Here’s an exciting exclusive! The Testarossa was one of my childhood dream cars and I still get worked up every time I spot one – which is a rare occurrence anymore. This one is located over in Windsor, Berkshire in the UK and has some crash damage. It’s packing a big surprise though that should make it a worthwhile project for any worshiper of the Prancing Horse. Take a look and let us know if you agree!
First, let’s talk about the bad. The seats are missing and it looks like a few things need put back together. Some bright red racing buckets would be right at home in there though. You’ll probably want to install a roll cage and some safety harnesses while you’re in there. Keep reading to find out why.
Shame about that shunt. The front and rear are going to need some reconstructive surgery, but if you have a good eye, you’ve probably already noticed something peculiar about this Testarossa. Go back and look at the first photo of the hood. There are a couple of NACA ducts that look almost F40ish. Now, take a look at the back again. Notice anything strange about that badge on the trunk?
Holy redheaded stepchild! That’s not the standard 390 horsepower flat-12 in there. Someone has swapped the engine and gearbox from a F512 M into this! If you’re not a Ferrari aficionado, that may not mean much so let me spell it out. The F512 M was the last hurrah for the Testarossa and only 500 were produced. To keep it competitive they made many tweaks including hood vents, flush headlights, and an upgraded engine that put out 440 horsepower!
That’s enough to put this thing near F40 territory! Go ahead and compare. Zero to sixty is half a second off (4.7 vs 4.2) and the top speed is only one mile per hour lower (197 vs 196). Us mere mortals probably wouldn’t even notice the difference. So to me, this is the ultimate cheap supercar! Well, it’s not cheap, but it’s a lot cheaper than a million dollar F40. Stuart would like to get £59,950 (about $79,000 USD) and you can contact him here via email if you’re interested.
If money was no object for me, this thing would already be loaded up on a boat and headed my way! Thanks for choosing to list it with us Stuart. We hope it goes to a good home where it will be thrashed upon regularly. If any of you have an interesting exotic that you are thinking about selling, please give us a shot!
No offense you could not give my one of these things. I had to order in a part for one that is owned by a customer, by the time we paid for shipping cost for the part the cost was nearly doubled then the part cost.
You sound just like my late Dad, he owned a large shop most of his life and never understood my fascination with foreign cars……..expensive, can’t get parts, etc……until I sold my Porsche Speedster for more than his house was worth.
Well, Ferraris aren’t exactly for cost conscious people like you and me Mike. Still fun to dream though!
Well, Jesse, I suspect you’d be out a hefty chunk o’ change getting the necessary replacement parts, even if the rest of the car is as good as it looks. The bumpers might cost less than a new Corvette, but the seats would be really spendy!
Importation might be problematic, too. I know about the “25-year rule,” but imagine some individual states might not be that friendly, emissions-wise.
Since I’ve driven a couple of Testarossas in the past, I console myself with the knowledge that I never got comfortable in ’em. For a 6’2″ guy, they are a wee bit claustrophobic. Or was I feeling intimidated by the cost?
Nontheless, there’s nothing like that big Ferrari flat-12. Unless it’s a Ferrari V-12. Or even a Ferrari V-8, or Dino V6!
Need Dennis Collins or richard r to buy this one.
Richard had the Ford GT at Barrett-Jackson, New England. He went home with it too.
Did he sell the Ferrari or was that another speculation that turned into dead money?
Dennis bought it from him.
What the heck would any of Us do with this??
Well, you could sink a ton of money into it and put it in your black & white plastic checkerboard floored garage with the repro neon beer signs and draft beer bar. Aim some lights at it, buff it up good and just look at it…..like so many “car guys” do. I bought everything I have to drive…….
Back in 2007 I looked at a Testarossa, it was priced right as this was right after the housing crash. I anm not a neophyte to Ferrari’s having owned a couple of 308’s, and I worked at the dealership during the early to mid 80’s as a wrench and leaving there just as the first of the Testarossa’s were coming out. I really did enjoy the 308’s (GT4 and GTB) and was looking at the Testarossa as just a step up. The one that I looked at was owned by my old boss from the Ferrari dealership and it was a nice car. Black exterior with a tan interior and low miles. I took the car out for a good long test drive and absolutely hated it. It was too wide, turn in was horrible, acceleration was good but not outstanding, total lack of feel it was heavy, and it was just not a fun car to drive. I chatted with the dealer and told him that I would pass he explained that it was really a track car built for the street. At the time I was doing a lot of track times and knew a few people who did track these. I later chatted with them and they were having problems with brakes and the car was just a big heavy slug. In their words it was a street car that they were trying to track. The car was trying to do both and it was really not good at either. To me it was a case of “never meet your hero’s as they may disappoint”. As a side note to this I have driven several 365 Daytona’s on both the road and track and it does well on both, my only problem is the cost of a Daytona, but it is possible to have that combination. The Testarossa is just not it.
It has crash damage at both ends and is missing the seats. Not clear what happened there.
I think KL Harper is right. These are very large cars for a sportscar, and the road tests at the time all commented on that. Ferrari has built some big, heavy cars, like the Testarossa and also the Daytona that KL mentions. That’s just the way Enzo wanted his top of the line cars to be back then, and he was still in charge when these cars were being designed and built. They were really made for captains of industry who wanted to take their girlfriend for a weekend to Monaco via the autostrada, and not for nimble maneuvering on the back streets of small Italian towns.
I’m not sure how things work across the pond, but here in the states, this would likely be sold on a salvage title. Like a communicable disease, it will taint the car forever.
Dan, should we think you know what you’re talking about? New England?????
did anybody notice that ir’s missing the ribbing in the side vents? never a fan, actually. back to the 348.
Plastic man on piston heads,tvr Dave ,would repair this cheaper than most fibreglass repair centers.:-):-)here two help