Ferrari 550 Maranello

Description

The 550 Maranello made its debut in a Ferrari single-make cup competition at the Nürburgring in July 1996. The Formula 1 team’s drivers at the time, Michael Schumacher and Eddie Irvine, drove the car on the track, and former Ferrari racing drivers such as Niki Lauda and Jody Scheckter were among the guests.

In November 1996, the British trade magazine Autocar published the results of a test for the 550 Maranello which showed 0 to 60 mph in 4.6 seconds and 0 to 100 mph in 10.1 seconds. They voted the 550 Maranello ‘Britain's Best Driver’s Car 1998’ and confirmed that judgement a year later: “The best GT far and wide”.

The 550 Maranello was produced from 1996 to 2001. The model benefited from Ferrari’s attention to the car’s aerodynamics. The combination of uncompromising performance and aerodynamic efficiency helped the car set a new speed record for production cars in Ohio in 1998: 62 miles at an average speed of 188.88 mph. In 1999, 33 ‘World Record’ special editions were produced to celebrate this success in the USA.

As a classic sports car, the engine is at the front, the six-speed gearbox at the rear. The 5.5-litre V12 engine with 4 valves per cylinder produces 485 hp on the road. Top speed is 320 km/h, 100 km/h is reached after 4.4 seconds.

LIMITED EDITION

The aerodynamic aluminium body was designed by Pininfarina. A special feature is the adjustable drive slip system. In total, 3,600 units of the front-engined sports car were produced.