Ferrari has done it again. It’s just made another stunning, breathtakingly beautiful car as the Ferrari Daytona SP3. If you’ve been paying attention to its mediocre 2021 F1 season, it should come as no surprise. A rough season usually indicates a dazzling road car from Ferrari on the horizon. This time it’s unlike anything else from the Modena-based automaker and yet strangely familiar. It’s aggressive and bold, shocking and exciting. The Ferrari Daytona SP3 is next in line for the automaker’s “Icona” series, which is Ferrari’s attempt to capture the good ol’ days with some contemporary style. Here’s the latest in Ferrari-sparked nostalgia. Frankly, these renders don’t do it justice.

The Ferrari Daytona SP3 echoes the past

Where the Monza SP1 and SP2 were homages to Ferrari racing cars from the mid-’50s, the Daytona SP3 hearkens back to the Ferrari prototypes of the late 1960s and early ‘70s. In 1967 Ferrari saw victory at the 24 Hours of Daytona for the International World SportsCar Championship. The Daytona SP3 aims to reframe the same magic of victory Ferrari tasted in 1967. 

The Daytona SP3 has lots of power

The Ferrari Daytona SP3 adopted the 812 Competizione’s 6.5-liter F140HC V12, relocated to the mid-rear. It’s the most powerful engine Ferrari has ever built at 840 cheval vapeur (CV-or 830 horsepower), mated to a 7-speed transmission. Titanium rods, new pistons, and a lighter crankshaft help the engine rev to 9,500 RPM. The new F140HC also boasts a new variable-length intake system and a variable oil pressure system, which controls the oil pressure across the rev range.

Designed like an F1 car

Everything about the Daytona SP3 is meticulously plotted. The driver’s seat is integrated into the chassis, providing a lower driving position, which Ferrari states keeps the car’s height at a minimum, thereby reducing drag. Drivers can control 80-percent of the car’s functions from the steering wheel and monitor the car from a 16-inch screen. Ferrari spared no expense on the cockpit. With a carbon-fiber tub and doors and Kevlar sprinkled throughout, drivers can feel as safe as an F1 driver. 

Similarities continue with Daytona SP3 aerodynamics

Just by looking at it, you can see all the research that went into developing the SP3’s aerodynamics. Everything is used to generate downforce and maximize grip, which the driver will desperately need with the new powerplant. There are intakes for the brakes, the engine, and the gearbox. 

The front bumpers help reduce drag as well as the wheels. It even has barge boards, just like an F1 car, to redirect and therefore help reduce drag. Ferrari also employed front vortex generators to further reduce the effect of the wheel wake. We also can’t forget the rear spoiler, which uses floor chimneys to increase downforce. 

No doubt Ferrari has created a monster of a track car. You can bank on the Daytona SP3’s price matching that of a house in Silicon Valley, but be that as it may, we’re excited to see this F1 road car in action. If only Ferrari could put this much time and effort into its F1 team, it might start winning again.