Exclusive Edition Ford GT versus Signature Series Ferrari FXX K Evo
aluminum subframes are race-grade stuff. Stylistically the flying buttress C-pillars over sculpted air channels are both beautiful and functional. Maisto’s paint quality is often better than expected, and the Exclusive Edition’s is better still, although there is a single speck on the left rear fender where a tiny bit of the orange paint used for the stripes appears to have splattered. This 2018 car carries heritage colors celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Gulf Racing GT40 no. 9’s win in 1968.
The “Evo” suffix on the FXX K denotes an extensive suite of aerodynamic updates introduced in 2018. The most obvious change is the full-width multi-element rear wing bisected by a shark fin center spine with little vortex generators along its sides, improving the Ferrari’s downforce by 23 percent—pressing the car into the 2018 Ferrari FXX K Evo
Bburago (Signature Series)
Modern Supercar 1:18 $65 tarmac with more than 1800 pounds at speed while improving straight line stability and cornering grip. There are some revisions to the dive planes and air channels up front to help balance, all of which the model captures. The FXX K is loosely based on the roadgoing LaFerrari road car but the body is quite different—its array of scoops, vents, channels and wings is dizzingly complex, and the paint and decal scheme that highlights it is deceptively tricky as well. Bburago’s execution is outstanding, eclipsing that of the simpler Ford.
The cockpits of these two cars are actually quite similar. They share similar carbon tub construction, with butterfly doors that carry significant sections of the aerodynamic under-tray up and out to increase accessibility. Both cars also feature large info screens
on the center stack. Ford’s combines a street car’s infotainment functions while Ferrari’s is focused on performance data and settings—the only audio entertainment FXX K drivers need is the song of its V-12! The Ford has nice paint contrast, big shifter paddles and a well-sculpted steering wheel which would look racy next to any other wheel except the FXX K’s, whose yoke shape and cluster of labeled switches and dials looks straight out of an F1 car! That plus contrasting paint on the drilled pedal set and the high-visibility carbon fiber finish give the Ferrari the edge over the still excellent GT’s interior.
Ford looks to its incredibly versatile D35 twin-turbo 3.5L EcoBoost V-6 for thrust. Versions of that mill power everything from Lincoln
SUVs to the rambunctious Raptor off-road truck. In the GT it’s good for 647hp and 216mph! It offers significant packaging advantages in an engine bay cramped by those air channels in the rear bodywork. For all its virtues on thing the D35 is not is a looker. The engine cover is tiny, and underneath it the V-6 is almost entirely shrouded in carbon fiber panels. By contrast the electromechanical wizardry of the Ferrari is something to behold. The rear third of the body levers up to reveal the hybrid drivetrain it shares the LaFerrari, pairing a 6.3L V-12 with an electric motor linked to a Kinetic Energy Recovery System (the ‘K’ in the name). The V-12 alone makes 200hp more than the GT’s EcoBoost V-6, and the electric motor boosts that by another 188hp for a combined 1036hp. Long carbon fiber pattern intake snorkels feed twin plenums dressed with painted throttle-bodies and chrome ‘Ferrari” scripts. A trio of bright orange cables snake from the passenger side to a module perched atop the 7speed dual-clutch transaxle which also houses the hybrid system. It falls short of the redheaded beauty of a vintage Colombo V-12, but the FXX K’s engine bay is by far the more interesting of these two.
No modern supercar has much to see on the chassis, what with flat-bottom undertrays de rigueur for creating downforce. As such, the race-grade, long-arm pushrod suspensions must be left to our imaginations aside from hidden but functional springs. Brakes, wheels and tires are in full view though, and all eight are great.
Detail on the carbon ceramic brakes is a touch better on the Ford due to better drill holes and the brighter paint on the Brembo calipers. Wheels are a toss-up: equal in quality so take your pick on the pattern. The sidewall markings on the bespoke Pirelli slicks make the Ferrari’s tires more visually arresting, but the Ford’s tires are right there too and I think the Ford’s stance looks more true to life, so a slight advantage to the Ford here.
The factory Ford and Ferrari race teams first met head to head in 1964; it would take three years and untold millions for the Detroit giant to vanquish its Italian adversary at Le Mans. It holds those memories dear enough to spend hundreds of millions more to develop a new car specifically to reprise the accomplishment for its 50th anniversary. For Ferrari excellence—on-track and off—is in its DNA. One way it maintains its winning ways is with constant testing and development. The XX program has been a way to radically expand that testing regimen by effectively crowdfunding it! The car they have built for the task is a testament to the commitment to a first-class effort in everything it does. And Bburago has put forth a first-class effort of its own, crafting a model that presents well above its $65 or so asking price. Maisto’s upscale GT is a good value, which makes the Signature Series FXX K Evo that much more impressive.