Overview
Ferrari unveiled the F50 at the 1995 Geneva Motor Show to mark the company’s 50th anniversary, and it was never meant to be a normal road car. The idea was to give buyers something as close to a Formula 1 car as the law would allow. Pininfarina’s design is low, wide and aggressive, with a big rear wing, exposed mechanical details and a removable roof panel. It isn’t pretty in the soft, flowing way of earlier Ferraris. It looks like a race car that has been talked into wearing number plates, and that’s exactly the point.
Engine and Performance
At the back sits a 4.7-litre V12 that traces its roots to the engine in Ferrari’s 1990 F1 car. It makes about 520 PS (382 kW) and revs to around 8,500 rpm, and it has five valves per cylinder. Power goes to the rear wheels through a six-speed manual gearbox. The F50 reaches 100 km/h in about 3.7 seconds and tops out at roughly 325 km/h (202 mph). It’s loud, raw and very mechanical, with a high-pitched scream that feels much closer to a race car than a grand tourer.
Chassis and Handling
The F50 is built around a carbon-fibre monocoque, and the engine itself is a stressed part of the structure, bolted directly to the tub with the gearbox and rear suspension attached behind it. The suspension uses an F1-style pushrod layout. This makes the car very rigid and very communicative, but also quite demanding. You feel the road, the engine and the vibrations directly, and it rewards a driver who pays attention. It’s a lot of fun on a good road and not especially forgiving when you push too far.
Interior and Comfort
Comfort was never the priority. The cabin is stripped back, with carbon-fibre seats, minimal trim and a driving position that puts you right in the middle of the action. There’s very little luggage space and not much noise insulation. The roof panel can be removed and stored behind the seats, which turns the F50 into an open-top car and lets you hear the V12 even more clearly.
Production and Legacy
Ferrari built only 349 examples between 1995 and 1997, and the F50 was followed by the Enzo. For years it lived in the shadow of its predecessor, the F40, and its successor, and some people found it less pure than the F40. Time has been kind to it, though. Today it’s seen as the last Ferrari with a naturally aspirated V12 and a manual gearbox that was built as a near-race car, and prices at auction reflect that.
