NO 56K: Ferrari F40: The Eight prototypes

[JohnnyRacer]

Before we take Friday off, we thought we’d bring you something truly unusual, a prototype marking the birth of a car that defines “Supercar,” one of the eight known 1987 Ferrari F40 prototypes, chassis 74049.



SPECS:

580hp, 2936cc Tipo F120AB V-8, Weber-Marelli fuel injection, IHI twin turbos with intercoolers, magnesium cased five-speed manual transmission with AP racing clutch, four-wheel adjustable height independent suspension, four-wheel disc brakes. Wheelbase: 2,450mm (96.5”)

HISTORY:

The first F40 prototypes were not really F40s at all, but 288 GTO Evoluziones. Ferrai built five of these development exercises wearing bodies that had a mixture of GTO and F40 styling cues. The chassis and suspension parts developed for the 288 GTO Evo found their way under the upcoming model, but the first true F40 was chassis number 73015. It was assembled as a show car and greeted the public on July 21, 1987, at a press conference in Maranello. An aging Enzo Ferrari gave a speech praising the new F40 while refering to the days when street cars could also be raced on the track.

And raced they were. A total of 19 brutish F40LM racing versions were made up by Michelotto and campaigned with reasonable results, and some street cars were brought up to race spec as well. Other race versions were the mildly modified F40 GT and the more developed F40GT/E, which competed in various series.

Eight known F40 prototypes (73015, 74045, 74047, 74049, 74327, 75034, 75052 and 76354) were built for testing everything from suspension to drivetrain development. After showing at the 1987 Frankfurt Auto Show, 74047 was sent to Michelotto and made into an F40GT that ran successfully in the 1992 to 1994 Italian GT Championship. Prototype 74045 was later transformed into an F40LM (and then into a GT/E) and ran Le Mans in 1995 and 1996, while number 76354 was shown at the 1988 Geneva Auto Show.

Each of the F40 Prototypes was used differently, with each one serving a distinct and special purpose. One F40 Prototype was used to test the suspension system. Another was used to fine-tune the noise levels, emissions gear and brakes (power brakes were tried and rejected). One early prototype was set up for promotional purposes for car shows and press conferences. An unknown prototype gave its life against the crash barrier to satisfy American regulations, and one was used as a training dummy to instruct production line workers.



As development progressed, new prototypes were made up incorporating changes suggested by testing the earlier efforts. Track testing was done at Fiorano, Nardo, Imola and at the Alfa Romeo test track at Balocco, while street testing took place on thousands of miles of Italian roads.

Each F40 prototype differed in detail from the others, but there are visual differences from the later production F40s. Prototype tail sections have five louvers on each side underneath the spoiler, while the street cars have only four. Door mirror placement varies from car to car; some early prototypes have no outside mirrors, others have mirrors mounted on the side window while the street car mirrors are pedestal-mounted to the door itself. The Plexiglas rear engine cover also varies, with some prototypes having more louvers than standard.

The chassis on 74049, the Ferrari F40 Prototype presented here, appears to be the same as the ones used on the production line; that is, a steel tubular frame built by Ferrari supplier Vaccari reinforced with carbon fiber and Kevlar panels. However, the body panels are lighter than stock. The hood, doors and rear deck replicate the European production items (no bumper protection like on the U.S. version), but are thinner and lighter. The doors sport Lexan side windows with sliding vents, as did the first fifty or so of the production models before customer complaints caused Ferrari to switch to heavier glass roll-ups. There is no side impact protection in the doors and the belly pan is Kevlar, versus steel on U.S. models.



Five rear side vents on each side are consistent with prototype form, and the Plexiglas rear engine cover has twenty small slots, as opposed to just eleven larger ones on the standard cars. The side mirrors are mounted to the Lexan windows. In back, the license plate area is flanked by twin red fog warning lamps, which were only fitted to European models (and even then they were usually on the lower valence panel instead). There is no high brake warning light on the rear deck as on U.S.-spec models.

The interior is mostly standard. The dashboard and instruments are standard Euro F40 and Sabelt racing five-point safety harnesses are fitted on both sides. The seats are upholstered in red, and air conditioning is included for added comfort.

Underneath, things are subtly different. The suspension bushings are stiffer replacements similar to the F40 LM. Luongo reports the corner weights were within seven pounds side to side as delivered (convenient, as turning is difficult with no adjustable coil spring lands). 74049 is also fitted with the adjustable ride height option, which can be manually switched on to raise the car up for traversing bumps, or in automatic mode will progressively lower the car as speed increases. Normal ride height is 4.9″, which drops to 4.1″ at 75 mph, but can be raised to 5.9″ at low speeds. This hydraulic system was installed on very few cars (particularly in the U.S.); however, a number of cars had the system retrofitted. The brakes are standard calipers and rotors, which operate with aggressive racing pads.



On the scales, 74049 weighed 2,800 pounds wet, a good 200 pounds less than the 2,976 pounds (dry) weight of a U.S.-spec F40 (the competition LM reportedly weighed 2,315 pounds dry). Ferrari had initially announced the street F40 would weigh in at 2,425 pounds, but this was rather optimistic.

74049’s true singularity lies in its powerplant. The standard F40 engine is a Tipo F120A, while the higher output F40 LM used a Tipo F120B. Interestingly, the engine plate on 74049 states that it has a Tipo F120AB, which may be a cross between the two. Although most major components are the same as a standard F40, 74049 is believed to produce about 100hp more than the 478hp that a European model F40 produced (tested at 7,500 rpm without air passing through the intercoolers). This makes it only about 160 horsepower shy of an LM. The IHI turbos are different from stock, but not the same as the ones on an LM. The ECU is an enhanced one-off unit. Intercoolers are standard, but do not wear the BEHR lettering of the street units. As with European models, there is no catalytic converter and many of the brackets for the exhaust system are hand-fabricated. The air cleaners are also subtly different for no apparent reason. The fuel cell housing is made from carbon fiber.



The gearbox looks like a standard F40, and has a magnesium case like a 288 GTO. It is fitted with a three-plate (vs. two on the standard F40) AP racing clutch with a special throw-out bearing. Another interesting detail was the number of parts on the car sporting hand-lettered part numbers that could be changed as the project developed.

After its testing days were over, 74049 was retired. Reportedly, it spent time in the Ferrari museum before ownership was transferred by Luca di Montezemolo to a member of the Italian Royal Family. It subsequently passed through two additional owners since 1995 and is now being offered by RM at their Maranello sale in three weeks.

The Prototype F40, chassis no. 74049 is an amazing cross between the production F40 and the competition-only F40 LM. More than anything, it gives us a fascinating look into the life of a Ferrari prototype, where things are seldom as they seem.

[vikiradTG2007]

That thing is made from a pure and distilled supply of awesome.

[unbreakable]

ahhh perfection....

here's the youtube of that

+ YouTube Video

[IMADreamer]

Wow, thanks a lot for posting. That was a great read.

[Aston Martin]

74049 has been for sale for a while, dunno why no-ones bought it.

[avanti]

It is the greatest sports car ever made, period!

[_HighVoltage_]

That is a really great story!

avanti, I still think the Countach is the Greatest sports car ever made. Think about it - it was much, MUCH slower than the F40, and yet the way it looked made entire generations think that the Countach was as fast, if not faster than the F40.

[JohnnyRacer]

Well, that really is a matter of perspective.

The F40 was the better of the two as far as performance goes. The Countach was not exactly the friendliest supercar of the time. Unless you were about 5'2', it was hard to get in and out of and a nightmare to backup with. But, yes, if you had to go by looks alone, the Lambo wins.

But, to me, I need more than good looks to impress me. The Ferrari is the winner here.

It's kind of like a woman. Sure, she can be beautiful and have a body of a goddess. But, if she is a complete bitch, it's only fun for a little while. Then, you just want to look at her, and that's about all.

But, still, the first car poster I ever had was of the Countach.

[TomCat]

The last true Ferrari supercar. Before they started getting soft.

[avanti]

I love the countach too, I grew up with it and I have always wanted one, but I think the reason the Countach has got the status it has while the F40 hasn't is because the Lamborghini was produced for 16 years while the Ferrari only for 5 years, the Lamborghini has been in numerous movies etc etc.

There is no doubt that the F40 is a superior car, and if I could chose one (disregarding the difference in value) I would chose the F40 evry day of the week.

[wooflepoof]

This is a good thread.

[leviathan]

F40 is a big go-cart for the road, and that's exactly the way it should be Pure performance, no luxury stuff whatsoever... only two traction control systems on it, like on a Viper: left foot and right foot. And the looks are spectacular, just not as flashy and in-your-face as the Countach. Undoubtedly, one of the greatest sportcars ever.

[Ottobon]

Originally Posted by TomCat

The last true Ferrari supercar. Before they started getting soft.

Soft? The F50 was the opposite of soft. The F40 atleast worked on the road. The whole reason you hear Clarkson blabber on about how why the F50 was inferior is because it was way too hard to the road, in about everyway possible. Racecar drivers seemed to prefer the F50, but that was about it.

[DTMracer]

The standard F40 felt plenty quick, so with another 100 horses this should be an absolute riot on the roads.

[TomCat]

Originally Posted by Ottobon

Soft? The F50 was the opposite of soft. The F40 atleast worked on the road. The whole reason you hear Clarkson blabber on about how why the F50 was inferior is because it was way too hard to the road, in about everyway possible. Racecar drivers seemed to prefer the F50, but that was about it.

I say soft, because Ferrari seemed more concerned with looks, styling, and amenities with the F50. The F40 was bare bones. It didn't even have any real styling. It's just a box. The Euro models didn't even have interior door handles, just straps you yanked on to unlatch it. If the F50 really was harder/stiffer on the road, it's the first I've heard of it. Sounds more like they needed to improve the handling, since it was almost 500lbs heavier then the F40, so they stiffened the hell out of the springs.

[bartboy9891]

Originally Posted by TomCat

I say soft, because Ferrari seemed more concerned with looks, styling, and amenities with the F50. The F40 was bare bones. It didn't even have any real styling. It's just a box. The Euro models didn't even have interior door handles, just straps you yanked on to unlatch it. If the F50 really was harder/stiffer on the road, it's the first I've heard of it. Sounds more like they needed to improve the handling, since it was almost 500lbs heavier then the F40, so they stiffened the hell out of the springs.

There weren't any amenities with the F50 either, here's what the interior looks like:




The weight was probably down to the 4.7L V12 compared to the 3.0L V8 in the F40.

[TomCat]

Originally Posted by bartboy9891

There weren't any amenities with the F50 either, here's what the interior looks like:

pic

The weight was probably down to the 4.7L V12 compared to the 3.0L V8 in the F40.

None of Ferrari's flagship supercars had stereos, not even the Enzo. But the interior of the F50 is alot nicer then the interior of the F40, which looks like this:



The F50 even had a removable hard top for when you felt like open air driving. The extra weight probably came from many things, it's a tad bigger then the F40, it has a more complete interior, it has an open cockpit so the chassis probably needed extra support, and the body must weigh a lot more then the F40's. The engine I'm not so sure about. Yeah, it's 1.7L smaller with 2 fewer cylinders, but it was also twin turbocharged, which would add a fair bit of weight itself. Hell, even the F50's wheels look heavier then the plain looking rims on the F40.

[chaos386]

Great article, what's the source?

[Spazatao]

I think what I most like about the F40 is that almost ingenous sense of engineering. Something like "We have the 288 GTO already but we need something much more ridiculously fast. Let's work on top of it!".

Fantastic car, that. And very good read!

[Hiro11]

Absolutely ferocious car. The definitive 80's supercar. Equaled perhaps only by its predecesor, the 288 GTO.