On the face of things, this 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa looks good value with an asking price of £95,000. But all is not as it seems.
That’s because this is the new Testa Rossa J – ‘J’ standing for Junior – produced by The British Little Car Company and it is a three-quarter scale replica with an electric motor.
It’s fully endorsed by the fabled exotic car brand with the rampaging stallion badge and comes with an electric motor with a top speed of ‘over’ 37mph.
Aimed at teenagers with super-rich parents, it rings in at the same price as a number of used Ferraris from the last 30 years, including barely-used examples of the F355, 360 Modena and 599 GTB.
The £95,000 Ferrari for teenagers: The Italian brand has this week unveiled one of the most expensive toys on the planet – a replica 1957 250 Testa Rossa electric car
This is possibly not the first time you’ve seen a scale replica electric car for kids from The Little Car Company, as they’ve collaborated with a number of exotic car makers on supremely-pricey junior models in recent years.
This Ferrari Testa Rossa J is said to be aimed at young drivers over the age of 14.
It has been jointly designed by the Italian manufacturer’s Maranello styling centre in partnership with the British specialist firm using original design drawings held by Ferrari’s Classiche department.
It measures in at 3,100mm long, 1,100mm wide and 700mm tall. That means it’s longer than a Smart ForTwo, so you’ll definitely need a garage or large shed to keep it (not that anyone who can afford a £95,000 electric toy car doesn’t have one of those).
Mini me: The model, built in Bicester, is a three-quarter replica of the real thing, though without the thumping V12 engine
Ferrari has partnered with British junior-model specialists, The Little Car Company, to produce 299 of the like-for-like replicas
The 250 Testa Rossa J is powered by an electric motor and three batteries at the front. They combine to provide 55 miles of driving range
Customers will be able to choose a selection of race liveries or certified Ferrari body colours – as well as a heap of extra features
Out goes the roaring 3.0-litre V12 engine from the genuine race car and in comes an electric motor powered by three batteries located at the front of the car.
Like other junior creations from The Little Car Company, it has different driving modes: Novice, Comfort, Sport and Race.
Even in its most aggressive set-up the maximum speed is restricted to ‘over 60kmh, so around 37mph, and driving around 56 miles will empty a fully-charged battery.
The batteries can be recharged via the replica fuel filler car.
Inside, the car gets full leather upholstery and a vintage-style steering wheel produced by Nardi, which is the same supplier for the original 250 Testa Rossa some 64 years ago. The pedal box is from the F8 Tributo supercar
The Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa J has four driving modes – the least powerful setting is ‘Novice’, which offer a limited top speed of 12mph. Both the ‘Sport’ and ‘Race’ settings provide maximum power and a top speed in excess of 37mph
Ferrari says even drivers as young as 14 should be as safe as houses driving one.
‘Safety has been a priority throughout the car’s development: the metal side panels were reinforced and an optional roll-bar can be anchored to the chassis,’ it said.
Will it fit in my play room? The Little Car Company Ferrari Testa Rossa J
Price: from €93,000 before tax (approx £95,000 UK)
Production: 299 units built in Bicester, UK
Dimensions:
Length: 3.1 metres
Width: 1.1 metres
Height: 700cm
Powertrain: Single electric motor, 3x batteries
Range: 90km (56 miles)
Driving modes and top speed
Novice: 20kmh (12mph)
Comfort: 45kmh (28mph)
Sport: over 60kmh (37mph)
Race: over 60 kmh (37mph)
Tyres and wheels: 12 inch wheels based on the original Borrani rims (genuine Borrani rims also available at extra cost) and Pirelli Cinturato
‘Brembo disc brakes replace the original drum system to maximize braking performance, and these are complemented by a hydraulic handbrake.’
Why is it so expensive, you might ask?
As well as sporting the Ferrari badge and having a hand-beaten alumimium body, it also shares some of its components with the legendary maker’s full-size cars.
The pedal box – consisting of a throttle and brake – is the same as that fitted to the F8 Tributo supercar, while the tyres wrapping its 12-inch wheels are supplied by Ferrari’s type partner Pirelli.
Suspension is taken care of with Bilstein coilover dampers and custom springs which were fine-tuned and signed off by Ferrari’s test divers at the Fiorano test track.
Like most electric and hybrid cars on the market today, it has regenerative brakes that pump a little energy back into the battery when the car is decellerating.
The cabin also gets full leather upholstering and a classic steering wheel made by Nardi – the same company that supplied the part for the original 1957 model.
There’s a vintage instrument cluster redesigned to display EV information, such as remaining driving range and temperatures for the battery and electric motor.
Just 299 examples are due to be produced with customers able to customise their cars, with a choice of 14 historic race liveries and 53 bodywork colours that have graced Ferrari vehicles over the generations.
Prices start from €93,000 before taxes, shipping and optional features are included.
That works out today at around £78,600. With VAT, that’s almost £95,000.
It’s certainly a lot of money to pay for what is essentially a toy but it’s nowhere near as expensive as the real thing.
With just 34 examples built, the 250 TR genuine article will be a prize car in any collection.
The most expensive sold at auction went for £9million in 2011 and £8million in 2009 – the latter of which the Daily Mail had an exclusive drive in. Inflation adjusted, that works out at £11.8million and £11million respectively.
This is the second most expensive genuine Ferrari 250 TR sold at auction. It went under the hammer in 2009 with a winning bid of £8million. Inflation adjusted, that works out at £11million today. (Picture courtesy of RM Sotheby’s and Darin Schnabel)
The vintage-style clocks in the toy version have been modified to provide electric vehicle information, such as remaining range and battery temperature
It has been jointly designed by the Italian manufacturer’s Maranello styling centre in partnership with the British specialist firm using original design drawings held by Ferrari’s Classiche department
Suspension is taken care of with Bilstein coilover dampers and custom springs which were fine-tuned and signed off by Ferrari’s test divers at the Fiorano test track
The other ultra-expensive junior cars created by The Little Car Company in Oxfordshire
The Bicester-based firm specialises in building junior models.
It arguably received most coverage in July last year when it showcased its £53,000 Bugatti ‘Baby II’ based on the Type 35 racer.
The Bugatti Baby II is a model of its famous Type 35 racer which won the 1926 Grand Prix World Championship. The not-quite-full-size modern incarnation (pictured) is a toy and not intended to be used as a road-going vehicle
Also in 2020, it took the wraps off an equally-as-expensive shrunken version of the Bond-favourite Aston Martin DB5, produced in conjunction with the iconic British marque.
Earlier this year the British company announced it was switching from shrinking iconic vehicles to making them bigger with the announcement of a limited run of blown-up Tamiya Wild One remote control cars you can drive, each one costing around £7,200 and made road legal if requested.
For budding Bonds: Aston Martin and Bicester-based Little Car Company created a scaled-down electric replica of the legendary 1960s DB5. But it isn’t cheap, with the dinky electric car costing £54,000
Five used Ferraris you can grab for the same price as the Testa Rossa J
If you chose to spend your £95,000 on a full-size second-hand Ferrari instead, you could get your hands on some impressive motors indeed.
To see which Italian stallions were listed for the same price, This is Money took to used car listings.
A quick scan of Auto Trader showed the same outlay could land you a 2008 599 GTB F1 Fiorano with a six-litre V12 motor under the bonnet that produces 612bhp and has just over 28,000 miles on the clock.
Or how about a 2007 F430 Spider F1? You can grab a V8-powered, 4.3-litre, 193mph open-top beauty for £95,000 with a mere 11,000 miles on the clock.
Which used Ferraris could you pick up for £95,000? How about this 2008 599 GTB F1 Fiorano (left) or how about a 2007 F430 Spider F1 (right) with a mere 11,000 miles on the clock?
Also for a similar price you can travel back three decades in time to pick up a 1988 328 3.2 GTS convertible with just less than 26,000 miles covered in its lifetime.
Our top picks, if given £95,000 to spend on a second-hand Ferrari, would be one of these next two cars.
The first is a one-owner-from-new 360 Modena F1 currently for sale with less than 3,000 miles covered since 2000.
Or, if we wanted to live out our Out Run arcade fantasies from the nineties, a 1998 R-reg F355 Berlinetta GTB with 34,000 miles clocked in 23 years.
Whichever one of these five cars you choose, they will definitely offer more than 37mph flat out.
An outlay of £95k will get you a 1988 328 3.2 GTS convertible with just less than 26,000 miles covered in its lifetime (left). This 1998 R-reg F355 Berlinetta GTB (right) with 34,000 miles clocked in 23 years also costs the same as the new toy replica
This one-owner-from-new 360 Modena F1 is currently for sale on AutoTrader with less than 3,000 miles covered since 2000
