Any regular reader of Motor Authority will be familiar with the Ferrari P4/5 by Pininfarina. The coach-built creation stunned the automotive world at its debut back in 2006, including Ferrari, which was so enamored that the automaker recognized the car as an official Ferrari.
However, the Enzo-based P4/5 by Pininfarina is only the latest in a long series of officially recognized coach-built Ferraris that dates back to the earliest days of the Prancing Horse. For instance, in the 1990s, there was the Ferrari Conciso.
1989 Ferrari 328 GTS Conciso
Based on the bones of a Ferrari 328 GTS, the Conciso was the brainchild of German designer Bernd Michalak, who was the car's first owner. The current owner is Italian Franco Valobra, who recently brought it by Jay Leno's Garage.
Aside from the radically different shape, which many describe as resembling a shoe, the body is made entirely from aluminum to shed pounds. We're talking an 800-pound weight reduction, bringing the final figure down to about 1,960 pounds.
1989 Ferrari 328 GTS Conciso
Looking for doors? There aren't any, and the driver has to do their best hop and jump to enter the Conciso. A fixed roof? It's a convertible only. And the windshield? Frameless for driving pleasure, not for safety.
On the inside, the 328 GTS Conciso is pretty barren with a driver-focused cockpit, save for the fact that the most important gauges, the speedometer and tachometer, are offset to the right. But, if the driver wants to see the oil temperature and fuel level, that's directly front and center.
1989 Ferrari 328 GTS Conciso
The powertrain remains all-Ferrari, naturally, with a 3.2-liter V-8 mounted transversely in the rear and producing around 270 horsepower. A 5-speed manual handles shifting duties. At the time, a 328 GTS could crack 0-60 mph in 5.9 seconds, but the time should be better with the Conciso's weight savings.
Yes, it may look a bit weird, perhaps even a bit wacky, but the Ferrari Conciso is a serious performance car with an extreme ethos that leaves many modern supercars and even some hypercars in its shadow.
