An Unused Ferrari 458 V8 Is The Engine Your Project Car Needs
When you’re looking at engine swaps for your big project build, common sense says to take it easy. Look at small-block American V8s, or something easily-sourced with four cylinders and a turbo. Hell, if you’re feeling adventurous, get hold of a rotary engine out of a scrapped RX-8.
You don’t normally consider the legendary 4.5-litre, 9000rpm-capable V8 from the Ferrari 458. They don’t exactly shower the used engine market like pigeon poo in Trafalgar Square. This one is, therefore, a pretty unique find – and it’s not even used. In fact it’s extraordinarily unused.
This fully-functional 458 engine was used as a display piece and has never been given a car to power. This icon of naturally-aspirated engine history was the unit that finally beat Honda’s F20C to the title of highest specific output for an engine without forced induction, with 124bhp per litre to the S2000 engine’s 118bhp per litre.
And yet, this one has never turned a crank in anger. Its 562bhp and 398lb ft of torque have never been tapped. That, good CTzens, is a crime against the car gods. This engine is special, and it needs to be built into something even more special. It’s going under RM Sotheby’s hammer on 12 May in Monaco, during the grand prix weekend.
It’s the block only, complete with stand. You’d need to fashion everything around it, from the gearbox to the induction and exhaust pipework, not to mention all the wiring and ECU gubbins.
The F136 FB was loosely descended from the F136 E in the older F430. With 191cc extra the FB evolution added almost 80bhp, helped by a host of revisions and improvements to the internals. Direct injection was a huge change for the 458 era.
There was also an FL version that went into the 458 Speciale variants. It had exotic engine components that pushed power up to 597bhp, but this is the regular version. Ah well, I guess we’ll have to make do. If you could buy it, what would you put it into?
Source: CarScoops
Comments
I got 20 cents. That about it
Bet everyone thought of this
Ah, UNoriginal
Yep
Dem pixels
For sure. The gt4586 is great👌
I’d like to digress
It is time to become Ryan Tuerck
Nahhhhh
But now mix it with Driftworks and mate the Ferrari engine to an AE86
Cue the ‘deja vu’ music.
dumps it into a BMW isetta
Vietnam-esk forza flashbacks play
lol
Or I could just buy it and dump it in the middle of my living room and admire it EVERY DAMN DAY
it’s still not getting used though… They want it to ROAR all 562bhp
Is no one going to mention that the mazda rx8 actually had a higher horspower per liter ratio than both the 458 and s2000?
Lol, but this is a red V8…….. And would probably be a better swap as the Rotary is pretty hard to swap
No-one’s gonna mention, because no-one cares.
So what? How is it relevant? Why would anyone talk about that?
Technically you are right, but some people say that you should multiply the claimed displacement of a rotary by 2 for a closer estimate…
They mean for a piston engine I think. Also, it has a lot more torque.
Why stop there? Buy a Ferrari F1 car (preferably one with a screaming V10 or V12), take out the engine and use that! 900hp from an engine weighing 100kg or less! Getting it road-legal might be an issue though…
Just don’t drive it in the city. Or around people who care, problem solved lmao
But that V8 can probably run more than 1000 km before having to be replaced.
The frequent engine rebuilds and needing to heat it 24/7 could be an issue as well.
Put it in to a F355
Probably also cheaper than maintaining a stock F355…
Would i be able to fit this into a Fiat 500?
If a Murcielago V12 can, so can this.
actually i am kinda diggin swaping this into an rx8
you know nfs u2 mw and carbon when you upgraded the engine it had the f355 sound