1989 Ferrari Testarossa

Max is the vendor of this late 1989 iconic Ferrari Testarossa, and has been the owner for the past 5 years. He purchased the Testarossa to tick it off his Ferrari’s to own list. Having purchased the vehicle the vendor hasn’t really driven it a great deal, as can be seen from the MoT mileage history. Instead it’s been left in indoor storage to be visually enjoyed with the occasional outing.

Since getting the Ferrari in 2016, Max has had some detailing and cosmetics carried out in the engine bay, which included the powdercoating of the inlet manifolds sitting at the heart of the 4.9 litre V12. The fuel system was also fully stripped and re-assembled, and a service to finish things off.

The Ferrari was listed as a Category D in July 2005, when the insurers at the time decided not to repair it. The Car however was repaired successfully and fully inspected in October 2005, and there is the relevant paperwork to back this up.

The Pininfarina designed body is something of a work of art, with the side strakes spanning from the door onto the quarters and to the ultra cool pop-up headlights. It oozes supercar before you even look at the engine side of things.

Starting at the front of this 80’s Supercar, yes it has had some paintwork carried out around 2005, but it does look stunning and everything looks to align as it should. There is a small split in the offside indicator lens, but the rest of the lights are in good order. There are a couple of stone chips to mention and the nearside headlight has a scratch on the light unit which can only be seen when raised. Moving up to the windscreen and top of the wings, the screen is free from any noticeable chips in the line of vision. We did notice a crack just by the rear view mirror and also there is an age related split in the paint where the wing meets the A pillar.

From the side, and Wow, you instantly know what it is thanks to the side strakes allowing all that cold air into the twin water cooled radiators. The doors align as they should, with the fins on the strakes matching up equal and even to both sides. The side windows are in good condition with just a small amount of perishing to the window rubbers.

To the huge, wide rear end, equally as famous as the side profile for many of us who have played Sega Outrun, this was the classic view you had of the Testarossa. The grilles over the lights are in good order, with the engine cover aligning as it should. There are no scuffs to mention to the bumper and the quad tailpipes are in good order.

The original 10 x 16 and 8 x 16 five spoke alloy wheels are all in excellent condition with no obvious signs of any corrosion or damage. The tyres are of an age that we would say need to be replaced.

The finest Italian cream hide greets you as you open the door of the Testarossa, with red carpets. Lower yourself down into the high bolstered, firm supportive seats and sit behind the prancing horse Momo steering wheel - this is certainly a nice place to be.

Starting off with the seats in this Italian Supercar, there are some signs of patina, especially noted on the driver’s seat which is often found on any low seating vehicle of this age. There is also a small amount of stitching that has come undone to the top corner of the seat. The passenger side does have less patina to show, as do the matching door cards which are in good condition.

The dashboard is in excellent order, with no splits or cracks to be seen. The instruments are nice and clear and working as you would expect. As you move along the dashboard and down the centre console the odometer shows a reading of just 20,904 miles, which ties in with the MoT mileage history, and the switches show little signs of any wear.

The red carpet adds a nice contrast to the cream leather which is in good condition, although there is a small patch which is worn by the clutch pedal. Up above, and the headlining is clean and in place as it should be. Black carpet is in the front storage area, together with a pioneer CD multichanger.

The 4.9 litre V12 is reported to be running just as it should. It did require the battery to be charged, which we suspect may need replacing, but once charged and running it sounds fantastic with no untoward noises coming from the silky smooth V12. With a 0-60 mph in 5.2 seconds and a top speed of 180mph, when driving the Testarossa you know you have stepped into the world of Supercars.

The gear change is reported to be precise and direct through the gaited 5-speed manual gearbox. The car stops as well as it goes having had new pads and discs fitted just a few thousand miles ago, although this was a number of years ago due to the little mileage accumulated each year.

As mentioned earlier, the vendor has had the engine bay detailed to freshen it up in 2016. This involved the powdercoating of the inlet manifolds and highlighted red areas painted, and there were also new badges fitted.

The underside has some areas of surface corrosion as you would expect of any vehicle this age. There did not appear to be any leaks coming from any of the suspension dampers, engine or gearbox at the time of our inspection.

With just 20,904 miles, this 1989 Ferrari Testarossa has been well maintained, regardless of the mileage it has covered, which is backed up with a service booklet and a number of invoices for work carried out and parts, which can be seen in the documents section.

There is an invoice from just 2,000 miles ago for the timing belts, tensioners and ancillary belts being replaced, along with an oil change, and a further 200 miles later the clutch assembly was also replaced.

Although Max has not covered many miles in the Ferrari it has been a thing of beauty to own, which Max has enjoyed. Regular starting has seen that everything has kept free and moving.

Can or should a Ferrari be any other colour than Red? Or in particular, Rosso Corsa? That's one we will let you decide between yourselves, at The Market we are currently undecided.

This is it! Now is your chance to own what you and every other young petrol head had on their bedroom wall throughout the 80’s and 90's. The fantastic iconic Supercar Ferrari Testarossa.

It’s a car you will feel connected with. There are no driver-assist aids to concern yourself with, it is a case of what you see is what you get, and you get a lot! Planted on the road with the raw power and sweet intoxicating sound from the 4.9 litre V12.

We estimate that this 1989 Ferrari Testarossa will bring in the region of £115,000 - £130,000.

Viewing is always encouraged, and this car is located at our headquarters near Abingdon; we are open weekdays between 9am-5pm, so to arrange an appointment please use the ‘Contact Seller’ button at the top of the listing to make an appointment. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.