What It's Like to Own and Drive a $4 Million Ferrari

James M. Glickenhaus, a general partner in the Wall Street investment-management firm Glickenhaus & Co., has enough clout, wealth and such a remarkable reputation as an avid automotive enthusiast/car collector to prompt a world-renowned Italian design firm to approach him about commissioning a one-off, multimillion-dollar supercar.

About a year ago, online Ferrari enthusiasts were buzzing about a super-secret Ferrari that was reportedly in development. Only three facts were known: It was to be based on the Ferrari Enzo supercar; its design and manufacture would be carried out by Pininfarina in Turin; and Glickenhaus would own the only copy. For months, not even the Ferrari principals in Maranello knew anything more.

It wasn’t until the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in August 2006 that the world got its first uninterrupted gawk at Glickenhaus’ Ferrari P 4/5 by Pininfarina. Jammed together on a broad stage, global automotive paparazzi elbowed and gouged each other for more than an hour, struggling to get the definitive shot of this most-exclusive Ferrari road car in history.

The Ferrari P 4/5 hadn’t even been on a track by the time it was unveiled at Pebble Beach. The car was stunning to look at, but considering that it was based on the formidable Enzo and that its owner, Glickenhaus, has always driven his six-figure sports cars hard over many miles, the P 4/5’s performance potential was tantalizing. Among Glickenhaus’ stunning and rare collection are the only 1967 Ferrari 330 P 3/4 in existence, a 1967 Ferrari 412P, a 1947 Ferrari #002C (the oldest Ferrari in existence and the first Ferrari to win a race), a Lola T70 Can-Am race car driven by racing great Mark Donohue and the Le Mans-race-pole-sitting 1967 Ford Mk. IV that led the first hours of the race and finished fourth overall. Glickenhaus routinely drives them all — on the street. The Ford Mk. IV just underwent its 20,000-mile service.

We caught Glickenhaus climbing out of his Ferrari #002C open race car, halfway through a brisk four-hour late-autumn drive through upstate New York, and asked him about his new $4 million supercar (price including one donor Ferrari Enzo) that was designed and aerodynamically groomed by Pininfarina.

ForbesAutos.com: Now that you’ve put some miles on the P 4/5, what can you say about the way it drives?

Glickenhaus: One of the top priorities with my car was making it completely functional, completely drivable. I didn’t want a show car that looked good but wasn’t practical. It had to start every time and run perfectly without overheating or having problems like that. The windshield wipers and heater and all that had to work … it mustn’t leak in the rain. It had to be a car I could enjoy driving for many years and many thousands of miles.

FA: The P 4/5 began life as a Ferrari Enzo, one of the fastest supercars ever. How does your car compare with the Enzo?

Glickenhaus: The performance of the Enzo is fantastic and for legal-registration reasons, I wanted to keep all the Enzo’s EPA and DOT systems intact. But the Enzo was designed three years ago, and in redesigning the car Pininfarina was able to remove 400 pounds. The car’s aerodynamic balance was greatly improved, as well, and there was a significant reduction in aerodynamic drag. Also, more modern Michelin tires like the ones on the Porsche Carrera GT and Saleen S7 increased the car’s cornering and top-speed potential. Great Ferrari F1 driver René Arnoux track tested the car and was extremely pleased with it. In raw numbers, the Enzo’s zero-to-62 mph time was 3.4 seconds; the P 4/5’s is 3.0 seconds. The Enzo’s top speed was about 225 mph, we estimate 233 mph for the P 4/5.

FA: How does the P 4/5 feel to drive? Give us a driving impression of the new car.

Glickenhaus: First, it’s a lot different than the Enzo. It’s lighter, with bigger wheels and tires, and that means there is much less intervention by the Ferrari traction control — even in the “Race” setting. This makes it more fun to drive. Also, the car turns in more crisply. And on the test track, Arnoux said you could feel the limits very much more clearly. When I’m driving it, the vision of the big, curvaceous front fenders out the windshield is a throwback to the P 3s and P 4s I love. And there is so much glass around you, with such good outward vision, that the car feels less claustrophobic than an Enzo. Since the interior was completely computer-modeled to my dimensions, everything fits me perfectly and is within easy reach. The exhaust note sounds different, too. Changing exhaust-pipe lengths is like tuning a trumpet — you get a different sound. Unlike the Enzo pipes, the P 4/5 pipes are pointed upward at the rear, which lets the exhaust note fill in back to the cab. It’s a little louder — which is even better.

FA: How did you get involved in such an extraordinary project?

Glickenhaus: I was approached by Pininfarina. They wanted to know if I had any interest in commissioning a one-off car from them. It was a fantastic opportunity, and at the same time one that followed long tradition. My Franay-bodied Duesenberg J from the 1930s, for instance, was commissioned as a one-off by the Queen of Yugoslavia. All exotic-car companies must be profitable, even if they’re owned by huge companies; Lamborghini and Bugatti are owned by Volkswagen, but they still have to be run as a business to benefit the stockholders. With my car, though, budget would not be an obstacle. Pininfarina would be set free to show the world its unique design abilities.

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