Michael SatterfieldPhotos by Quentin Martinez
Somewhere between Tuscany’s timeless hill towns and Ferrari’s hometown of Maranello, the Ferrari F50 reminded us of its place in the pantheon of analog supercars. The F50 Legacy Tour, a multi-day journey through Italy’s most evocative landscapes, wasn’t just a road trip; it was a rolling tribute to one of Ferrari’s most misunderstood and underappreciated hypercars.
In an age dominated by hybrid tech, electronic awd, and digital dashboards, the F50 represents a bygone era when supercars came with a six-speed manual transmission, a naturally aspirated 4.7-liter V12 lifted straight from Ferrari’s 1990 Formula 1 car, and no power steering. The F50 has no driver aids, it is just raw, unfiltered performance. Built to celebrate Ferrari’s 50th anniversary in 1995, only 349 examples were made, making the assembly of 22 of them in one location for this event an extraordinary feat.
F50 Legacy Tour Day One: A Symphony in Carbon Fiber
The tour began in the quiet spa town of Terme di Saturnia, in the province of Grosseto. The morning mist clung to the rolling Tuscan hills like a silk scarf, and the sky brooded with heavy clouds. But even under a subdued sky, the F50s cut a striking figure, especially the four Giallo Modena examples, their canary yellow bodies glowing against the grey landscape like high-octane sunbursts. Among them, a single Argento Nurburgring F50 added a silver streak of rarity; just four of that color were ever made.
Drivers fired up their V12s, the subtle bark of the factory exhausts mingling with the gentle hum of the countryside. The first leg of the journey covered 142 miles, tracing a sinuous loop from Saturnia through the coastal beauty of Porto Santo Stefano, along cliffside roads that drop dramatically into the Tyrrhenian Sea. Locals stopped to stare as the parade of carbon-fiber-bodied machines thundered past, their presence not aggressive, but surreal.
The F50, often overlooked in favor of its turbocharged predecessor, the F40, or its Enzo-branded successor, is something of a sleeper in Ferrari history. But out here, in motion, with its roof panel off and the wind rolling through the cabin, it shows its true nature: visceral, exotic, and impossibly alive.
F50 Legacy Tour Day Two: Through the Heart of Tuscany
The next morning, the clouds still lingered, but the mood among the drivers was electric. This day would cover 161 miles, winding through the Chianti region and into the heart of Siena before finishing in Florence. Tuscany’s roads seemed tailor-made for the F50’s mid-engine layout—tight hairpins, fast sweepers, and narrow village passes that demand precision.
The convoy rolled into Siena like a crimson, yellow, and silver comet. Locals leaned out of windows to film the spectacle. Children waved. And the cars, normally seen parked in collectors’ garages or on concours lawns, were covered in a fine mist of road grime. Inside, drivers and passengers were smiling from ear to ear.
The mood soured only briefly when the group encountered over an hour of traffic trying to reach Florence, the summer heat clashing with Italian impatience. Even in an F50, bumper-to-bumper traffic is still bumper-to-bumper traffic. But spirits lifted as the cars reached their hotel, parked under heavy security in the heart of Florence like museum pieces granted one night of freedom.
F50 Legacy Tour Day Three: The Climb to Maranello
Day three of the F50 Legacy Tour was perhaps the most magical. Departing Florence at dawn, the convoy wound its way into the Apennine Mountains, carving through the forests around Cutigliano. These tight, twisting roads echoed with the high-revving wail of the Tipo F130B V12, an engine that traces its lineage directly to the 1990 Ferrari 641 F1 car.
Here, the F50 seemed most at home: no billboards, no crowds, just pine trees and pavement, the car’s naturally aspirated engine singing through the hills. In these moments, the F50 felt like what it was always meant to be, not a collector’s trophy, but a purebred machine designed to deliver the closest thing to a Formula 1 experience on the road.
Arriving in Maranello, the group gathered at the Ferrari factory, holy ground for tifosi and owners alike. There was a collective hush as they rolled through the gates. For many, this was a pilgrimage, an emotional homecoming.
F50 Legacy Tour: Finale at Fiorano
The grand finale took place at the Fiorano Circuit, Ferrari’s private testing track. Opened in 1972, Fiorano is where every Ferrari road and race car since has been honed and perfected. Today, it would echo with the symphony of 22 F50s lapping in unison. I had the honor of driving the new 296 GTB at Fiorano last year, but seeing 22 F50s on the legendary track would be something to behold.
Watching the cars dance through Fiorano’s hairpins and straights was nothing short of transcendent. The F50’s long wheelbase and active aero, a pioneering feature at the time, made it feel planted and poised. But the sound stole the show: mechanical, unfiltered, and utterly intoxicating. At full throttle, the F50 doesn’t scream like the F40, it howls, a sound soaked in drama and velocity.
As the sun dipped low and the final laps were completed, there was a sense of reluctant closure. This wasn’t just a gathering, it was a living tribute, a celebration of engineering purity, and a reminder that not all legacies belong in museums.
A Legacy Reaffirmed
The Ferrari F50 has always been something of an enigma. Less photogenic than the F40. Less headline-grabbing than the Enzo. But for those who know, for those who’ve driven it, it may be the purest Ferrari of them all.
On the roads of Tuscany, across the ancient cities of Siena and Florence, and on the sacred tarmac of Fiorano, the F50 found its voice once again, not through marketing or nostalgia, but through motion.
It reminded us that legacy isn’t built in static displays or auction blocks, it’s forged in the rhythm of the open road, the scream of a V12 at 8,500 rpm, and the silent grin of a driver who knows they’re behind the wheel of something truly legendary.
Enjoy More Photos by Quentin Martinez of the 2025 F50 Legacy Tour below:
Awesome! Its genuinely remarkable to see that many F50s in one spot, let me know if you need any help on the next one.