The Untouchable One

For the little that it’s worth, I don’t think that any car should be off limits.

I can’t help but quietly laugh to myself when I see people outraged at what another human being has done to their own property, and I will happily laugh out loud at people who manage to wind themselves up over digital recreations.

Whether someone gets it right or wrong when they put their own spin on a car is irrelevant, because it’s always entirely subjective. What’s important is that we allow people the freedom to do what they want; to get it ‘right or wrong’ on their own terms.

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However, when someone mentions ‘modified’ and ‘F40′ in the same sentence, I will admit that I do have to take a brief moment to suppress a small voice inside of me that begins to scream uncontrollably.

I don’t think that someone shouldn’t modify their F40, it’s just that I believe when you’re dealing with arguably the greatest car of all time, that it’s very difficult to improve upon. There’s not a whole heap of cars in existence you can say that about.

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Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of great cars out there, but I’m struggling to think of many that are as universally appreciated as the car created to celebrate Ferrari’s 40th anniversary.

That it was famously the very last car that Enzo Ferrari personally signed off on, is just another feather in the F40’s already full cap. In case you were not aware, Enzo Ferrari wasn’t the easiest man to please.

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At the rate things are going today, it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever see another car like the F40 roll off a production line. It’s bittersweet to think about, but for me, peak car was achieved in 1987.

I’d rather have the opportunity to sit in the passenger seat of an F40 than drive most other cars under the same one-off (and hypothetical) circumstances.

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What about this particular F40, though? It’s likely the car has appeared in your social feeds over the last few months, because a modified white F40 is always going to attract some attention.

It’s not as extensively modified as Liberty Walk’s F40 from almost a decade ago, and can be neatly summarised by four key modifications: colour, exhaust, suspension and wheels.

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To quell the rumours and questions that I’m certain everyone involved with this project are tired of answering, no, it’s not ex-Top Gear host Chris Evans’ car.

The car arrived into the United States in its factory Rosso Corsa red, and remains that colour beneath the white wrap.

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While the idea of wrapping an F40 initially made me twitch, it’s difficult to argue with the logic of it. It achieves the goal of making the car a little bit different; it’s a relatively subtle and classy colour; it’s completely reversible; and it protects the original paint beneath.

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And crucially for a wrap, it appears to be done right.

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The next modification of note is a custom titanium exhaust system by Boden Autohaus. Naturally, the only thing you’re going to want to know about this is how it sounds, so I’ve done the hard work for you. Watch and listen to it here. You’re welcome.

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It’s worth remembering that F40s are over 30 years old now, and the owners who intend on actually driving them will need to look at modernising certain aspects of their cars. One of the crucial areas, which has seen incredible advances since 1987, is suspension.

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It’s at this point of the story that we welcome Joey Seely and E-Motion Engineering into the fray.

For those that know, Joey and E-Motion don’t need much of an introduction. For those that are maybe not aware, consider him and his company one of the foremost experts on making Porsches and other cars go very fast on the road and track. Joey’s experience comes from ALMS, IMSA, the 24 Hours of Le Mans and Pikes Peak.

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Joey knows things, and he’s also one of the most friendly and welcoming people you could ever meet. But how did the ‘Porsche guy’ end up becoming the ‘F40 guy’?

It would seem that Joey’s keen to avoid being typecast: “I used to be the air-cooled guy, because I worked on air-cooled cars. Then I was the suspension guy because I was good at that. But I’m really happy to work on anything that’s cool,” he told me.

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It was interesting to listen to Joey talk about the difference between the average Porsche and Ferrari owner, where typically the latter believes that the cars from Maranello cannot be improved upon. That is changing, however, as a new generation of younger Ferrari owners come through the ranks.

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Joey’s role here was to handle the installation and setup of a one-off KW Competition 2-way kit complete with KW’s Hydraulic Lift System (HLS). Joey maintains that “everything is about the dampers” and how they are the most important aspect to any build.

This would ordinarily be a pretty straightforward installation, but there was one important caveat: no permanent modifications could be made to the car.

This meant that no drilling, welding or notching of the car’s original chassis and bodywork could be carried out to accommodate the installation of the dampers and, in particular, the remote fluid reservoirs.

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With the car being what it is, zip-tying these canisters into place wasn’t an option either, so Joey had to engineer brackets and mounting points that looked OEM, but were also non-destructive, completely reversible and wouldn’t leave any trace of previous fitment if they’re ever removed.

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The pump for the HLS was hidden completely out of sight beside the battery and beneath the Kevlar front panel where the spare wheel normally resides.

Typically, HLS offers up to 45mm (~1.7-inches) of lift on either the front axle or both axles. Because the hydraulic cylinder is installed between the spring perch and springs on each strut, there’s no impact on driving dynamics.

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The best part of it all is that the requirement to not perform any permanent modifications to the car were entirely self-imposed by Joey himself, as he would consider it blasphemy to do anything irreversible to an F40.

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After final damper tuning (optimised for comfort and performance), the last of Joey’s responsibilities was to correct the offset of the front centre-lock BBS E88s, and have all of the wheel centres repainted that classic BBS gold.

As E-Motion were aligning the car, it allowed them the opportunity to measure and calculate a more aggressive-looking offset with a bigger tyre for the front wheels, without the wheels and tyres fouling the body.

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The ‘zero-lip’ F40 LM specification E88s were given approximately an inch of extra outer lip, which has made all the difference. “It’s the little details that make the car,” Joey said. He continued, “they provide the real substance.”

Joey wasn’t just referring to just the wheels, but to all of the hard work and engineering that goes into making upgrades like the ones carried out invisible to all but those who know these cars.

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The result of this labour and passion is an F40 that’s protected, modernised and can be enjoyed guilt free. While this shouldn’t be the case, it is an absolute revelation in a world where people seem more intent on speculating than driving.

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With all of that in consideration, it still rings true that every car is fair game to be modified, especially when the end goal is to make the car more drivable, more of the time.

That this F40 is ‘just’ a wrap, exhaust, suspension and wheels isn’t a bad thing by any means. Fair enough, we typically wouldn’t feature many other cars with such a short list of modifications, but this isn’t any other car.

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It’s a prime example of doing exactly what needed to be done, and knowing when enough was enough. This is something which should be universal in the aftermarket, in my opinion.

Anyway, tell me that you’re not at least a little bit happy seeing the scorch mark on the back bumper over the centre dump pipe? It’s an F40, this is how it should live.

Paddy McGrath
Instagram: pmcgphotos
Twitter: pmcgphotos
paddy@speedhunters.com

Photography by Mark Riccioni
Instagram: mark_scenemedia
Twitter: markriccioni
mark@scene-media.com

KW Automotive is an official Speedhunters Supplier

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1

I like everything about this. An F40 that gets driven with an updated suspension. I love how the wrap protects the original red paint. The only two cars that I personally would freak out over with more aggressive mods are the F40 and the Porsche 959. I like to see 308s, 355s, and even Testarossas that are a little nuts.

2

Could not agree more. Both the 959 and F40 are legendary cars for their time and really should be preserved and maintained as close to original as possible. There are enough other super cars from the same generation for builders to be creative with.

3

Great job all, much respect.

4

What about brakes? I believe that brakes are much improved since F40 days :)

5

Paddy,

Great story! And NO JDM in it!(Getting a little tired of JDM stories.) The F40 is an awesome old- skool car! The wrap is done very well! I've seen 2 white Ferraris near my house. Central New Jersey Ferrari is 4 miles from my house. And these are not wraps. White Ferraris are really rare. Alot of people don't like them because they're "not" typical colors but that's the whole point! That exhaust sounds ridiculous! And E- Motion gets my vote because they're Porsche guys! You KNOW how I feel about Porsche right? Like talking about someone's mother! Very nicely done Ferrari! Great story!

6

It's crazy how you typed out how tired you are of JDM cars like any of us asked

7

Dammmmm that is one sexy AF beast!!!!!
Was never into these that much growing up but now I really appreciate them for what they are and the fact that they have aged so well

8

" it’s always entirely subjective " Just like your opinion that the F40 is the greatest car of all time....
I will never understand the hype around this car, only because it's the last Ferrari built with Enzo alive, who was an unbearable person by the way.

" we allow people the freedom to do what they want " Of course but most of the time, "speculators" ( excuse me ) collectors, don't want to look like a clown with their rich friends, that's why you don't see an original 250 GTO with 20 inch wheels or an LS swap

IMO the stupidest thing is probably to spend 1,5 million on a F40 to have the exact same car as your neighbor, because they all have the same color ! And if 2 reversible modifications like a wrap and a set of custom wheels is enough to shock people, you can see once again the hype around Ferrari in general.

9

Absolutely agree. I can't stand purists, and the idea of doing basic (read: boring) "modifications" that are completely reversible is so generic and unexciting to me. I will never understand the hype behind F40s (or many supercars in general) in their stock form. And regardless of what one might say about this one being "modified," it might as well be stock. Consider me unimpressed.

10

Tom,

Good points! Everybody has a "greatest car of all time". Just because you're in Youtube doesn't mean your thoughts are from God. Just wish those guys would STOP saying how much the cars cost! We all know they're expensive! Squirrels in my backyard know how much an Adventadore cost! Just talk about the car WITHOUT mentioning the price. Condescending and insulting. Unnecessary. I love cars period! Always have. Always will!

11

If you are talking about the Gercollector youtuber it's not me. He is not the only car collector in germany ;-)

12

Truth be told, I don't even mind an actual color change on cars like these if it is done to factory specification in a factory color. Case in point: Gioel's, aka @redshift75, ex-Automobili Amos Verde Abetone variant.

It helps that the car is local to me, and seeing it in person makes a very strong impression, but it is also done 'right', plainly speaking. Even the interior is re-trimmed in homage to a factory Ferrari luggage atelier.

That attention to detail and thoughtful personalization surpasses factory quality control in some regards, and for that reason, I actually prefer it to most 'standard' F40s, concours originality aside.

13

The best color for an f40 is not red. Blue, black green and now white all look stunning.

14
someguycommenting

Oh my god, I *love* EVERYTHING about this. The color choice, the purpose yet simplicity of the modifications, the fact that they're reversible. This is what dreams are made of.

If only I didn't have to be a multi-millionaire to own it...

15

Had to read this one twice. The absolute dream car. I'd have no problem going full custom but I absolutely respect and understand the restraint on this one.

16

Antonio Salieri once remarked, discussing one of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's compositions, that if you "displace one note and there would be diminishment, displace one phrase and the structure would fall." That's pretty much how the Ferrari F40 is; it's a complete package. The rims, the exhaust, the color, they all combine to make the F40 the iconic, defining machine that it is. Change any aspect, no matter the quality or intent, takes away from the overall effect.

17

Thanks for this beauty, happy holidays. Nuff said.

18

I pray that I can afford an F40 to slam it, give it oni camber and repaint (not wrap) it an outlandish color. Self tap a front lip on the original bumper, make it virtually undriveably low. Why? Because purists are the worst thing to happen to the scene.

19

And that's why you will never have the opportunity to own an F40.

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