched the limits of
natural aspiration as it screamed toward its 8,000 rpm redline. The car’s
carbon fiber tub kept the weight in check. The F50 split the difference between
raw Ferraris of the past and the high-tech future.
The F50 traced its styling roots to the Pininfarina-penned
Ferrari Mythos concept presented at the 1989 Tokyo show. To create the
production F50, Ferrari and Pininfarina turned to wind tunnels. The Mythos’
basic shape remained intact, albeit with a curvier design with projector lights
housed under headlight covers, deep air intakes in the front hood, a small
passenger compartment, and a massive rear wing that likened it to the F40 that
preceded it. Enormous center-locking 18-inch magnesium alloy wheels supplied by
Speedline took the Campagnolo look from the 1980s into a new decade.
The shapely body was created from carbon fiber and was wrapped
over a tub created from the same material. Solid mounts held the race-derived
4.7-liter V-12 into the car. The V-12 itself was closely related to the engine
that powered Alain Prost’s Ferrari 641 Formula 1 race car to five checkered
flags during the 1990 racing season.
The 65-degree V-12 was placed just ahead of the rear axle. A
carbon fiber-reinforced polymer intake supplied air, while fuel was held in an
aircraft-grade Sekur fuel-tank bag to keep weight to an absolute minimum. A
longitudinal six-speed manual transmission shuttled power rearward to a
limited-slip differential. Cooling came via an oil-water intercooler sandwiched
between the transmission’s lubrication system and the engine.
Underneath, the F50 utilized rose-jointed unequal-length
wishbones front and rear. Bilstein was tasked with creating electronically
adaptive dampers to make what was essentially a Formula 1 car with windshield
wipers and a passenger seat. Unassisted power steering ensured that the F50
would live up to its predecessors. After all, the F50 was never designed to
scrub mileage as it dashed across the continent. Gigantic Brembo brakes ensured
that the F50 would come to a halt quickly after reaching its 202-mph top speed.
Ferrari made no effort to soften the F50 inside, either. Its
dashboard was nearly unadorned, consisting of a carbon fiber panel punctuated
by three climate vents. Exposed carbon fiber was visible throughout, which,
along with the manual window winders, served to remind occupants that the F50
was an exercise in weight reduction. Unladen, the car tipped the scales at just
over 3,000 pounds, a remarkable feat given the power underhood, its relatively
long 101.6-inch wheelbase, and the fact that the car’s structure was stiffened
considerably because Ferrari chose to include a removable targa roof over the
passenger compartment.
Put to the test, the F50 was four seconds faster around the
course at Fiorino than the F40 that preceded it. Even Ferrari’s then-president,
Luca di Montezemolo, gushed with praise. He told Motor Trend in a
1995 review that the F50 would be “the first and last Formula 1 car with two
seats.”
This car, chassis number 103114, was completed by the factory
in 1995, just the second F50 ever built. Finished in Rosso Corsa over Nero,
with contrasting red cloth seat inserts, upon completion the F50 was imported
to Germany where it was exhibited at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September
1995. It was subsequently sold new to Michael Gabel, a noted Ferrari collector
from Berlin who exactly one month after acquiring it would enjoy the car on the
Mugello circuit. In early 1998 Mr. Gabel sold the car to Carmine Ligato of
Bergheim, Germany who would show the Ferrari later in the year at the Auto
Becker Concours d’Elegance in Düsseldorf. In 1999 the F50 was confiscated by
German Financial authorities and offered at a public auction. It was purchased
there by Eckhard Bluhm, who at the time had one of the foremost Ferrari
collections in Germany. Despite Mr. Bluhm rarely showing his cars, his very
private collection is known to have included approximately 30 of Maranello’s
finest including a 250 MM, 330 GTC, 275 GTB/4, 333 SP, as well as the full
modern supercar set of 288 GTO, F40, F50, and Enzo. Needless to say, this F50
was in great company under Mr. Bluhm’s 16-year ownership and is said to have
been parked next to his other F50, which he had bought new, while part of his
collection.
By 2016 the car was under the ownership of noted collector and
famed Ferrari supercar expert Bernhard Dransmann. Mr. Dransmann has owned over
two dozen 288 GTOs, F40s and F50s and is known for his keen eye and expertise
in acquiring and selling these specific Ferrari models. That Spring Mr.
Dransmann sent the car to Maranello Motors in Köln, Germany for a major
service, highlighted by a new fuel tank and inner tank protection. The major
service was completed at a cost of nearly €30,000. In July 2016, the F50 was
granted its Ferrari Classiche certification, confirming that the car remained a
numbers matching example. The F50 remained in Germany until March 2017 when it
was imported into the United States. JK Technologies of Baltimore, Maryland
federalized the car, making all the necessary changes to conform to US-regulations
at a cost of over $100,000.
A stunning example, this F50 has covered just 3,371 miles from
new. It still exhibits its factory original paint and the composite weave is
evident throughout the car, both indicators of a well looked after original
example. It is offered with a black soft-top and matching Rosso Corsa hardtop
with road case. Additionally, the car is accompanied by its Ferrari Classiche
Red Book, owner’s manuals with original maintenance book, select service
invoices, import documentation, tool kit, and its factory supplied photo album
documenting its construction. In April 2020, the F50 received an inspection and
servicing from the authorized dealer, Ferrari of New England.
The F50, lauded as the last great proper six-speed manual
Ferrari supercar, has very few peers, as it combines cutting-edge, Formula
1-inspired innovation and technology with a road car platform. As the final
generation of modern-day supercars equipped with manual transmissions begins to
gain value in the collector car market, the F50 presents itself as not only an
excellent driving limited-production automobile but also a very important model
in Ferrari’s illustrious history.
