If you’re a Ferrari fan, you probably know quite a bit about the company. But if you’re just beginning to enter the world of high-performance Italian sports cars, there are quite a few facts about Ferrari that may surprise you! In this list, we’ll go over some of the surprising facts that you probably never knew about this exotic supercar company.

The world has gone crazy for trucks and SUVs, accounting for 67% of all automotive sales in recent statistics – and this trend has not seemed to slow down, despite the fact that gas prices are rising again.

But while supercar rivals like Maserati, Bentley, Audi, Porsche, and even Lamborghini have begun developing SUVs and crossover cars, Ferrari has – so far – stayed true to their racing roots.

As of now, Ferrari has never made an SUV – or even a four-door sedan. The company is exclusively focused on high-performance race cars, and is seemingly uninterested in competing in the crossover/SUV/sedan space.

Here’s another fun fact – while most other companies do not own their own test tracks, Ferrari has one that’s reserved for their exclusive use – The Pista di Fiorano, or “Fiorano” for short. This high-intensity, 1.86 mile track is located in the heart of Italy, and is used to test every element of new Ferrari cars – from braking, to ability to hold the road, chassis durability and flex, and much more. It’s used for both their Formula 1 race cars, “track cars” like the FXX-K, and during the development of all of their road legal cars.

3. Ferrari Is Probably Newer Than You Think 

Think the history of Ferrari stretches back to the beginning of cars? You’d be wrong. Ferrari is not as old as other well-known Italian manufacturers like Bugatti, Alfa Romeo, FIAT, and Lancia. It was founded in 1939 – and only Lamborghini and Pagani are newer. 

While Ferrari is often talked about with reverence, it’s not even 100 years old – but has quickly become one of the ultimate supercar companies in the world.

As mentioned above, Lamborghini is quite a bit younger than Ferrari, having been founded in 1963. As the legend goes, Ferruccio Lamborghini, the founder of the company, was experiencing issues with a Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2 that he owned – allegedly, with the behavior of the clutch. 

Ferruccio Lamborghini owned a tractor manufacturing business. Upon meeting Enzo Ferrari, the founder of Ferrari, he mentioned the issue he had with his car – and, as the tale goes, Enzo Ferrari said “Stick to making tractors, I’ll stick to making cars.”

Shortly thereafter, Lamborghini was founded – and it has quickly become a top competitor among Italian supercars.

Pagani, the newest Italian supercar company founded in 1992, can also track its founding back to Ferrari. Horacio Pagani, who founded the company, left Lamborghini in 1992 to start the company, and began making hypercars such as the Zonda C12.

So, without Ferrari’s faulty Ferrari 250 GTE 2+2, Lamborghini may have never started making supercars – and Pagani would likely never have been formed! 

Enzo Ferrari, the founder of the company, was out on a mission to build the very best race cars on the planet, and dominate motorsport competitions in Europe. Originally, the “street cars” of Ferrari were an afterthought, and only developed and sold to fund racing projects.

According to Ferrari staff, Enzo Ferrari found these street cars to be a “necessary evil” but never wanted them to be a focus of the company. That may seem hard to believe, now that Ferrari street cars like the Enzo Ferrari and LaFerrari are the most well-known types of Ferrari! 

The history of Italian supercar manufacturers is certainly interesting for any automotive enthusiast – and we hope we’ve given you some facts you didn’t know about, in this article, and helped you understand the history of Ferrari a little better!