The Ferrari F40 is one of the most iconic road-legal supercars in the Ferrari catalog. The near to 3000 cc beast is revered across the globe for its unmistakable design, its V8 Twin-Turbo prowess, and of course its historical pedigree with the Prancing Horse.
So naturally, when the Scuderia welcomed Lewis Hamilton on his first day with the team, they chose the F40 for the #44 driver to pose besides, with the legendary Enzo Ferrari’s house in Maranello in the background — a picture that became the most liked F1 photo on Instagram ever.
But even before Hamilton came face-to-face with this icon of automotive history, his former Mercedes teammate, Nico Rosberg got to test it out. Rosberg had the F40 on his bucket list since his childhood. Courtesy of his neighbor in Monaco, the 2016 world champion took it out for a spin in the Principality, back in 2021.
Benvenuto, Lewis! pic.twitter.com/VR3J1jFmQk
— Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) January 20, 2025
The German racing ace vlogged the entire drive on his YouTube channel. He was visibly taken aback by the raw speed of the F40 but also the sturdy suspension and effortless handling. Pushing it to the absolute limit up the Monegasque hill, Rosberg was quoted as saying, “[This] feels quite risky,” as he unleashed the beast.
Throughout the drive, Rosberg also gave his viewers a brief history of the Ferrari F40, and how it was born out of Enzo Ferrari’s dream to capture the world of rallying but ended up becoming the most revered road car ever to exist.
Brief history of the Ferrari F40
In the 1980s, Ferrari had already dominated the sphere of sports car racing and Formula 1. Now, the Italian brand’s founder had set his sights on the World Rally Championship’s most dangerous yet exhilarating formula — Group B.
Thus, the Ferrari 288 GTO Evoluzione was born. However, after the tragic demise of Henri Toivonen at the 1986 Tour de Corse, the FIA had seen enough and promptly banned that category of rallying. Without a competition to enter, Ferrari then decided to turn the concept into a road car under Il Commendatore Enzo’s vision.
On July 21st, 1987, the Prancing Horse unveiled the F40. Initially, the late Ferrari founder had decided to build only 400 F40s and had sold these cars to buyers on that promise of exclusivity. But seeing over 3,000 people wanting to get their hands on the car, Ferrari eventually rolled out 1,311 F40s — leaving the earlier buyers a bit miffed.
Today, the F40 is one of the rarest cars on the market and goes for anything upwards of $1.5 million in the second-hand luxury market.
