The Shurlock Collection F40

Never has a car set as many hearts racing as the F40. Unveiled to an adoring public in 1987 to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Ferrari, it was the last car to be launched personally by Il Commendatore, Enzo Ferrari.

Developed at lightning speed over just thirteen months, the aim was to create a car that took Ferrari back to its roots; a road car with race car performance that would set a new benchmark for supercars. Pininfarina’s Leonardo Fioravanti, who had designed the 288 GTO, would also be responsible for the F40, and with outright performance and top speed crucial to the success of the project, much time was spent in the wind tunnel refining the shape to optimise the aerodynamics.

While Porsche had taken a diametrically opposite route with their ground-breaking 959, which was the most technologically advanced car ever built when it was launched in 1986, the F40 was a lightweight, stripped-out, mid-engined racer with a tubular steel space-frame chassis, bonded kevlar panels and carbon-fibre doors, bonnet and boot lid. Underlining the no-compromise ethos of the project, there would be no power steering or servo-assistance for the brakes.

All F40s were painted in Rosso Corsa, but such was the extent of Ferrari’s efforts to save weight, just enough paint was used on each car to give a consistent colour coating, leaving the carbon weave beneath it clearly visible.

The interior was spartan and completely devoid of any creature comforts. Even door handles were dispensed with in the interests of weight saving, replaced by the most rudimentary cable-pull system. With no carpets there were swathes of naked carbon fibre in the footwells and the buttresses running down each side of the cabin. Air conditioning was included only to counter the high temperatures generated by the engine. The racing bucket seats were made of carbon-kevlar composite and clad in fireproof Nomex, and like other mid-engined Ferraris of the period, the pedals were off-set towards the centre line, avoiding the wheel arch.

The engine was a development of the 288 GTO’s twin-turbo V8, with an increased compression ratio and boost pressure raising the power to 478bhp.

The result was the most charismatic and visceral road-going Ferrari ever made, with blistering performance and show-stopping looks. The driving experience was noisy, hot and intoxicating, demanding skill and total concentration at the wheel. The unwary could be lulled into a false sense of security when revs were below 3,000 rpm, but above this the twin-turbos quickly spooled up and all hell broke loose. Completely devoid of any driver aids, it took no prisoners and punished the incompetent.

The F40 was an instant hit, and in spite of the £163,000 price tag, demand far outstripped the originally-planned 400 units. By the time production came to an end in 1992, a total of 1,311 examples had been built.