One of the greatest Italian cars ever produced. Here are some interesting facts!
- When Enzo Ferrari started to manufacture his own cars, he had to agree not to use the name Ferrari for four years. This was a condition of his release from Alfa Romeo. The first cars he produced were two 815 Auto Avio Constuzioni cars in 1940. These are not classified as Ferrari’s.
- The outbreak of World War II delayed the launch of Ferrari.
- In the early days, Ferrari did not mass produce cars. In fact, in 1947, only two cars were produced. These were the Ferrari 125 S.
- In 2012, Craig McCaw, an American communications magnate, paid $35 million for a 1962 Ferrari 250 GTO. This was the highest amount ever paid for a car.
- Originally, all Ferraris were red. This was because the International Automobile Federation assigned this color to all Italian racing cars. Red is still the most popular color for Ferrari’s to this day and color options are kept to a minimum.
- Ferrari is a brand that is about so much more than the production of high-end cars. In fact, an estimated $1.5 billion of the company’s revenue comes from selling merchandise, including sunglasses, clothes, shoes, watches, mobile phone covers and model cars.
- Collecting scale model cars by Ferrari is an expensive hobby. For example, it can cost up to $5,400 for a Ferrari F14T at 1:8 scale.
- The Ferrari racing team is extremely successful. Since their first race win in 1947, they have gone on to achieve great things. This has included 216 Formula One wins, 15 Formula One world titles, and many other accolades.
- Abu Dhabi has a Ferrari theme park, called ‘Ferrari World’. It boasts the fastest rollercoaster in the world that reaches speeds of 150 mph.
- Enzo Ferrari has made his hometown famous. Although he achieved great success and traveled the world, he preferred to stay close to home. Not only did he continue to live in the area, this was also where he chose to establish his business and is where the Ferrari plant is located. People now visit Modena just to see the Ferrari operations and visit the Ferrari museum.
- Ferrari was once a family owned business. However, Fiat now owns a large percentage of the company and the Ferrari family receive very little from Ferrari sales.
- Ever wondered why Ferrari has a prancing horse as its logo? It is believed that the logo is in honor of Francesco Baracca, a World War I flying ace who died in 1918 while in action. The pilot had the horse painted on his aeroplane wings. It was the intended logo for his fledgeling racing team. Enzo Ferrari met his parents, Count and Countess Baracca, at a race in 1923. They suggested he use the logos on his own cars.
