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| Ferrari F50 1996 |
The goal of Ferrari’s F50, which was built on the culmination of four years of development and fifty years of success in motorsport, was to offer customers an experience as close to a Formula One car as possible but within the familiarity of a road-legal platform. The car was presented to the public for the first time at the 63rd annual Geneva Motor Show, and Luca di Montezemolo, Piero Lardi Ferrari, Sergio Pininfarina, and Niki Lauda were all on hand at the unveiling, illustrating the monumental importance of this new model to the history of Ferrari.
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| Ferrari F50 1996 |
The F50 was propelled by a 4.7-litre normally aspirated V-12 with five valves per cylinder, which was a first for a road going Ferrari V-12. It was derived directly from the powerplant that Ferrari used in the 1990 F1 season, and it produced 520 horsepower at an earth-shaking 8,000 rpm, but the 436-pound engine itself was capable of reaching over 10,000 rpm. The six-speed longitudinal gearbox, complete with a limited-slip differential, was fitted behind the engine, between which the oil tank was mounted for the dry-sump engine lubrication system. This layout was reminiscent of the one used in Ferrari’s contemporary Formula One cars.
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| Ferrari F50 1996 |
Ferrari placed monumental attention to detail on the car’s chassis, which was made entirely of Cytec aerospace carbon fibre and tipped the scales at just 225 pounds. The F50’s rubber bladder fuel tank was housed within the chassis, behind the driver and in front of the engine, which was another innovation inspired from the aircraft industry. Massively drilled and ventilated disc brakes were fitted, and Brembo supplied the four-piston brake callipers.
The interior of the F50 featured few creature comforts, as Ferrari wanted the driver to fully concentrate on handling the most powerful machine to ever leave their factory. The instrument panel featured a tachometer and speedometer, as well as fuel, oil, and water temperature and oil pressure gauges, which were all controlled by a microcomputer and displayed to the driver by LCD. The throttle, brake, and clutch pedals were all fully adjustable and drilled to further maximise weight reduction. The gated gearshift was traditional Ferrari; although, in the interest of weight savings, even the gear knob and lever were made of lightweight composite materials.
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| Ferrari F50 1996 |
Of course, Ferrari’s fanatical attention to detail and weight reduction meant massive dividends in terms of performance. The F50’s top speed was purportedly 325 km/h, and the 0–100 km/h dash required just 3.7 seconds. Keeping one’s foot on the accelerator pedal would bring the F50 to a standing mile time of 30.3 seconds. However, all this performance wouldn’t be available to every person with the appropriate funds to purchase Ferrari’s newest supercar. Only 349 examples were made, one less than what Montezemolo believed the market demanded and just over a quarter of total F40 production.
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| Ferrari F50 1996 |
The F50 presented here, chassis number 106570, was the 215th example built. It was completed in October 1996 and finished in traditional Rosso Corsa (FD-80) over a Nero and Rosso (8500) interior. Once complete, the car was delivered new to official Ferrari dealer Forza Torino in Italy. It was then purchased on 19 November by Giancarlo Pronotto, of Torino, and it has remained in Europe ever since.
The F50 is undoubtedly one of the most iconic vehicles created in the 1990s, as it celebrates 50 years of Ferrari’s continuous development and integration of road and racing technology. It was the supercar that gave Ferrari’s best customers the opportunity to experience similar levels of performance and exhilaration previously reserved for the company’s Formula One drivers.
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