THE F40

The Ferrari F40 is claimed by many automotive journalists and enthusiasts alike to be the pinnacle of supercar design. In 1984 the Maranello factory began development of an evolution model of the 288 GTO that was destined to compete against the Porsche 959 in the infamous Group B Rally Championship. When the FIA cancelled Group B racing for the 1986 season, Enzo Ferrari and Maranello were left with five 288 GTO Evoluzione development cars and no series to compete in. So Ferrari set their sights on developing a car to celebrate Ferrari's 40th anniversary and as it were, their last model to be personally approved for production by Enzo. 

Its GTO IHI derived 2.9L turbocharged V8 developed 478bhp and was virtually straight-piped until 1990 when US regulations made them add a catalytic converter to reduce emissions. Its suspension setup was also similar to the GTO's double wishbone configuration but its ride height was drastically dropped to increase its handling performance. The ride height was so low that Ferrari provided the ability to manually adjust the ride-height depending on driving conditions.

The F40 weighs in at a staggering 2,400lbs (thats 300lbs lighter than the F50) thanks to its Pininfarina designed Kevlar, carbon fiber, and aluminum chassis. Intense aerodynamic testing allowed its aero features to be very efficient at producing downforce while reducing any unneeded drag. The sheer design of its front end allowed air to smoothly pass over the car and hit the rear wing in an extremely efficient manner producing downforce at the front and rear. The turbochargers require clean, cool air to produce maximum power output so a partial under-tray was fitted to smooth air beneath the radiator, front-end and cabin, with a second under-tray with diffusors behind the engine leaving the engine exposed from below.