The Ferrari Omologato is just the 10th one-off vehicle it’s produced in the last decade.
Ferrari’s 812 Superfast certainly lives up to its name, the $335,000 front-engine super car launching from 0-60 in a mere 2.9 seconds, on the way to a 211 mph top speed. But, from a design standpoint, it leaves much to be desired, according to many reviewers.
If you have the money, it seems, that isn’t a problem. An otherwise unnamed but “discerning European client” approached Ferrari about coming up with a one-off, coach-built alternative. And that is what you’re looking at, the renamed Ferrari Omologato.
The goal, according to the Italian automaker was to come up with a “timeless shape … certain to leave a lasting impression.”
(Ferrari reports Q2 profit decline, expects strong second half.)
The coach-built Omologato is based on the 812 Superfast’s platform.
“To achieve this,” Ferrari said in a statement, “the designers unlocked every possible area of freedom from the underlying package of the 812 Superfast, keeping only the windscreen and headlights as existing bodywork elements.”
Obviously, the mid-front layout of the 812’s potent, 6.5-liter V-12 wasn’t going to change. But the platform offered plenty of opportunity to fix what was wrong in the first place. And, to get there, the design team reached back into Ferrari history, lifting things like the brand’s classic rounded taillights and louvered windows.
“A fitting one-off exercise, the Omologata manages to encompass a range of subtle Ferrari signature design cues without falling into nostalgia,” the automaker’s statement suggests. “Its hand-crafted aluminium bodywork is sprinkled with almost subliminal details, in a way that challenges the enthusiast to identify the various sources of inspiration that played a part into its inception.”
(Ferrari pushes back arrival of full-electric vehicle until 2025.)
Look closely and you will see the influence of the legendary 250 GTO, and even the Ferrari F1. The track influence is apparent in the crackled paint, inside and out.
A close look at the Omologato shows some stying influenced by the 250 GTO.
Notes Ferrari, “Inside the car, a plethora of trim details suggests a strong link to Ferrari’s rich racing heritage. The electric blue seats, finished in a tasteful combination of leather and Jeans Aunde® fabric with 4-point racing harnesses, stand out against a full black interior. In the absence of rear quarter lights and screen, the atmosphere in the cabin is purposeful, reminiscent of a bygone era. Metal parts on the dashboard and steering wheel are finished with the crackled paint effect associated with the great GT racers of the 1950s and 1960s.”
Whether the Ferrari achieves its goal and really does “ooze street presence” is likely going to trigger a long-running debate. But, if nothing else, that European buyer can be assured there will be nothing like the Omologato which is only the 10th one-off GT the automaker has produced during the past decade.
There’s no indication that the project saw any custom work done to the 812’s drivetrain while transforming it into the Omologato. Not that there’s really any need. The 6.5-liter V-12 punches out 789 horsepower, an astounding 4.81 pounds per horsepower.
(Ferrari unveils newest supercar: The Roma.)
The project was led by the automaker’s design chief Flavio Manzoni and took a full two years to bring to completion. How much did that buyer have to stroke a check for? Chivalrously, Ferrari isn’t saying, but word is that this pushed up into the seven figure range, clearly several times more than what the “base” 812 Superfast went for.