For many owning a Ferrari is a dream come true, if you manage to get your hands on one of the limited-edition models that feeling is taken to the next level, but there is one more step to take … if money really isn’t an issue, and you can literally write a blanc cheque, and you are a VIP customer that already owns multiple cars made in Maranello, you might be able to get a meeting with Ferrari’s Special Projects Programme … the in-house department that creates unique Ferraris, the so-called ‘One-Off’ units that are tailor-made to the clients’ requests and boast an exclusive design nobody else will be able to order, just keep in mind, exclusivity has a price.
Ferrari unveiled their latest Special Programme one-off for a special customer, the SP48 Unica, which we all know is Italian for unique, right? And we get it, the styling isn’t to everyone’s taste if we check out the reactions on social media, but that is completely irrelevant in this case, the SP48 Unica has been built to the exact specifications of the customer, who had an idea and came to Ferrari with it, that idea was developed into detailed blueprints and a styling buck with the help of Ferrari’s Styling Centre.
This process takes about a year or longer, and all the time the customer is kept closely in the loop, before the first bolt is turned, the client will have to assess the progress with multiple verification phases along the way, and after more than 12 months the process goes into the final stages with actually building the unique Ferrari for one specific person, the result is a truly unique car to wear the Prancing Horse logo with proud, and make no mistake, creating a one-off takes this long because they are engineered to the same level as the production cars leaving Maranello.
The SP48 Unica is a two-seater Berlinetta, not a Spider, and she has been designed by the Ferrari Styling Centre with Flavio Manzoni as the Chief Design Officer, based upon the magnificent Ferrari F8 Tributo platform but with a completely bespoke design, her aggressive stance makes her instantly recognizable, but still oozes with respect to the original model thanks to the arrow-shaped front profile, but the SP48 Unica comes with a completely redesigned set of headlights and relocated air intakes in the bumper for the front disk brakes.
There might have been several hand-drawn proposals made to the client, but in the end, Ferrari Styling Centre turns to procedural-parametric modelling techniques and extensive 3D prototyping to redesign the entire front grille and air intake from the base model, the 3D grilles seem to have been carved from a solid piece of carbon fiber, thus creating a fluid dynamics look, add the black windows, roof, and engine cover that gradually turns to the Rosso bodycolor makes the entire car look as if she’s cut from a solid piece of metal.
It is clear the new Ferrari SP48 Unica boasts an impressive thermal-fluid-dynamic design, which has been gradually perfected during development to make sure all cooling requirements are met and still come up with a bespoke aerodynamic balance. Compared to the Ferrari F8 Tributo, the SP48 Unica comes with integrated air intakes on the front bumper and beneath the rear spoiler that actually cool the engine mounted behind the occupants, those deep procedural grilles, in which every section is optimally angled to maximize airflow also look stunning. The intake behind the side windows doesn’t cool the engine but directs cool air onto an intercooler intake immediately behind the side windows, this allowed the designers to use smaller intakes on the flanks.
On the interior of the SP48 Unica, the F8 Tributo’s technical identity was kept, but this one-off doesn’t have a rear window, so that one has been deleted, but Ferrari’s Styling Centre was heavily involved in creating a perfect combination of color and trim to reflect the SP48 Unica’s sleek, sporty and aggressive personality. This clearly shows in the exclusive black laser-perforated Alcantara® found on the beautiful seats and other parts of the trim, by putting a contrasting red/orange fabric underneath this perforation you see a shimmer of color on these sections, that shade has been chosen to mimic the very iridescent exterior shade.
The motif reminds us of the hexagonal motif on the grilles and the procedural livery on the roof, taking styling queues from the exterior into the cockpit, adding the polished sill covers with a similar laser-embossed hexagonal motif, matte carbon-fiber parts inside the car to bring another touch of technicality and exclusivity, a final detail is the intricate use of Grigio Canna di Fucile accents for a really amazing overall look inside this one-off bespoke build, just as it should be.
Make sure to check out the official ‘Beauty footage’ video for the Ferrari SP48 Unica below, followed by additional photos:
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