Remember the Ferrari 550 Maranello? Touring Superleggera certainly does. Its latest creation takes the 1990s V12 GT, reworks almost everything and turns it into an open-top grand tourer called the Veloce12 Aperta. It is the third member of Touring Superleggera’s Veloce12 resto-modded family, following the Coupe and Barchetta. All three are based on the Ferrari 550 Maranello, but the Aperta is built to celebrate Touring Superleggera’s 100th anniversary.
The Aperta gets two removable roof panels that can be stored in a bespoke compartment within the car. An aluminium arch sits behind the cabin and frames the rear windscreen, giving the car a distinctive targa-style silhouette when the panels are removed.
And then there’s the bit that really matters: the engine. The Aperta retains the Ferrari 550’s glorious naturally aspirated 5.5-litre V12, which has been reworked by Touring and now produces around 530 bhp at 7000 rpm. Power goes exclusively to the rear wheels through a six-speed gated manual gearbox, operated via a traditional chrome gear lever. Performance is properly brisk, with a claimed 0 to 100 kph time of 4.4 seconds and a top speed of 285 kph. Touring has also upgraded the chassis with a reinforced structure, Brembo brakes and TracTive adaptive suspension, while the bodywork is made extensively from carbonfibre.
Visually, very little of the original 550 remains untouched. The front end has been redesigned with new lighting and a revised grille, while the sides and rear receive extensively reworked body panels. The long bonnet, low-slung cabin and muscular rear haunches, however, retain the basic character of the original Ferrari. The example shown at Monterey is finished in Alba White, a shade inspired by Touring’s cars from the 1960s, including the Maserati 3500 GT. The cabin gets a mixture of leather, aluminium and handcrafted details, with the featured car combining white and burgundy tones. There’s even an ‘Aperta’ script made from solid 24-karat gold.
Touring describes the Veloce12 as a grand tourer rather than a hardcore sports car, and that philosophy carries over to the Aperta. There’s 326 litres of luggage space, enough for two people to disappear for a weekend, with bespoke luggage also available from Rimowa and Giosa Milano.
The Veloce12 Aperta may start life as a Ferrari 550 Maranello, but Touring Superleggera has turned it into something far more special. It’s not the fastest, newest or most technologically advanced GT out there, but that isn’t the point. The Veloce12 Aperta gives you an NA Ferrari V12, three pedals and the sky above your head, wrapped in beautifully crafted Italian coachwork. And that makes it rather difficult not to love.
