FERRARI F40 vs FERRARI F50

                      FERRARI F40
The 201 mph Ferrari F40 is unlike all other supercars : every year that passes, its stunning exterior design and brutal turbocharged power delivery seem even more appealing. In the new-is-best world of supercar ownership, the lasting and growing influence of this 30-year-old exotic is quite unique.  The F40 legend started with a bang as the final car to be presented by Enzo himself on the year of his death. Rows and rows of the matching Rosso Corsa red F40’s lined the Fiorano pit area with another key figure in Ferrari lore: a young Luca Di Montezemolo smiling in his 1980s power suit next to this line of exotica.  As much a story about the passionate men and women behind the scenes, there is almost nothing boring about the F40 in any way. Originally set for a 399-unit production run, the total swelled to more than 1,200 over the car’s lifetime from 1987 to 1992.  The F40’s shocking looks and speed are appreciating in value steadily, and may one day even overtake the Ferrari NART Sypder’s $27 million dollar auction record from this past weekend.

Until then, this Ferrari is already one for the ages. It is as much a joy to drive as it is to admire, almost like a fine painting — new details emerge and captivate the mind. Collectors are notoriously fastidious when it comes to flogging their prized investment, but the F40 is no show queen.  The F40 can dance. The mid-mounted V-8 engine’s then-state-of-the-art twin turbochargers power just the rear wheels through an 8-ball billiard gear knob and the classic polished H-gate pattern.  Weighing more than 500 pounds less than its arch rival — the Porsche 959 — the Ferrari F40 slams its driver toward any horizon at light speed (once those parallel IHI turbochargers spool up).

The F40 runs a 2.9-liter V-8 with a parallel twin-turbocharged design, which was a first when the F40 launched in 1987. This design sees two IHI turbos operating simultaneously, with each providing boost for each 90-degree engine bank. A Japanese company, IHI was instantly the go-to supplier for the new breed of Japanese turbocharged sports cars - including the reborn Nissan Slyline GT-R (R32) of the late 1980s. Of course, Mitsubishi and Subaru also leaned — still do — heavily on IHI for their highest-performing turbos.  The parallel turbo design is important because it partially defines the F40’s driving style. This was far before any variable-vane turbochargers or sequential turbocharging came on the scene in the 1990s.

Along with the F40’s heavy and imprecise shift linkage, drivers had a few pre-flight checks before nailing the F40’s throttle: get in gear, hang on tight, and brace yourself.  The launch is marked by slight turbo lag, which is actually helpful to get the Pirelli P-Zero tires to hook up to the asphalt before the real power arrives in a frenzied blur. The result of the 471 horsepower is a 60 mph sprint in 3.8 seconds and a record-breaking 201 mph top speed.  The small-capacity V-8 is still a departure for Ferrari’s most premium models, as the subsequent F50, Enzo and now LaFerrari are all naturally-aspirated V-12’s. For anyone skeptical of the turbo V-8 at the time, one quick test ride was proof enough.  The Plexiglas engine cover was vented to allow the high-strung V-8 to sing, while the lack of insulation makes the whole F40 cockpit like one big resonance chamber.  Delightful noises and vibrations tingle through the body even after the engine is off.

 

FERRARI F50

The Ferrari F50 is by far the least popular of the firm’s first four generations of modern hypercars. All the world’s respect and awe for the F40 met the F50 at its debut, but the tide quickly turned for this $480,000 machine after reviewers and Ferrari customers alike revealed the F40 replacement’s familiar styling hid dynamics and a driver experience nowhere near the ferocity of the legendary original.  Instead of a peaky and violent Group B reject like the F40 , the F50 was a heavy, high-speed missile with limited tractability at low speeds from the V-12 versus the explosive F40’s twin turbochargers and short gearing.  Make no mistake, there is nothing wrong with the performance of the F50, which easily spanked [the hottest thing available from Lamborghini at the time, the Diablo VT in sprint pace, as well as maximum velocity.

The construction is carbon-fiber with the rigidity of a fortified bunker, the rear wing is eye-catching, and the 1990s makeover of the F40 ’s simple nose was beautiful, at first. The F50 largely included the F40 ’s exaggerated and exotic proportions and clamshell hoods front and back. Headlamps above the bumper and hood’s leading edge were possible via shrouded enclosures for the first time in three decades, and the unadorned intake wears only a simple and modest prancing horse.
This is the Ferrari F50’s biggest problem: a V-12 whose weight and lack of explosive low-end power felt very dull after the F40’s twin-turbocharged V-8. In addition to a net power loss verus the F40, the F50’s atmospheric V-12 hits its quite torque peak 2,500 rpm higher than the F40. Add tall gearing, and the F50 felt far too slow versus the 1993 - 1998 McLaren F1.

The F50’s claimed weight gain of over 300 pounds on the official books is largely believed to be more like 500 or 600 extra pounds versus the F40’s flyweight specs. On top of that, it drove like the extra weight was more like 1,000 pounds.
This V-12 is still an evolution of some classic Ferrari racing V-12 engines, which when they debuted were absolute engineering marvels of compactness and power output. As displacement grew from the original tiny displacements (often less than 2.0-liters, which for a V-12 is completely unheard-of then or now).
Chain-driven quad cams with dry-sump lubrication is an engine type that is still largely beyond any American or Asian car makers’ abilities, But as size grew, this big engine got heavy and lost its appetite for revs. This is before variable valve timing, but the F50 does have five valves per cylinder.
The engine is more optimized for high-speed tracks, where the car will always be going at least 80 mph or so. From below that pace, the F40 was a huge letdown.