1998 Ferrari 355 Factory Challenge Car Found in Mesa

1998 Ferrari 355 Factory Challenge Car Typ A Evoluzione

Spotted in Mesa, Arizona is a 1998 Ferrari 355 Factory Challenge Car for $185,000 USD.   The seller states this is 1 of 40 Evoluzione Challenge cars in the world.   It has only 11,874 original miles on the car and as all Challenge cars is equipped with a 6 speed manual transmission.  Two brothers did the research and restored this car back to factory specs.  It looks to have extensive race history and documentation.

What do you think of this car?

VIN – ZFFXR41A0W0111869

Odometer 11,874 Miles

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Pros

It’s one of the most heavily, and famously, sponsored Ferrari F355 Challenge Cars in the North American Series. It’s sponsors included:

• Discovery Channel – John Hendricks
• Speedvision – Roger Werner – became Speed Channel then Fox Sports
• STARZ!, BET, Encore Media, Showtime, The Movie Channel – John Sie
• Commscope – Frank Drendel – designs and builds the connectivity for many of the world’s most advanced cable and internet networks.
• General Instrument – specializing in semiconductors and cable television equipment – past CEO was Donald Rumsfeld… / Acquired by Google then Arris
• Antec – John Egan – pioneered development of optical products for the cable television industry / Acquired Nortel then changed name to Arris

1. Original owner / driver was Tim Robertson – The Family Channel CEO, Co-founder of Major League Lacrosse, and son of evangelist minister and presidential candidate Pat Robertson
2. Car is a factory built Challenge Car and is one of 40 Final Evoluzione versions – authentically restored with all original parts and correct livery.
3. Fully documented race history, maintenance and ownership history.
4. Very well maintained example – It has a new gas tank and all new fuel lines – those two simple items should tell you plenty on it’s current condition and caretakers.
5. Lower mileage example
6. No Check Engine Lights. No Slowdown Lights.
7. Honest, knowledgable Seller, and regular on Ferrarichat.com with multiple F355 in the same garage

Car has the following Upgrades

1. Steel Valve Guides
2. Factory Challenge Exhaust (designed similarly to a Tubi) – including original Challenge Exhust (the straight-pipe loud one)
3. Fabspeed straight pipes without bypass valve
4. All Plastic Parts (that are known to get sticky) have been refinished and restored with lazer-etched , proper graphics by Sticky RX.

Cons

1. Minor rock chips on nose and 2” crack on front bumper
2. Typical buttress cracks seen on all F355 berlinettas
3. Undertray fiberglass has some chips from track curbing
4. Leather pulling on dash pod
5. Crack in windshield under passenger wiper blade area / Rear Window is Plexi – some might call that a pro.

Detailed Maintenance History

1. Rebuilt Engine on new block from FNA – Ferrari of Atlanta
2. Rebuilt Gearbox – March 1999 – Ferrari of Atlanta
3. Replace Clutch and Flywheel – June 1999 – Ferrari of Atlanta
4. Replace Windshield – October 2002 – Ferrari of Atlanta
5. Engine Out / Belts – April 2005 – Lake Forest Sportscars
6. Engine Out / Belts – December 2009 – Lake Forest Sportscars
7. Brake Rotors / Pads – January 2011 – Lake Forest Sportscars
8. Replaced all Fuel lines / hoses / gas tank – January 2012 – Lake Forest Sportscars
9. Engine Out / Belts – February 2015 – Lake Forest Sportscars

Ownership History

1. Tim Robertson – Virginia Beach, Virginia – Feb 1998 thru March 2001, Media CEO and son of evangelist minister and presidential candidate Pat Robertson, also owner of Ferrari 550 Maranello and Ferrari 360 Challenge raced in the series
2. Bob Mayer – Atlanta, Georgia – March 2001 thru May 2003, raced in the SCCA Atlanta T1 series, owner of Ferrari F355 berlinetta
3. Gary Kachadurian – Chicago, Illinois – May 2003 thru Sept 2004, real estate magnet – multiple Ferrari owner including 512tr, F355 berlinetta and others
4. Ken Griffin – Chicago, Illinois – Sept 2004 thru February 2015, CEO of global investment firm “Citadel”, multiple Ferrari owner including LaFerrari, Enzo, etc…
5. Robb Williamson and his brother – February 2015 to Present –Corporate Location Photographer and Doctor, owners of other Ferrari F355 Berlinetta, Ferrari F355 GTS, Ferrari 328 GTS.

Additional Items Included

1. OEM Speedline Challenge Rims in silver – Extra spare Set for additional slicks or rain tires
2. OEM Leather owner’s pouch with all books, manuals, and papers
3. OEM Challenge Rules and Regulation booklets for 1998 and 1999 seasons
4. One OEM Key and One aftermarket copy
5. Two OEM A.E. Lorioli keychain – 1998
6. Original Leather Key Fob from Foreign Cars Italia
7. OEM steering wheel cover, two seat covers, and red nylon carry bag – aftermarket car cover to fit over wing
8. OEM emergency service light
9. OEM Leather stereo blank plate installed in car
10. Original History Monograph with all complete race records and team paperwork
11. Original Team crew Shirt from Race Team
12. Original T-Shirt from Race Team
13. OEM F355 Leather tool case – missing tools, and trays
14. Binder with Hard Copies of all maintenance service records
15. B&W Copy of MSO (Manufacturer Statement of Origin – Certificate of Origin of Vehicle)
16. USB thumb drive with digital copies of all history and records
17. IN-car video of training sessions
18. Digital copy of Montreal Challenge Race in 1998 with letter documentation
19. Historic Photos of car racing in Ferrari Challenge series
20. Current Photos of Car on track

Conclusion

You will find very few Ferrari Challenge cars anywhere in the world more complete. Few F355 Challenge cars come up for sale in a year. When you see one, look closely for what it is “not” coming with. Look at all the parts that are not original or what it is missing. Many of the cars ran in the SCCA racing and lost much originality with changes to the car. Then look to see if it looks like rats have made it home with owners that just did not care and was put away very wet. You will find many challenge cars in this condition. It will take quite a lot of money to bring them back and that is just the aesthetics. We have seen other challenge cars on the track with mechanical difficulties due to lack of use and owner neglect. I’d think most buying a Ferrari for the track would love it to run like an industrial sewing machine – one that just purs and goes and goes, and goes without issues. If a car is missing parts – they are likely to never be seen again. Then there is the question about it’s sponsorship. Was it sponsored by a local dentist or did it have backing like The Discovery Channel, Speedvision, and major Cable Entertainment Channels? It would seem that the latter is likely to look great anywhere and will continue to hold interest and demand throughout the future. Does the car have interesting history more than what place it finished or is there no clue as to it’s original driver and their story of how they got involved in the series?

So if you are looking for a complete car and one that you can proudly put in your collection, look no further. We started with a good Ferrari – it is now a great Ferrari. It’s now up to the new owner to pick and choose how to enjoy. The sky is the limit.

Pricing

F355 Challenge car values seem to float between $100 to 130k for a car without history or if missing many original challenge parts like seats, the roll cage, brakes, etc – or one that looks like it has sat with the rats and was put away wet. There is a huge difference between the lower priced cars and the higher priced cars. There is also a difference in value for the Factory Challenge cars and Evolutione cars which are rarer in number. The nice cars have been sold for as high as $225,000 to collectors in Europe in recent history.  At the recent auction in Maranello, there were very high prices set for Ferrari Challenge and race cars.  A Maserati Trofeo race car also recently sold for a record amount.  So I would think that in the future, the demand for these rare cars and values should continue to increase.

This car is priced at $185,000 based on completeness of records, parts, and famous corporate sponsorship. The car comes with a B&W copy of the MSO which may enable a collector to register the car for street driving – although it is definitely better suited on track with its precise, and tight suspension, lower ground clearance, and other track focused features. It shines on the track and will leave even much newer street Ferrari’s in the dust there. The car is sold with a Bill of Sale without Title because it is a Race Car currently for off-road use only. I am also open to trades of other Ferrari’s, challenge cars or interesting exotics.

If you are a collector or track driver and want a Ferrari Challenge car with unique history and fame, then look no further and just enjoy. Contact me for further information.  You can also find the my contact info from the ad on Ferrarichat and also Hemmings.