Chassis No. ZFFSA17A0G0065307

Engine No. 00372

If you were in the market for an exotic GT sports car in the mid-1980s you had some fabulous options. After a six-year hiatus, Porsche reintroduced the 911 Turbo to the US market with up-to-date emissions equipment. The truly adventurous might look to England and the Aston Martin V8. Italy came with a number of contenders. Lamborghini had both the Countach and the overlooked Jalpa. Ferrari weighed in with the 288 GTO and Testarossa. All fine choices, but none of the above had the cultural relevance and impact of the Ferrari Testarossa. In the 1980's the Testarossa was omnipresent, featured on TV and video games, it was owned by an impressive who's-who of headline makers. The Testarossa was – and still is – THE iconic 1980's sports car.

It's understandable why it was a 1980s cultural icon. Styling by Pininfarina left its mark on an entire generation. Tasked with updating the stunningly attractive Ferrari Berlinetta Boxer, Pininfarina was also asked to solve a cooling issue not related to the engine, but rather passenger comfort. A single radiator, mounted in the nose of the Berlinetta Boxer did a fine job of cooling the engine, but the fore and aft plumbing had the habit of heating up the cabin and its occupants. Thus, Ferrari redesigned the cooling system for their mid-mounted dry-sump, 4.9-liter, flat-12 engine to feature dual, side-mounted radiators to keep the heat away from the front of the car. It was Pininfarina's job to feed air to those radiators behind openings within the widened bodywork. The size of the openings, closely regulated in many sales markets, were restricted to a maximum size, one that was not large enough for new cooling needs of the Testarossa. Pininfarina's solution was to turn the large cooling duct on each side of the car into collections of much smaller ones by integrating long, flowing horizontal side strakes into their design. In one move, Pininfarina had solved a cooling problem and given the Testarossa its signature design feature, one that eventually epitomized 1980s excess.

If asked to picture a Ferrari Testarossa, you will inevitably envision – with side strakes in full view – an example in Rosso Corsa with Black or perhaps Crema interior and twin mirrors. The first owner of the Testarossa presented here had a different Ferrari in their mind's eye. Finished in Blu Sera Metallic (504/C) over Beige (4208) Connolly Autolux hides, this Testarossa was purchased from Walnut Creek Ferrari on the 26th of August 1986. As an early US-market Testarossa, it features the famous single, high mounted "Monospecchio" mirror and 16 in single-bolt Cromodora wheels. Front bumper mounted lights were replaced with European versions. Choosing options for a Testarossa was simple as the list was limited to exterior and interior colors and fitted Schedoni leather luggage, specially made for the Testarossa. This example has five pieces of Schedoni luggage still with the car.

Over the past 36 years, the car has accumulated just over 30,600 miles. As a testament to the car's history, comprehensive service and maintenance records stretch back to 1987. Notable services include an October 2012 invoice from Brian Crall Company at 28,687 mi for $18,943.04 that includes a major engine service, clutch replacement, flywheel resurfacing and new differential carrier (a known weak point on these cars) and seals with new suspension bushings. More recently in December 2020, at 30,095 mi, Bespoke Motor Group performed another major engine service and brake pad replacement for $11,687.67.

Offered with two keys, optional Schedoni luggage and a clean CarFax report. With a recent major service, invoices stretching back to 1987 and known history from new, this Testarossa, in lovely Blu Sera Metallic represents an amazing opportunity to own an early, nicely sorted and presented example of Ferrari's most extravagant 1980s icon.