Hey, Car and Driver tested it at 8.3 so talk to them about it. Sure if you dial the boost way up, the F40 will do it faster, but then the motor will blow up a lot sooner. Might as well strap a rocket on a car and say it is faster........
Incorrect. A bog-standard F40 beats the Diablo in just about every straight-line performance category. Here is a good thread that discusses the F40s performance against other Supercars. http://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=255868&page=29 Around a track, the F40 simply gives the Diablo a good spanking, as the F40 vs Diablo test in the April 1992 issue of Car & Driver concluded. I dont subscribe that a Diablo is a better all-round sports car either, having gone straight out of my Diablo SE30 into my F40 as a direct comparison 13 years ago, and the leather appointments of the Diablo were offset by the poor finish quality and things that kept dropping off or coming unglued - not that a luxo-interior is even what I'm looking for in a Supercar anyway. In fact, in the aforementioned test, it was concluded that the F40 was the better car, all-round. In my book, the fact that the F40 has twice the value (in fact F40s go for 3 times what most Diablos bring) only speaks to the esteem in which the car is held amongst sports car enthusiasts. Nobody forces anyone to buy a $500k motorcar, but I have just sold six (6) F40s this year alone with the last one bringing $535k plus taxes & shipping. Image Unavailable, Please Login
I am surprised to see the F40 is even faster than F50, while the F50 was introduced so many years later. The detail I like best about the F40, is that the paint layer was made so thin that you could see the CF through it. Not sure if this is true though, never checked it.
Good point. In the video I posted 6 months ago with the F40, F50 and Diablo at Suzuka, the F40 was actually faster lapping than the F50. The Diablo was miles behind (literally).
This is where many think differently, but that's what makes the world go round. Its funny, but sometimes its actually easier to find ready & willing buyers for a more expensive car than a less expensive one... Look at the pic posted by Qv Power at the top of this page featuring the ML F1s at their recent Reunion. 3 of my clients own those cars valued at $3 million each. They would rather have one of those than a $100k Diablo (none of the 3 own a Diablo). My point is, its all relative, and I think it comes down to what one can afford or what one is comfortable with. Once-upon-a-time the F40 was worth much more than its current trading number, and a good F40 will be worth much more again in the future. Many people are drawn to cars that have upside for obvious reasons, especially if they also happen to be great Supercars.
Bumping Victor's thread, here is a test involving an F40 and a Diablo, both fully tested by some guy who reportedly can drive called Michael Schumacher (in 1994). F40, XJ 220, Diablo VT, 964 Turbo S were all tested by Schumacher for the magazine AutoBild on Mireval circuit, the 3.2 km Goodyear test circuit. For some reason the EB110 GT was not timed - likely mechanical issues. Here are the results. 1:28.3 Ferrari F40 1:30.4 Jaguar XJ 220 1:34.5 Lamborghini Diablo VT 1:35.3 Porsche 964 Turbo S * The F40 finished six (6) seconds a lap faster than the Diablo!!! Considering the circuit measures only 3.2km, that's astonishing. Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login
Joe, Cool article! I would love to have those cars in my garage! Well, I'm not that keen on the Bug and the Porsche is kind of blah... In any case, I think the VT did well, even though it did get its arss kicked, given that the VT weighs more than 1200 pounds (!!) more than the F40. The proper Diablo to have been there should have been the SE30, then I bet the win would have only been a couple of seconds instead of six, especially on a tight, twisty course, since the SE30 is only about 1/2 the extra weight of the VT over the F40, and has a more track oriented set up. That would have been the proper contest. I'm surprised the Jag didn't do better, as it is supposed to be light, but I haven't ever weighed one.
Vic: Way back in1997, I got out of my SE30 and into my first F40. The difference was shocking. Night & day in terms of performance, and I'm only speaking on the road, not the track. The reason I posted this article, is to make the point that St Agata ought to get the message about building lighter cars. Even the SE30 felt heavy compared to the F40.
That's my one gripe about Lamborghini's; compared to the equivalent Ferrari's, they're always a bit heavier. They compensate this by adding more powers (and unfortunately, 4wd). They have their work cut out for the new Gallardo though; I doubt going above 600hp is going to sell them a lot of Gallardo's to compete with the 458...
Wow..disappointed by the laptime of the 964 Turbo S. I thought it would be a faster car than a regular Diablo considering it was a lightweight Turbo with big brakes.
correct, the diablo did pretty well imo considered the diablo tested is a 5.7 VT, that is one of the heaviest of them all and possibly one of the slowest around a track I am confident an SV-SE30 could be 2 sec. quicker than this and a 6.0, GT even more faster
I think there are a lot of F40s out there, about 1200, but they are raw, fast, and cool, so the market (demand / supply) says they are worth that much.
211 USA-spec cars built, which are significantly different in specification from the 1200 rest-of-the-world cars. One thing about Supercars is that they are not a necessity in life. Its all about want, and not about need. Therefore they bring what they bring in the market, whether we think it is deserving or not. Do Mc Laren F1s deserve several million each? Why do they bring what they bring? The F40 is Enzo Ferrari's last creation and it affords deep sentiment amongst the faithful. Its also iconic, is a true race-car for the road, and offers prodigious performance. Considering that the best examples sell for just a bit more than their list price 20 years ago, their price is quite reasonable.
