It's been a pretty busy year for Ferrari so far.
Along with their Formula 1 commitments, they've unveiled the F8 Tiburo — a 530kW replacement for the 488. And now, just three months into the year, they've revealed another new model; the P80/C.
Its name doesn't roll off the tongue, sounding more like the chassis code of one of their F1 machines than like the name of a production car. But, that points to one of the new model's biggest points of interest.
Under the panels (which are entirely carbon fibre) is, in effect, Ferrari's 488 GT3 racer. Kiwi circuit-racing anoraks will be well familiar with the 488 GT3, having watched it regularly compete in the Australian GT Championship and at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour — where it's a former winner.
Apart from clearly being a motorsport-derived platform, the 488 GT3 also offers more wheelbase than a standard 488, which allowed Ferrari's engineers to be more creative with P80/C development.
This manifested in the car getting a more cab-forward design than its standard production-car cousin, emphasised by a distinctive wrap-around wind-screen.
Naturally, its decorated with aero similar in spec and aggression to the GT3 norm. It's said to be five per cent more efficient than the 488 GT3's aerodynamics, thanks to elements like the incredibly minute headlights.
The tiny squinty headlights point to the fact that the P80/C is not a street-legal car. It's slated only for track use, which explains the centre-lock wheels and Pirelli P-Zero slick tyres.
Ferrari didn't reveal any of the P80/C's technical details, but it's probably safe to assume that the model will be running a version of the 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8 found in the standard 488. Ferrari also didn't reveal pricing for it, either.
And there's a quite good reason for that, too. The Italian manufacturer are only producing one P80/C, for the buyer known only as 'TK' who commissioned the winged beast. Hopefully they get plenty of track miles in it, instead of tucking it in a garage or a showroom for the rest of its life.
