One-off Ferrari SP48 Unica revealed

Ferrari has revealed its next one-off project, this time based on the mid-engined F8 Tributo. Called the SP48 Unica, it introduces a completely bespoke exterior body with a futuristic design only made possible by additive manufacturing techniques.

Like many of Ferrari’s one-off projects, the SP48 channels the underlying design language of its series production models, but takes certain elements and graphics and accentuates them to greater effect. In the case of the SP48, Ferrari’s designers have created a distinctive graphic from the windscreen, windows and roof panel that creates a unique aesthetic on top of familiar proportions.

By blocking out the A-pillars in black and then also drawing up the gloss black section up the roof panel, the glazing together creates a distinctive trident-like graphic that’s particularly dramatic from above. Where the side window glass terminates with a bespoke rear quarter light, the gloss black roof section eventually fades into a block stripe that then joins onto the low-set rear wing. In the voids on either side of this bodywork connection sit two ventilation outlets, mimicking the perforation pattern of the windscreen fade.

With only one model being constructed Ferrari is able to really focus on the fine detailing, such as the body-coloured roof panels that don’t just butt up against the windscreen glass, but inform the screen’s shape around the header rail, creating a very sleek junction between glass and carbon fibre. This sleek transition between materials is another theme that’s purveyed throughout the car’s design, with clever layering and junctions throughout the design.

Another example of this is around the nose, where Ferrari has used 3D printing processes in the prototyping phase to create seamless openings in the nose that form the front intakes. The clever bit is not the tessellated openings, rather the way that they slip behind a seamlessly integrated dropdown that houses a floating prancing horse.

The car’s flanks are also very different to the donor F8 Tributo, with an aggressive side opening that informs the surfacing right the way along the doors, followed by a very subtle haunch flair that ultimately terminates in that flat rear wing. The rear end is especially dramatic, with an inner volume dissected with a black strip which also integrates slim LED lighting. Finally, the five spoke wheel design is also new and bespoke, referencing other wheel designs used on the F8 and SF90.

The interior is shared with the F8, but features bespoke colour and trim elements on the seats and dash, while under the new carbon skin the same twin-turbocharged 3.9-litre V8, dual-clutch transmission and e-diff remain.

No pricing has been revealed, and as a one-off only the single unit has been produced. While this type of project doesn’t often relate to future products – it sometimes does include design motifs that reappear in future products.