If you look at it from a very broad view then you might think that Ferrari is just being petty and totally unreasonable. But if you think a bit more, then it looks just like another plain old tussle between Ferrari and McLaren. Well, not in a very obvious fashion, but the links are there. These two just can’t keep some distance, can they? From a legal point of view... well, I really don’t care as I never understood what most lawyers talk most of the time. So we will leave the legality out and just look at the facts.
The world’s fastest limousine is a 170mph stretch Ferrari and it is facing the chop after its original maker, Ferrari, threatened legal action against the bloke who ‘stretched’ it an inch too long for Ferrari’s liking. So they are basically taking the owner to the court room to the law for infringing its trademark. Stunned owner Dan Cawley has been ordered to remove all badges from the 20ft-long, 400bhp limo and told never to modify a Ferrari again. But Dan claims he approached Ferrari UK before he began the £200,000 conversion and was told he could “do what he liked” as the car was his own property.
Now I promised to give you a conspiracy theory and one that involved McLaren in an indirect fashion and so here it is. The car, which is rented out for £700 an hour, was created by Dan and former McLaren carbon fiber expert Chris Wright. See the link now? Not much, but it still is something to cling to for all you conspiracy buffs. It apparently took over a year to convert the £130,000 black 360 Modena, which was bought second hand for £55,000. The project was completed in September 2007. It claimed the Guinness World Record for fastest limousine - at 166mph - six months ago. But now, Ferrari does not like this whole new modification one bit.
So what are the Ferrari heads so upset about? According to the prancing horses, when a vehicle is manufactured by them, it is manufactured to the highest quality and safety standards and when a car is subsequently and substantially modified beyond its original design, Ferrari no longer considers such a modified vehicle to be a Ferrari. So basically it compromises the company’s standard and also makes it look irresponsible. Now I still do not see what all the fuss is about. Dan might as well remove all the badges and take put his name on it. I know the logo is so, so important being a Ferrari fanatic myself. But this really is petty from the stables of Maranello. Relax guys; the guy is not making a Ferrari cart run by a donkey to ruin your reputation.
