Discussion
There's been a lot of interest in the F50 on Pistonheads over the last couple of weeks and by a very fortuitous combination of timing and charity, I was able to experience one today. At the moment I'm feeling like one of the most fortunate people on the face of the planet as even seeing an F50 on the roads is a rare event, being able to sit in one is a rarer moment, being a passenger in one is massively infrequent but actually getting to drive one is a very privileged experience and I couldn't be more thankful to the owner for giving me the chance to do this.
Now, for the last couple of years, I've been driving around in a Ford Ka and my days of driving anything even vaguely interesting are in my distant past, so the jump from a 69bhp FF city car which can be outrun by enthusiastic joggers to a 520bhp MR hypercar icon from the most well-known marque in the world was not inconsiderable. It's a damn good job it wasn't snowing. Scrub that. It was snowing, too. I'd have been less intimidated if someone had commanded me to put my cock and balls into a lion's mouth.
Obligatory photo of me looking like I'm stealing it (and yes, I know I'm fat and bald):
First up; the noise. I've heard, sampled and enjoyed a lot of engine noises in my time but nothing comes close to or can prepare you for the bark of an F50 when it's started up in an enclosed space. Don't get me wrong, I knew it would be loud, I mean it's not a Prius, is it? I just didn't expect it to be so loud that I thought my ears were literally going to detach from my head and turn to dust, but I suppose removing cats and silencers from a 4.7 litre 60-valve V12 is going to have that effect. Hindsight is a wonderful thing and I imagine I'll be saying 'what?' and 'pardon?' a lot over the next few days. Totally worth it.
The F50 has some serious presence. When it's idling and just sitting there it's what I imagine being in the company of Reggie Kray is like; polite and well-mannered but you just know it'd stab you in the face with a biro if you even thought about being cheeky. Massive 335 section rear tyres look well in proportion to the wide, low rear-end and the truffle-sniffing front-end looks very friendly in the flesh, which is something I don't think comes across in photos very well. Fit and finish is somewhat better than the F40s I've seen with zero chance of anyone being able to get into the car through the panel gaps.
The interior is simple and if you really want to know what it feels like, go and sit in an Elise and just imagine all the aluminium bits are carbon fibre. The similarities are huge with the cabin only having the things you need; a steering wheel, a gearstick, some instruments, a couple of heater controls and some pedals. Again, like the Elise, the seats are fixed, moving only backwards and forwards but holding you so tightly in place that I fear if I consume one more pie I'll never be able to get into those seats again. Perfect.
The clutch is light and perfectly manageable, the brakes are unassisted but feel fantastic and I just know would be perfect for those moments when you're really on it and want every last piece of feel you can get. The throttle has some weight to it and it'll spin-up that vast V12 with the lightest of light touches and I suspect I'd need a lot more time with the car before I became entirely comfortable with its response. The good news for kambites and RobM77 is that the throttle response is impeccable and it makes such a refreshing change to feel that after years of driving tiresome German commutoboxes (but I'm not going to rant about that now). The gear change is short, precise and snickety (I know, I know) and that open gate will stop you from spacking it into the wrong gear, which I imagine could turn into a costly experience. Steering is much lighter than I thought it would be and considering the lack of PAS, it's no problem to manoeuvre the car at low speeds. When the speed builds, the steering feel is wonderful and you'll feel everything you want to know through it. I'm not sure it's up there with Lotus steering feel but it's definitely very, very good.
I've just realised that I wanted to say something about clarity of instruments but erm, I didn't look at them. Not once. Why and how did that happen? I can only imagine that when you're piloting someone else's incredibly rare, ridiculously valuable and worryingly intimidating hypercar that my eyes decided the road ahead would be a better place to concentrate on. Oh well, I'll assume they worked.
I'm not sure if I can describe what it's like to drive as I think 99.99% of my brain was focused on the whole 'not putting it in a tree/ditch' thing and less about the nuances of V12 Ferrari madness. All I can say with conviction is that you feel everything. You feel the road through the steering, you feel the engine through the throttle pedal, you feel the grip and traction through your seat and you feel pretty f*cking amazed by it all. You feel like this is what supercars should feel like; driving in the knowledge that the thing keeping you on the road is your actions, what you do with your feet and your hands and not what a computer lets you do if its feeling generous. As intimidating as the F50 is, it makes you feel like you're driving and, for me, that's what a car should be.
I'm so thankful to the owner of the car for letting me do this today and letting me experience something that so few people will. Amazing.
Now, for the last couple of years, I've been driving around in a Ford Ka and my days of driving anything even vaguely interesting are in my distant past, so the jump from a 69bhp FF city car which can be outrun by enthusiastic joggers to a 520bhp MR hypercar icon from the most well-known marque in the world was not inconsiderable. It's a damn good job it wasn't snowing. Scrub that. It was snowing, too. I'd have been less intimidated if someone had commanded me to put my cock and balls into a lion's mouth.
Obligatory photo of me looking like I'm stealing it (and yes, I know I'm fat and bald):
First up; the noise. I've heard, sampled and enjoyed a lot of engine noises in my time but nothing comes close to or can prepare you for the bark of an F50 when it's started up in an enclosed space. Don't get me wrong, I knew it would be loud, I mean it's not a Prius, is it? I just didn't expect it to be so loud that I thought my ears were literally going to detach from my head and turn to dust, but I suppose removing cats and silencers from a 4.7 litre 60-valve V12 is going to have that effect. Hindsight is a wonderful thing and I imagine I'll be saying 'what?' and 'pardon?' a lot over the next few days. Totally worth it.
The F50 has some serious presence. When it's idling and just sitting there it's what I imagine being in the company of Reggie Kray is like; polite and well-mannered but you just know it'd stab you in the face with a biro if you even thought about being cheeky. Massive 335 section rear tyres look well in proportion to the wide, low rear-end and the truffle-sniffing front-end looks very friendly in the flesh, which is something I don't think comes across in photos very well. Fit and finish is somewhat better than the F40s I've seen with zero chance of anyone being able to get into the car through the panel gaps.
The interior is simple and if you really want to know what it feels like, go and sit in an Elise and just imagine all the aluminium bits are carbon fibre. The similarities are huge with the cabin only having the things you need; a steering wheel, a gearstick, some instruments, a couple of heater controls and some pedals. Again, like the Elise, the seats are fixed, moving only backwards and forwards but holding you so tightly in place that I fear if I consume one more pie I'll never be able to get into those seats again. Perfect.
The clutch is light and perfectly manageable, the brakes are unassisted but feel fantastic and I just know would be perfect for those moments when you're really on it and want every last piece of feel you can get. The throttle has some weight to it and it'll spin-up that vast V12 with the lightest of light touches and I suspect I'd need a lot more time with the car before I became entirely comfortable with its response. The good news for kambites and RobM77 is that the throttle response is impeccable and it makes such a refreshing change to feel that after years of driving tiresome German commutoboxes (but I'm not going to rant about that now). The gear change is short, precise and snickety (I know, I know) and that open gate will stop you from spacking it into the wrong gear, which I imagine could turn into a costly experience. Steering is much lighter than I thought it would be and considering the lack of PAS, it's no problem to manoeuvre the car at low speeds. When the speed builds, the steering feel is wonderful and you'll feel everything you want to know through it. I'm not sure it's up there with Lotus steering feel but it's definitely very, very good.
I've just realised that I wanted to say something about clarity of instruments but erm, I didn't look at them. Not once. Why and how did that happen? I can only imagine that when you're piloting someone else's incredibly rare, ridiculously valuable and worryingly intimidating hypercar that my eyes decided the road ahead would be a better place to concentrate on. Oh well, I'll assume they worked.
I'm not sure if I can describe what it's like to drive as I think 99.99% of my brain was focused on the whole 'not putting it in a tree/ditch' thing and less about the nuances of V12 Ferrari madness. All I can say with conviction is that you feel everything. You feel the road through the steering, you feel the engine through the throttle pedal, you feel the grip and traction through your seat and you feel pretty f*cking amazed by it all. You feel like this is what supercars should feel like; driving in the knowledge that the thing keeping you on the road is your actions, what you do with your feet and your hands and not what a computer lets you do if its feeling generous. As intimidating as the F50 is, it makes you feel like you're driving and, for me, that's what a car should be.
I'm so thankful to the owner of the car for letting me do this today and letting me experience something that so few people will. Amazing.
Rawwr said:
The owner is someone with an F50. In all seriousness, if he wants to make himself known he has every opportunity to 
Top answer Swear I've seen this car before near baldock - is he Herts based?
That also looks like Cambourne? I'm extremely jealous and thanks for sharing your experience?
Not meaning to be too nosey but how did you get the drive? Is the owner a friend or aquaintence? Just need to know what sort of bribes I may need to come up with....
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