A rare Ferrari once owned by Jamiroquai frontman Jay Kay is up for sale with just 3,000 miles on the clock.
The rare Ferrari 599 GTO (of which only 599 units were built) is expected to fetch around £650,000.
However, buyers are warned that it would be sheer madness to attempt to drive the supercar in the rain.
A rare Ferrari 599 GTO once owned by Jamiroquai frontman Jay Kay is up for sale for £650,000 and has just 3,000 miles on the clock.
Jay Kay, whose disco-inspired band Jamiroquai had several chart-topping hits in the 1990s and 2000s, bought his 599 GTO a few years after its original owner…
The Ferrari 599 GTO was announced in 2010 and at the time was the fastest road car ever produced – it can accelerate from 0-62mph in under 3.35 seconds and easily reach a top speed of over 208mph.
The Ferrari 599 GTO was announced in 2010 and, at the time, was the fastest road car ever produced.
Step on the accelerator and you can hit 62 mph in less than 3.35 seconds and continue on to top out at 208 mph at full throttle.
Jay Kay, whose disco-inspired band Jamiroquai had several chart-topping hits in the 1990s and 2000s, purchased his 599 GTO a few years after its original owner.
But, in the words of one of the pop star’s singles, he clearly only loved the car with a lowercase L, as there are only a measly 2,800 kilometers on the odometer 13 years after the car left the showroom.
Although the lack of mileage isn’t much of a surprise given that Ferrari mechanics reportedly told Jeremy Clarkson (who reviewed the car for Top Gear in 2011) that it’s impossible to drive in rainy conditions.
Despite the criticism, the car is one of only two finished in Nero DS black paint with a Giallo yellow racing stripe, which is likely to spark interest from car collectors around the world.
The listing is carried by DK Engineering, who commented on the car.
‘When it was produced in 2010, Ferrari announced that the 599 GTO was its fastest road car yet, capable of lapping the Fiorano test circuit in one minute and 24 seconds, a full second faster than the Ferrari Enzo,’ the listing reads.
‘Its engine produces an astonishing 661 hp at 8,250 rpm, with 460 lb-ft of torque at 6,500 rpm.
‘The 599 GTO can accelerate from 0 to 62 mph in less than 3.35 seconds and easily reach a top speed of over 208 mph.
‘This example was delivered new to its first owner by HR Owen Ferrari of Brompton Road, London on 24th September 2011.
‘Opted in Nero DS with a Giallo racing livery, it is understood to be one of two examples built in this configuration and the only European example.’
The name “GTO” (Gran Turismo Omologata) immediately conjures up two Ferraris that have entered the collective imagination as symbols of performance.
The car is one of just 599 examples built and is reportedly one of two finished in Nero DS with a Giallo racing stripe, which is likely to spark interest among car collectors around the world.
Jay, in the words of one of the pop star’s hit singles, clearly only loved the car with a lowercase L, as the odometer only registers a paltry 2,800 miles 13 years after the car left the showroom.
The lack of mileage isn’t much of a surprise given that Ferrari mechanics reportedly told Jeremy Clarkson (who reviewed the car for Top Gear in 2011) that it’s impossible to drive in rainy conditions.
Following the 1962 250 GTO, which took GT racing classes by storm in the 1960s and is now a highly prized collector’s car, came the iconic 1984 288 GTO, which practically invented the entire modern supercar genre.
Ferrari has only given the GTO name to three cars, the most recent being the 599. Each GTO was based on a track car: the 599 GTO was based on the 599 GTB Fiorano chassis, but is essentially the road-going version of the 599XX race car.
The 599 GTO weighs 100kg less than the standard GTB thanks to a strict diet, similar to other recent Ferrari lightweight models such as the 430 Scuderia.
The entire car has received design revisions from the standard GTB, including the front, sides, flat underbody and cooling flows.
In the latter case, the GTO can count on improved handling from the brake discs and pads, and the adoption of wheel donuts: a disc located outside the brake disc that ensures that the hot air exiting the wheel arch is kept as close as possible to the car’s body to reduce drag; again, a feature borrowed directly from the FXX.
Some links in this article may be affiliate links. If you click on them we may earn a small commission. This helps us fund This Is Money and keep it free to use. We do not write articles to promote products. We do not allow any commercial relationships to affect our editorial independence.
