Pub quiz whiz, car fan or just a general know-it-all? You might get a kick out of our Quick Car Pub Facts series.
This time we’ve got a rapid-fire run down of some of the most interesting and wackiest facts about one of the most famous makers of sports cars and race cars in the world – Ferrari. Amaze or annoy your mates down the boozer with these nuggets of information.
The Ferrari logo is a tribute to a First World War pilot
Ferrari was of course founded by the Italian race car driver turned entrepreneur Enzo Ferrari. But how did he come up with Ferrari’s logo with the black prancing horse on a yellow background?
Back in 1923, Enzo Ferrari met Count and Countess Baracca. The pair were the parents of Fransesco Baracca, who was Italy’s top fighter pilot during World War I until his death in 1918. The plane Fransesco used during his missions had a black prancing horse painted on the side and Ferrari was inspired to put something similar on his own car.
In 1932, while still racing with Alfa Romeo, Enzo was given permission to put a black horse logo on his race car and he added a yellow shield to the logo in honour of the colours of his hometown Modena. When Enzo started building road and race cars under the manufacturer named after him, he took the now iconic logo with him.
Ford almost bought Ferrari in 1963
It may seem unthinkable now, but Ford did attempt to buy Ferrari back in 1963 and came very close to completing a deal.
For most of that year, both sides seemed keen on merging together. Enzo Ferrari admired the way Ford was run and the bosses at Ford wanted to get into international racing using Ferrari’s assets and experience.
But Enzo Ferrari pulled out of the deal late on during talks, reportedly over disagreements on what Ford had in mind for their motorsport programme.
Scorned by Ferrari’s rejection, Ford responded a few years later with revenge by developing a race car that went on to beat Ferrari to victory in the 24 Hours of Le Mans four years in row. The race car in question was the Ford GT40.
Britain’s first Formula 1 champion won his title in a Ferrari
Long before the likes of Lewis Hamilton, Jenson Button or even James Hunt entered the Formula 1 scene, there was Mike Hawthorn, who was the first Brit to become world champion.
Ferrari are of course strongly associated with F1, having partook in every season since the championship was first introduced and achieved many race wins and titles along the way. Mike Hawthorn raced a Ferrari 246 race car in the 1958 F1 season and managed to grab that year’s title, narrowly beating Stirling Moss in the process.
Only one Ferrari has ever been assembled in Britain… and it was a disaster!
Enzo Ferrari liked to keep car production close to home. The company’s HQ is in Maranello, close to Enzo’s hometown and virtually all Ferrari car production has taken place in Italy. But one very specific Ferrari did get bodied in Britain.
In 1952, a Ferrari 212 was put together by a British coachbuilder called Abbott and it looked very different to a typical 212, but not in a way that pleased anyone. When the show car was displayed at the London Earl’s Court Car Show, it was negatively received and still has a reputation for being the ugliest Ferrari ever.
The 212 model was rebodied in 1986 and the Abbott body no longer exists. That’s probably for the best.
Red was NOT Ferrari’s original preferred choice of colour
Ask people to associate Ferrari with one colour and the answer will in all likelihood be red. Ferrari races in red and virtually all Ferrari road cars especially in modern times have been marketed and sold in a ‘Rossa Corsa’ or ‘Rosso Scuderia’ red paint job.
But had it been up to the people who ran Ferrari in its early days, then a bright yellow paint job called ‘Giallo Modena’ (the same colour used on the shield on Ferrari’s logo) would probably have adorned all their cars.
However, the International Automobile Federation (known as the FIA nowadays) oversaw the competitions Ferrari raced in and influenced how they look. During the early days of grand prix racing, a rule stated that race cars from specific countries had to compete in a colour assigned to them. Italian race cars were given the colour red so that’s what Ferrari cars ended up competing in, and the colour went on to become ingrained into the brand’s image.
There’s a Ferrari theme park in Abu Dhabi, and more are coming
An official Ferrari amusement park was opened in Abu Dhabi back in 2010 to try and give visitors the chance to have some of the thrills associated with the Italian supercars without needing to drive one. This park, which is called Ferrari World, features a ride called Formula Rossa, which holds the record for being the world’s fastest rollercoaster.
Another official Ferrari theme park called Ferrari Land will open in 2017 as part of the Port Aventura park based in Salou, Spain.