CHRIS HARRIS: You'll
think this sounds presumptuous and silly. But I get a lot of offers
to drive other people's expensive cars. I'm kind of lucky like that. The trouble is almost all of
those offers only allow me to drive that expensive car in a
manner that wouldn't look very good on video, so I tend
not to accept them. I mean, who wants to watch a
small brown man driving a super car slowly? Certainly not me. But a few months back, a bloke
said I could drive his Ferrari F40, and his F50, and that he
wanted me to drive them like I did all the cars on my videos. Are you sure? I said. I'll be disappointed if
you don't, he said. And so that's why we're now
looking at two of the most exciting Ferraris ever built,
which, by definition, makes them two of the most exciting
road cars ever built. We have the beautiful Anglesey
Circuit, a few cameras, and a ticket to drive an F40 and an
F50 in a manner I hope you haven't seen before. Even now, I can't quite
believe this day actually happened. Before we play, some background
information. These two cars are fascinating
in their own individual ways, but they share an uneasy
relationship with each other. Or rather, the F50 has always
struggled in the shadows of what many of us believe
remains the ultimate supercar-- the F40. Ferrari never let journalists
performance test the F50 because it was slower than
it's older relative. But nearly 20 years after the
event, that doesn't seem to matter now. Instead, all I can see is a
carbon chassis, an engine block from a Formula One car
bolted directly to it, rear suspension sprouting from the
gear box casing, and no gearshift paddles. The 4.7 liter V12 sends 520
horsepower to the rear wheels through a six speed manual
transmission. Torque is 347 foot pounds
at 6,000 RPM. And this is where it struggles
against the F40, which has a massive 426 foot pounds. It's also heavier, at 1,250
kilograms, but by modern standards, it's still
a very light car. Up close, the F50 is
just stunning. The carbon Kevlar body panels
are vast, the dish on rear wheels plane delicious,
and the details take hours to drink in. The seats are fantastically
over-designed. Even the rake adjuster has a
little chrome cap like the one on the oil filler. The way you can peer through
the rear mesh and see the engine is pure Ferrari
theater. And the electronic dash
must have been sci-fi in the mid '90s. The quality stands out, too. The F50 is beautifully
finished. The window rubbers are neat. The doors close with
a "chink." Next to it, the F40 looks
like a kit car. Really, it does, only one
made 20 years earlier. But wasn't that always
part of its charm? It was made for driving, and
nothing else seemed to matter. The proportions of the F40
are a masterpiece. Next to it, the F50 somehow
isn't quite right. The F40 is a tiny machine
slammed into the ground and mesmerizingly pretty. It's 478 horsepower is a little
down on the F50's claimed output, but most experts
now agree that the cars always have over 500
horsepower from launch. And the twin turbocharged 2.9
liter V8 was a torque monster. As we said, 426 foot pounds. And it only had to shunt 1,100
kilograms down the road. No wonder Ferrari didn't
want people testing it next to the new F50. The fit and finish are
astonishingly bad, though. Luckily, the cabin is so bare
that you don't really notice. But what you do understand is
that everything that matters-- the seat, the steering wheel,
the clock faces, the pedals-- are all judged to perfection. No other car gives quite the
same sense of driver importance. And that's what makes
the F40 so special. Now I've driven an F40 before,
but I've not had the chance to absolutely spat one
on a circuit. This is bucket list stuff. What's it going to be like? The F50 is a surprisingly
gorgeous car. But it's very accurate,
very competent. It feels like a little
racing car. It doesn't want to
be agitated. It wants you to treat it with
respect and drive it smoothly. What's this thing going
to be like? I'm led to believe they are
quite unruly, these things. [LAUGHS] [YELLS] Yes! What have we got,
480 horsepower? Jesus Christ, the boost. Yes. This is a serious car-- nothing
like the noise, nothing like the throttle
response. It's an animal. But it's so agile. And it just throws
you up the road. And you shouldn't be able to do
that in an F40, should you? You just think about your
angle and choose it. Look at that! [YELLS] Gear shift, lovely. Not as mechanical as the F50's,
but the performance, the torque, oh, it's
an animal. It's just got so much
performance. You can see why they didn't
want people figuring F50's because this is quicker. The old car is quicker. I need one of these. This is the car I've
been looking for all my life, I think. It's a totally hooligan,
but it's connected, and it's beautiful. And it's fast. And it's a challenge. And it's got a stick. And I'm in love! Brakes are good. I mean, what was the performance
like in 1989? Yes. And it just surges. It couldn't be more different
to the F50. You pin the throttle, wait for
the boost to arrive, And because it's so mechanical the
way it boosts, if you hold the throttle steady, it still adds
boost, which is moderately terrifying. Wow. What a car. What did they think when
they made this? They must have looked around
and gone, we might as well give up. [LAUGH] This is the one. This is the one This
is the one. I've never driven a Ferrari
F50 before today. Let's try an debunk some of
the myths about a car that considered too slow, and
uninteresting, and ugly after the F40, and not even
worthy of comparison with a McLaren F1. I think some of that is
complete cobblers. That noise! Wow! Is all I can say. Wow. Manual gear change. I don't want to talk. I just want to enjoy
the thing. But I have to talk, so first
things first, the engine, or the block, is from a
Formula One car. I rips at 85,000 RPM,
and it's a V12. It's a carbon tub, and the rear
suspension is hanging from the back of the engine
gearbox case. This is just-- this is why we love cars,
boys and girls. Why didn't people love
this in the day. It's extraordinary. Oh! No ABS, no nothing. Sportscars should
be like this. The chassis, well, quite a bit
of atmosphere, I have to say. I'm sure you can dull some of
that with some setup changes. The steering is quite slow. It's unassisted. It's heavy. But it is a little bit
slow-witted for me. But I just love it-- the
pedals close together. Just roll off the break
and onto the throttle. And I watch this [INAUDIBLE]
ahead of me, the needle flicking up to 85,000
RPM, and that noise! Wow! Just wow! God knows how fast we're
going, I'm not looking. It's like a racing car. It feels like a racing car. The engine is from
a racing car. I wish it didn't have this sort
of low and medium speed under steer, but I'm sure some
tires, or some setup, you'll get rid of that. You just have to not hurry
the car too much. Get it into the turn. Use that amazing traction
on the way out. It's a real challenge
to drive. But as you can see, I [BLEEP] love it. This car is why I love cars. It's extraordinary. It's alive. Now, as you can see, I got
rather carried away in the moment with both
of these cars. I did my best to try and break
down the way they drove. But there's more I need
to add without, sort of, wetting myself. The F50 is a stunner. It has the most desirable power
train of any supercar. Really, it does. It's not the fastest. But the way it revs, the noise
it makes, and the gear shift, the best of the best. You could see I was struggling
in the middle of second gear, but that was as much my fault
as the need to do a little adjustment to the linkage. On the road, I thought the F50
was slightly less impressive because the engine only really
comes alive above 5,000 RPM. And you just can't
use it properly. It also feels vast
around the hips. But I'm so glad I've driven one
hard now, and can promise you, it's a truly,
truly great car. In many ways it's more
satisfying than the F40-- but not greater. The F40 is the supercar
to end all supercars. It isn't normally aspirated. And yet it's turbocharging
adds to the excitement. The only thing it really lacks
is noise, But you have to believe me when I say that it
sounds miles better in real life than it does on this film,
even if the F50 is in another league for
musical quality. I could go on about
this car all day. I really could. Quite simply, to me. It's the one-- on road, on track, frankly,
anywhere. There's on aspect of the F40
that I've always found absolutely fascinating. And that is it feels
outrageously fast now. But what did it feel
like in 1989. And there's only one man
who I want to ask that. He's a bloke that I used to
read when I was younger. He's someone that inspired me
to do this for a living. He's called Mark Hales. What he doesn't know about
these sorts of cars isn't worth knowing. And he's driving the
F50 at the moment. So what are the fundamental
differences-- well, they are , one is normally aspirated. One is turbocharged, heavily
turbocharged. They are quite different
vehicles. but they are a celebration
of everything that's right about Ferrari. And I love the fact that he gets
me on the entry phase of the corner. And then, when I'm accelerating
out, I've got all this boost. And I can just fly
up behind him. This is so much faster
in a straight line. It's basically holding me
up when we get going. I'm following an F50, and I'm
oversteering in an F40. I'm off! So once we've stopped having
some fun here, which could go on for some time, I want to
sit and talk to Mark about what it was like. MARK HALES: Utter privilege. CHRIS HARRIS: So Mark, when did
you first drive an F40? And just tell me what it was
like, the sensation of this vehicle the first time you
got in it because it's an extraordinary car now. I can't even begin to think what
it was like in '88, '89? MARK HALES: It was completely
extraordinary. And I didn't really know
what to expect. And it was Nick Mason's car. And it was about it
was about '88. And he'd just got it. He got one of the
very first ones. And we made an audio tape. That shows you how
long it ago. It was a cassette tape for
"Fastlane" magazine. And I just rang him up and said,
can I drive your car. And he went, uh, yes. And he brought it to Donington
with a mate. And he said, well, there
you are, off you go. And I said, don't you
want to watch? And he said, no, no, I'm going
off to get some coffee. Let me know when you're done. And it was brand new. But on track, it was
just extraordinary. And it's the way it delivers
the performance. Because you could just drive
it down to the shops. And as long as you don't prod
the gas and make it go on boost, it's just like driving,
you know, pretty much an ordinary car. But when it lit up, and you
could get wheel spin in third, and occasionally even in fourth
gear, it was just absolutely extraordinary. And it was, then, and remains
today, one of the most exciting cars I've
ever driven. CHRIS HARRIS: That cassette
tape, little did you know it, had a profound effect
on my generation. Because we didn't have
the internet. We didn't have videos. And suddenly, to be introduced
to this new medium to hear the car. And I remember that
tape vividly. I have a copy still. And I remember you getting,
let's get it right-- the list of cars, there was a Cosworth,
an Audi Quattro, 911 Club Sport, which I went on to own
that particular car, so I had your sloppy seconds
there, Mark. I just remember-- something got big on you. Some boost comes in. There's a girl in the
seat with you. MARK HALES: That's
right, yeah. CHRIS HARRIS: And you're
describing the car. And you say the boost
comes in. And then you hear this
[CAR SOUND]. And there's silence
in the car. And she goes, ooh! And you say, yes, that's
what I mean. MARK HALES: Yeah, well the raw
tapes were pornographic because it was Becki Adam. And she was one of the first
"Top Gear" babes. And she was going, ooh, ooh! And they said, Mark, what
on earth were you up to? And you couldn't leave it in,
because it just sounded ridiculous. So all that had to be cut out. But yeah. And it was the sort of thing,
you thought, I can drive this and still-- I can do a march and brundle and
have the thing at of some ridiculous angle, and
keep talking. But when it lit up, you
just went, ooh! And went quiet. CHRIS HARRIS: And the time, a
fast car-- well, the club sport you had was a Carrera with
a slightly different ECU. So that has 231 horsepower. And it weighed 1,100 and
something kilograms. And you've got the same curb
weight, and you've got 470 horsepower. MARK HALES: But it's not
just the numbers. And I don't think Ferrari
were completely honest about the power. I think it was always a lot
more than they said. But it's the torque. And it's quite a big
engine for a turbo, 2.8 liters or something. And you've got two turbos. But it's the way it comes on. So it feels much more than 500
horsepower, or whatever it is. And the car is quite light. Because the thing about them is
that they were completely stripped down, and intended
to be so. And Ferrari wanted to keep
it really light. What are they? About 1,100 kilos
or something? CHRIS HARRIS: A little
bit more. MARK HALES: 1,200, but
not very much more. Because you've got
wind up windows. You've got no power steering. I mean, it's got air
conditioning. I'd forgotten about that,
you really need that. But there's no ABS. There's nothing. There's no driver aid. So it's really, really
stripped out. So not only is fantastically
powerful for the weight, but you're intimately connected
to everything. You really feel the steering. And it was like it was going
back and boosting the power at the same time. So yeah, it was a tremendous
experience and still is. It still is exciting today
as I remember it when I first got in it. CHRIS HARRIS: Did you think
it was a step too far? Did you think to yourself, I can
drive this, but what's the average punter than can afford
to buy one of these going to do in this car? MARK HALES: Well, I do remember
that, when it rained, no matter how much I thought I
could handle this, the boost just went up too quickly. And I drove Nick's car
at Silverstone-- it was a filming session for
"Into the Red," the book that Nick and I did. And in fourth gear, somewhere
out the back, club, or stow, or something like that, just
coming out, I thought, I can feed it in now. And I think I must
have spun about a second time in the rain. And it just-- and it was one
of those spins where-- it wasn't a spin where, you
think, oh, oh, I think, I know, now I have
it, Yes, oh no? It just went [ZAP SOUND],
and it spun like a top down the track. When it rained, it was just
dangerous, simply because the wheel spin built so quickly. And if you thought, well, I'll
leave it in a higher gear, so it won't be so fierce, that made
it even worse because it would still spin up-- CHRIS HARRIS: Just at
a faster speed? MARK HALES: Yeah, the tires
just spun faster. So you went round quicker. It's the intimacy of the thing,
and the fact that you're so connected to
everything because there's no interference. There's the F50 over there, but
the Enzo that came after it was just like driving
a computer game compared with this. This was just so tremendously
wonderful. It remains one of my absolute,
all time favorite cars. CHRIS HARRIS: I think today I've
been blown away by it. And I need to go away and think
long and hard because it's a magnificent driving
experience. It's intimidating, but
it's accommodating. I don't know many cars that can
that, that can make you think, right, you are with
the big boys now. And then, five minutes later,
you're sitting there in third gear near the lock stops coming
out of some corner, thinking, this shouldn't
be possible. I'm buzzing. I'm ticking. The onboard is ludicrous. There's no facts in
today's onboard. Sorry about that, guys. I'm just basically whooping
like a child. And I've loved it. We're going to have
to cut it there. But, well, there you go. That's what it was like
to drive and F40 when it came out it '89. MARK HALES: Still is. CHRIS HARRIS: Yeah, and
hopefully the video will give you an idea of what it's like
to drive one in 2013 and why it remains "the" car.
It must be disappointing, knowing his whole life is downhill from that day.
You just beat me to posting this. Excellent video - I love the team at /Drive and I've a bit of a man-crush on Chris Harris. Every review of his is just awesome; Chris points out the positive/negative aspects of each car both on the road and on the track, and really just shows how a review should be done. I only really discovered Chris through these /Drive videos, but if anyone is interested then Google his name and you'll find articles on Autocar, Evo and Pistonheads and they're always a good read.
that was incredible.
Wow, just wow. The greatest video Chris Harris will probably ever produce!
This video makes me almost want to give up on cars as nothing will ever come close to this.....
For a bit more of Chris Harris in an F40, watch Cult of the Turbo.
Isn't he still blacklisted by Ferrari?
I watched the drive pre week video showing what was coming up and saw the preview of this. I knew after 10 seconds of the preview it would go down in history as the internet's greatest video. I wasn't disappointed.
I could have watched 5 hours of this.
I've always coveted the F50. This just makes me want both even more. Absolutely epic.