There’s something exciting about a fast car. The power, the presence, the noise, the sensations, it all just makes you want to let it off the leash a bit. However, before you do, you might want to consider the conditions. If it’s damp, cold, or both out, don’t get too exuberant, or you might bin it. That’s exactly what seems to have happened to this Ferrari F40, which was crashed in greasy conditions in the U.K. this week.
According to the Herts Advertiser, the crash happened on Thursday in Markyate, which is near Luton. In a statement to the newspaper, Hertfordshire police said “The driver has been taken to hospital for treatment, and the vehicle has been recovered.” The Mirror reports that the driver was a service technician, which would definitely make this one of the worst days at work ever.
Cold, damp weather in a powerful car on summer tires without any form of driver aids requires serious attention and restraint, and in this case, restraint wasn’t displayed. You can hear the F40 experience wheelspin while accelerating, and while wheelspin is usually a sign to gently back off the throttle, gently backing off the throttle doesn’t sound like it happened. It really looks like the driver kept their foot in it until the back end of the F40 kicked out, at which point another error occurred.
Greasy road, too low a gear, gap to the car in front, too much loud pedal and around she goes!
Silly bugger.#Ferrari #F40 pic.twitter.com/87FKuIxhRB
— _ (@DabOf0ppo) January 17, 2025
Judging by the video’s audio, it sounds like the driver of the F40 lifted abruptly once they realized the car was rotating. This is a bad move because lifting in an oversteer condition can often result in a spin, especially if the car has a small polar moment of inertia. Considering the F40’s mid-engined, that lift seems to have caused the back end to whip around violently, resulting in the carnage you see here.
As the F40 slams into the curb, a few things happen. The first curb strike with the front end exacerbates the spin, while the second curb strike with the rear tire flips the limited-run Ferrari onto its side, directly into a lamp post. The damage is quite brutal, with the front clamshell being ripped off and shoved underneath the car.
Potentially making matters worse, this might not be just any Ferrari F40. Right now, photos from the scene show the registration number F40PRX, and the car with that number plate is allegedly the highest mileage F40 in existence. While the car can certainly be rebuilt thanks in part to strong values on F40s of around $2 million for a decent one, a crash like this would certainly leave a mark on its history.
View this post on Instagram
As it stands, we wish the driver a speedy recovery, wish that owner can get their prized possession restored to tip-top condition, and hope this serves as a reminder to treat powerful cars with respect, particularly in suboptimal conditions. Things can go wrong quickly, and at the end of the day, it’s best to get home safely.
(Photo credits: X/Dabofoppo)
Support our mission of championing car culture by becoming an Official Autopian Member.
-
A Guy In Cleveland Is Tired Of Cars Running Into His House All The Time
-
Big Boy Gets Head Ripped Apart By Fire Hydrant, Holds Onto Cheeseburger, Becomes Fast-Food Mascot God
-
This Lugnut Shooting Through A Windshield Is A Reminder: Torque Your Damn Lugs
-
10 Things That Would Go Through My Mind If I Immediately Stuffed A $2.3 Million Lotus Into A Wall At Goodwood
-
$1.2 Million McLaren Senna Crashed Into Dealership, YouTuber Blamed
Please send tips about cool car things to tips@theautopian.com. You could even win a prize!
“As it stands, we wish the driver a speedy recovery”,no we don’t. Some pain and suffering is deserved at least.
Stupid should hurt.
Well if Richard Losee can put 30000 miles on an Enzo, do this to it , note, it is an engine out situation and then fix it up and put another 65,000 miles on it, this F40 will be fine.
https://www.hagerty.co.uk/articles/interviews/i-crashed-my-enzo-at-200mph-rebuilt-it-and-added-another-65000-high-speed-miles/
Or just take the 2 million dollar insurance check, you sir are not tom Selleck
Selleck wouldn’t fit. Ferrari took the padding out of the 308’s seat and bolted it to the floor and the roof still would not fit over his head. That’s why you hardly ever see him sitting in the car, because his head is so far above the windshield.
So many armchair experts. How many people commenting actually have a drivers license?
This isn’t the Yahoo news comments section, so… probably all. You don’t just stumble upon the Autopian as a non enthusiast.
Yahoo news? Ok boomer.
Ok, child. Asking if we have licenses on an automotive enthusiast website is very engaging. Thank you.
Really? That’s your come back? Let me know when you’ve hit puberty.
I am sorry that you are the way you are. Good luck with that.
Really? I’m not, I’m also not sorry you are the way you are, because, I don’t care. Thanks for playing.
*”I don’t care”
**replies 10 days later like some fucking lunatic cringelord
And yet, here you are, desperate to get in the last word, but with absolutely no game.
I don’t know how to handle a powerful, mid-engined car (except from having read threads like these for a decade; but that’s not quite the same as seat-of-the-pants feel and experience) which is why I would never boot the throttle in something like this.
Or perhaps the tire pressure was off? Make sure to always use a digital tire pressure gauge.
Always quick to blame. For all we know, the owner told the mechanic “Sometimes the rear end feels like it’s about to break loose. Can you duplicate the problem to see what’s wrong?” And they did. Successfully.