Ferrari does not acknowledge the existence of F40 LM Barchetta

Rare ONES - The car that we will discuss below is unique and rare, why is that? Well, even though it's built on the legendary Ferrari model of 1980s, it was not allowed to wear the Prancing Horse badge, due to its existence has never been acknowledged by the Maranello-based manufacturer. It's so sad, like an unwanted child.😢 

The Ferrari F40 LM Barchetta or F40 'Beurlys' was originally built based on the legendary Ferrari F40 LM number 19. (Picture from: Monochrome-Watches)

But don't be cry yet, okay. Although Ferrari has never acknowledged its existence, the car known as the Ferrari F40 LM Barchetta or F40 'Beurlys' was originally built based on the legendary Ferrari F40 LM.

For those of you who are supercar fans, especially Ferrari, you must understand the Ferrari F40, which was made in the 1980s and is known to be one of the most special supercars in the history of the world's automobiles, then there's also racing version called the F40 LM, which only 19 units were ever produced worldwide.

A 1987 road-legal version of the Ferrari F40. (Picture from: Monochrome-Watches)

Well, the unfortunate car that was not acknowledged by Ferrari was originally the F40 LM number 19 which was ever driven by Jean Alesi and Jean-Pierre Jabouille in the racing arena, both famous in Formula 1. After retiring from the racing world, the car was bought by Jean 'Beurlys' Blaton, a Belgian billionaire with a passion for cars (there's also another version said that the car was given to Jean Blaton as a farewell gift).

The brutal LM version of the Ferrari F40, for race purposes. (Picture from: Monochrome-Watches)

As quoted of Monochrome-Watches, Jean Blaton is a former driver who has ever raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans more than fifteen times, mostly with Ferrari. He was dissatisfied with the one-in-nineteen car he considered the 'regular' car any fellow billionaires could afford, and wanted his car to be unique.

To make his wish come true, he assigned the job to Belgian automaker Tony Gillett, who later built the Gillet Vertigo. Besides that, he also contacted Michelotto who was involved in the F40 LM variant development to oversee the rebuilding of the Blaton's Ferrari F40 LM Barchetta.

The Ferrari F40 LM Barchetta or F40 'Beurlys' built by Belgian automaker Tony Gillet under supervised of Michelotto and commissioned of Jean 'Beurlys' Blaton. (Picture from: Monochrome-Watches)

In short, the car rebuilding work was carried out immediately with cut-off the roof, the bodywork was altered again and then the competition windshield was installed, the engine restrictor was removed, the exhaust was rerouted to exit on the side, the roll-cage was installed and the chassis was upgraded with F1-style pushrod suspension. Then after the the bodywork construction process was completed, then it was painted in yellow, the official historic racing color for Belgium.

Then what about the performance? After the engine restrictor is removed, so that allows its Tipo F120 B Twin-Turbocharged V8 engine to exhale full power up to 760-horses which are then able to make the F40 'Beurlys' running up to a maximum speed of 368.54 kph. Can you imagine if you drive at such a high speed with a roofless car? You would be shocked if those speeding sensation tears off your skin.😀

The Ferrari F40 LM Barchetta or F40 'Beurlys' is powered by Tipo F120 B Twin-Turbocharged V8 engine capable exhale full power up to 760-horses. (Picture from: Monochrome-Watches)

Well, to set it apart from its 18 siblings, apart from not wearing the Prancing Horse badge, the F40 'Beurlys' also doesn't have the 'F40' label, which is usually stamped into one of the uprights of the massive rear wing. This is a common practice done by Ferrari, who is known to be so protective of its cars that a change of this magnitude disqualify it as a Ferrari product, and as a consequence, the car in question was required to remove all Prancing Horse badge, Ferrari logo and trim.

Furthermore, its data was also scrapped from the Maranello-based car company's archives and deemed "lost", although most of its history is known. Regarding to this F40, what is certain since then Jean 'Beurlys' Blaton was never again allowed to own the Prancing Horse badged sportscar until he died in 2020.😮

Such a kind of powerfull drivetrain will propel the F40 'Beurlys' from 0 to 100 kph in around 3.1 sec and can make it run up to a top speed of 368.54 kph. (Picture from: Monochrome-Watches)

As quoted of Jalopnik, in 2005, the F40 'Beurlys' had a chance to be auctioned in France along with 41 other cars of Jean Blaton's collection. Reportedly at that time the car was expected to sell around $190,000 to $245,000, but unfortunately it was not sold. Until now it's unknown whether Jean Blaton is still the owner of F40 'Beurlys' or has changed hands, but it appeared during an official Ferrari track day a couple of years ago.

Besides that, there are several other versions of the story related to the F40 LM Barchetta, as stated that the F40 Barchetta is not Ferrari F40 and that is actually a tube-framed, fiberglass replica that is powered by unspecified Alfa Romeo machines.😧 There's another story says that the car was commissioned by Jean Blaton and built by the Italian-Swiss team under the supervision of Argentina-born engineers, Mario Navarrete, a former technician of the Coloni F1 team. Its powertrain comes from the destroyed F40 but in this configuration produces 650 horsepower.😏

Finally, whatever the story was, the F40 IMSA LM Barchetta or F40 'Beurlys' is an interesting historical anomaly to discuss, although Ferrari firmly does not acknowledge it as its official model. While in our opinion (hopefully you would agree) that the car is a cool roadster version of F40.😎 *** [EKA | FROM VARIOUS SOURCES | MONOCHROME-WATCHES | JALOPNIK ]

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