Ferrari’s Mystery Car

If you follow any type of motorsport you will see a car testing from time to time that you just can’t figure out. I present to you the mystery Ferrari that has sports car fans and Formula One fans alike scratching their heads. While it’s not clear what the car is, we can speculate on the possibilities.

Late in 2013, a video was leaked showing what appeared to be a Ferrari LaFerrari testing which was believed to be the new 2014 1.6 turbocharged V6 for Ferrari’s 2014 F1 season. Since Formula One has a strict testing rule, it was thought that Ferrari was doing development work using the modified LaFerrari as a test mule for the engine.

[youtube height=”HEIGHT” width=”WIDTH”]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=29_yiOp_Xyc[/youtube]

Fast forward another few weeks and we have this:

Photo Credit: FRANCESCO CARLO PHOTOGRAPHY

Although wearing the same camouflage wrap from the video, this particular car appears to be the same car with at least the addition of a rear wing, possible a few other modifications as well. Initial thoughts were that it was still an F1 test mule. Ferrari may have needed additional scoops and aerodynamic work for engine cooling and possibly making the car easier to drive. Although the car does appear to be a LaFerrari, it is a heavily modified one at that. It’s also clear from the video that the engine is not the 6.3 liter V12 from the road going LaFerrari. One could go on to guess a few more possibilities though.

The second idea was this could be the start of Ferrari’s return to Le Mans. Ferrari last won Le Mans overall in 1965, they have of course been on the grid for many years since, but a full fledged factory effort has not been seen in years. Could the famous Italian manufacturer really be looking to return to play with Audi, Porsche, and Toyota for outright victory? The short answer is possibly, but this is not the car they would do it in. If this is a Le Mans test, it’s simply a test mule, but this is not an LMP car. If Ferrari did return to Le Mans though, more than likely they would use an engine based on their Formula One power plant, so in terms of engine testing, they could be doing quite a bit of development work that would help both projects.

Another possibility for the car shown is that it is the new FXX model. The Ferrari FXX is Ferrari’s top of the line track vehicle available to extremely qualified buyers. Last seen on the Enzo, it wouldn’t be entirely false to assume Ferrari will eventually have an FXX model of their new flagship model either. The FXX program allows high end Ferrari owners that meet the strict qualifications to buy an FXX model, however Ferrari runs and operates the car. The owner simply shows up to drive and enjoys the atmosphere of being a pampered Ferrari driver for the weekend. The cars are also used for testing new technology, so drivers get the added bonus of being a type of developmental driver.

The last option which is a very real possibility is that the car is an early test for a new set of GT regulations that will come in 2016. The new “GT+” category, would put highly modified GT cars such as the LaFerrari in a GT class together while the current style GT cars would be classed in a revised GT category. It is my understanding that the GT+ class could resemble the 90s style GT1 cars we saw racing such as the Mercedes CLK-GTR, Porsche 911-GT1, Toyota GT-One, etc. Time will tell though.

So what is the mystery car? Only a few know for sure and for the rest of us, we can only speculate and dream of the possibilities.