Ferrari F40

The Ferrari F40 is a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car produced by Ferrari from 1987 to 1992.

The Ferrari F40 is a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive sports car produced by Ferrari from 1987 to 1992. It was created to mark Ferrari’s 40th anniversary and is widely regarded as one of the marque’s landmark supercars. The car was designed by Pininfarina and is notable for its lightweight construction and twin-turbocharged V8 engine.

Development and naming

The F40 was created to celebrate Ferrari’s 40th anniversary. Ferrari states that the name combines “F” for Ferrari and “40” for the anniversary, and that the car was unveiled to the press in July 1987. It was the last car unveiled publicly during Enzo Ferrari’s lifetime.

Design and engineering

The car was designed by Pininfarina and built with composite materials. It used a mid-engine, rear-wheel-drive layout and a 2.9-litre twin-turbocharged V8, giving it a reputation for uncompromising performance. The model became famous for extreme performance and a lightweight, stripped-down design.

Performance and production

Sources describe the F40 as one of the first production cars to exceed 200 mph, with widely cited top-speed figures around 201 mph. The standard road car used a 2.9-litre twin-turbo V8 and a 5-speed manual transmission. Production numbers are commonly given as 1,311 units, though some secondary sources vary slightly. Production ran from 1987 to 1992, with later racing variants continuing into the mid-1990s in some sources.

Legacy

The F40 is often treated as a defining Ferrari supercar and a benchmark for later high-performance road cars. It is associated with Enzo Ferrari’s final years and with Ferrari’s transition into the modern supercar era. Ferrari’s own site describes it as a car with racing DNA and composite-material construction.