I think that we can all agree that the car that shaped the supercar landscape of today is the Ferrari F40. Not only was it the first proper and true supercar, but it spruced a whole line of successors, each of which was a breakthrough in its own right. Now, more than 30 years since its inception, we are still praising it for its remarkable technological proves and astounding performance. However, one guy – an automotive designer – went a bit further and actually reimagined the Ferrari F40 using the styling cues of the modern Ferrari cars. He made sure that the car he designed resonates with the extrovertness of the old one, but also with the sophistication that new Ferrari supercars/hypercars brought to the world. Samir Sadikhov, a graduate of the Istituto Europeo di Design, invested heavily in designing the Ferrari F40 tribute. He did it in his own time as he is currently employed as a designer at Genesis. Previously, he worked on a line of astounding Rezvani cars. Yet, if you are deep within the world of cars, you may know him for a number of astounding designs he did over the years.

Nevertheless, this particular Ferrari F40 seems like one of his most striking works.

Exterior

Unveiled with more than 30 different rendered pictures, we can see the Ferrari F40 tribute in two different guises – in red and in black. I am more of a "black car" kind of guy, but the red on this Ferrari most certainly evokes the best Maranello values. Now, its exterior truly does represent the basic characteristics of the F40 but bear in mind that Sadikhov wanted to make it as close to production Ferraris of today as possible.

The classic shape with a large rear wing, intakes on the shoulders, and pointy front end do remain, however, as the basic proportions of the Sadikhov reimagination. One may argue that he left slightly large openings on the front cover, but I believe that these openings could serve for cooling the brakes and creating an important aerodynamic surface which complements the needs for high downforce and low front drag coefficient. Also, the wheel size has been dramatically increased compared to anything seen on the original F40.

Framed rear lights, high rear spoiler in a simple design, and three exhausts are all a sort of a throwback to the original. Deeply cut diffusers, on the other hand, represent all that modern vehicle of this stature would need.

Interior

Sadikhov and the rendering team behind all of this did a fantastic job of reimagining the interior. While bathed with screens and modern touches, I can only say that the cabin has that Eighties feel to it.

Then, there are the seats. With a novel design, I can see them applied to proper racers. Actually, the McLaren Senna has somewhat similar seats with a carbon fiber basis and thin pads for comfort. Seats in the Ferrari F40 Tribute are a bit nicer, but still, I am sure Sadikhov imagined them as lightweight units, probably fixed inside of newly designed monocoque tub. Yup, Sadikhov went that far to design a monocoque tub for this machine. Amazing to say the least.

Drivetrain and Performance

As this is only a cool design exercise, Sadikhov did not really put a lot of thought into what could propel the F40 Tribute. Yet, on one of the pictures, behind the monocoque tub, one can see proper Ferrari machinery. No one tells us, however, what the engine in it truly should be. It looks a bit like the one from the 488 GTB, but only vaguely.

Let me visit the past a bit. Bear in mind; this is 1987 I am talking about. Back then, the Ferrari F40 was one of the fastest and the quickest things out there. All with a composite body, top speed of 199 mph, and 0-60 mph time of 4.5 seconds.

Thus, I have to consider that the Sadikhov machine has to be equally impressive. The 488 GTB engine with 700+ horsepower could do the trick, but the F40 Tribute is a Ferrari of the highest magnitude. I am thinking here about some kind of a hybrid propulsion. Not with a V-12 though. Something new, with a twin-turbocharged V-8 and 300+ horsepower electric motor.

Final Thoughts

Although only a rendering and a product of imagination, the Ferrari F40 Tribute by Samir Sadikhov is an astounding exercise in design. Sadikhov took more than a year to finish it. Of course, in his free time as he is actually a full-time employee of Genesis (Hyundai luxury brand). While a design like this is unlikely to ever appear on the roads, we can, at least, pray to the automotive gods and Sadikhov to produce small-scale models of it. I'd buy one.

Further reading

Read our full review on the 1987-1992 Ferrari F40.