Rod Stewart-owned Ferrari Testarossa for sale
Don't go sailing past this redhead - it could be your next infatuation...
Hopefully we aren’t alone in fawning over old Ferrari Testarossas with a new one in the world. While it’s not uncommon for Maranello to resurrect names from the back catalogue (the California and 812 Superfast being the most notable recent examples), there’s a special significance attached to Testarossa. Like ‘Quattroporte’, it’s one of those Italian names that sounds so much more exotic than the humble reality, and has found its way onto some truly spectacular Ferraris over the decades. A 250 Testa Rossa Spider sold as far back as 2009 for €9,020,000; a 500 TR Spider made almost €4m a couple of years ago. That’s the calibre of Ferrari we’re talking about when dealing with redhead heritage.
Despite that, however, this is surely what most of us think of as a Ferrari Testarossa. That great wedge of '80s excess, with a 180-degree V12 in the middle, those unmistakable slats in the side and pop-up headlights for good measure. Along with the Countach, a true icon of the era, and a Ferrari that was already enjoying some appreciation - kids who idolised this in the '80s could be well off empty nesters now - before the name was brought back. Launched in 1984, fully a decade after the Lamborghini, it ran until 1991, when it was replaced by the heavily updated 512 TR. That car would eventually evolve into the F512M from 1994, before the family was replaced by the return of the front-engined V12 Ferrari flagship in the shape of the 550 Maranello. Across the three models, almost 10,000 were made.
Only this one, however, was owned by Sir Rod Stewart. And it’s not every day the former Ferrari of a true music legend comes up for sale. He might not be topping the charts anymore, what with being 80 and all that, but everyone knows Rod Stewart. Everyone knows a Rod Stewart song. Everyone. He’s just one of those musicians. You can well imagine a few people out there very enthusiastic about both Mr Maggie May and '80s Ferraris.
The advert says Rod the Mod owned the Testaross for two and a half years; not a great amount of this car’s 36-year life, though enough to qualify as proper ownership. Indeed, the modifications fitted by him survive to this day; they were, perhaps unsurprisingly, a better stereo and set of speakers. Given the current keeper has had this car since 1997, they’re not going to be anything special these days, but it adds another bit of detail to a cool ownership story. The history file that comes with it is said to be ‘comprehensive’, and the old thing turns out very nicely indeed. The Testarossa is still going to get a lot of love wherever it ends up. Potentially more than a new one, in fact, but that’s a discussion for another day.
The split rims have been with the car for a quarter of a century, and certainly ensure that this Testarossa stands out among the rest; they’re easily changed for someone who might prefer the original look. The red interior with red carpets (on a red car!) would take rather more effort to change; that being said, where there’s a will (and a credit card), there’s a way when it comes to classic cars. When Sir Rod Stewart has already taken your Ferrari away from factory spec, you’re surely free to tweak and change as you please.
The asking price for this one is £150k, which actually puts it towards the lower end of the Testarossa market. Higher mileage cars without the celebrity ownership are closer to £130k, while the very lowest mileage examples are up near £200,000 (told you Testarossas were sought after these days). Like so many old cars that can offer up experiences no longer available in new ones - it’s an open-gated 12-cylinder Ferrari - the demand for them doesn’t look like going far. And there’ll always be a buyer for this one. Da Ya Think I’m Sexy will never sound quite the same again…
So why call it a 180 V as opposed to just saying just 'flat'? Usually to distinguish it from a boxer flat engine, so it's describing the crankshaft.
On a boxer, you have individual crank pins and the pistons have a reciprocal motion. On a flat V, they could share a crank pin and so be moving in the same direction.
Personal taste - black interior looks much better
Imagine if a new mid-engined supercar were announced today, and it transpired its 4.9-litre engine sits above its gearbox.
It’d be laughed out of the paddock.
But wait, shurley there was some chassis setup voodoo that meant the rear-end didn’t feel like a weird corkscrewing lump?
Er, no.
Imagine if a new mid-engined supercar were announced today, and it transpired its 4.9-litre engine sits above its gearbox.
It d be laughed out of the paddock.
But wait, shurley there was some chassis setup voodoo that meant the rear-end didn t feel like a weird corkscrewing lump?
Er, no.
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