Based in Maranello, the luxury performance car manufacturer was founded by Enzo Ferrari in 1939. Built as the racing division for Alfa Romeo, Ferrari started producing race cars in the early 1940s. The luxury manufacturer has changed owners over the years but has remained focused on its core goals in both motorsports and on the road. As the oldest and most successful Formula One team, Ferrari has leveraged its fame and success to create some of the most spectacular supercars the world has ever seen.

Interested in learning more about the legendary Italian automaker? You're in the right place. Here's everything you need to know about Ferrari.

10 Based In Maranello

View from my Hotel balcony
Jason Grunsell

Ferrari can trace its roots back to 1939 in Maranello, Italy. Founded by racing car enthusiast, Enzo Ferrari, the brand was designed to be the racing division of Alfa Romeo. The automaker built its first car in 1940 while the first car to wear the official Ferrari badge was released in 1947.

ferrari factory
Via: Flickr

Ferrari operated alongside Alfa Romeo for a long time, with Enzo owning and controlling the entire company. However, Fiat purchased 50% of Ferrari in 1969 and increased its stake in the automaker to 90% in the late 80s. However, the company was later unbundled and listed on the New York Stock Exchange separately.

9 Roots In Motorsport

Race A2 ACM
Via: ACM.MC

From the very beginning, Ferrari was dedicated to the world of motorsport. The very first cars Ferrari made were racing cars that competed in several events and competitions around Europe. It's widely known that Ferrari only expanded into road cars to financially support its motorsport ambitions.

Ferrari 412 P
via: Reddit

This saw the eventual birth of Scuderia Ferrari, the official racing division of the Italian luxury brand. The company decided to split its operations as its road cars became more and more popular around the world. Scuderia Ferrari competed in several different classes, with the most popular being its participation in Formula One.

Related: Here’s The Real Reason Why Valentino Rossi Did Not Race For Ferrari In F1

8 An Iconic Color

1992 Ferrari F40 (Red) - Front
Mecum Auctions

Enzo Ferrari once said that if you tell a child to draw a sports car, they will color it red. This refers directly to the popularity and fame of the Ferrari brand. From the early 40s, Ferrari was known to paint their cars in a bright red color when competing in various competitions around the world.

Ferrari 296 GT3, red, side profile view
Via: Ferrari

Known as Maranello Red or just Ferrari Red, the color has become iconic in its own right. While the color itself has evolved over the years, it's shared throughout the brand and is even the official color of the Scuderia Ferrari Formula One team.

7 Rivalry With Ford

Ferrari and Ford dominated the LeMans 24 Hour
Via: 24 Heures du Mans

Ferrari quickly became one of the most famous automakers in the world. However, its operations were small and focused almost entirely on racing. This left the Italian automaker with massive financial issues that seemed impossible to handle by themselves. These troubles saw the Ford Motor Company approach Ferrari to buy them out.

via guideautoweb.com

Enzo Ferrari was approached by the Ford Motor Company in 1963 to buy out the entire company. At this time, Ford did not have a performance division and hoped that Ferrari would add to their portfolio in that way. However, the deal fell through and caused a rivalry between the two brands. This rivalry went on to encourage Ford to build the Ford GT40 in 1964.

Related: This Is The Best Feature Of The Ferrari 296 GT3

6 Part Of Stellantis

Maranello Factory
via Autocar Magazine

While the deal to sell Ferrari to Ford did not go through, the company did eventually sell a significant share to Fiat. This company eventually became the Fiat Chrysler Company and then consolidated to form Stellantis in 2021. This was the result of a merger between Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the PSA Group from France.

via Dave Yoder

This created a singular company responsible for some of the world's most popular brands. This included Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroen, Dodge, Fiat, Jeep, Lancia, DS, Opel, Ram, Vauxhall, Mopar, and Maserati. Notably, Ferrari does not form part of the company as it was unbundled to trade freely on the NYSE. Despite this, Stellantis remains a shareholder.

5 Oldest Formula 1 Team

Ferrari Formula 1 car of Canadian driver Gilles Villeneuve.
Jason Grunsell

Scuderia Ferrari is the official racing division of Ferrari. This racing team competes in several different competitions, but the most impressive achievements have been in Formula One. Ferrari has competed in Formula One from the very first Grand Prix at the 1950 British Grand Prix.

Red 2010 Ferrari F10
Takayuki Suzuki Via Flickr 

In addition to being the oldest Formula One team on the grid, Ferrari is also the most successful team to ever take part in the competition. The team holds the record for the most Constructors' Championships at 16 and the most Drivers' Championships at 15. Competing in over 1,000 Grand Prix, Ferrari has won more than any other team and has secured more podiums than any other team in history as well.

Related: These Are The 5 Best Ferrari F1 Cars Ever Made (And The 5 Worst)

4 A Luxury Brand

Ferrari 2
Via Ferrari

Ferrari does not just make luxury cars, for the last few decades, Ferrari has been expanding its brand to include various luxury items. This includes luxury merchandise for their motorsport teams but also stand-alone luxury items such as shirts, jackets, and premium watches.

Ferrari-1
Via Ferrari 

Ferrari also owns unique licensing for its image, logo, and designs. This has resulted in the brand signing major licensing deals with toy companies such as Lego for official merchandise. Ferrari is also incredibly protective of its image as it pursues other commercial opportunities to position itself in the luxury space.

Related: 10 Reasons Why We Love The Ferrari Daytona SP3

3 Strict Ownership Rules

Philipp Plein Green Ferrari
 via Twitter

Ferrari is known to protect its image at all costs. This is one of the reasons it's so difficult to purchase a Ferrari in the first place. Especially with new models, Ferrari handpicks owners that already own Ferraris. In addition to this, Ferrari is known to police the way owners use its cars in order to maintain the right image.

Philipp Plein Ferrari Sneakers
via TheVerge

This was brought to light in 2017 when a fashion designer, Phillipp Plein, lost a lawsuit against Ferrari. This was because the designer took photos of his new line of shoes on his Ferrari 812 and used them to promote his brand on social media. The court heard that this tarnished the reputation of Ferrari and Plein was made to pay damages to the Italian automaker.

2 Eco-Friendly Supercars

 Ferrari Roma
via Ferrari

Just like many of the other premium automakers, Ferrari has dedicated serious resources to creating hybrid and electric powertrain options for its new supercars. The Ferrari LaFerrari was introduced with hybrid components and laid the foundations for Ferrari to release their first-ever plug-in hybrid supercar, the SF90 Stradale.

 Ferrari Roma
via Ferrari

The SF90 Stradale may only have an electric range of just 16 miles, but the electric motors and the regenerative system are used to extract every drop of performance from the overall package. The impressive PHEV comes with a combined power output of 986 HP, making it one of the most powerful supercars in the world.

1 Limited-Edition Works Of Art

Ferrari-Daytona_SP3-2022-Right Front
Via: Netcarshow

Ferrari makes some of the most beautiful and rare supercars the world has ever seen. While some of these cars are engineering marvels, others can simply be described as collectible works of art. Ferrari has made several limited-edition vehicles over the years, consistently pushing the boundaries of what the Italian automaker is capable of.

ferrari250gtos2rm-1
Ferrari

While some of the older Ferraris are incredibly rare today, the most expensive collectible by far is the 1963 Ferrari 250 GTO. This model is responsible for the four most expensive Ferraris ever sold, with the 1963 model fetching $70.2 million at an auction in 2018.