Thursday 5th January 2012

Time for tea? Ferrari F40 - updated

F40 scary in a good way, even without the flames

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There's something incredibly raw about the Ferrari F40 that even the most extreme modern supercars just lack. The F40 is a car whose timing was just spot on. It's the collision of new and old tech that makes it so appealing - at its heart it's an old-school Ferrari complete with a space frame steel chassis and clickety-clack gated manual gearbox. And, of course, no driver aids. Fair enough, but that coupled with decidedly new school turbo performance and the lightweight carbon body made for a fearsome combo.

How hot is the F40? Pretty hot from here

But how often do you see - or hear - an F40 in action? Not often enough going by this afternoon's video. Sure, the F40 has a savage reputation. And just sitting one tells you all about how raw and unadorned the driving experience will be. But seeing it spit flames and rip around its rev counter just makes the whole thing so much more alive.

Sure, this vid is pure indulgence. But go on, pour a cuppa, grab a slice of leftover Christmas cake and enjoy. And our thanks to the guys at AxisOfOversteer for bringing this to our attention.

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Update:
It seems the original video for this story has disappeared from the internetweb, presumably because it - er - 'liberated' some footage from other videos that it shouldn' t have.

So as a replacement here's a vid from Ferrari F-car specialists DK Engineering, whence (we think) some of the footage in the original upload came...

 

 

[simonigrale]

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah - Probably the best car ever?

[simonigrale]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1J-eiCsWR4&fea...

Great vid...

[simonigrale]

Dagnut said:

simonigrale said:

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah - Probably the best car ever?

McClaren F1?

Err.... not for me thanks or that new MP4 C Noble Lotus thingy that they've just made

[simonigrale]

Dagnut said:

simonigrale said:

Err.... not for me thanks or that new MP4 C Noble Lotus thingy that they've just made

So what is your criteria for a great car..a horse on the badge? I don't know what relevance the 12c has?? The F40 is a legend..a pinup..but the greatest car ever should be the pinnacle of engineering in it's time...the F40 is a long way from that..the F1 was unparalleled and probably still is in terms of analogue engineering with no compromises..it blew everything into the weeds

A horse on the badge awlays helps or a Bull.

I'm not bothered about engineering or knowing how things work. I'm bothered about how a car makes you feel.

Ferrari for me are top of the list for that.

[simonigrale]

DeltaEvo2 said:

Best car...ever! Maybe the 458 Italia comes pretty close to this.

I used one for about 1500 miles, it was incredibly capable and filled you with confidence. Unlike an F40 the 458 didn't feel like it was going to kill you all the time.

Nice user name

[simonigrale]

sherbert90 said:

Lets not get caught up in a 'which is the best supercar thread'.

Just listen...that noise

Agreed we all have our own opinions and dream garages

[simonigrale]

OdramaSwimLaden said:

simonigrale said:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I1J-eiCsWR4&fea...

Great vid...

First time a rice racer hasn't won; they came 2nd and 3rd though!!

Great format, if a little (usually) biased towards the Japanese machinery!

I like how the 456 hangs in there !!!

The best motoring clips are entertaining with some good driving and can be biased to the jap stuff but thats fair enough