2001 Ferrari 550 WSR

Please note the cherished registration is not included in the sale.

Front-engined V12 Ferrari Grand Tourers have always been the stuff of legend since the days of the original 365 GTB/4 Daytona back in the early 1970s. This evolution has included the famous 456 model which was superseded in July 1996 by the Pininfarina designed 550 Maranello. Featuring a 485bhp, 5,474cc DOHC V-12 engine with Bosch Motronic fuel injection, six-speed manual transmission, independent front and rear suspension with unequal-length A-arms and coil springs, and four-wheel ventilated Brembo disc brakes with ABS, this was indeed a driver's car.

The Ferrari 550 also enjoyed a great amount of success in competition, often in collaboration with those talented race engineers from Prodrive in Banbury, and in October 1998, Ferrari sent a lightly modified version to a 12-kilometre oval test track in Columbus, Ohio and set three new world records as follows:

- A distance of 100 miles covered at an average speed of 190.2mph.

- A distance of 100 kilometres at an average speed of 188.9mph.

- Driving for one hour at an average speed of 184mph.

To celebrate these records, Ferrari built 33 road cars to the exact specification of the record-setting car. They differed from the standard 550M by being fitted with the Fiorano handling pack, leather-trimmed roll cage, suede-covered steering wheel and carbon bucket seats with Daytona stitching and race harnesses. Other changes included the Scuderia wing shields, throaty sports exhaust, Corsa brake callipers, Bordeaux carpets and a 'WSR' plaque.

This stunning car is thought to be the penultimate World Speed Record 550 manufactured by Ferrari and one of very few finished in Rosso Corsa, the majority being painted in Grigio Titanio with a Bordeaux interior. The car was imported from Italy and can best be described as being in unmarked condition. Since purchasing the WSR in March 2015 to add to his impressive collection, our vendor has used it lightly, covering less than 2,000km in this period, and the odometer now indicates 41,532km. Naturally, despite it's infrequent usage, the Ferrari has been fastidiously maintained and the all important cambelt was replaced about a year ago, fully detailed in the car's lovingly kept history file. Any inspection will confirm that this 550 is a stunning and clearly much loved example in every respect, the coachwork is  original and in excellent order retaining a deep shine and the beige interior is also completely original and unblemished. The car is now registered in the UK and will have a fresh MOT prior to the sale. Due to the rarity of the Ferrari 550 World Speed Record Edition, this left-hand drive, low mileage example is most definitely one for the serious Ferrari collector.

Please note the cherished registration is not included in the sale.