2002 Ferrari Enzo Ferrari Pininfarina

The ultimate art-object car is the Ferrari Enzo Ferrari, a model named to honour the company’s founder and incorporating all of the technology of Ferrari’s Formula One racing car. Fiat, parent company of both Ferrari and Maserati, has decreed that Ferrari will continue to contest Formula One, and that in future Maserati will be the standard-bearer for sports-car racing, including the most important event of all, the Le Mans 24 Hours.

To be allowed to acquire an Enzo Ferrari, one must be a known long-time Ferrari client. Even with a $600,00-plus price tag, the 349 cars scheduled to be made – one fewer than the projected market, to ensure exclusivity. Luca di Montezemolo, the aristocratic leader of the firm, relented and added fifty cars to the build list, but even before the whole run has been made cars are changing hands at double the list price – an indication of the fervent desire of collectors to have the latest and greatest iconic car.

Di Montezemolo insisted that there be no wings, flaps or fins on the Enzo Ferrari, and the designers and engineers were so successful in reducing both drag and lift that it was necessary to detune the engine to prevent the top speed exceeding the ability of tyres to survive; not that there are many place where more than 400 kph (249 mph) can be sustained.

These extracts are taken from Auto Legends: Classics of Style and Design by Michel Zumbrunn, text by Robert Cumberford which was published in October by Merrell