Ferrari J50 Roadster

If you are a connoisseur of fine automobiles, you already know the breed well. A Ferrari is the supercar for the owner who seeks high performance with absolute top shelf exclusivity. Ferrari limited editions make the brand even more exclusive. This is a car one would proudly display at a Ferrari owner’s club event. A special celebration on December 12, 2016 at the National Art Center in Tokyo was held in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the Prancing Horse in Japan.

Ferrari unveiled a series of bespoke supercars built at a highly restricted pace. The star of the show was the Ferrari J50. Ferrari’s Styling Centre design team in Maranello tailored only 10 examples of this prolific supercar for Japan exclusively. This two-seat mid-rear engine roadster revived the elegant targa body style reminiscent of the cars built from the 1970s and 1980s. The totally avant-garde J50 roadster is the Prancing Horse in one of its most extreme designs. The J50’s lines effortlessly reflect its signature uncompromising balance of sportiness and innovation.

The architecture looks clearly to the future. Its design dynamics battle the wind with an aggressive aerodynamic profile. The J50’s distinctive personality encapsulates intrinsic Ferrari values of nimbleness and agility. Its low-slung design incorporates a significant number of active aerodynamic solutions. The rake of the windscreen header is lower to allow maximum airflow over the airfoil which continues over the rear spoiler. Muscular rear haunches and raised front wheel arches are typical of Ferrari mid-engine models. The J50 effectively manages the air flow all around the vehicle.

The front end design is functional as well as beautiful. Its sharp angular nose slices through the wind to maximize aerodynamic efficiency and increases downforce. Carbon fibre air channels and full LED headlamps add unique 21st Century panache. The “helmet visor” effect created by window graphics hints at Ferrari’s open competition barchettas of the 1950s. The black dividing line circling the nose ending into the door structure echoes styling cues from the classic GTO, F40, and F50 models.

The Ferrari J50’s overall design projects a dynamism of mobility - the car appears to be in motion even when it is not. The rear end ensemble boasts a high-downforce wing profile. An aggressively styled rear diffuser features an extractor shape inspired by jet engine afterburners. Adding to the J50’s dramatic styling tour de force is the transparent polycarbonate engine cover which proudly displays the ferocious naturally aspirated 3.9 litre twin-turbo V8 engine that won the overall International Engine of the Year award in 2016. A transverse aero foil projects as a bridge between the two separate roll hoops protecting the heads of driver and passenger, effectively revisits one of the most distinctive features of Ferrari sports prototypes of the 1960s.

The cabin also features 21st Century attitude. Steering wheel mounted controls allow instant access to the most important information keeping the driver focused upon the road ahead. Specific trim adorns the sports seats, echoing the design of the rear bonnet contour to provide an unmistakable signature feature. The carbon-fibre hard targa top is divided into two pieces which stow conveniently behind the seats.

The J50 presented at the launch in Tokyo is finished in a special shade of three-layer red with a red-over-black interior trimmed in fine leather and Alcantara. This is another Ferrari limited edition masterpiece.