Ferrari 599-Based SA Aperta Convertible to Debut at Paris Auto Show

Colum Wood
by Colum Wood

To celebrate Pininfarina’s 80th anniversary, Ferrari has released its most exclusive vehicle ever – the SA Aperta. The name itself is in honor of Sergio and Andrea Pinfarina and just 80 of the vehicles will be built – all of which have already been sold. For the record, that’s just a fifth of the production of the notoriously rare Enzo.

Power comes from the same engine found in the 599 GTO, with 670-hp on tap from Ferrari’s incredible 6.0-liter V12 engine. In addition, Ferrari claims their engineers managed to remove the roof of the car, while retaining the structural rigidity and adding only a “negligible” amount of additional weight.

The body itself features a lower windscreen than the 599 and has a lowered suspension, while the two rollbars mimic the design of the seats and flow backwards into two aerodynamically designed bulges.

Ferrari will officially debut the SA Aperta at the Paris Auto Show, so be sure to check back for AutoGuide’s complete coverage starting September 30th.

GALLERY: Ferrari SA Aperta

Official release after the jump:

PRESS RELEASE

The SA APERTA – the most exclusive Ferrari ever takes centre stage at Paris. A new V12 to celebrate Pininfarina’s 80th anniversary.

Maranello, 24th September 2010 – Ferrari is delighted to announce the presentation of the SA APERTA at the Paris International Motor Show 2010. This is a special series model of which a strictly limited number of just 80 will be built. All have already been sold. Ferrari chose to build 80 SA APERTAs in celebration of Pininfarina’s 80th anniversary. The SA nomenclature also pays homage to both Sergio and Andrea Pininfarina whose company and work have been linked to the most successful road-going cars ever built at Maranello.

The SA APERTA is a true roadster which allows its occupants to enjoy the superlative emotions afforded by our signature front-engined V12 architecture in a completely open-top setting. In fact, it has just a light soft top designed to be resorted to only if the weather gets particularly bad. A low-slung windscreen and the fact that it crouches lower to the ground than our other models lend the SA APERTA an exceptionally aerodynamic sleekness. Its profile arches back from the A-post to two aerodynamic fins beautifully integrating the two roll-bars which themselves cleverly mimic the outline of the seats.

The chassis has been redesigned to deliver a standard of stiffness comparable to that of a closed berlinetta and there is a negligible weight difference also, thanks to work done on the chassis structure.

Thanks to the 670 CV engine beneath its bonnet, the SA APERTA beautifully embodies the sporty spirit of the 599, incorporating Ferrari’s most advanced technology to deliver absolutely benchmark performance and superb driving pleasure. Its interior too is stylishly sporty with particularly sophisticated materials, trim and colours used throughout. The virtually endless combinations available guarantee that each and every SA APERTA is absolutely unique.

Colum Wood
Colum Wood

With AutoGuide from its launch, Colum previously acted as Editor-in-Chief of Modified Luxury & Exotics magazine where he became a certifiable car snob driving supercars like the Koenigsegg CCX and racing down the autobahn in anything over 500 hp. He has won numerous automotive journalism awards including the Best Video Journalism Award in 2014 and 2015 from the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada (AJAC). Colum founded Geared Content Studios, VerticalScope's in-house branded content division and works to find ways to integrate brands organically into content.

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