The newest Ferrari comes from the Italian company's most exclusive division
- Ferrari has delivered the latest in a series of one-off "Special Projects" cars.
- The SP38 is based on the 488 GTB.
- It likely costs millions to design, if Ferrari's one-off history is a guide.
A lot of people dream of owning a Ferrari. Some people do well enough in life to actually obtain one.
And then there's another class of Ferrarista who can ask Ferrari to make them a special one-off car. Someone like Eric Clapton, a longtime Ferrari lover, who parted with $4.7 million to collaborate with the Italian supercar maker on a "special projects," or SP, version of the now-retired 458 Italia.
You have to be a pretty snazzy customer of Ferrari to qualify for the SP treatment, which debuted in 2007. But it's so very Ferrari to offer stalwart clients the chance to spend big-time on one-off vehicles.
The latest is the SP38, which Ferrari said was "unveiled at Fiorano where, after the ceremonial handover ... the car was immediately put through its paces in a series of hot laps."
Fiorano is Ferrari's test track, located next to its factory in Maranello. The identity of the loyal client wasn't revealed.
The SP38 is a modified Ferrari 488 GTB, with a cool louvered cover for the twin-turbo V8 engine and a much more dialed-back, daggerlike front fascia. We sampled the 488 a few years back and were monumentally impressed. Our tester cost well over $300,000.
Ferrari didn't say what its customer paid for the SP38. But it was definitely more than $300,000.