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The Ferrari F355 Challenge is the one car I wished I hadn’t sold. The Challenge package transformed Maranello’s mid-engined marvel into a racecar for the road. First by, removing the “luxury bits”: door panels, carpet, radio, air conditioning and comfortable seats. Second, by adding these:
- Lightweight exhaust
- Rear wing
- Competition clutch
- 14-inch Brembo brakes
- 18-inch Speedline magnesium wheels
- Solid suspension bushings and competition springs
- Front and rear brake cooling ducts
- Challenge black perforated rear grille
- Lightened front bumper
- Front and rear tow hooks
- Roll cage
- Genuine Challenge FIA racing bucket seats (x2)
- OMP safety harnesses
- Fire extinguisher
- Engine cut-off switch
- Manual radiator fan control and upgraded fans
- Genuine Challenge competition three-spoke steering wheel.
The Challenge cars were designed to compete in a single-marque “gentleman’s race series.” Ferrari launched the millionaire’s and billionaire’s competition in Europe in ’93, followed by North America (’94) and Japan (‘95). Initially, Ferrari sold the racing parts for customer conversion. In ’96, the factory constructed race-ready cars (and boxed-up the replaced parts for buyers). The exact number isn’t known, but somewhere between 40 to 50 F355 Challenge cars are out there, somehwere.
Obviously, most of these cars were beaten to death on the track (it doesn’t take much to trash a 355). Shock horror! Some owners only flogged their F355B Challenge car on the occasional track day. OMG! Some never turned a wheel in anger!
No matter what the case use, a well-preserved/restored F355 Challenge is a future grail. For the way it looks, for the way it drives, and, especially, the way it sounds. The F355 Challenge’s high-revving F1-style soundtrack must be heard to be believed.
In 2015, I bought a 20-year-old example for $100K. There was no better feeling than climbing over the rollbar, nestling into the race seat and firing-up the naturally-aspirated V8 (sometimes I’d climb in the window, ’cause I could). Sure half-an-hour was enough – but what a half-hour!
Ferraris with racing connections always bring a premium. OK, sure, the F355 Challenge raced against itself. But still. And if Gen-Xers are stumping-up $1m for a Lamborghini Countach that blows hot air conditioning, there’s a market for Ferrari’s wildly impractical F355 Challenge. Especially for those who played Ferrari F355 Challenge: Passione Rossa on their Playstation 2.
The highest price paid for an F355 Challenge that I can find: $236k. The lowest: $80k (must have been a real fixer-upper). Classic.com shows the road-going race cars hovering around the $200k mark. Although an F355 Challenge can cost half that to maintain/restore/insure over five years, I say this will be a $650k car by 2027.
