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Automotive

Ferrari’s “poster icon” crowned top supercar by automotive enthusiasts

July 7, 2016

Ferrari F40, circa 1988 Ferrari F40, circa 1988

 

Italian automaker Ferrari’s F40 model has been selected as the most iconic supercar ever designed.

The poll, which saw Ferrari’s “poster icon” beat out models by McLaren and Audi, was conducted by the organizers of The Fast Car Festival, set to take place July 30-31 at Donington Park, Derbyshire in the United Kingdom. The Fast Car Festival will feature automobiles from all over the world, enabling car enthusiasts to marvel at hundreds of the industry's finest, rarest, fastest and priciest models.

Best of the best
Ferrari’s F40 placed at number one out of 10 contenders in the top supercar survey ahead of The Fast Car Festival, with polling closing at the end of June. The model took 18 percent of the total vote with its closest runners-up being the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione, Ferrari’s LaFerrari and the McLaren F1.

As much as the model resonates with consumers as the be all, end all supercar, the F40 is significant to Ferrari’s heritage as well. The model, designed to celebrate the automaker’s 40th anniversary in 1988, was the last vehicle design to be signed off by Ferrari’s founder Enzo Ferrari before his death.

When launched in 1988, the Ferrari F40 was the fastest car in the world and was considered the closest vehicle possible to an F1 for civilian roads.

According to the poll, the remaining top 10 supercars of all time include the Koenigsegg, Porsche 911, Pagani Zonda, Ferrari Enzo, Audi R8 and Jaguar XJ220.

6-26 LaFerrari

Ferrari's LaFerrari placed third in the poll

The aforementioned vehicles will be joined by millions of dollars worth of automobiles during The Fast Car Festival. Marquees represented include Porsche, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Lotus and McLaren as well as performance models by Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar.

Showcasing its title as the most iconic supercar, Ferrari will display its $2.58 million Ferrari FXX prototype during the two-day event.

FXX

Ferrari's FXX

While Ferrari will be in high-end company July 30-31 at The Fast Car Festival, the chairman of the brand’s former owner Chrysler Fiat, feels that the term luxury is overused, particularly in the automotive sector.

While speaking the Financial Times’ Business of Luxury Summit 2015, John Elkann, expressed that while some throw around the descriptor when referring to leather seats or other commonly seen features, luxury is not a label or a brand. Instead it is a mix of history, emotion-stirring stories and a quality that cannot be copied (see story).