The 720bhp Ferrari 296 GT Modificata shows us what we're missing out on
Ferrari launches its latest Modificata with a take on the 296 GT3 Evo, lifting the lid on the 3-litre V6 for unrestricted performance
In 2020 Ferrari launched the 488 GT Modificata as a more accessible, unrestricted take on its 488 GT3 racer, built for drivers of all abilities for use in its Club Competizioni GT programme at circuits around the world. Six years on, the same formula has been applied to the 296 GT3 Evo launched at the beginning of this year to create the new 296 GT Modificata.
Shown for the first time at the Ferrari Racing Days event in Budapest, it now sits alongside the 499 P Modificata (a de-restricted version of Ferrari’s highly successful Le Mans-winning racer) in the lineup, and it shares more than just a badge. The 296 GT Modificata comes with not only the same basic 3-litre twin-turbocharged V6 as the 499, but new hardware developed using know-how from the Le Mans Hypercar programme.
> The Ferrari 499P Modificata is a derestricted Le Mans car you can buy
At its heart is the 3-litre twin-turbocharged V6 seen in the road car, but without the hybrid system, or any of the restrictions imposed upon the GT3 racer. As a result, power stands at 720bhp and 590lb ft, 128bhp more than the GT3 car and only 100bhp short of the fully fledged hybrid road car. This just goes to show what’s possible without the need to lean on a hybrid system, something that has long been rumoured to be coming to Ferrari’s road-going lineup. Time will tell.
Tweaks to the camshafts, intercoolers and turbochargers were made to achieve this, with the turbo internals specifically unique to the Modificata and derived from the 499P. The fuel system has been optimised for higher flow, while the six-speed sequential has received new ratios and a low-pressure fuel pump added for reliability.
Aerodynamics have been overhauled too, most notably at the rear with an entirely new centre-mounted wing with structural endplates inspired by the 499P. There’s a new slotted splitter for improved downforce too, with a unique bonnet designed to boost cooling. Its higher power output and varied use case makes cooling a particularly high priority with the Modificata, and so additional brake cooling ducts have also been integrated to feed fresh air to its new steel brakes. Despite all of this, it weighs just 1330kg dry, 80kg more than a 296 GT3 Evo, but 140kg less than a 296 GTB.
The cabin is as bare as you’d expect from a GT3-derived track car, but there are some neat features added for its new use. There’s a passenger seat to allow drivers to share the experience, or carry an instructor, with integrated intercom, additional cabin cooling and a host of extra sensors for the likes of air speed and brake temperatures designed to allow for a detailed debrief after a session on track. Buyers can even option a rear radar system to warn them of fast approaching traffic.
Ferrari has proven that the 296 has what it takes to compete at the top level of GT racing with some impressive results, but even so, its maker claims that this new Modificata is quicker still. In the right hands, it’s said to be able to lap Fiorano 3 seconds quicker than the GT3… now let’s just hope it brings a similar formula to the road.
