Skip to main content

How I Spent (Imaginary) $398,000 Designing a Custom Ferrari

I recently enjoyed the opportunity of “spending” $398,000 in about an hour’s worth of time. How? By custom designing a Ferrari F8 Tributo thanks to the Ferrari Tailor-Made program. The good news is that it was all just for fun and to learn about the process of custom designing a Ferrari. The bad news is that I’m not getting my custom F8, which will remain nothing more than a digital rendering that lives in my heart.

New York’s new Ferrari Tailor Made space is one of only three places in the world where you can enjoy this almost laughably luxurious experience. The other Tailor Made locations are at the Ferrari factory in Italy and in Shanghai. Thus customers who won’t settle for an as-is Ferrari from the lot are beginning to flock to the corner of Park Avenue and 55th Street. Okay, maybe flock is a strong word, but when one does want to build his or her own custom supercar, Ferrari of New York is where one will head.

Ferrari 488 Pista Tailor Made
Ferrari 488 Pista Ferrari

When you enter the showroom, you are met with several gorgeous Ferraris (I noted an F8 Tributo and GTC4Lusso) arranged about a spacious but elegantly simple room. The cars are the statements here. For clients only interested in a moderate level of customization — say, choosing from a dozen different types of leather for the seats — a 20-by-20-foot room on the right-hand side of the main showroom awaits. There, you can pick and choose from among a number of steering wheel options, upholstery details, exterior colors, and so on.

Recommended Videos

But for the true hands-on custom-designed Tailor-Made experience, you step into the room in the back. There, you can take inspiration from three different stations with a number of carefully curated customizable elements laid out. Inspiration is there at the ready for you whether you prefer a classically informed car, a sportier, racing-inspired vehicle, or a modern and sleek Ferrari.

Ferrari Portofino Tailor Made
Ferrari Portofino Ferrari

But don’t worry if inspiration doesn’t strike or if you didn’t come in knowing just what you wanted, you will have a personal designer to walk you through every step of the way. From dozens of different exterior color options arranged in panels on the wall to multiple choices for seat type to the color and accents on the dashboard to the stitching on your seats, you and your designer will work through every step of the process to create exactly the Ferrari you want.

But hey, what if you don’t see a paint color you like? Or if none of the upholstery quite suits you? No problem. Ferrari can create new original colors and can use a fabric you bring in to create the seating. Within reason, that is. There will never be a pink Ferrari produced nor one with, say, fleece seats. This is a custom process, but the carmaker has certain standards that won’t flex.

Ferrari 812 Superfast Tailor Made
Ferrari 812 Superfast Ferrari

The F8 I designed wasn’t particularly lavish and I kept the colors and details rather demure, yet the customizations added nearly a hundred grand to the price of the vehicle. And they would have added at least six months’ lead time, as well. Some customers must wait a year for their custom car, but when you’re spending enough money to buy a house on a nice plot of land, you may be willing to be patient.

Or in my case, you have to settle for a PDF of the vehicle you designed but will only drive in your mind. At least I can do that any time…

Steven John
Steven John is a writer and journalist living just outside New York City, by way of 12 years in Los Angeles, by way of…
The heavenly F80: Ferrari’s newest halo car
The F80 is the fastest and most expensive yet
Ferrari F80

In our ever-expanding, attention-deficient world, we have been conditioned always to demand, "What's next?! " The lifecycles of every kind of product, from insulated water bottles to smartwatches, have slowly been cut down so that manufacturers can capitalize on the novelty of the next new thing. But there are tiers of reactions, depending on what that new item happens to be.

While a new iPhone or PlayStation typically raises exceptional amounts of fanfare among each's respective fan base, when it comes to a brand-new, top-tier Ferrari, the entire world stops and gasps at the sight of one. Even non-car people who don't fully understand what they're looking at will know the new Ferrari F80 is special. Picking up where it left off with the amazing SF90 Stradale and Spyder, Ferrari took what it learned about hybrid powertrains and literally and figuratively ratcheted up the power and performance to create the latest and greatest hyper-horse-halo-car.
The Ferrari F80 is the great, great-grandchild of the iconic F40

Read more
Lock in an F1 Experience at the Las Vegas Grand Prix 2024
Choose your level of indulgence for the Las Vegas Grand Prix
Paddock Club at the F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

There are now three weeks to lock in your 2024 F1 Las Vegas Grand Prix tickets from November 21 to 23. Las Vegas is a city built for entertainment with a vast selection of facilities and venues, so it's no surprise there are many options and opportunities to view the race. If you plan to attend the race but haven't yet bought your tickets, F1 Experiences, the official hospitality provider for all Formula 1 races, has a four-tiered range of inclusive packages with circuit views, cuisine, entertainment, and curated race-related experiences such as paddock tours, and photo ops.
Why F1 Experience tickets make sense
F1® Experiences | Las Vegas Grand Prix 2023 | Las Vegas Strip Circuit
F1 Experiences packages aren't limited to venues and hospitality services for individual casinos or hotel groups. Ticket package options can include a mix of venues so fans can choose a variety of circuit views and facilities.

There are four F1 Experiences ticket package tiers, each with many options related to F1 teams or facilities. The four tiers are:

Read more
The 2024 Lincoln Corsair: Full-sized luxury in a neat little package
All the luxury touches of its big brothers, with a far better driving experience
Front 3/4 view of a black 2024 Lincoln Corsair on a bridge

When it comes to luxury SUVs, the three-row seems to be king. Everyone seems to opt for something mid-sized or full-sized, even if their friends and family won’t be taking up all seven seats or they won’t be transporting enough junk to justify the extended trunk space. But after spending a week in the 2024 Lincoln Corsair, I’m set on the fact it may be worth considering something smaller.

The comfort and luxury is all there, and the driving experience is far better overall. Plus, beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but the crossover segment may have more styling options than larger alternatives--which either go down the Land Cruiser or Range Rover route when it comes to appearances. The 2024 Corsair left a bit of an impression on me, and here are some reasons you may like it, too.
It packs a notable punch

Read more